Pennsylvania grants. Found and managed.
Where Pennsylvania nonprofits find Commonwealth, county and foundation funding, and how state grants are applied for and reported.
How Pennsylvania funds nonprofits.
Pennsylvania has no single grants office. Each Commonwealth agency runs its own programs: community and economic development through the Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED), victim services and violence prevention through the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD), the arts through the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, history and museums through the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC), and parks, trails and conservation through the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR).
Human services money often takes a different route. The Department of Human Services allocates funding for mental health, drug and alcohol, homeless assistance and related services to county governments, so for many direct service nonprofits the county human services office can matter as much as Harrisburg. Across the 67 counties, local giving comes from community foundations, United Ways and, in southeastern Pennsylvania, health foundations formed from the sale of local hospitals, such as HealthSpark Foundation in Montgomery County and Foundations Community Partnership in Bucks County.
The Commonwealth now lists programs from many agencies in one searchable directory at pa.gov/grants, though applications still go through each agency’s own system. Pursuit tracks these state programs next to federal and foundation opportunities, and Granted handles the reporting that follows an award.
Where to start
Discover State Grants (pa.gov/grants)
The Commonwealth’s searchable directory of state grant programs, filterable by applicant type (including nonprofits), funding agency and funding type. It links to each program’s details rather than taking applications. Many programs, including those from DCED, the Council on the Arts and PHMC, are applied for in the Enterprise eGrants System at grants.pa.gov (formerly DCED’s Electronic Single Application), which requires a Keystone Login. PCCD and DCNR run their own application portals.
Visit website (opens in a new tab)Pennsylvania Association of Nonprofit Organizations (PANO)
The statewide membership association for Pennsylvania nonprofits. It advocates on state policy that affects the sector and offers training, an annual conference, consultant referrals and the Standards for Excellence accreditation program.
Visit website (opens in a new tab)State agencies that fund nonprofits
- State agency
Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED)
Runs community and economic development programs, several of them open to nonprofits. Its Neighborhood Assistance Program, for example, gives tax credits to businesses that contribute to nonprofit-led projects in distressed communities. Applications go through the Enterprise eGrants System.
Visit website (opens in a new tab) - State agency
Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD)
Funds victim services, violence intervention and prevention, juvenile justice, school safety and criminal justice work. Community-based 501(c)(3) nonprofits are eligible for programs such as Violence Intervention and Prevention grants, and awards are managed in PCCD’s Egrants system.
Visit website (opens in a new tab) - State agency
Pennsylvania Council on the Arts (Pennsylvania Creative Industries)
The state arts agency, whose grant programs now run under the Pennsylvania Creative Industries name. Programs such as Creative Catalyst and Spotlight are open to nonprofit arts and creative organizations, and applications are filed at grants.pa.gov.
Visit website (opens in a new tab) - State agency
Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC)
Makes grants to nonprofit organizations and local governments for history and preservation, including Cultural and Historical Support grants for museums and official county historical societies, Keystone Historic Preservation grants and Historical and Archival Records Care grants.
Visit website (opens in a new tab) - State agency
Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR)
Its Community Conservation Partnerships Program funds parks, trails, river conservation, land acquisition and related recreation projects. Counties, municipalities and 501(c)(3) nonprofits can apply through DCNR’s own grants portal.
Visit website (opens in a new tab) - State agency
Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (PHFA)
Administers the Pennsylvania Housing Affordability and Rehabilitation Enhancement (PHARE) Fund, which supports the creation, rehabilitation and support of affordable housing. Funding is awarded through a competitive request for proposals, and past recipients include nonprofits, counties and local governments.
Visit website (opens in a new tab)
After the award
Reporting usually happens in the same system an agency uses for awards: PCCD grantees, for example, submit quarterly fiscal and program reports in Egrants and keep time and effort records for grant-funded staff. DCED grants end with either a closeout report or a full project audit, depending on contract size. When a state agency passes federal money through to a nonprofit, the Uniform Guidance (2 CFR 200) also applies, including a Single Audit filed with the Federal Audit Clearinghouse, with notice to the Pennsylvania Office of the Budget, once federal spending reaches the federal threshold.
Apply for Pennsylvania grants. Or award them.
Pursuit is for organizations that apply for grants. Granted is for the authorities, agencies and foundations that award them. Our team sets up either one around your programs.
Pursuit
Find it. Win it.
Pursuit matches your mission and eligibility against federal, Pennsylvania and foundation opportunities, including programs from agencies like Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) and Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD), and keeps every application and deadline in one pipeline.
- Matched opportunities
- Application pipeline & deadlines
- Team tasks & reviews
Granted
Manage every award.
Award grants in Pennsylvania? Granted runs each round from a public application page through board review and voting, recorded decisions, payments and grantee reports, with every step on the record.
- Public application portal
- Board review & voting
- Awards, payments & reports
Local funding guides for Pennsylvania.
Community foundations, county programs and United Way chapters that fund nonprofits in each county.
- Delaware County, PAA local guide to Delaware County funders, from Media-based grantmakers to county housing dollars, from a team based in Glenolden.
- Philadelphia, PACity agencies, the Cultural Fund and some of the region’s largest foundations: a working map of grant funding for Philadelphia nonprofits.
- Chester County, PAFrom West Chester to Coatesville and Phoenixville, the community, county and health funders behind Chester County nonprofits.
- Montgomery County, PAA guide to Montgomery County’s community, health and county funders, from Norristown to the North Penn and Pottstown areas.
- Bucks County, PABucks County funders from Doylestown to Levittown, including county housing dollars and grants for behavioral health and human services.
Pennsylvania grant questions.
Does Pennsylvania have a central grant application?
Not one application for every agency. The pa.gov/grants site is a statewide directory of programs, and many agencies, including DCED, the Council on the Arts and PHMC, take applications through the Enterprise eGrants System at grants.pa.gov. PCCD and DCNR use their own portals.
What do we need before applying for a Pennsylvania state grant?
A Keystone Login, the Commonwealth’s single sign-on account, is required to apply through grants.pa.gov. PCCD also asks that your organization and at least two of your staff be registered in Egrants before you start an application there.
Why does our county matter for state human services funding?
The Department of Human Services allocates funding for mental health, intellectual disabilities, drug and alcohol, homeless assistance and other services to county governments. That makes the county human services office a key contact for direct service nonprofits.
Are there statewide grants for arts and history organizations?
Yes. The Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, now operating as Pennsylvania Creative Industries, funds nonprofit arts and creative organizations, and PHMC offers grants for museums, historical societies, preservation projects and archival records care.
Do federal funds passed through Pennsylvania agencies carry extra rules?
Yes. Federal money keeps its federal requirements when a state agency passes it through, including the Uniform Guidance and, above the federal spending threshold, a Single Audit. Pennsylvania’s Office of the Budget asks to be notified once that audit is filed with the Federal Audit Clearinghouse.
Can Pursuit track Pennsylvania state grants alongside federal ones?
Yes. Pursuit tracks state, federal and foundation opportunities in one pipeline with deadlines, team tasks and reviews, and our team sets it up around your programs. Granted then manages budgets, drawdowns and reporting once an award is made.
Grant software for Pennsylvania nonprofits.
See how Pursuit and Granted would work for your programs in a short demo built around the grants you go after.
Funder details last reviewed October 2026. Spotted something out of date? Let us know.