Funding & Reports

EWG is an independent nonprofit organization largely funded by individual donations and grants from charitable foundations.
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EWG 2022 revenue
*This figure reflect EWG 2022 revenue.

Individual donations from supporters like you are the driving force behind EWG’s success, totaling approximately half of all annual revenue.

Non-lobbying grants from private foundations are our second biggest source of income, making up about 30 percent of revenue. They provide a stable, predictable bedrock of support.

The final 20 or so percent of EWG’s funding is raised via licensing and consulting fees associated with our EWG VERIFIED® program, in-kind (non-monetary) donations and EWG’s fundraising events.


Overview

EWG provides one of the best returns on your philanthropic dollar, reaching tens of millions of people through the megaphone of our social media channels and coverage in mainstream media, leading entire business sectors away from priority chemicals and ultimately shaping policy conversations on public health.

We achieve this level of impact on an annual budget that is one-tenth the size of other environmental nonprofits with a major national reach like EWG's.

There are many reasons we are able to do this, but the biggest and most important is the reputation we’ve earned as a scientific leader on the topic of environmental exposures. This leadership is what turned these issues into national, mainstream priorities.

And our sound, scientific leadership is ensuring that action taken by manufacturers and policymakers has enough teeth to protect public health effectively, the way consumers expect so that someday legal will equal safe.


Where your donations go

81 percent of dollars spent at EWG go to programmatic staff time – that is, the salaries of the staff members, toxicologists, data analysts and media experts carrying out EWG’s research and executing our outreach and education campaigns.

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EWG 2022 expenses
*This figure reflect EWG 2022 expenses.

Annual reports

Type 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017
Annual report AR2022 AR2021 AR2020 AR2019 AR2018 AR2017
IRS Form 990 IRS2022 IRS2021 IRS2020 IRS2019 IRS2018 IRS2017
Annual audit AA2022 AA2021 AA2020 AA2019 AA2018 AA2017
 

Common Questions

Is EWG funded by the organic industry?

EWG is an independent nonprofit organization largely funded by individual donations and grants from charitable foundations.

Why is this a common misconception about EWG?

In 2013 EWG partnered with the Organic Voices Action Fund, or OVAF, to highlight the benefits of organic food and advance the fight for labeling food that contains genetically engineered ingredients.

Between 2013 and 2018, OVAF made six grants to EWG to support our joint GMO labeling advocacy campaign, Just Label It! That agreement and partnership formally expired in 2018.

These grants ranged from 0.3% to 5% of EWG’s total annual revenue.

Does EWG accept corporate funding?

We accept funds from brands or corporations in the following two situations only:

  1. In the form of general support or event sponsorships.But as detailed above, these types of donations have historically made up a very small percentage of EWG’s overall funding.

    None of it is used to support specific scientific research projects at the organization.
  2. As payment for toxicology consulting, also known as the EWG VERIFIED® and EWG Reviewed for Science programs.

    These programs have given EWG a way to use our 30 years of expertise in product formulation to help drive market change.

Our goal is to provide resources and consulting support to companies that decide to use healthier ingredients and formulations – so consumers face choices they can trust won’t harm their health or that of the environment. 

In order to maintain our scientific and intellectual independence, EWG does not accept:

  • Programmatic funding from brands or businesses operating in the industries or product categories we research, evaluate or rate. This includes food, household cleaning supplies and personal care products.
     
  • Funding for corporate-sponsored research.
     
  • Payment of any kind for inclusion or scoring in our consumer product databases: Skin Deep®, Guide to Healthy Cleaning and Food Scores. Instead, we update products and scores for free and on a rolling basis as new product information becomes available.

About our foundation supporters

About one-third of EWG’s funding comes from private charitable foundations whose grants vary in size. The grants are usually in one- or two-year commitments. Here is a partial list of EWG funders:

  • Jacob and Hilda Blaustein Foundation
  • Cedar Tree Foundation
  • Farvue Foundation
  • Forsythia Foundation
  • John Sperling Foundation
  • Jonas Philanthropies
  • The JPB Foundation
  • Park Foundation
  • Passport Foundation
  • Walton Family Foundation
  • Yellow Chair Foundation