Agency budgets × USAspending
Largest agencies by budget authority
Federal agencies ranked by budget authority — the legal amount each is authorized to commit to spending. This shows agency size itself, not procurement.
An organization of public government data, not an official U.S. government site. Aggregates cover collected data, and rankings are based on name-level aggregation.
What the data shows
By budget authority, Health & Human Services (Medicare, Medicaid), the Treasury (including debt interest), and the Social Security Administration (pensions) lead — benefit-driven agencies whose lineup differs sharply from the contracts ranking (where Defense dominates). Government spending has two natures: buying (procurement) and giving (benefits/transfers). Obligated amounts (what has actually been committed) are shown alongside.
Top 50 of 93
| # | Agency | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Department of Health and Human Services ≈$2.67T obligated | |
| 2 | Department of the Treasury ≈$1.85T obligated | |
| 3 | Department of Defense ≈$1.43T obligated | |
| 4 | Social Security Administration ≈$1.53T obligated | |
| 5 | Department of Homeland Security ≈$356.4B obligated | |
| 6 | Department of Veterans Affairs ≈$371.05B obligated | |
| 7 | Department of Agriculture ≈$207.82B obligated | |
| 8 | Office of Personnel Management ≈$183.29B obligated | |
| 9 | Department of Housing and Urban Development ≈$74.46B obligated | |
| 10 | Department of Transportation ≈$114.38B obligated | |
| 11 | Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation ≈$4.45B obligated | |
| 12 | Department of Energy ≈$63.71B obligated | |
| 13 | Department of State ≈$30.16B obligated | |
| 14 | Department of the Interior ≈$31.05B obligated | |
| 15 | Department of Labor ≈$59.89B obligated | |
| 16 | Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation ≈$9.83B obligated | |
| 17 | Department of Justice ≈$46.83B obligated | |
| 18 | Corps of Engineers - Civil Works ≈$32.03B obligated | |
| 19 | Environmental Protection Agency ≈$15.21B obligated | |
| 20 | Department of Commerce ≈$16.09B obligated | |
| 21 | National Aeronautics and Space Administration ≈$20.57B obligated | |
| 22 | General Services Administration ≈$25.64B obligated | |
| 23 | Small Business Administration ≈$15.01B obligated | |
| 24 | Agency for International Development ≈$6.35B obligated | |
| 25 | U.S. International Development Finance Corporation ≈$1.48B obligated | |
| 26 | National Science Foundation ≈$4.67B obligated | |
| 27 | Farm Credit System Insurance Corporation ≈$230.3M obligated | |
| 28 | Securities and Exchange Commission ≈$1.66B obligated | |
| 29 | Millennium Challenge Corporation ≈$192.8M obligated | |
| 30 | Executive Office of the President ≈$844.2M obligated | |
| 31 | Commodity Futures Trading Commission ≈$310M obligated | |
| 32 | Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Trust Fund ≈$720.3M obligated | |
| 33 | Nuclear Regulatory Commission ≈$776.7M obligated | |
| 34 | Government Accountability Office ≈$743.8M obligated | |
| 35 | U.S. Agency for Global Media ≈$525.5M obligated | |
| 36 | Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ≈$375.4M obligated | |
| 37 | National Archives and Records Administration ≈$560.8M obligated | |
| 38 | Export-Import Bank of the United States ≈$375.8M obligated | |
| 39 | Presidio Trust ≈$283.1M obligated | |
| 40 | Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ≈$350.9M obligated | |
| 41 | National Endowment for the Humanities ≈$177.2M obligated | |
| 42 | District of Columbia Courts ≈$286.2M obligated | |
| 43 | Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency ≈$204.7M obligated | |
| 44 | National Labor Relations Board ≈$220M obligated | |
| 45 | Institute of Museum and Library Services ≈$227M obligated | |
| 46 | Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council ≈$39M obligated | |
| 47 | National Endowment for the Arts ≈$173M obligated | |
| 48 | American Battle Monuments Commission ≈$130.6M obligated | |
| 49 | Armed Forces Retirement Home ≈$99.5M obligated | |
| 50 | United States Trade and Development Agency ≈$66.6M obligated |
Aggregates cover each source's collected data. Names use the original data as-is.
FAQ
What does this ranking show?
Federal agencies ordered by budget authority — the legal amount an agency is authorized to commit to spending. It is the best single measure of an agency's size.
How does it differ from the contracts ranking?
This is the agency's total budget; the contracts ranking is what it spent on procurement. HHS and the Social Security Administration have enormous budgets, but most goes to benefits (Medicare, pensions), so their procurement is relatively small.
What is "obligated"?
The portion of budget authority that has actually been committed (contracts, benefit decisions, etc.) — a gauge of how much of the budget has been used.
What is the source?
Agency budget authority from U.S. spending data (USAspending). Curated agencies link to their profile.