GraphQL Foundation Budget Report: 2026 Update

In April, we published our first budget transparency report, reviewing our 2025 finances and outlining our plans for 2026. As part of our commitment to transparency, we’re returning with an update on our spending so far this year, changes to our financial outlook, and what we anticipate for the remainder of 2026.

The GraphQL Foundation’s mission is to support the continued evolution of GraphQL and the community around it. Our budget, approved by our member companies through the Governing Board, funds a variety of activities including technical project maintenance, community engagement, events, and administrative support.

All figures are expressed in USD. This report uses our latest available P&L, issued for August 2026, whose figures remain current as of October. Full-year projections are subject to change.

Link to budget summary statement: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1pFjnuu5CsOFvlYFRgx9HInG6HYV3yH0WNjejHweHwok/edit?gid=1737232661#gid=1737232661

2026 Summary

We originally budgeted $266,382 in expenditures against $211,000 in expected revenue, anticipating an operating deficit of $55,382. Our latest forecast projects $337,776 in expenditures and $278,170 in revenue, resulting in an operating deficit of $59,606. To date, we’ve recorded $269,381 in expenditures and received $218,170 in revenue.

The principal change to our budget is attributable to GraphQLConf 2026. When the event relocated, the expenditures and revenues both increased, the details are noted below. Other spending categories have remained close to their original budgets.

GraphQLConf 2026

GraphQLConf 2026 was our largest expenditure of the year. The Foundation Summits line was originally budgeted at $100,000 and has since been revised to $170,158, offset by an additional $60,000 in revenue from our Platinum sponsor, Meta, who offset our relocation costs with this contribution. Our latest financial statement shows $175,120 in expenditures recorded against this category, with the difference between recorded spending and the revised forecast still to be reconciled. Despite these challenges, GraphQLConf took place on May 19-20. The program brought together contributors, maintainers, and practitioners from across the GraphQL ecosystem for two days of technical sessions, discussions, and collaboration. The conference was followed by Working Group Day at Meta’s Fremont campus on May 21. You can read our GraphQLConf 2026 recap for more about the event.

We extend our gratitude to Meta for its continued support, The Linux Foundation’s events team for navigating the changes, our sponsors, speakers, volunteers, and everyone who attended. We also thank GraphQLConf 2026’s Gold sponsors, Wundergraph and The Guild; Silver sponsors, Apollo GraphQL and ChilliCream; Open Source Community sponsor, Airbnb; and Bronze sponsor, Graphile.

Spending by category

As in our previous report, our expenditures are organized into five categories.

Community engagement and marketing

We’ve spent $182,129 in this category, against a revised full-year forecast of $192,841. GraphQLConf accounts for the majority of these expenditures, as discussed above.

Other expenditures include marketing tools, digital advertising, community awards and swag, and participation in industry events. Our current forecast retains funding for additional community events and outreach through the remainder of the year.

Legal

We’ve spent $68 on trademark maintenance. Our full-year budget for this category remains $1,000.

General & administrative

We’ve spent $19,635, compared with an original budget of $18,990. This category includes finance, accounting, compliance, and other administrative support necessary to operate the Foundation.

Staff & operations

We’ve spent $63,073 against a full-year budget of $89,000. This includes Program Management services provided by The Linux Foundation, our Community Gardener function, and staff travel. These services support the Foundation’s day-to-day operations; administration for outreach and recognition programs such as GraphQL Locals, Ambassadors and Stars; and the maintenance and evolution of core GraphQL technical projects. Our forecast for this category remains unchanged.

Development

We’ve spent $4,476 against a full-year budget of $35,300. This includes hosting, infrastructure, IT services, and software subscriptions. Our forecast also includes $30,000 for Developer Grants (called “contractors” in the budget), against which no expenditures have yet been recorded but there are several commitments that are underway and should be completed by EOY 2026. As such, this allocation remains in our projections for the year.

Revenue

The Foundation has collected $218,170 in revenue so far this year, exceeding our original forecast of $211,000. Membership dues accounted for $161,000, exactly in line with our budget. Event sponsorships contributed $57,000, exceeding our $50,000 target. $60,000 of revenue is still pending and will be received by EOY. We thank our member companies and event sponsors for their continued investment in the GraphQL community.

The remainder of 2026

We currently forecast approximately $68,396 in additional expenditures through the end of the year. The majority of this spending is allocated to Community Grants (referred to as “development consultants” in the spreadsheet) and ongoing staff and operational support, with smaller amounts reserved for community engagement, events, infrastructure, and legal expenses.

Based on these projections, we expect to finish 2026 with a carryforward of $129,574, compared with the $133,798 originally anticipated.

In our previous report, we discussed the importance of putting the Foundation’s resources to work rather than accumulating large year-over-year surpluses. Our reserves have continued to decrease in 2026. As we approach 2027 budgeting, we’ll incorporate this year’s financial results and continue to balance our investment in technical projects, community initiatives, and events with the Foundation’s available resources. Membership engagement and recruitment is a top priority to help secure the resources needed to fund the impactful technical and outreach work our community do.

Making an impact

The GraphQL Foundation exists to support the people and projects that make GraphQL possible. We are grateful to our member companies, sponsors, maintainers, contributors, and the broader community for their continued support.

If your organization depends on GraphQL, please consider joining the GraphQL Foundation. You can also support community initiatives through the GraphQL Crowdfund. We hope this report provides a useful view of the Foundation’s finances and look forward to continuing these updates.