Burning Man's 2016 Expenses

Where does the money go?

Represented here is a full accounting of Burning Man Project’s expenses, taken directly from our annual Form 990. For more information about our work sharing Burning Man culture with the world, please check out our Annual Report.

2016 BURNING MAN EXPENSES
100%
$36,975,805

While Burning Man was once a scrappy little desert gathering, it has become a multifaceted professional operation. Today the Burning Man Project produces the nation’s largest permitted event on public land, and supports an extensive global network of events, artists and civic initiatives.

This is a full accounting of 2016 expenses. It includes year-round operations for the event in Black Rock City and our off playa programs. This chart is a direct representation of information found in our 2016 Form 990.

Programming expenses (e.g. Burning Man Arts or Burners Without Borders) are spread across many categories. For a detailed description of program areas and 2016 accomplishments in each, read our Annual Report.

About Expense Types: The IRS groups nonprofit expenses into three categories: Programming, Administration, and Fundraising.

For more details on what goes in to each of these, read our FAQ.

  • programming
  • administration
  • fundraising