The IKEA Foundation signed 100 new grants between 2024 and 2025, with the majority falling below the €5 million mark. As well as this key insight, this article features three more to help you to evaluate whether or not this donor should be on your grant radar.
The IKEA Foundation is a charitable organization funded by the dividends earned by the Ingka Group, which owns the well-known furniture chain store, IKEA. Since its establishment in 1982, the IKEA Foundation has distributed nearly €3 billion in grants across the globe.
In 2024, the foundation approved 44 new grants, to reach an annual record of €349 million being paid out. In 2025, the foundation took its grantmaking efforts even further by signing 56 new grant contracts and distributing €404 million to awardees.
For this article, we analyzed all the grant records for the past two years currently available on the IKEA Foundation’s database to draw key insights about funding priorities, awardee profiles, and typical grant amounts. However, please be aware that this analysis has certain limitations due to the incomplete grantmaking data available for 2025 because the portal only shows the details of nine approved grants, worth around €48 million in total, out of 56 new grants.
Keep reading to gain more details about these insights.
Insight #1: Global and Africa-based projects received 88% of grants
Worldwide projects earned 47% of all the grants signed by the IKEA Foundation during 2024 – 2025, underlining the global nature of its grantmaking program. Africa was the most favored region, being served by 41% of the projects. Asia also seems to be a priority location for this foundation having benefited from 24% of grants over the past two years.
Figure 1 – Number of grants per region funded by the IKEA Foundation during 2024-2025. This data was retrieved directly from the grant database of the IKEA Foundation. Please note that this database only contains active grants and was last updated on 15 May 2025.
Insight #2: Land, Food and Forests projects secured the most grants
Tackling poverty and the climate crisis is the focus of the IKEA Foundation. However, by scrutinizing the sub-areas of the grants funded during 2024 and 2025, Land, Food and Forests emerges as the priority sub-topic of this philanthropy at the moment with 29% of grants addressing this category. Energy and emergency response followed in the priority list, with each representing about 22 of the signed grants. Buildings and transport were a minor sub-topic the foundation focused on, with just 4% of recently approved grants clearly aligned with this category.
Table I – Funding priority areas of the IKEA Foundation during the period 2024-2025, as determined by the number of conceded grants registered on the grant database of the IKEA Foundation. Please note that this database only contains active grants and was last updated on 15 May 2025.
Insight #3: Most awards were for less than €5M
Nearly half of the grants awarded by the IKEA Foundation during 2024 and 2025 featured between one and five million euros in funding. Projects assigned less than €1 million in financial support represented the second most frequent category.
Despite most grants providing less funding than those of other grantmaking organizations previously analyzed, such as the Ford Foundation and the Gates Foundation, the IKEA Foundation did concede almost €58 million in a single grant for one selected awardee and project.
Figure 2 – Distribution of funding amount per grant conceded by the IKEA Foundation during the period 2024-2025. This data was retrieved directly from the grant database of the IKEA Foundation. Please note that this database only contains active grants and was last updated on 15 May 2025.
Insight #4: Crux Alliance received the highest grant awarded
During 2024 and 2025, the top 10 grantees of the IKEA Foundation were all organizations from the nonprofit ecosystem, with most focusing their mission on tackling environmental issues.
The three awardees who obtained the highest amount of funding in a single grant from the IKEA Foundation were:
Crux Alliance – €57.75M
The Crux Alliance is a global consortium advocating for impactful policies that reduce carbon emissions worldwide. It works across a variety of areas, from appliances and buildings to urban mobility. In 2025, the IKEA Foundation granted it €57.75M to assist its work.
SNV Netherlands Development Organisation – €45M
The SNV Netherlands Development Organisation is a nonprofit that supports international development across Africa and Asia. In 2024, the IKEA Foundation committed €45M to support the combined adoption of regenerative farming practices and renewable energy across Eastern Africa, run by this nonprofit.
Tilt Collective – €42.84M
The Tilt Collective is a philanthropic organization that promotes food resilience through impactful partnerships with diverse stakeholders, including farmers, governments and businesses. In 2024, it was granted €42.84M by the IKEA Foundation to aid its mission.
Table II – Top 10 grantees of the IKEA Foundation during the period 2024-2025 as determined by the highest funding awarded in a single grant. This data was retrieved directly from the grant database of the IKEA Foundation. Please note that this database only contains active grants and was last updated on 15 May 2025.
Why do these insights matter?
Monitoring funding trends can help nonprofits to make smarter decisions about where to invest their time and resources. By understanding which donors are prioritizing certain regions and topics, organizations can target the most relevant grant opportunities and strengthen their chance of success.
Read our previous donor insights:
- Top grantees and funding priorities of the Ford Foundation in 2024-2025
- Top grantees and funding priorities of the Gates Foundation in 2024-2025
DevelopmentAid provides near-real-time information on the development sector, including the latest news, grant alerts, and exclusive funding trend analysis. Consider becoming a member to take advantage of our advanced filtering tools for grants and subscribe to our development news digest.
