The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk, claims to have saved the U.S. government approximately $170 billion as of May 2025. This figure is based on a combination of asset sales, contract and lease cancellations, fraud and improper payment deletions, grant cancellations, interest savings, programmatic changes, regulatory savings, and workforce reductions
. However, the accuracy of these savings is widely disputed. Only about $70.9 billion of the claimed savings is itemized, and many of those entries have been questioned for their validity, with some experts suggesting the actual savings are closer to $80 billion
. Investigations have revealed multiple accounting errors, including inflated contract savings and triple or quadruple counting of some cuts
. Additionally, less than 40% of the total claimed savings are supported by detailed receipts or documentation, making independent verification difficult
. Moreover, the cost of DOGE's actions has also been significant. An analysis by the Partnership for Public Service estimates that the cuts and workforce reductions have cost taxpayers around $135 billion due to paid leave, wrongful terminations, lost productivity, lawsuits, and reduced tax collections
. In summary, while DOGE claims around $170 billion in savings, credible estimates suggest the real net savings are substantially lower, with significant costs incurred that offset much of the purported savings. The true amount saved remains uncertain due to a lack of transparent and verifiable data.
