Largest Bible Translation Organizations

Wycliffe Bible Translators is the largest with over $210 million in revenue.

The mid-May list includes all 20 of the Bible translation groups in the MinistryWatch 1000 database listed in order of total revenue, largest to smallest.

In previous years, the Bible translation organizations have been included with the foreign missions groups because their work is often coordinated, but we plan to publish a separate list of Bible translators going forward.

MinistryWatch has regularly investigated the Bible translation industry, trying to get answers to questions about the cost and time required to complete a translation of the bible while also reporting on new innovations that are speeding up and making translations more cost effective.

The 20 Bible translation groups listed in the MinistryWatch 1000 database have revenue totaling nearly $728 million. Groups denoted with an asterisk do not file a Form 990 and their revenue was derived from either their audited financial statements or member profile with the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA).

Wycliffe Bible Translators has total revenue exceeding $210 million. Its revenue is twice that of the next largest group, American Bible Society. According to the ECFA, Wycliffe’s revenue has declined from over $300 million in 2022.  The Wycliffe headquarters in Orlando, FL has been listed for sale for over a year, but is still listed as “under contract.”

The smallest group — Serve the Global Church — has annual revenue of about $1.6 million.

Of the top 5 largest groups, two do not file a Form 990. MinistryWatch takes the position that ministries should file a Form 990 to provide  important information about the organization, including annual revenue, salaries of key employees, names of board members and large contractors, and the amount of money the organization spends on its core mission.

If they choose not to file a Form 990, it affects the ministry’s transparency grade, financial efficiency rating, and donor confidence score in the database