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About SpendingVault

Our Mission

SpendingVault exists to make U.S. federal spending data accessible to everyone. The federal government obligates trillions of dollars each year through contracts, grants, loans, and direct payments. This data is publicly available, but navigating the raw sources can be overwhelming. We transform millions of spending records into a clean, searchable database that anyone can explore.

Data Sources

All spending data on SpendingVault comes from USAspending.gov, the official open data source of federal spending information, managed by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. USAspending.gov tracks federal awards (contracts, grants, loans, and other financial assistance) reported by federal agencies.

We use the USAspending API to fetch and aggregate this data. Our records are updated periodically to reflect the latest available information.

Methodology

  • Obligations represent the legal commitment by the government to pay for goods and services. They are the most commonly used measure of federal spending.
  • Award counts reflect the number of individual federal awards (contracts, grants, etc.) in our database.
  • NAICS codes classify recipients by industry using the North American Industry Classification System.
  • Fiscal years run from October 1 to September 30 (e.g., FY2024 is Oct 2023 – Sep 2024).
  • Congressional districts reflect the district associated with the recipient's location.

Limitations

SpendingVault aggregates publicly available data and may not capture every federal transaction. Some limitations include:

  • Data may lag behind real-time due to agency reporting schedules
  • Classified and national security spending is generally not reported
  • Sub-awards and sub-contracts may not be fully represented
  • Recipient names may vary across records for the same entity

Not Government Affiliated

SpendingVault is an independent project and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the U.S. government, the Department of the Treasury, or USAspending.gov. We simply make publicly available data easier to explore.

Have questions or feedback? Explore the data by agency, state, or search for anything.