FundFinchThe last two months of the year are crowded. Many funders close their final cycle before the holidays, and small teams are also running year-end appeals. You can't apply for everything, so the goal is to pick the two or three deadlines you can realistically win and give them your best work.
Below are grant deadlines between November 1 and December 31, 2026, checked on each funder's own site on October 18, 2026. Amounts and dates are as the funder states them. For the full lists, see our November 2026 and December 2026 deadline pages, which we refresh weekly.
Step 1: sort deadlines by how much time you really have
Count back from each deadline. Allow about two weeks to write and review a short application, longer for a first grant, and add any registration time. Then put each opportunity in one of three groups:
- Start this week: anything due in November that you clearly fit.
- Start by mid-November: December deadlines, especially letters of inquiry, which are short but lead to a second round.
- Save for next cycle: anything you'd be rushing, or that needs registration you don't have yet. A strong application next cycle beats a weak one now.
November 2026 deadlines
| Due | Funder and program | Where | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 1 | Montana Community Foundation, Community Investment Program | Rosebud, Custer and Fallon counties and the Northern Cheyenne Reservation, MT | Up to $50,000 |
| Nov 1 | Humanities Nebraska Mini Grants | Nebraska | $2,000 or less (1:1 match) |
| Nov 9 | Community Sustaining Fund of Thurston County | Thurston County, WA | Up to $1,500 |
| Nov 11 | M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust, Strategic Project Grants (LOI) | AK, ID, MT, OR, WA | Requests of $100,000+ |
| Nov 12 | Community Health Alliance | Western Montana | Up to $10,000 |
| Nov 15 | SNPT Snip the Cycle (spay/neuter) | Nationwide | $20,000 available this cycle |
| Nov 15 | Black Hills Area Community Foundation, Staff Investment Grant | Black Hills region, SD | $5,000 (five grants) |
| Nov 16 | Coquille Tribal Community Fund | Coos, Curry, Douglas, Jackson and Lane counties, OR | $1,000 minimum request |
| Nov 20 | First Federal Foundation, winter cycle | Idaho | Typically $1,000–$5,000 |
| Nov 23 | Sammamish Rotary Foundation | East King County, WA | $250–$2,500 |
| Nov 30 | Walmart Spark Good Local Grants, Cycle 3 | Nationwide | $250–$5,000 |
| Nov 30 | Roundhouse Foundation (five programs) | Rural Oregon | $500–$2,500 small grants; up to $100,000 capital |
| Nov 30 | Lincoln Community Foundation, Open Door Grants | Lincoln and Lancaster County, NE | Up to $20,000 |
A few things to know before you start:
- Walmart requires a Spark Good account verified through Deed before you can apply. If you aren't verified yet, start today; verification can take time.
- First Federal's portal closes at 11:59 PM GMT on November 20, which is the afternoon of the 20th in Idaho. Requests must include a capital project.
- Murdock is for larger organizations: the minimum request is $100,000 and the total project must be $200,000 or more. If that's not you, skip it. The next letter-of-inquiry window is March 1–29, 2027.
- Roundhouse runs five programs with the same Nov 30 close: Small Grants, Local Food Purchase, Technical Assistance, Library, and a Capital letter of inquiry. Its food-purchase grants can close earlier if funds run out. See our rural Oregon grants page.
December 2026 deadlines
| Due | Funder and program | Where | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 1 | Siletz Tribal Charitable Contribution Fund | 11 western Oregon counties | Awards have averaged $5,000–$6,500 |
| Dec 1 | Idaho Women's Charitable Foundation | 11 southwest Idaho counties | $20,000–$35,000 |
| Dec 2 | Texas Veterans Commission, Fund for Veterans' Assistance | Texas | See funder |
| Dec 4 | Spirit Mountain Community Fund, Small Grants (LOI) | 11 northwest Oregon counties | Up to $7,500 |
| Dec 11 | Sun Family Foundation, Humble Leadership Award | Orange County, CA | $25,000 unrestricted |
| Dec 13 | Washington Trust for Historic Preservation, CPARC | Rural Washington | Up to $200,000 |
| Dec 15 | Pacific Power Foundation, Safety/Wellness and small capital | Pacific Power and Rocky Mountain Power areas | Most $2,000–$5,000; capital up to $5,000 |
| Dec 15 | Wyoming Community Foundation, WICIP | Albany, Carbon and Platte counties, WY | Operating up to $10,000; projects up to $50,000 |
| Dec 18 | Pennsylvania Veterans' Trust Fund | Pennsylvania | Up to $40,000 |
| Dec 31 | Polk County Cultural Coalition | Polk County, OR | $500–$3,000 |
| Dec 31 | FCSAmerica Working Here Fund | Rural IA, NE, SD and WY | Up to $5,000, $15,000 or $25,000 |
- Siletz is firm: due 4:30 PM on December 1, and projects must start after February 5, 2027. Groups anywhere in the U.S. can also qualify if at least 51% of participants are Native American.
- Spirit Mountain starts with a letter of inquiry; invited applications are due January 29, 2027. Ask for no more than 50% of the project budget.
- Idaho Women's Charitable Foundation funds specific projects for groups with at least $50,000 in annual revenue. Decisions come in April 2027.
- Pacific Power's December cycle covers food insecurity, healthcare access, mental health, homeless support, veterans and more. Senior centers are named as eligible. Its small capital requests can't be used for computers or for maintaining existing facilities.
- Polk County Cultural Coalition posts its guidelines and forms in November, and Pennsylvania's Veterans' Trust Fund opens November 2.
Step 2: check fit before you write
Most of these programs are local. Before you commit time, confirm that you're inside the funder's geography and cause area, in the funder's own words. Our free grant finder does the first pass: try Oregon, Idaho, Washington or Montana, or narrow it with a cause, such as Oregon food and hunger. Our eligibility guide covers the traps to look for.
Step 3: if nothing fits, plan for January
If none of these deadlines work, you haven't missed the year. Several strong programs are open all year or come up early in 2027: the Ford Family Foundation's Good Neighbor Grants (up to $20,000, rural Oregon and Siskiyou County, CA) are always open, the Wildhorse Foundation's next quarterly deadline is January 1, 2027, and Spirit Mountain's Large Grants letters are due January 4, 2027. Our guide to building a grant calendar shows how to map them.
Want a short list that fits your organization instead of a long one? Request a free mini-report. We'll send your top 3–5 open opportunities with deadlines and sources in about 3 business days.
FundFinch is a grant research service for small nonprofits. We check every fact in our articles against the linked sources; funders change their rules, so always confirm on the funder's own site. Spotted something out of date? Email hello@fundfinch.com.