Apply for the AARP Purpose Prize Award

The AARP® Purpose Prize® award is a one-of-a-kind national award that honors people age 50-plus who are using their life experience to make a better future for us all. The award recognizes nonprofit founders with $50,000 for their organizations and a year of supports and resources to help broaden their impact. Examples of current supports include one-on-one leadership coaching for founders, data and evaluation consulting, succession planning, prospectus development, social media and branding support, and more.

The next call for applications for the AARP Purpose Prize award will open in January 2025. Watch this page for more details.

Eligibility

•  You will be 50 years of age or older at the application deadline
•  You are the founder or co-founder of your organization
•  You started the organization for which you are applying at the age of 40 or older
•  You still have an active role in the organization
•  You are a legal resident of the fifty (50) United States or the District of Columbia
•  Your organization is a Section 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(4) non-profit exempt from federal income tax under Section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code
•  Your organization’s principal place of business is in the U.S. (though its work might be international in scope)
• Your organization’s work is not exclusively religious

See official rules for additional details on eligibility. Have additional questions? Read our FAQs or see the Purpose Prize official rules, eligibility, odds, and prize disclosures.