Illinois Grants

Top Illinois grants right now

• State/Northeastern Illinois Operating Assistance Program

  Illinois Department of TransportationUp to $155Mopen

  Operating assistance in northeastern Illinois is comprised of the following state programs: Public Transportation Fund (PTF), Additional State Assista...

• Water Pollution Control Loan Program

  Illinois Environmental Protection AgencyUp to $146Mopen

  The Water Pollution Control Loan Program (WPCLP) provides low-interest loans and principal forgiveness (a grant component) for wastewater and stormwat...

• Business Attraction Prime Sites Capital Grant Program

  Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic OpportunityUp to $25Mopen

  This competitive capital grant program, funded by Rebuild Illinois, is designed to attract and retain businesses by assisting companies with large-sca...

• Driving a Cleaner Illinois – Volkswagen

  Illinois Environmental Protection AgencyUp to $18Mopen

  The Driving a Cleaner Illinois - Volkswagen (VW Round 9: Electric Trucks) program provides funding for the replacement of older, high-emitting diesel ...

• Driving a Cleaner Illinois Program (VW Round 9 - Electric Trucks)

  Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA)Up to $18Mopen

  Driving a Cleaner Illinois Program (VW Round 9 - Electric Trucks) is sponsored by Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA). This program, funde...

  clean_energyair_qualityenergy_efficiencyelectric trucksnitrogen oxide reduction

• IIJA Water Infrastructure Programs (Emerging Contaminants and Lead Service Line Replacement)

  Illinois Environmental Protection AgencyUp to $15MDeadline: Aug 31, 2026open

  This program represents the State of Illinois' allocation of federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) funds for water infrastructure. It ...

• Emerging Contaminants in Small or Disadvantaged Communities Grants

  Illinois Environmental Protection AgencyUp to $15MDeadline: Aug 31, 2026open

  The Emerging Contaminants in Small or Disadvantaged Communities (EC-SDC) Grant will utilize funds provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency...

• Center: NSF Engineering Research Center for Human AugmentatioN via Dexterity (HAND)

  Up to $14MDeadline: Aug 31, 2029open

  The work of the NSF Engineering Research Center for Human AugmentatioN via Dexterity (HAND) will lead to versatile, dexterous robotic arms and hands t...

• BioFoundry: NSF iBioFoundry for Basic and Applied Biology

  Up to $13MDeadline: Aug 31, 2030open

  Biotechnology has promised to solve many grand challenges of modern society. However, the traditional research and development process in biotechnolog...

• NSF and Computer Science Teachers Association AI Professional Development Weeks Computer Science Foundations for Creating with AI

  U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded to Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA)Up to $11Mopen

  Artificial Intelligence Professional Development Weeks: CS Foundations for Creating with AI is an $11 million two-year NSF initiative awarded to the C...

  ai_educationai_literacyk12_ai_teacher_pdcomputer_science_educationai_curriculum

• NSF’s ChemMatCARS: A Synchrotron X-ray National User Facility for Molecular Science at the Advanced Photon Source

  Up to $10MDeadline: Aug 31, 2029open

  The Division of Chemistry and the Division of Materials Research in the Mathematical and Physical Sciences Directorate, along with the Division of Che...

• Sage Grande: An Open Artificial Intelligence Testbed for Edge Computing and Intelligent Sensing

  Up to $9.3MDeadline: Jan 31, 2030open

  Language-based generative artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming scientific research, opening new opportunities to empower discovery and broader...

• Chameleon Phase-IV: A Reconfigurable Experimental Platform for Edge to Cloud Research

  Up to $9.0MDeadline: Sep 30, 2028open

  Chameleon is a deeply reconfigurable experimental edge to cloud testbed supporting Computer Science (CS) systems experimentation, education, and emerg...

• APTO: Collaborative Research: Global Observatory and Virtual Laboratory for Science and Technology Advance

  Up to $8.0MDeadline: Jun 30, 2029open

  Over the past half-century, the global geopolitical balance of scientific, technological, and economic leadership has shifted, with China’s meteoric r...

• Sport Fish Restoration - Fisheries, Boat Access (FY26)

  Illinois Department of Natural ResourcesUp to $8.0Mopen

  Activities designed to restore, conserve, manage, or enhance sport fish populations; the public use and benefits from these resources; and activities ...

• Establishing an Advanced Microscopy and Diagnostic Research Facility for the Midwest and Illinois MSI Alliance

  Up to $7.8MDeadline: May 31, 2030open

  /abstract The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (Illinois) proposes to expand its Microscopy Core Facilities to establish an Advanced Microscopy...

• Tech Incubator Enhancement Grants Program

  Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic OpportunityUp to $7.0Mopen

  Tech Incubator Enhancement Grants Program is sponsored by Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. This program provides funding to e...

  artificial_intelligenceai_foundation_modelssmall_businessinnovationworkforce_development

• South Pole Telescope Operations and Data Products

  Up to $6.0MDeadline: Aug 31, 2030open

  Among the most compelling current questions in cosmology are: What is the origin of the Universe? What is the Universe made of? What is the mass scale...

• Lead Poisoning Screening and Prevention Program Grants

  Illinois Department of Public HealthUp to $5.5Mopen

  This program provides formula-based grants to certified local health departments in Illinois to support the Lead Poisoning Screening and Prevention Pr...

• Global Centers: Alliance for Socially-acceptable & Actionable Plants

  Up to $5.0MDeadline: Apr 30, 2029open

  This award is funded by NSF Global Centers program, an innovative partnership with other funding agencies in Canada, Finland, Japan, Republic of Korea...

Where Illinois grants come from

• Federal sources — Grants.gov, NIH RePORTER, and SAM.gov, filtered for opportunities that fund work in Illinois.
• Illinois state portal — state-administered grant programs, including pass-through federal dollars and state-only appropriations.
• Foundations — community foundations and private foundations active in Illinois, drawn from IRS Form 990 filings and curated foundation directories.
• Corporate giving — a curated set of corporate philanthropy programs that explicitly fund Illinois-based work.

Listings are refreshed daily and stale data is flagged. Local funders missing from your area? You can request ZIP-level coverage after creating a free account.

Qualify Illinois grants before you write

Most of the time it takes to win a grant isn't writing — it's research and qualifying. Before you commit a week to a full proposal, qualify the opportunity with a 1–2 page Letter of Inquiry. Our guide walks through the structure that gets a yes: