Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation
Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation is a private foundation based in Redmond, Washington. Its 2024 filing lists grants supporting organizations working on issues including economic opportunity, civic engagement, workplace barriers, family health, youth mental health, women’s rights, and violence against women.
Key facts about Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation
In short: Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation gave $484.7M across 132 grants in 2024 (avg $3.7M), mostly in Pennsylvania. Source: 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.
- EIN
- 88-2918646
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2024
- Annual giving (2024)
- $484,692,348
- Grants made (2024)
- 132
- Average grant
- $3,671,912
- Median grant
- $820,000
- Total assets
- $7,358,421,363
- Primary geography
- Pennsylvania (53% of itemized 2024 grant dollars)
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to apply
- The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds. Full details ↓
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2024; updated September 2026. Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Financial Overview
From 2024 IRS Form 990-PF · View filing
Total Assets
$7.4B
+1118.0% YoY
Annual Giving
$484.7M
+908.4% YoY
Grant Count
132
+112.9% YoY
Avg Grant Size
$3.7M
+373.7% YoY
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation reported a distributable amount of $42.7M for 2024 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.
How Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation gives
- 36% of 2024 grantees were also funded in 2023. Method
- In 2024 it paid out well above its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2024). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.
Mission & Focus Areas
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2024 grants include support for civic engagement and participation, economic opportunity, family health and wellbeing, mental health support for young people, and efforts to remove barriers to women’s workplace participation.
The grantees’ own descriptions illustrate the kinds of organizations supported. National Women’s Law Center says it advances and protects women’s legal rights, with work on education, employment, family economic security, and health. Blue Meridian Partners describes its work as funding scalable solutions to poverty and limited economic mobility for young people and families. States United Democracy Center describes itself as a nonpartisan organization advancing free, fair, and secure elections.
Grantmaking
In 2024, the foundation reported 132 grants totaling $484,692,348. Grant amounts ranged from $10,000 to $242,500,000, with a median of $820,000.
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Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2024, Pennsylvania received 53% of the foundation’s grant dollars, the District of Columbia 21%, and New York 14%. Maryland and Massachusetts each received 2%.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2024 grant dollars across all 132 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2022 to 2024, annual grant giving ranged from $8.1M (2022) to $484.7M (2024). In 2024 it made 132 grants totaling $484.7M.
Grant Insights
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2024
The largest 2024 recipient was National Philanthropic Trust ($257.5M across 3 grants). Together the top 10 received $357.5M.
Grant Size Distribution
204 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was in the $1–5M range: 73 grants of 204 (36%).
Giving History
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| National Philanthropic Trust Jenkintown, PA | To Support the Global Leaders Fund | $242,500,000 |
| Blue Meridian Partners Inc New York, NY | To raise public awareness of the benefits of full access to economic opportunities | $17,000,000 |
| Hopewell Fund Washington, DC | To Support Civic Engagement and Participation | $14,000,000 |
| National Partnership for Women and Families Inc Washington, DC | To remove barriers for people in the workplace, especially for women | $10,000,000 |
| National Philanthropic Trust Jenkintown, PA | To Support Family Health and Wellbeing Fund | $10,000,000 |
| Amalgamated Charitable Foundation Inc Washington, DC | To increase access to mental health support for young people | $7,000,000 |
| National Womens Law Center Fund LLC Washington, DC | To remove barriers that limit full participation in the workplace, especially for women | $7,000,000 |
| National Philanthropic Trust Jenkintown, PA | To support select organizations working on women rights globally. | $5,000,000 |
| National Women's Law Center Washington, DC | To Provide General Support | $5,000,000 |
| Reproductive Freedom for All Washington, DC | To Provide General Support | $5,000,000 |
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $7,358,421,363 | $7,604,936,235 | $881,714,209 | $484,692,348 |
| 2023 | $604,148,822 | $12,290,895 | $119,318,149 | $48,063,902 |
| 2022 | $625,638,407 | $647,072,863 | $17,872,184 | $8,094,900 |
| Metric | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Assets | $7,358,421,363 | $604,148,822 | $625,638,407 |
| Revenue | $7,604,936,235 | $12,290,895 | $647,072,863 |
| Expenses | $881,714,209 | $119,318,149 | $17,872,184 |
| Qualifying Distributions | $486,775,680 | $48,063,904 | $8,094,900 |
| Net Investment Income | $4,670,865,539 | $12,263,094 | $617,071,497 |
| Distributable Amount | $42,708,423 | $30,192,648 | $2,337,228 |
Data update history
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2022–2024
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2024 filing lists Melinda French Gates as director, John Sage as president and treasurer, and Brooke Anderson as vice president and secretary.
Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation is led by John Sage, President & Treasurer on every filing since 2022; none of the 3 officers listed in 2024 report compensation.
Officers on the 2024 filing
John Sage
President & Treasurer
On filings since 2022
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Melinda French Gates
Director
On filings since 2022
20 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Brooke Anderson
Vice President & Secretary
On filings since 2022
25 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2022–2024. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Contact
Mailing address: 12335 134 Ct Ne, Redmond, WA 98052
Phone: (425) 708-8650
Frequently asked questions about Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation
How much does Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation give each year?
Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation gave $484.7M across 132 grants in 2024, according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2023 it gave $48.1M across 62 grants.
What is Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation's typical grant size?
Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation's median grant in 2024 was $820,000, and its average grant was $3,671,912, across 132 grants on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.
Where does Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation give grants?
Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation gives mostly in Pennsylvania: 53% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest states were District of Columbia (21%) and New York (14%). The most frequent recipient cities were Washington, DC (39 grants), New York, NY (24 grants), Seattle, WA (7 grants) and Brooklyn, NY (6 grants).
Does Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 44% of Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation's 2024 grants with a stated purpose (58 of 132) were for general or operating support, per its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Recurring purposes include "To Increase Access to Mental Health Support for Young People" (20 grants), "To Increase Womens Civic Engagement" (6 grants) and "To Support Civic Engagement and Participation" (5 grants).
Who are Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation's largest grantees?
Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation's largest 2024 grantees include National Philanthropic Trust ($257,500,000 across 3 grants), Hopewell Fund ($17,550,000 across 4 grants) and Blue Meridian Partners Inc ($17,000,000), according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 60% of its itemized 2024 grant dollars.
How large is Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation?
Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation reported $7.4B in total assets on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $486.8M in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $42.7M (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2024 grants include support for civic engagement and participation, economic opportunity, family health and wellbeing, mental health support for young people, and efforts to remove barriers to women’s workplace participation. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation?
The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation's EIN?
Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 88-2918646. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2022–2024.
Does Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation accept unsolicited proposals?
No, according to Grantable's research on the foundation's published guidelines. See how to apply ↑
Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Here's the math on researching Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation by hand.
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