Grants for museums
Grants for museums, historical societies and cultural organizations: exhibits, collections care and education.
- 10 open
- 2 rolling
- 1 upcoming
- Next deadline November 13, 2026
From companies, foundations and states
- ApplyANYTIME
Inquiries and open calls
Mellon Foundation · Nonprofits, Colleges, Libraries
Mellon funds the arts, humanities and higher learning, mostly by invitation. Humanities in Place and the Monuments Project take inquiries on a rolling basis.
- ApplyANYTIME
William Penn Foundation grants
William Penn Foundation · Nonprofits
Grants for the Philadelphia region, mostly through public requests for proposals tied to its programs, plus an inquiry form for ideas outside an open call.
- OpensSOON
Colorado Creates
State of Colorado · Nonprofits, Local governments
Colorado Creative Industries grants for arts and culture organizations and community arts programs.
- StatusVARIES
Kansas HEAL grants
State of Kansas · Small businesses, Nonprofits
Historic Economic Asset Lifeline grants to bring vacant rural Kansas downtown buildings back into use; $1.5 million in the seventh round.
- Closed09 JUL
Building for the Arts
State of Washington · Nonprofits
Washington state capital grants toward nonprofit arts and cultural buildings.
- Closed28 AUG
Tennessee Downtown Improvement Grant
State of Tennessee · Local governments, Nonprofits
Grants of up to $300,000 for Tennessee Main Street and Tennessee Downtowns communities, including façade work on for-profit and nonprofit commercial buildings.
Federal grants
Open and forecast opportunities from Grants.gov that match this cause, soonest deadline first.
- Closes13 NOV
21st Century Museum Professionals Program (2027)
IMLS · Others
The 21st Century Museum Professionals (21MP) grant program supports projects that build career pathways, strengthen professional networks, and identify and share effective workforce education and training practices in the museum field.
- Closes13 NOV
Inspire Grants for Small Museums (2027)
IMLS · Others
Inspire Grants for Small Museums (Inspire) is a special initiative of the Museums for America grant program designed to support small museums of all disciplines, including small rural or small remote institutions and small museums that have not previously received federal funding. The program funds project-based efforts to serve the public through educationa
- Closes13 NOV
Museum Grants for African American History and Culture (2027)
IMLS · Others
The Museum Grants for African American History and Culture (AAHC) program builds the capacity of African American museums and supports the growth and development of museum professionals at African American museums. The program supports projects that nurture museum professionals, build institutional capacity, and increase access to museum and archival collect
- Closes13 NOV
Museum Grants for American Latino History and Culture (2027)
IMLS · Others
The Museum Grants for American Latino History and Culture (ALHC) program supports projects that build the capacity of American Latino history and culture museums to serve their communities and advance the growth and development of a professional workforce in American Latino cultural institutions.
- Closes13 NOV
Museums Empowered (2027)
IMLS · Others
Museums Empowered: Professional Development Opportunities for Museum Staff is a special initiative of the Museums for America grant program, designed to support projects that use learning and training to generate change and growth within museums of all types and sizes.
- Closes13 NOV
Museums for America (2027)
IMLS · Others
he Museums for America (MFA) program invests in museums of all sizes – from small to large – and disciplines in project-based efforts to serve the public through educational programs and exhibits, community partnerships, and collections stewardship activities.
- Closes13 NOV
National Leadership Grants for Museums (2027)
IMLS · Others
The National Leadership Grants for Museums program (NLG-M) invests in projects that address critical needs of the museum field. NLG-M projects have the potential to advance practice in the profession to strengthen museum services for the public through the development and replication of model practices, tools, research findings, and collaborations, including
- Closes13 NOV
Native American/Native Hawaiian Museum Services (2027)
IMLS · Others
The Native American/Native Hawaiian Museum Services program (NANH) supports Native American Tribes, Alaska Native Villages, and organizations that primarily serve and represent Native Hawaiians in sustaining heritage, culture, and knowledge. The program supports projects such as educational services and programs, workforce professional development, organizat
- Closes15 DEC
Collections Stewardship
NEH · Private colleges, Counties, Special districts, +5 more
The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Division of Collections & Infrastructure is accepting applications for Collections Stewardship, a program to advance the preservation and availability of physical and digital collections important for research, teaching, and public engagement in the humanities. Planning and implementation projects may include c
- Closes20 OCT
Using Archived Data and Specimen Collections to Advance Maternal and Pediatric HIV/AIDS Research (R21 CT Not Allowed)
NIH · Housing authorities, Public colleges, Others, +12 more
The purpose of this Funding Opportunity is to address the needs of the maternal and pediatric HIV scientific community for research data translation and sharing.This initiative will support secondary data analyses using archived HIV/AIDS data and specimens. The goal of this initiative is to encourage the scientific community to utilize HIV/AIDS archived data
Questions
When do museum grants close?
The next deadline is November 13, 2026 for 21st Century Museum Professionals Program (2027). 2 programs take applications at any time.
Which federal agencies fund museums?
IMLS funds museum operations and projects, NEH funds humanities exhibits and collections, and NEA funds art museums' projects.
Do I have to pay to apply for a grant?
No. Real grant programs never charge to apply or to receive an award. Anyone asking for a fee before you get grant money is running a scam.