The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reported $66.8 million in revenue and $62.8 million in expenses for calendar year 2025. Of every $100 it spent, $92.29 went to program services, $4.78 to management and general costs and $2.93 to fundraising. Its largest source of revenue was contributions and grants: 91.0% of the total. Government grants made up 75.3%. The highest compensation it reported for one person was $548,662 (Pres/CEO). 135 people received more than $100,000 in reportable compensation. Revenue rose 41% between 2019 and 2025. Source: Form 990, 2025.
Where $100 of spending went
Calendar year 2025 · Form 990, Part IX, line 25 · total expenses $63MFor context, the median across 274 covered crime & legal-related charities: $87.85 programs, $11.30 management, $0.85 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 $67M- Contributions & grants (non-government)$15.72 $11M
- Government grants$75.01 $50M
- Program service revenue$2.27 $1.5M
- Investment income$7.00 $4.7M
Other revenue was negative: −$218K. 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) | 92.3% | 86.7% |
| Management & general Part IX 25(C) ÷ 25(A) | 4.8% | 11.1% |
| Fundraising Part IX 25(D) ÷ 25(A) | 2.9% | 0.8% |
| Fundraising cost per $1 of contributions Part IX 25(D) ÷ Part VIII 1h | $0.03 | $0.01 |
| Contributions & grants share of revenue Part VIII 1h ÷ 12 | 91.0% | 94.8% |
| Government grants share of revenue Part VIII 1e ÷ 12 | 75.3% | 50.1% |
| Program service revenue share Part VIII 2g ÷ 12 | 2.3% | 0.7% |
| Highest reported compensation Part VII-A, columns D–F | $548,662 | $245,814 |
| Highest compensation as share of expenses Part VII-A ÷ Part IX 25(A) | 0.87% | 1.41% |
| People paid over $100,000 Part VII, line 2 | 135 | 8 |
| Net assets, in months of expenses Part X 33(B) ÷ monthly expenses | 16.0 | 6.4 |
| Independent voting board members Part VI 1a–1b | 24 of 26 | 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 expenseThe ncmec Exploited Children division operates the cybertipline, and, as part of their support to investigation and recovery efforts, manages the child victim identification program to assist with child identification, maintains a hash-sharing list to support tech industry ongoing detection of online child sexual abuse material, partners with the ncmec analytical services division to identify and respond to suspected child sex trafficking and noncompliant sex offender cases, and organizes survivor-informed services to aid the recovery and healing of children and families affected by the…
The ncmec Missing Children division operates the call center and provides case management services as part of their support to investigation and recovery efforts, disseminates posters and manages the secondary distribution of amber alerts informing the public of active missing child cases, organizes team adam consultants to provide rapid onsite responses to critical missing child cases, tracks attempted abductions in partnership with the ncmec analytical services division as a preventative measure, coordinates an array of forensic services to support long-term missing cases and cases of…
The ncmec analytical services division provides technical assistance and data analysis to assist law enforcement in their efforts to locate and recover Missing Children and victims of domestic child sex trafficking and to locate and apprehend noncompliant sex offenders
Highest 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pres/CEO Officer, 37.5 hrs/week | $521,550 | $0 | $27,112 | $548,662 |
| Asst. Secty, CLO Officer, 37.5 hrs/week | $286,794 | $0 | $30,755 | $317,549 |
| Asst. Treas.SVP,CFO Officer, 37.5 hrs/week | $273,556 | $0 | $38,049 | $311,605 |
| SVP, COO Officer, 37.5 hrs/week | $268,954 | $0 | $19,912 | $288,866 |
| SVP, Exploited Child Div/Intl Engage Key employee, 37.5 hrs/week | $239,750 | $0 | $38,935 | $278,685 |
| CDO Highest compensated employee, 37.5 hrs/week | $231,984 | $0 | $44,659 | $276,643 |
| VP, Comm & Branding Highest compensated employee, 37.5 hrs/week | $207,806 | $0 | $43,257 | $251,063 |
| VP, Missing Children Div Highest compensated employee, 37.5 hrs/week | $203,208 | $0 | $45,192 | $248,400 |
135 people received more than $100,000 in reportable compensation from The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (Part VII, line 2). Compensation of current officers, directors and key employees totaled $2.6M (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–1b26 · 24 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 2Yes
- 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 4Yes
- Over $15,000 of professional fundraising services Part IV 18No
- Over $10,000 of activity outside the U.S. Part IV 14bNo
- Employees Part I, line 5552
- Volunteers Part I, line 6664
Largest outside contractors
2025 · Form 990, Part VII, Section B · businesses only| 1900 Duke Street LP Office Rent | $2,482,621 |
| Motion Recruitment Partners Tech Contract Services | $488,563 |
| CREATIVE2 LLC Website design and maintenance | $326,718 |
| BRYAN CAVE LEIGHTON PAISNER LLP Legal Services | $303,290 |
| AMAZON WEB SERVICES INC Tech Contract Services | $291,871 |
Individuals listed as contractors are left out. 21 contractors were paid more than $100,000 in all.
Private foundation grants it received
40 private foundations reported grants to The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children totaling $857K 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 The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's own Form 990. If one doesn't match the filing, that's our error and we'll fix it. If you work for The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, you can publish a response that is linked from this page.
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Of every $100 The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children spent in 2025, $92.29 went to programs. The full breakdown, from its IRS Form 990:
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Similar-sized charities in this cause
- Democracy Forward FoundationWashington, DC · revenue $66M · programs 90.7% · FY2025
- The Village NetworkWooster, OH · revenue $68M · programs 84.8% · FY2025
- National Conference of Bar ExaminersMadison, WI · revenue $65M · programs 87.0% · FY2025
- The Bronx DefendersBronx, NY · revenue $70M · programs 87.6% · FY2025
- Maryland Legal Services CorporationBaltimore, MD · revenue $62M · programs 99.2% · FY2025
All crime & legal-related charities · Largest charities in Virginia
Questions people ask
How much of The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's spending goes to programs?
In calendar year 2025, The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reported that 92.3% of its $62.8 million in expenses went to program services, 4.8% to management and general and 2.9% to fundraising (Form 990, Part IX).
How much does The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children pay its top executive?
The largest total compensation The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reported for one person in calendar year 2025 was $548,662, for the role of Pres/CEO (Form 990, Part VII, including compensation from related organizations and other compensation).
Where does The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children get its money?
Of $66.8 million in revenue in calendar year 2025, 91.0% came from contributions and grants (including 75.3% from government grants) and 2.3% from program service revenue (Form 990, Part VIII).
Is The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children a registered charity?
The IRS lists EIN 52-1328557 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 202611699349301126 · read the filing · XML
- 2024: Form 990 for calendar year 2024, object 202502169349301015 · read the filing
- 2023: Form 990 for calendar year 2023, object 202421709349300022 · read the filing
- 2022: Form 990 for calendar year 2022, object 202331639349301103 · read the filing
- 2021: Form 990 for calendar year 2021, object 202201869349300815 · read the filing
- 2020: Form 990 for calendar year 2020, object 202131809349300033 · read the filing
- 2019: Form 990 for calendar year 2019, object 202002049349300205 · read the filing
All filings for EIN 52-1328557: ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer · IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search. Figures are as the organization reported them; we have not audited them.