Finances

In 2025-26, Stanford is a $10.3 billion enterprise. This figure represents the university’s consolidated budget for operations, a compilation of all annual operating and restricted budgets that support teaching, scholarship, and research, including the budgets of all schools and administrative areas and the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory. It does not include the $0.4 billion capital budget and excludes the budget for Stanford Health Care and Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital. Visit the Stanford Business Affairs website.

Sources of Funds for FY 2025–26

Expenditures for FY 2025-26

Endowment

Stanford’s $40.8 billion endowment (as of Aug. 31, 2025) provides an enduring source of financial support to fulfill the university’s mission of teaching, learning, and research. In fiscal year 2025, the endowment disbursed $1.9 billion, nearly double the $1.1 billion disbursed in 2015, to support vital academic programs, provide need-blind admissions to students from the United States, offer generous levels of financial support for the education of all students, and enable faculty, students, and staff to advance impactful teaching and research. In addition, though approximately 75% of endowment payout is restricted to specific purposes, the unrestricted portion helps in times of fiscal challenge to protect against even deeper budget reductions. There are more than 9,400 endowed university funds. Each year, a portion of investment return from the endowment is used to support annual operating expenses. The remainder of the return is reinvested in the endowment to maintain its purchasing power over time. The Stanford Management Company (SMC) was established in 1991 to manage Stanford’s core investment portfolio. SMC is a division of the university with oversight by a board of directors appointed by the university board of trustees. 

Learn more by downloading our Stanford 2025 endowment fact sheet.