NIH funding profile · Saint Louis, MO · Higher education
Washington University in St. Louis NIH Funding
Also known as WashU, WUSTL, Washington University School of MedicineNIH RePORTER recipient name: Washington University
Reviewed by Dr. Meng ZhaoLast reviewed October 16, 2026Data refreshed October 16, 2026Editorial standards
Washington University in St. Louis received $726.3M in NIH award funding in fiscal year 2026 across 1,143 award records and 997 principal investigators. That ranks #5 of 2,407 NIH-funded institutions and #1 in Missouri, down 0.2% from FY2025.
FY2026 closed on September 30, 2026, but NIH keeps posting that year's awards to RePORTER for several weeks. FY2026 figures reflect records available on October 16, 2026 and may rise slightly at the next refresh.
FY2026 NIH funding
$726.3M
−0.2% vs FY2025
National rank
#5
Down 2 places from #3 vs FY2025
Rank in Missouri
#1
82.0% of Missouri NIH funding
Awards · PIs
1,143
997 investigators · 247 new projects
NIH funding trend, FY2022–FY2026
Washington University in St. Louis received $3.45B in NIH awards over these five fiscal years. Annual funding moved +16.1% from FY2022 to FY2026. Its best national rank in the period was #3 (FY2025).
| Year | Funding | Change | Awards | PIs | U.S. rank | MO rank | Top IC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | $726.3M | −0.2% | 1,143 | 997 | #5 | #1 | NIA |
| FY2025 | $728.0M | −0.3% | 1,137 | 1,029 | #3 | #1 | NIA |
| FY2024 | $730.5M | +14.8% | 1,193 | 1,009 | #4 | #1 | NIAID |
| FY2023 | $636.3M | +1.7% | 1,190 | 979 | #10 | #1 | NIA |
| FY2022 | $625.4M | — | 1,124 | 954 | #8 | #1 | NIA |
NIH institutes funding Washington University in St. Louis, FY2026
25 NIH institutes and centers administered awards here in FY2026. The largest, the National Institute on Aging (NIA), accounted for 19.5% of the institution's NIH funding across 128 awards.
- NIA · National Institute on Aging$141.8M · 19.5%
128 awards · vs FY2025: −0.1%
- NCI · National Cancer Institute$98.3M · 13.5%
160 awards · vs FY2025: +0.5%
- NIAID · National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases$87.9M · 12.1%
156 awards · vs FY2025: −10.0%
- NHLBI · National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute$57.4M · 7.9%
115 awards · vs FY2025: +12.7%
- NINDS · National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke$54.3M · 7.5%
109 awards · vs FY2025: −3.7%
- NIMH · National Institute of Mental Health$47.2M · 6.5%
75 awards · vs FY2025: +11.6%
- NIDDK · National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases$45.9M · 6.3%
85 awards · vs FY2025: −12.5%
- NIDA · National Institute on Drug Abuse$44.6M · 6.1%
43 awards · vs FY2025: +17.1%
- NIGMS · National Institute of General Medical Sciences$27.9M · 3.8%
57 awards · vs FY2025: −27.8%
- NICHD · Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development$26.6M · 3.7%
64 awards · vs FY2025: +13.1%
Also: NIAMS $18.9M · NCATS $12.3M · NHGRI $10.7M · NEI $10.2M · OD $9.9M · NIDCD $7.2M · NIBIB $6.7M · NIDCR $5.7M · NCCIH $4.3M · NIMHD $2.6M · NIEHS $2.4M · NIAAA $2.0M · NINR $525K · NLM $485K · FIC $302K
Award mechanism mix
Share of NIH award dollars by activity-code family in FY2026, with the FY2022 share for comparison. R01-equivalent research grants were 53.4% of funding.
- R01-equivalent53.4% · FY22 51.0%
- Cooperative agreements (U)20.4% · FY22 20.5%
- Centers & program projects (P)9.0% · FY22 8.9%
- Other research (R)8.5% · FY22 10.1%
- Career development (K)3.6% · FY22 3.2%
- Institutional training (T)2.5% · FY22 3.2%
- Other1.7% · FY22 1.9%
- Contracts (N)0.5% · FY22 0.5%
- Fellowships (F)0.5% · FY22 0.6%
Top activity codes, FY2026
| Code | Awards | Funding | Share | Average award |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| R01 | 555 | $365.6M | 50.3% | $659K |
| U19 | 13 | $46.4M | 6.4% | $3.6M |
| P01 | 13 | $33.6M | 4.6% | $2.6M |
| U01 | 40 | $32.4M | 4.5% | $809K |
| R35 | 48 | $25.3M | 3.5% | $527K |
| P30 | 12 | $19.2M | 2.6% | $1.6M |
| U24 | 13 | $17.9M | 2.5% | $1.4M |
| UM1 | 2 | $17.3M | 2.4% | $8.6M |
| T32 | 40 | $17.0M | 2.3% | $426K |
| R21 | 46 | $16.1M | 2.2% | $350K |
| P50 | 6 | $10.4M | 1.4% | $1.7M |
| R37 | 18 | $10.0M | 1.4% | $557K |
Largest FY2026 awards
The biggest single award records by FY2026 dollars. Each links to its NIH RePORTER project page.
- WashU-VAI Somatic Mosaicism across Human Tissues (SMaHT) Program Genome Characterization Center (opens NIH RePORTER)
4UM1DA058219-04 · NIDA
$16.9MUM1
- DIAN-TU: Tau Next Generation Prevention Trial (opens NIH RePORTER)
5R01AG068319-05 · NIA
$16.5MR01
- The Long Life Family Study (opens NIH RePORTER)
5U19AG063893-07 · NIA
$15.1MU19
- Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer Network (opens NIH RePORTER)
1U19AG102728-01 · NIA
$9.6MU19
- Washington University Institute of Clinical and Translational Sciences (opens NIH RePORTER)
5UL1TR002345-10 · NCATS
$9.3MUL1
- Aging eyes and aging brains in studying alzheimer''s disease: Modern ophthalmic data collection in the adult changes in thought (ACT) study (opens NIH RePORTER)
5R01AG060942-08 · NIA
$7.3MR01
Recently started projects
The latest new (Type 1) FY2026 awards by notice date, out of 247 new projects NIH funded here this year.
- Resolving MYT1L Variant Heterogeneity Through Cross-Species Molecular Neurogenetics and Drug Discovery (opens NIH RePORTER)
1R01NS152315-01 · NINDS · Notice Sep 19, 2026
$617KR01
- Combined Imaging and RNA Analyses to Predict Head and Neck Cancer Recurrence (opens NIH RePORTER)
1R56DE034973-01A1 · NIDCR · Notice Sep 17, 2026
$1.3MR56
- Comparative Modeling of Multiple Myeloma Prevention, Early Detection and Treatment Interventions (opens NIH RePORTER)
1U01CA319115-01 · NCI · Notice Sep 17, 2026
$849KU01
- Generation of a CCL2-CGRP bispecific neutralizing antibody to treat chronic post-traumatic headache (opens NIH RePORTER)
1R61NS146000-01A1 · NINDS · Notice Sep 17, 2026
$816KR61
- Prenatal Maternal Circadian Rhythms and Sleep in the Risk Trajectory to Altered Offspring Sleep, Psychopathology, and Neurodevelopment (opens NIH RePORTER)
1R01MH144234-01 · NIMH · Notice Sep 17, 2026
$788KR01
- Preserving shoulder health in individuals with a degenerative rotator cuff tear (opens NIH RePORTER)
1R01AR086139-01A1 · NIAMS · Notice Sep 17, 2026
$642KR01
Other NIH-funded institutions in Missouri
| # | Institution | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington University in St. LouisSaint Louis, MO | $726.3M |
| 2 | University of MissouriColumbia, MO | $80.6M |
| 3 | Saint Louis UniversitySaint Louis, MO | $22.5M |
| 4 | Midwest Research InstituteKansas City, MO | $15.9M |
| 5 | Children's Mercy Kansas CityKansas City, MO | $13.0M |
Nearby in the national ranking
| # | Institution | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | University of California, San FranciscoSan Francisco, CA | $822.6M |
| 3 | University of MichiganAnn Arbor, MI | $760.6M |
| 4 | University of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia, PA | $739.6M |
| 5 | Washington University in St. LouisSaint Louis, MO | $726.3M |
| 6 | Yale UniversityNew Haven, CT | $686.5M |
| 7 | Stanford UniversityStanford, CA | $665.6M |
| 8 | University of PittsburghPittsburgh, PA | $654.4M |
Similar universities and medical schools
| # | Institution | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | University of California, San FranciscoSan Francisco, CA | $822.6M |
| 3 | University of MichiganAnn Arbor, MI | $760.6M |
| 4 | University of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia, PA | $739.6M |
| 5 | Washington University in St. LouisSaint Louis, MO | $726.3M |
| 6 | Yale UniversityNew Haven, CT | $686.5M |
| 7 | Stanford UniversityStanford, CA | $665.6M |
| 8 | University of PittsburghPittsburgh, PA | $654.4M |
About these numbers
Source: the public NIH RePORTER API, refreshed October 16, 2026. See our data methodology and the guide to reading NIH funding rankings by university.
- Who is countedAwards made to NIH recipient organization code 9083901 (Washington University). A university's medical school, affiliated hospital, or other campuses can be separate NIH recipients with their own totals.
- What is countedTotal award amount (direct plus indirect) obligated in each fiscal year for grants, cooperative agreements, training awards, SBIR/STTR, and R&D contracts. Subprojects, intramural research, and interagency agreements are excluded.
- InstitutesEach award is credited in full to its administering institute, even when other institutes co-fund it.
- SubawardsNIH reports the prime recipient only, so research this institution performs under another organization's grant is not included here.