Pierpont Morgan Library
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
The Morgan Library & Museum celebrates and shares the history and process of human creativity from antiquity to the present day through the preservation, study, and interpretation of a dynamic and growing collection.
- Income
- $55.1 million
- Spending
- $41.9 million
- Spent on programs
- 80%
- Reserves
- 4.2 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 53%
- Employees
- 268
- Volunteers
- 46
- Highest pay
- $896,039, director
Source: Form 990 for the year ending March 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Good: 80 out of 100. Higher than 74% of charities in its peer group (education, $10m to $100m).
Reserves
20 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 4.2 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 5% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 24% of income.
Income trend
10 of 15Income fell 6% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1580% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 11 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending March 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 50% of charities in its peer group (education, $10m to $100m).
Independent board
25 of 2521 of 22 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending March 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (4)
- $21.3 million spent. Curatorial: The Morgan Library & Museum ("the Morgan") occupies a midtown Manhattan campus comprised of three landmarked buildings that are joined by pavilions constructed of steel-and-glass panels designed by renowned architect Renzo Piano. The Morgan houses one of the world's greatest collections of artistic, literary, musical, and historical works. Included in its holdings are original scores of Mozart and Beethoven, drawings by Rembrandt and Rubens, medieval and Renaissance works, three Gutenberg Bibles, literary manuscripts by Dickens and Twain, and five-thousand-year-old carvings from the countries of ancient Western Asia. The Morgan recorded 308,582 visitors over the fiscal year, primarily for a wide variety of changing exhibitions encompassing (continued on Schedule O)works from the Morgan's permanent collection and from other museums and libraries in the U.S. and abroad. Exhibitions during fiscal year 2025 included "Beatrix Potter: Drawn to Nature;" "Walton Ford: Animal Studies and Sketches;" "Belle da Costa Greene: A Librarian's Legacy; and "Franz Kafka." The Morgan's curators plan the exhibitions, oversee the permanent collection, prepare exhibition and collection-related catalogs, organize symposia, host graduate seminars, and provide research and other services to the scholarly community.The extraordinary group of medieval and Renaissance manuscripts; printed books and bindings; literary, historical, and music manuscripts; drawings and prints; and ancient cylinder seals that J. Pierpont Morgan brought together were among the first important collections of their kind in America and form what is today the core of the Morgan's holdings. (The collection now includes photography and modern and contemporary drawings as well.) In overall quality and importance, these collections are among the finest in the world, distinguished by the high percentage of items that are unique or exceptionally rare. One of only a handful of American institutions devoted to these specialized areas, the Morgan maintains an active acquisitions program and now holds several hundred thousand items in its collection.The Morgan's Drawing Institute is devoted to the interpretation, conservation, and theory of old master and modern drawing with the goal of stimulating new lines of investigation and discourse. The Drawing Institute supports research through annual fellowships; publications; small, focused exhibitions; and an ongoing series of symposia, seminars, and lectures.
- $5.1 million spent. Library and Museum Services: The Morgan Library & Museum is one of nineteen independent research libraries in the United States and, as such, makes its collections available to qualified researchers for study on-site in the Sherman Fairchild Reading Room and the Drawing Study Center. An online catalog of the collections is accessible at www.themorgan.org and assists researchers both on-and off-site. Active digitization and publication programs help to extend the reach of the Morgan's scholarly services and support study of the collections.The Morgan has had professional paper and book conservation facilities since the 1950s, when they were among the first such labs in the United States. The Morgan's conservation facilities (continued on Schedule O) were dramatically enhanced with the 2002 completion of the Thaw Conservation Center. The Morgan's conservators oversee the preservation of the collections and also undertake surveys and treatment projects of discrete collection areas. The collections consist almost entirely of works on paper and related porous supports (vellum, parchment, papyri), and the conservators have developed special expertise in the conservation, restoration, and repair of such objects. Both a working and teaching facility, the Thaw Center receives requests for assistance from institutions in the United States and abroad. It offers fellowships in conservation techniques and practices.
- $4.5 million spent. Public Programs: During fiscal year 2025, the Morgan offered a variety of programs to both onsite and online visitors. This included 44 programs for adults onsite, attracting 5,571 attendees to a diverse array of lectures, concerts, performances, symposia, conversations, workshops, festivals, films, and tours. Additionally, 505 daily highlights and special exhibition tours drew a total of 11,814 people. Online programs continued with 26 programs, attracting 2,547 attendees worldwide to short courses, lectures, and discussions. The Morgan's school programs offered both in-person and virtual activities, engaging 7,855 participants in K-12 student and teacher programs; 3,503 participants in family and 37 teen programs; and 322 college students, spanning diverse communities.
- $2.4 million spent. Museum Publications and Retail: The Morgan maintains an active publications program, producing catalogues related to its exhibitions and items in its permanent collections. These catalogues are made available to the public, along with other exhibition and collection-related merchandise, through the Morgan's on-site retail shop and through the Morgan's website.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending March 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated November 6, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending March 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since April 1925.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated November 4, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.