Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), established to reduce US government expenditure, asserts that it has saved, on average, more than $10 billion each week since the start of President Trump’s administration.
“We’re talking about almost $200bn and rising fast,” President Trump stated in an interview with the BBC on 23 April, referencing Mr Musk’s cost-cutting initiatives.
According to Doge’s website, the agency is prioritising the cancellation of contracts, grants, and leases from prior administrations, alongside initiatives to combat fraud and streamline the federal workforce.
BBC Verify has scrutinised the agency’s major reported savings, reviewing financial data and consulting with subject-matter experts.
Our investigation reveals that, while some headline figures are substantial, there is often insufficient evidence to substantiate them.
In October, Mr Musk pledged to reduce federal government costs by “at least $2 trillion.” He later revised this target, and on 10 April referenced potential savings of $150 billion by cutting “fraud and waste” before the close of the 2026 financial year.
The US federal budget for the previous financial year was $6.75 trillion.
Doge maintains an updated tally of its projected savings on its website, which listed $160bn as of 20 April.
However, less than 40% of this sum is itemised with specific savings data.
Having downloaded the available data from Doge’s portal on 23 April, we totaled the claimed savings from contracts, grants, and leases.
We found that only about half of these detailed entries included a supporting document or other verifiable evidence.
American media outlets have also highlighted discrepancies, such as Doge’s erroneous claim of an $8 billion saving from cancelling an immigration contract that, in fact, was valued at only $8 million.
Doge states it is working to make all records available “in a digestible and transparent manner,” noting that as of 20 April, it had provided receipts for “around 30% of all total savings.” Certain supporting documents remain “unavailable for legal reasons.”
BBC Verify reviewed the agency’s four largest savings entries for which evidence was provided.
While Doge reports total savings of $8.3 billion from these, our review of documentation and expert interviews suggests this figure may be inflated.
For three savings, Doge refers to the Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS), a government database tracking contract awards.
FPDS records contract start and end dates, the maximum authorized spend, and the amounts already disbursed.
David Drabkin, a federal contracts authority involved in the FPDS’s development, advises caution when interpreting ceiling values.
“FPDS does not reflect the actual paid price until some period of time after the contract has been completed and contract actions are finalized,” he said.
“For instance, with R&D for a vaccine, the cost set may represent an upper limit, not a precise figure.”
Therefore, if Doge is counting these maximum amounts, such figures may reflect projected multi-year spending rather than direct annual savings.
The largest individual saving cited by Doge stands at $2.9 billion.
This is attributed to the cancellation of a contract—initiated in 2023 during President Biden’s tenure—for a Texas facility designed to house up to 3,000 unaccompanied migrant children.
Doge appears to have used the contract’s “total value” through 2028 and subtracted expenditures to date to derive the $2.9 billion saving.
However, the contract was subject to annual review, making extension to 2028 uncertain.
A source familiar with the arrangement, speaking anonymously, told BBC Verify the stated sum is “based on speculative, never-used figures,” as actual expenditures varied with facility use and service needs.
“In reality, the government never incurred costs up to the maximum ceiling. The true, documented savings from early termination were approximately $153 million,” the source estimated.
This estimate involves adding $18 million in monthly fixed costs (for staff and security) from February, when the cut was announced, to November, when the contract was scheduled for annual review.
The facility itself, closed on the same day as the Doge announcement, never operated at full 3,000-child capacity; at peak, about 2,000 children resided there, with numbers later declining.
We sought comment from the Administration for Children and Families and the Department for Health and Human Services, which managed the contract, but have yet to receive a response.
Doge’s second-largest saving is attributed to cancelling a contract between the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and IT firm Centennial Technologies, claimed to be worth $1.9 billion.
Documentation provided shows a total value of $1.9 billion, with all expenditures listed at $0.
However, Mr Drabkin noted that this does not necessarily indicate no funds were spent, as incomplete record-keeping can be an issue in some federal departments.
The contract began in August 2024, with a projected end date in 2031.
Nevertheless, Centennial Technologies’ CEO told The New York Times that the deal was, in fact, cancelled the preceding autumn under President Biden.
The company did not respond to requests for further information.
A third major claimed saving involves cancellation of an IT contract with A1FEDIMPACT for the Department of Defense, listed by Doge at $1.76 billion.
The contract’s documentation indicates a total value of $2.4 billion, which Higher Gov records as the ceiling figure.
Again, $0 is noted against spending at the time of termination.
Doge’s calculation of the $1.76 billion saving is unclear; enquiries have been made with both the Pentagon and the contractor.
The fourth cited saving, $1.75 billion, is linked to a cancelled USAID grant for Gavi, a global health organisation advocating for vaccine access.
Doge refers to a USASpending.gov page showing a grant of $880 million paid to Gavi in three instalments under President Biden.
Gavi has confirmed receipt of $880 million from USAID, but said it had not received notification of grant termination.
“Gavi has not received a termination notice related to this grant,” a spokesperson told us.
No verifiable evidence supports the $1.75 billion figure; a source familiar with the grant confirmed the origin of the figure is unclear.
We contacted the USAID Office of Inspector General for clarification but have not yet received a reply.
Though Doge may have achieved meaningful reductions in federal spending, the scarcity of verifiable information for its most substantial claimed savings precludes independent confirmation of the actual amounts.
Doge does not currently operate a press office, but BBC Verify has approached the White House to request further evidence supporting these claims.
Reporting contributed by Ned Davies and Alison Benjamin.
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