Direct Relief
Santa Barbara, CA · EIN 951831116 · FY2023 is the latest filing on record · pre-cached
Direct Relief's 1% compensation share of spending is not the full story of its financial strength.
Direct Relief reported $2.3B in revenue and $2.1B in expenses in its latest fiscal year, resulting in a 9% operating margin. This is higher than its 12-year average operating margin of 3%. The organization holds 6.6 months of operating reserves.
Myth
A low compensation share of spending indicates an organization is highly efficient and effective.
Reality
Direct Relief spends 1% of its budget on compensation, which is in the 10th percentile compared to its peers. However, a low compensation share alone doesn't tell you about the quality of programs or overall impact.
Myth
Charities should aim for an operating margin of 0% to ensure all funds go directly to programs.
Reality
Direct Relief had a 9% operating margin in its latest fiscal year, contributing to its 6.6 months of operating reserves. This reserve level is in the 58th percentile among its peers, suggesting a healthy financial cushion for future operations and unexpected events.
Multi-year trend
Operating reserve months
Net assets ÷ monthly expenses — how long the org could run on savings alone.
Operating margin
(Revenue − expenses) ÷ revenue, per fiscal year.
How it compares to peers
Percentile rank among 75 International, Foreign Affairs organizations. Higher is framed as better on every bar here — including reserves and staff investment, which conventional overhead-ratio scoring would penalize.
Dashed line = peer median (50th percentile)
Ask about Direct Relief
Answers are grounded only in this org's filed financial data above -- it won't guess at their programs, leadership, or anything not shown on this page.
Source: latest Form 990 PDF via ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer.