---
title: Indirect Cost Calculator (MTDC, 15% De Minimis) | GrantLink
description: Free indirect cost calculator for federal grant budgets. Enter direct costs by year, exclude what MTDC excludes, cap each subaward at $50,000, and apply the 15% de minimis or your negotiated rate.
url: https://grantlink.app/tools/indirect-cost-calculator
---

# Indirect cost calculator

Enter your grant's direct costs by category and year. The calculator removes the costs that modified total direct costs (MTDC) excludes, caps each subaward, and applies the 15% de minimis rate or your negotiated rate.

The interactive calculator is at https://grantlink.app/tools/indirect-cost-calculator.

## The formula

Indirect costs = MTDC × your indirect cost rate. MTDC is your total direct costs minus equipment, capital expenditures, patient care, rental costs, tuition remission, scholarships and fellowships, participant support costs, and the part of each subaward above $50,000. Awards made on or after October 1, 2024 may use a de minimis rate of up to 15% of MTDC.

## Worked example

Illustrative example · not customer data. A two-year award made after October 1, 2024, using the 15% de minimis rate.

| Direct cost | Year 1 | Year 2 | Total |
| --- | ---: | ---: | ---: |
| Salaries and wages | $100,000 | $104,000 | $204,000 |
| Fringe benefits | $30,000 | $31,200 | $61,200 |
| Travel | $6,000 | $6,000 | $12,000 |
| Materials and supplies | $8,000 | $4,000 | $12,000 |
| Contracts for services | $15,000 | $15,000 | $30,000 |
| Equipment (excluded) | $20,000 | $0 | $20,000 |
| Rental costs (excluded) | $12,000 | $12,000 | $24,000 |
| Participant support costs (excluded) | $10,000 | $10,000 | $20,000 |
| Subaward: Partner clinic | $30,000 | $50,000 | $80,000 |
| Subaward: University evaluator | $70,000 | $0 | $70,000 |

| Calculation | Year 1 | Year 2 | Total |
| --- | ---: | ---: | ---: |
| Total direct costs | $301,000 | $232,200 | $533,200 |
| Less excluded categories | $42,000 | $22,000 | $64,000 |
| Less subaward amounts over $50,000 | $20,000 | $30,000 | $50,000 |
| MTDC base | $239,000 | $180,200 | $419,200 |
| Indirect costs at 15% | $35,850 | $27,030 | $62,880 |
| Total budget | $336,850 | $259,230 | $596,080 |

The partner clinic subaward uses $30,000 of its $50,000 cap in year 1, so only $20,000 of its year 2 amount enters the base.

## Questions

### What does MTDC exclude?

Under 2 CFR 200.1, MTDC excludes equipment, capital expenditures, charges for patient care, rental costs, tuition remission, scholarships and fellowships, participant support costs, and the portion of each subaward above $50,000. Your negotiated rate agreement can define the base differently, so follow its terms when you have one.

### What is the de minimis indirect cost rate?

For awards made on or after October 1, 2024, 2 CFR 200.414(f) lets an organization without a current negotiated rate charge up to 15% of MTDC. Awards made before that date used 10%, though agencies could apply the 2024 rules to existing awards, so check your award terms. You can choose a lower rate, but you must apply it consistently to all federal awards.

### How are subawards treated in MTDC?

Only the first $50,000 of each subaward enters the base, across the whole period of performance, not per year. A subaward of $30,000 in year 1 and $50,000 in year 2 adds $30,000 and then $20,000. Contracts for services are not subawards and stay in the base.

### What counts as equipment?

Equipment is tangible property with a useful life of more than one year and a per-unit cost at or above the lesser of your capitalization level or $10,000 ($5,000 for awards made before October 1, 2024). Cheaper items are usually supplies, which stay in the base.

### Do indirect costs count against the award ceiling?

Usually yes. Most funding announcements state a total award amount that includes indirect costs, so the total budget is direct costs plus indirect costs. Check the ceiling and any indirect cost limit in your funding announcement.

## Limitations

This calculator estimates a proposal budget. It does not replace your negotiated rate agreement, the award terms, or review by your grants office or accountant.

## Sources

- [2 CFR 200.1 (definition of MTDC)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.1)
- [2 CFR 200.414(f) (de minimis rate)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.414)
- [Modified Total Direct Cost (MTDC) guide](https://grantlink.app/kb/modified-total-direct-cost-mtdc-guide)