Moderna R&D decreased by 16.3% to $649M in Q1 2026 compared to the prior quarter. Year-over-year, this metric declined by 24.2%, from $856M to $649M. Over 4 years (FY 2021 to FY 2025), R&D shows an upward trend with a 12.0% CAGR.
Analysis
StatementIncome Statement
SectionOperating Expenses
CategoryGrowth
SignalContext dependent
VolatilityModerate
First reportedQ1 2016
Last reportedQ1 2026May 1, 2026
How to read this metric
Higher spending indicates a robust pipeline and investment in future growth, though excessive spending without clinical progress can signal inefficiency.
Detailed definition
Research and development expenses represent the costs incurred to discover, develop, and test new products or improve ex...
Peer comparison
A critical metric for biotech and pharmaceutical firms; peers are compared based on R&D intensity relative to total revenue.
Metric ID:
research_and_developmentHistorical Data
20 periods
| Q2 '21 | Q3 '21 | Q4 '21 | Q1 '22 | Q2 '22 | Q3 '22 | Q4 '22 | Q1 '23 | Q2 '23 | Q3 '23 | Q4 '23 | Q1 '24 | Q2 '24 | Q3 '24 | Q4 '24 | Q1 '25 | Q2 '25 | Q3 '25 | Q4 '25 | Q1 '26 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | $421M | $521M | $648M | $554M | $710M | $820M | $1.21B | $1.13B | $1.15B | $1.16B | $1.41B | $1.06B | $1.22B | $1.14B | $1.12B | $856M | $700M | $801M | $775M | $649M |
| QoQ Change | — | +23.8% | +24.4% | -14.5% | +28.2% | +15.5% | +47.7% | -6.6% | +1.5% | +1.0% | +21.2% | -24.4% | +14.9% | -6.9% | -1.3% | -23.7% | -18.2% | +14.4% | -3.2% | -16.3% |
| YoY Change | — | — | — | — | +68.6% | +57.4% | +86.9% | +104.2% | +61.7% | +41.5% | +16.1% | -6.0% | +6.4% | -2.0% | -20.2% | -19.5% | -42.7% | -29.6% | -30.9% | -24.2% |
Range$421M – $1.41B
CAGR+9.5%
Avg YoY Growth+16.7%
Median YoY Growth+2.2%
Current Streak2 quarters decline
R&D at Other Companies
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Moderna's r&d?
- Moderna (MRNA) reported r&d of $649M in Q1 2026.
- How has Moderna's r&d changed year-over-year?
- Moderna's r&d decreased by 24.2% year-over-year, from $856M to $649M.
- What is the long-term trend for Moderna's r&d?
- Over 4 years (2021 to 2025), Moderna's r&d has grown at a 12.0% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), from $1.99B to $3.13B.
- What does r&d mean?
- The money spent on developing new products and conducting clinical trials.