Iowa State University research and development spending, FY2024
- Ames, IA
- R1
- Public
- Standard form filer
Iowa State University in FY2024
$462.3 million
spent on research and development in FY2024, as reported to the NSF HERD Survey
- National rank
- #78 of 925
- Change on FY2023
- up 9.9%
- Rank change
- held
Iowa State University reported $462.3 million of research and development spending in FY2024, ranking #78 of the 925 institutions in the survey. That is up 9.9% on FY2023's $420.8 million; its national rank was unchanged. Federal government is its largest funding source at 46.7% ($216.0 million), followed by institution funds at 36.4%. Its largest field of research is life sciences, $183.8 million or 39.8% of the total.
Over time
Research spending, FY2010 to FY2024
Standard-form totals FY2010 onwards as revised by NCSES in the newest release; rank is within that series.
Year-by-year figures
| Fiscal year | R&D expenditure | Rank in series |
|---|---|---|
| FY2010 | $250.1 million | 76 |
| FY2011 | $267.6 million | 74 |
| FY2012 | $261.0 million | 75 |
| FY2013 | $266.6 million | 76 |
| FY2014 | $313.3 million | 70 |
| FY2015 | $306.1 million | 73 |
| FY2016 | $328.4 million | 69 |
| FY2017 | $323.6 million | 71 |
| FY2018 | $361.2 million | 67 |
| FY2019 | $358.5 million | 71 |
| FY2020 | $363.1 million | 70 |
| FY2021 | $360.3 million | 77 |
| FY2022 | $393.2 million | 76 |
| FY2023 | $420.8 million | 78 |
| FY2024 | $462.3 million | 78 |
FY2024 breakdown
Where the money came from, and what it paid for
FY2024 funding sources and research fields
Funding sources
The 6 NSF funding sources Iowa State University reported in FY2024, largest first. Shares are of its own FY2024 total, and the rank is national within that source.
| Source | FY2024 | Share | Change on FY2023 | US rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Federal government | $216.0 million | 46.7% | +10.5% | 91 |
| Institution funds | $168.2 million | 36.4% | +7.6% | 62 |
| State and local government | $37.5 million | 8.1% | +9.8% | 45 |
| Business | $25.1 million | 5.4% | +18.1% | 73 |
| Nonprofit organizations | $14.9 million | 3.2% | +13.9% | 100 |
| All other sources | $614 thousand | 0.1% | −3.2% | 222 |
| All sources | $462.3 million | 100.0% | +9.9% | 78 |
Fields of research
The 10 NSF research fields Iowa State University reported in FY2024, largest first.
| Field | FY2024 | Share | Change on FY2023 | US rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Life sciences | $183.8 million | 39.8% | +6.3% | 93 |
| Engineering | $159.8 million | 34.6% | +13.5% | 29 |
| Non-S&E | $37.3 million | 8.1% | +14.7% | 69 |
| Physical sciences | $33.7 million | 7.3% | +8.0% | 58 |
| Mathematics and statistics | $21.1 million | 4.6% | +5.7% | 8 |
| Social sciences | $9.1 million | 2.0% | +12.6% | 103 |
| Computer and information sciences | $8.5 million | 1.8% | +34.5% | 100 |
| Geosciences, atmospheric sciences, and ocean sciences | $4.8 million | 1.0% | −6.5% | 139 |
| Psychology | $3.7 million | 0.8% | +11.6% | 127 |
| Other sciences | $387 thousand | 0.1% | −11.0% | 167 |
Neighbours
Ranked around Iowa State University
Institutions ranked immediately above and below
The five institutions ranked above Iowa State University and the five below it in the FY2024 national ranking.
| Rank | Institution | FY2024 R&D |
|---|---|---|
| 73 | University of Rochester | $492.4M |
| 74 | University of Oklahoma, The | $474.0M |
| 75 | State University of New York, University at Albany | $471.6M |
| 76 | Colorado State University, Fort Collins | $466.4M |
| 77 | University of Delaware | $465.8M |
| 78 | Iowa State University | $462.3M |
| 79 | Florida State University | $460.7M |
| 80 | Utah State University | $451.4M |
| 81 | California Institute of Technology | $445.2M |
| 82 | University of Connecticut | $433.5M |
| 83 | Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge | $431.4M |
Keep looking
Where this institution sits
Related rankings
Data: NSF HERD FY2024, built from NSF's published tables on September 8, 2026. Page updated September 13, 2026.
Data: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, National Science Foundation, Higher Education Research and Development Survey, FY2024.
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