OSS Grants

12 funding opportunities

Support for open source software development, maintenance, and infrastructure.

Overview

Open source grants fund the development, maintenance, and security of open source software projects. These grants recognize that OSS underpins modern technology infrastructure but often lacks sustainable funding models.

Key Features

  • Focus: Software development, security, documentation, infrastructure
  • Duration: Varies from 6 months to ongoing support
  • Amount: $5,000 - $300,000+ typical range
  • Support: Individual developers, projects, or ecosystems
  • Requirements: Public code, open source licenses

Major OSS Grant Programs

Infrastructure & Critical Software

Sovereign Tech Fund

  • Amount: Variable (€50,000-€300,000 typical)
  • Deadline: Rolling applications
  • Region: Global
  • Focus: Critical open source infrastructure and technologies
  • Description: German government fund for OSS that underpins digital infrastructure

Core Infrastructure Initiative

  • Amount: Variable
  • Deadline: Rolling
  • Region: Global
  • Focus: Critical infrastructure projects
  • Description: Linux Foundation program funding critical open source infrastructure

Open Source Security Foundation (OpenSSF)

  • Amount: Variable
  • Deadline: Varies by initiative
  • Region: Global
  • Focus: Security improvements in OSS
  • Description: Improving security of open source software

Ecosystem-Specific Grants

NumFOCUS Small Development Grants

  • Amount: $2,000-$10,000
  • Deadline: Twice yearly
  • Region: Global
  • Focus: Scientific computing (NumPy, Pandas, Jupyter, etc.)
  • Description: For scientific computing open source projects

Rust Foundation Grants

  • Amount: Variable
  • Deadline: Varies
  • Region: Global
  • Focus: Rust programming language ecosystem
  • Description: Supporting the Rust programming language ecosystem

Python Software Foundation Grants

  • Amount: Typically $500-$5,000
  • Deadline: Rolling applications
  • Region: Global
  • Focus: Python ecosystem
  • Description: Support for Python community projects and events

Privacy & Internet Freedom

Mozilla Grants

  • Amount: $10,000-$50,000 (Common Awards)
  • Deadline: Varies by program
  • Region: Global
  • Focus: Open internet, privacy, web tech
  • Description: Support for open internet and privacy projects

NLnet Foundation Grants

  • Amount: €5,000-€50,000
  • Deadline: Rolling (8 calls per year)
  • Region: Global
  • Focus: Open internet technologies
  • Description: Supporting open source projects contributing to open internet

Open Technology Fund

  • Amount: Variable (typically $10,000-$900,000)
  • Deadline: Rolling applications
  • Region: Global
  • Focus: Internet freedom, privacy, security
  • Description: Supporting open technologies for global internet freedom

Prototype Fund (Germany)

  • Amount: €47,500 over 6 months
  • Deadline: Twice yearly
  • Region: EU (open to all)
  • Focus: Public interest technology
  • Description: Funding for public interest technology projects

Developer Support Platforms

GitHub Sponsors

  • Amount: Variable (community-funded)
  • Deadline: Rolling applications
  • Region: Global
  • Focus: Ongoing developer support
  • Description: Community funding platform for open source developers

FUTO Grants

  • Amount: Variable
  • Deadline: Rolling
  • Region: Global
  • Focus: User-controlled technology
  • Description: Supporting people-controlled technology

Documentation & Community

Google Season of Docs

  • Amount: Variable (project-based)
  • Deadline: Varies annually
  • Region: Global
  • Focus: Technical documentation
  • Description: Supporting technical writers and documentation for open source

Funding by Project Type

Infrastructure Projects

  • Sovereign Tech Fund
  • Core Infrastructure Initiative
  • OpenSSF
  • NLnet Foundation

Language Ecosystems

  • Rust Foundation (Rust)
  • Python Software Foundation (Python)
  • NumFOCUS (Scientific Python)

Privacy & Security Tools

  • Mozilla Grants
  • Open Technology Fund
  • Prototype Fund
  • NLnet Foundation

Individual Maintainers

  • GitHub Sponsors
  • FUTO Grants
  • NumFOCUS grants
  • Mozilla grants (for individuals)

Application Guidance

Strong Applications Include

Technical Merit

  • Clear problem statement
  • Well-defined scope and deliverables
  • Technical approach and architecture
  • Evidence of capability (existing code, contributions)

Impact & Sustainability

  • Who benefits and how many users
  • Dependency analysis (what depends on this)
  • Maintenance and support plan
  • Community engagement strategy

Open Source Commitment

  • License choice (usually OSI-approved)
  • Public development (GitHub, GitLab, etc.)
  • Documentation plans
  • Contributor guidelines

Common Funding Uses

  • Feature development
  • Security audits and improvements
  • Performance optimization
  • Documentation
  • Community management
  • Testing infrastructure
  • Dependency updates
  • Accessibility improvements

Eligibility Considerations

  • Most grants accept individual developers
  • Some require established projects (users, history)
  • Geographic restrictions vary
  • Usually need public code repository
  • Open source license required (varies by funder)

Tips for OSS Maintainers

Before Applying

  1. Document your impact: User counts, dependents, downloads
  2. Show activity: Regular commits, responsive issues
  3. Build community: Contributors, documentation, communication channels
  4. Clarify need: What specifically needs funding and why

Multiple Funding Streams

  • Combine grants with sponsorships
  • Apply to multiple programs
  • Consider both project and personal grants
  • Look at both perpetual funding (sponsors) and project grants

Long-term Sustainability

  • Use grants to build sponsor base
  • Develop governance models
  • Create foundation or fiscal sponsor relationship
  • Document processes for sustainability

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