ClosedOpportunity MFA-FY26

Museums for America (2026)

Institute of Museum and Library Services

At a glance

Museums for America (2026) is a closed federal grant opportunity from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. The application deadline was March 13, 2026. Individual awards are listed as $5K – $300K, with about 122 awards expected and $21.7M in total estimated funding. Applicant types listed as eligible include others (see notice). Cost sharing or matching is required. It is funded under Assistance Listing 45.301 (Museums for America).

Summary assembled from the official notice's fields. The official notice governs.

Key facts

Jan 13, 2026Posted
Mar 13, 2026Application deadline

Posted: Jan 13, 2026
Close date: Mar 13, 2026
Award floor: $5,000
Award ceiling: $300,000
Est. total funding: $21,699,000
Expected awards: 122
Cost sharing: Required
Funding instrument: Grant
Opportunity category: Discretionary

Who can apply

Others (see notice)

Additional information on eligibility (from the notice)

See the Notice of Funding Opportunity for eligibility requirements.

Can your organization apply?

A quick check against the listed applicant types — other requirements in the notice still apply.

Based on the published notice. Review the official notice for complete eligibility requirements.

What it funds

Official synopsis as published by the agency, formatted for readability.

The Museums for America (MFA) program invests in museums of all sizes and disciplines in project-based efforts to serve the public through educational programs and exhibits, community partnerships, and collections stewardship activities.

Additional information from the agency ↗

Full announcement & documents

The full announcement has the complete rules — page limits, required attachments, evaluation criteria and any letter-of-intent dates. Files download directly from Grants.gov.

FY26 Museums for America Notice of Funding OpportunityFull Announcement · fy26-oms-mfa-NOFO.pdfOCTE · 940 KB

Assistance Listing

What is an ALN?

45.301Museums for AmericaProgram →

Reported obligations under ALN 45.301

Historical data · not a prediction

FY24

$29.9M

FY25

$15.3M

FY26

$28.7M est.

Source: SAM.gov Assistance Listing 45.301. Program-wide totals, not awards from this specific opportunity.

Who was funded under ALN 45.301

Historical data · not a prediction

Since October 1, 2023, 855 grant awards had funding actions under Museums for America. These are program-wide awards, not awards from this specific notice.

HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL CENTER$1.35M
FRIENDS OF THE NORTH CAROLINA STATE MUSEUM OF NATURAL SCIENCES$1.35M
TOWN OF NORMAL CHILDREN'S DISCOVERY MUSEUM FOUNDATION$1.18M
FLORIDA HOLOCAUST MUSEUM, INC$1.05M
CENTER FOR HOLOCAUST AND HUMANITY EDUCATION$1.05M

Recipients, states, recent awards and sub-awards →Source: USAspending.gov.

Agency contact (as published)

Institute of Museum and Library Services
imls-museumgrants@imls.gov
202-653-4634

Quick answers

Who is eligible to apply for “Museums for America (2026)”?

The official notice names these applicant types as eligible: Others (see notice). Additional restrictions may apply; review the full notice.

How much funding is available through “Museums for America (2026)”?

Per the notice, individual awards are listed as $5k – $300k, total estimated program funding is $21,699,000 and the agency expects to make about 122 awards.

How do I apply for “Museums for America (2026)”?

Applications are submitted through the official source, not through GrantsJunction. Open the official notice on Grants.gov (opportunity MFA-FY26), and review the full announcement and application package. Organizations applying through Grants.gov generally need an active SAM.gov registration and a Grants.gov account, which can take several weeks to set up.

Matched on shared Assistance Listings, agency, categories and eligible applicant types.

OpenALN 45.301