funder

funder · Optional

Appears in

• Organization

What is it?

funder identifies the person or organization that financially supports the entity through direct funding or sponsorship. Unlike funding, which points to a Grant object, funder is a direct reference to the supporting entity itself. It is the simplest way to declare "this organization is funded by X."

The expected value is an Organization or Person. Multiple funders are expressed as an array. For named grant programs, the richer funding field is more appropriate.

Why this matters for AEO

AI answer engines increasingly answer questions about organizational independence, funding transparency, and financial backing. When a user asks "Who funds the ACLU?" or "Is this think tank funded by a corporation?", AI systems look for structured funder declarations to give direct, sourced answers.

Structured funder data is more trustworthy for AI systems than funder claims buried in prose, because it is part of the machine-readable entity graph rather than natural language copy that could change or be ambiguous. For nonprofits, research organizations, and advocacy groups, declaring funders in structured data signals transparency that AI systems reward in entity modeling.

What the specs say

Schema.org:funder expects an Organization or Person value. A person or organization that supports (sponsors) something through some kind of financial contribution. [Source: https://schema.org/funder]

Google: Not mentioned in Google's structured data documentation for Organization. This field is not a trigger for specific rich results but contributes to entity knowledge graphs. [Source: https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/structured-data/organization]

How to find your value

For nonprofits and foundations: list major institutional funders and grantors. For research organizations: list government bodies, foundations, and institutional backers. For companies: list investors or corporate funders if publicly disclosed and relevant to the organization's identity.

Each funder should include at minimum name and ideally url and sameAs for entity disambiguation.

Format and code

Nonprofit with organizational funders

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Organization",
  "name": "Electronic Frontier Foundation",
  "url": "https://www.eff.org",
  "funder": [
    {
      "@type": "Organization",
      "name": "John S. and James L. Knight Foundation",
      "url": "https://knightfoundation.org"
    },
    {
      "@type": "Organization",
      "name": "Mozilla Foundation",
      "url": "https://foundation.mozilla.org"
    }
  ]
}

Research institute with government funder

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Organization",
  "name": "RAND Corporation",
  "url": "https://www.rand.org",
  "funder": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "U.S. Department of Defense",
    "url": "https://www.defense.gov",
    "sameAs": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_Defense"
  }
}

Organization funded by a person

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Organization",
  "name": "Chan Zuckerberg Initiative",
  "url": "https://chanzuckerberg.com",
  "funder": [
    {
      "@type": "Person",
      "name": "Mark Zuckerberg",
      "sameAs": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Zuckerberg"
    },
    {
      "@type": "Person",
      "name": "Priscilla Chan",
      "sameAs": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Priscilla_Chan"
    }
  ]
}

Webflow implementation

Static pages

Add in Page Settings > Custom Code on the organization's homepage or about page:

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Organization",
  "name": "Your Organization",
  "funder": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "Funding Organization",
    "url": "https://funder.org"
  }
}
</script>

CMS template pages

For organizations with many funders, store funder information in a Webflow CMS collection and reference the relevant fields in a custom code embed on the organization page template.

In Schema HQ

Inside Schema HQ's organization schema editor, the funder field is available. Add each funder as an Organization or Person entry. Schema HQ generates the correct nested object structure in the JSON-LD output.

Real examples

Internet Archive:

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Organization",
  "name": "Internet Archive",
  "url": "https://archive.org",
  "funder": [
    {
      "@type": "Organization",
      "name": "Kahle/Austin Foundation",
      "url": "https://kahleaustin.org"
    },
    {
      "@type": "Organization",
      "name": "Andrew W. Mellon Foundation",
      "url": "https://mellon.org"
    }
  ]
}

Related fields

• funding
• sponsor
• member
• parentOrganization

FAQ

What is the difference between funder and sponsor?

funder specifically refers to financial support. sponsor is broader and can include non-financial support such as in-kind contributions or endorsements. Use funder when the relationship is a direct financial contribution. Use sponsor for event sponsorships or non-cash support arrangements.

Should I list all funders or just major ones?

List funders that are materially significant and publicly disclosed. Anonymous donors or minor contributions do not need structured data representation. Focus on funders whose names, if known, would meaningfully inform a user's understanding of the organization.

Can funder reference a Person?

Yes. funder accepts both Organization and Person values. Individual major donors who are public figures can be listed using the Person type with name and optionally sameAs for disambiguation.