Blue Origin vs Northrop Grumman: Revenue, Profit and Business Model
Blue Origin had $800M (unaudited) of annual revenue in FY2025. Northrop Grumman had $42B of annual revenue in FY2025 and $4.2B of net income.
Latest financial snapshot
Blue Origin
- Latest annual revenue
- $800M (unaudited) (FY2025)
- Net income
- Unavailable here
- Net margin
- —
- Revenue growth
- —
Northrop Grumman
- Latest annual revenue
- $42B (FY2025)
- Net income
- $4.2B
- Net margin
- 10.0%
- Revenue growth
- +6.1% a year, FY2016–FY2025
Financial summary
Blue Origin
Blue Origin does not publish financial statements. For 26 years it ran on Jeff Bezos's money: he said in 2017 that he was selling about $1 billion of Amazon stock a year to fund it, and the Wall Street Journal reported in September 2026 that his total investment had reached about $30 billion. In 2026 the company took outside money for the first time. Reports in July described a $10 billion round at a $130 billion pre-money valuation, with Coatue Management putting in about $4 billion and Bezos $2 billion; in late September the Journal said $10 billion had been raised at about $140 billion. CEO Dave Limp said on September 29 that the round was oversubscribed and had not closed. The same reporting put revenue at about $800 million in 2025 and about $1.4 billion expected for 2026, with internal projections above $30 billion by 2030. At $140 billion, the valuation is roughly 100 times expected 2026 revenue.
Northrop Grumman
Sales grew from $36.6 billion in 2022 to $41.95 billion in 2025, with 2025 net earnings of $4.18 billion and free cash flow of $3.3 billion, up 26% year over year. Earnings have been uneven because of program charges: net earnings fell to $2.06 billion in 2023 after a $1.56 billion pre-tax loss provision on B-21 low-rate production, and the company booked another B-21 charge of about $477 million in early 2025. Backlog reached a record $95.7 billion at the end of 2025 on more than $46 billion of net awards. In Q2 2026 sales rose 5% to $10.9 billion, backlog hit about $105 billion, and full-year 2026 guidance was raised to $43.75-$44.25 billion in sales and $3.1-$3.5 billion of free cash flow. Northrop Grumman Corporation is a colossal American multinational aerospace and defense technology company, sustaining a massive market valuation typically exceeding $65 billion.
Revenue and profit by year
Blue Origin
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 (forecast) | $1.4B | — | — | — | Source |
| FY2025 (unaudited) | $800M | — | — | — | Source |
| FY2024 (unaudited) | $550M | — | — | — | Source |
Northrop Grumman
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $42B | $4.2B | 10.0% | +2.2% | Source |
| FY2024 | $41B | $4.2B | 10.2% | +4.4% | Source |
| FY2023 | $39.3B | $2.1B | 5.2% | +7.3% | Source |
| FY2022 | $36.6B | $4.9B | 13.4% | +2.6% | Source |
| FY2021 | $35.7B | $7B | 19.6% | -3.1% | Source |
| FY2020 | $36.8B | $3.2B | 8.7% | +8.7% | Source |
| FY2019 | $33.8B | $2.2B | 6.6% | +12.4% | Source |
| FY2018 | $30.1B | $3.2B | 10.7% | +15.7% | Source |
| FY2017 | $26B | $2B | 7.7% | +5.3% | Source |
| FY2016 | $24.7B | $2.2B | 8.9% | — | Source |
Where the revenue comes from
Blue Origin
- New Glenn launch services
Not formally reported
Commercial and government launches, including Amazon Leo, AST SpaceMobile BlueBird satellites and NASA science missions such as ESCAPADE.
- NASA lunar contracts
Not formally reported
Milestone payments on the $3.4 billion Blue Moon human landing system contract and the Moon Base award worth $234 million per lunar terrain vehicle delivered.
- BE-4 engine sales
Not formally reported
Engines supplied to United Launch Alliance, two per Vulcan rocket.
- National security launches
Not formally reported
Up to seven Space Force NSSL Phase 3 Lane 2 missions worth about $2.4 billion, assigned once New Glenn is certified.
- New Shepard flights
Not formally reported
Suborbital tourist seats and research payloads; paused since January 30, 2026.
Northrop Grumman
- Space SystemsMajor
Space payloads, missile defense, strategic systems, and launch-related programs.
- Aeronautics SystemsMajor
Manned and autonomous aircraft, including B-21, surveillance, and advanced aircraft programs.
- Mission SystemsMajor
Sensors, C4ISR, cyber, electronic warfare, radar, and mission electronics.
- Defense SystemsMaterial
Weapons, sustainment, battle management, training, and tactical defense systems.
Business model and strategy
Blue Origin
How it makes money
Blue Origin earns money in four ways and reports none of them publicly. It sells New Glenn launches to commercial and government customers, including Amazon Leo (formerly Project Kuiper), AST SpaceMobile and NASA, and once the rocket is certified, the U.S. Space Force, which in April 2025 set aside up to seven national security missions worth about $2.4 billion.
Growth strategy
Under Dave Limp, Blue Origin has narrowed its focus to orbital launch, the Moon and satellites. It cut about 10 percent of its staff in February 2025, with Limp saying the company had grown too fast and built up bureaucracy, and in January 2026 it paused New Shepard for at least two years to move people onto lunar work. It hired Tory Bruno from ULA to build a National Security Group aimed at Space Force business.
Competitive advantage
Blue Origin's edge is capital and vertical integration. Jeff Bezos put in about $30 billion over 26 years, according to the Wall Street Journal, which paid for engine factories, a dedicated launch pad and a lunar lander program with no revenue requirement attached. It designs its own engines, so the BE-4 that lifts New Glenn is also a product it sells to ULA.
Northrop Grumman
How it makes money
Northrop Grumman is a government contractor: the large majority of its sales come from the U.S. government, with the rest from allied governments (often through Foreign Military Sales) and a small commercial space business. It works across four segments. Aeronautics Systems builds the B-21 Raider, F-35 center fuselages, the E-2D Hawkeye and uncrewed aircraft such as Global Hawk and Triton.
Growth strategy
Northrop is concentrating investment where it already holds franchise positions: B-21 production capacity (more than $5 billion invested in digital engineering and manufacturing), the Sentinel ICBM, solid rocket motors and munitions, missile-defense systems such as IBCS and the Glide Phase Interceptor, and classified and missile-tracking space constellations.
Competitive advantage
Northrop's edge comes from programs that very few companies can bid on. It is the only U.S. builder of a stealth bomber (B-2, now B-21), the prime on the Sentinel ICBM, and one of the largest domestic makers of large solid rocket motors, a capability it gained with Orbital ATK.
Questions about Blue Origin vs Northrop Grumman
Which company has higher revenue — Blue Origin, LLC or Northrop Grumman Corporation?
Blue Origin, LLC had $800.0M (unaudited) (FY2025), while Northrop Grumman Corporation had $42.0B (FY2025). By latest annual revenue, Northrop Grumman Corporation is the larger business, with Blue Origin, LLC showing a smaller revenue base.
What is the market cap of Blue Origin, LLC vs Northrop Grumman Corporation?
Northrop Grumman Corporation has a market capitalisation of $68.7B. A public market cap figure for Blue Origin, LLC was not available (it may be privately held).
How does revenue per employee compare for Blue Origin, LLC and Northrop Grumman Corporation?
Blue Origin, LLC has $53k / employee in revenue per employee, while Northrop Grumman Corporation has $442k / employee. Headcounts may use different dates, so the ratio alone does not establish which business operates more efficiently.
How do Blue Origin, LLC and Northrop Grumman Corporation make money?
Blue Origin, LLC and Northrop Grumman Corporation generate revenue in fundamentally different ways. Blue Origin, LLC: Blue Origin earns money in four ways and reports none of them publicly. Northrop Grumman Corporation: Northrop Grumman is a government contractor: the large majority of its sales come from the U.S. government, with the rest from allied governments (often through Foreign Military Sales) and a small commercial space business.
Is Blue Origin, LLC bigger than Northrop Grumman Corporation?
By last reported revenue, Northrop Grumman Corporation ($42.0B (FY2025)) is the larger company compared to Blue Origin, LLC ($800.0M (unaudited) (FY2025)). Revenue scale is one dimension of size — market capitalisation, employee count, and geographic reach are also relevant depending on the context.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Blue Origin vs Northrop Grumman overview