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Friends of the Israel Defense Forces
Friends of the Israel Defense Forces reported $182.8 million in revenue and $172.9 million in expenses for calendar year 2025. Of every $100 it spent, $80.83 went to program services, $8.51 to management and general costs and $10.66 to fundraising. Its largest source of revenue was contributions and grants: 96.9% of the total. The highest compensation it reported for one person was $1,119,940 (FORMER CEO (THRU 07/25)). 61 people received more than $100,000 in reportable compensation. Revenue rose 109% between 2019 and 2025. Source: Form 990, 2025.
Where $100 of spending went
Calendar year 2025 · Form 990, Part IX, line 25 · total expenses $173MFor context, the median across 469 covered international, foreign affairs & national security charities: $89.04 programs, $8.28 management, $2.68 fundraising (medians computed separately, so they may not sum to $100).
Where $100 of revenue came from
Calendar year 2025 · Form 990, Part VIII · total revenue $183MOther revenue was negative: −$3.1M. The bar shows the positive sources only.
The 990 scorecard · same measures for every charity, no grades
| Measure | 2025 | Median |
|---|---|---|
| Program services Part IX 25(B) ÷ 25(A) | 80.8% | 86.1% |
| Management & general Part IX 25(C) ÷ 25(A) | 8.5% | 8.0% |
| Fundraising Part IX 25(D) ÷ 25(A) | 10.7% | 2.6% |
| Fundraising cost per $1 of contributions Part IX 25(D) ÷ Part VIII 1h | $0.10 | $0.03 |
| Contributions & grants share of revenue Part VIII 1h ÷ 12 | 96.9% | 96.6% |
| Government grants share of revenue Part VIII 1e ÷ 12 | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Program service revenue share Part VIII 2g ÷ 12 | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Highest reported compensation Part VII-A, columns D–F | $1,119,940 | $341,362 |
| Highest compensation as share of expenses Part VII-A ÷ Part IX 25(A) | 0.65% | 1.06% |
| People paid over $100,000 Part VII, line 2 | 61 | 10 |
| Net assets, in months of expenses Part X 33(B) ÷ monthly expenses | 21.7 | 7.5 |
| Independent voting board members Part VI 1a–1b | 62 of 62 | 100.0% |
A median is context, not a target: hospitals, universities, food banks and grantmakers spend in very different ways. What these measures can and can't tell you.
What the money paid for, in its own words
2025 · Form 990, Part III · the three largest programs by expenseHighest reported compensation
2025 · Form 990, Part VII, Section A · roles as filed; names are in the filing, not here| Role | From this org | From related orgs | Other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FORMER CEO (THRU 07/25) Officer, 40.00 hrs/week | $1,100,089 | $0 | $19,851 | $1,119,940 |
| CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Officer, 40.00 hrs/week | $387,978 | $0 | $12,022 | $400,000 |
| VICE PRESIDENT, NORTHEAST REGION Key employee, 40.00 hrs/week | $336,879 | $0 | $28,121 | $365,000 |
| CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Officer, 40.00 hrs/week | $328,482 | $0 | $27,618 | $356,100 |
| FORMER COO (THRU 08/25) Officer, 40.00 hrs/week | $313,731 | $0 | $7,149 | $320,880 |
| EXECUTIVE VP, WESTERN REGION Key employee, 40.00 hrs/week | $256,976 | $0 | $13,424 | $270,400 |
| EXEC. DIR., NORTHEAST AFFINITY GROUPS Highest compensated employee, 40.00 hrs/week | $245,684 | $0 | $12,194 | $257,878 |
| EXECUTIVE VP, CENTRAL REGION Key employee, 40.00 hrs/week | $231,649 | $0 | $25,289 | $256,938 |
61 people received more than $100,000 in reportable compensation from Friends of the Israel Defense Forces (Part VII, line 2). Compensation of current officers, directors and key employees totaled $6.0M (Part IX, line 5).
7 years of filings
Form 990, Parts I, VII, IX and X · each row is that year's own filing, linkedGovernance answers, as filed
2025 · the organization's own yes/no answers; explanations, if any, are in Schedule O of the filing · what each means- Voting board members, and how many are independent Part VI, lines 1a–1b62 · 62 independent
- Audited financial statements Part XII 2bYes
- Conflict-of-interest policy Part VI 12aYes
- Whistleblower policy Part VI 13Yes
- Document retention policy Part VI 14Yes
- Independent process for top executive pay Part VI 15aYes
- Board given the 990 before filing Part VI 11aYes
- Family or business ties among insiders Part VI 2No
- Aware of a significant diversion of assets Part VI 5No
- Excess benefit transaction with an insider Part IV 25aNo
- Loans to or from insiders outstanding Part IV 26No
- Lobbying, or a 501(h) election in effect Part IV 4No
- Over $15,000 of professional fundraising services Part IV 18No
- Over $10,000 of activity outside the U.S. Part IV 14bYes
- Employees Part I, line 5201
- Volunteers Part I, line 6567
Largest outside contractors
2025 · Form 990, Part VII, Section B · businesses only| EVENTS BY EXECUTIVE CATERERS Catering | $459,963 |
| HIGHSPRING LLC DBA VACO Staffing | $319,711 |
| LOEB & LOEB LLP Legal services | $239,301 |
| THE BOCA RATON Hotel & event services | $236,292 |
| TRIPLE S STUDIOS Av services | $230,843 |
Individuals listed as contractors are left out. 24 contractors were paid more than $100,000 in all.
Private foundation grants it received
868 private foundations reported grants to Friends of the Israel Defense Forces totaling $32M on their tax year 2023 Form 990-PF returns. See which foundations, on WHOFUNDS.
Source: WHOFUNDS open grant graph, matched from Form 990-PF Part XV.
Correct a figure or respond
Every number above is copied from Friends of the Israel Defense Forces's own Form 990. If one doesn't match the filing, that's our error and we'll fix it. If you work for Friends of the Israel Defense Forces, you can publish a response that is linked from this page.
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Of every $100 Friends of the Israel Defense Forces spent in 2025, $80.83 went to programs. The full breakdown, from its IRS Form 990:
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All international, foreign affairs & national security charities · Largest charities in New York
Questions people ask
How much of Friends of the Israel Defense Forces's spending goes to programs?
In calendar year 2025, Friends of the Israel Defense Forces reported that 80.8% of its $172.9 million in expenses went to program services, 8.5% to management and general and 10.7% to fundraising (Form 990, Part IX).
How much does Friends of the Israel Defense Forces pay its top executive?
The largest total compensation Friends of the Israel Defense Forces reported for one person in calendar year 2025 was $1,119,940, for the role of FORMER CEO (THRU 07/25) (Form 990, Part VII, including compensation from related organizations and other compensation).
Where does Friends of the Israel Defense Forces get its money?
Of $182.8 million in revenue in calendar year 2025, 96.9% came from contributions and grants and 0.0% from program service revenue (Form 990, Part VIII).
Is Friends of the Israel Defense Forces a registered charity?
The IRS lists EIN 13-3156445 as a 501(c)(3) organization (publicly supported organization (170(b)(1)(a)(vi))), and its records show contributions as tax-deductible. Form 990 filings on record here cover tax years 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025. A filing shows what the organization reported; it doesn't by itself show whether a program works.
Sources
- 2025: Form 990 for calendar year 2025, object 202622449349300817 · read the filing
- 2024: Form 990 for calendar year 2024, object 202513029349302236 · read the filing
- 2023: Form 990 for calendar year 2023, object 202432849349300808 · read the filing
- 2022: Form 990 for calendar year 2022, object 202333039349301153 · read the filing
- 2021: Form 990 for calendar year 2021, object 202212809349301516 · read the filing
- 2020: Form 990 for calendar year 2020, object 202122659349301127 · read the filing
- 2019: Form 990 for calendar year 2019, object 202043179349303244 · read the filing
All filings for EIN 13-3156445: ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer · IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search. Figures are as the organization reported them; we have not audited them.