The GDCh manages a number of dependent foundations in trust. The purpose of these foundations is to award prizes, grants, and scholarships.

The Karl Ziegler Foundation awards the Karl Ziegler Award, endowed with €50,000, one of the two most prestigious foundation prizes of the German Chemical Society (GDCh) for outstanding scientific achievements in chemistry. As part of the Karl Ziegler Advancement Award, a scholarship is also awarded to early-career scientists to fund a postdoctoral position.

The Klaus Grohe Prize is endowed with €75,000, making it one of the most prestigious awards in the field of medicinal chemistry and drug discovery. The prize was established by Klaus Grohe; he and his wife Eva Grohe set up the Klaus Grohe Foundation at the German Chemical Society (GDCh) in 2001.

The Dres. Volker and Elke Münch Foundation provides financial support to young scientists for the registration of patents.

Also worth mentioning are the Paul Bunge Prize, awarded by the Hans R. Jenemann Foundation, and the awards of the Scimus et Sciemus, Dr. Hermann Schnell, Hellmut Bredereck, Georg Manecke, Wolfgang Johannes Hönle and Meyer-Galow Foundations.

Among the most recent foundations are the Christel and Herbert W. Roesky Foundation, which awards a prize of 10,000 euros every two years in the field of molecular main group chemistry, and the Reinhard Zellner Foundation, which awards a prize for an outstanding contribution to scientific and/or technical progress in the production and application of green hydrogen in industrial processes and in the energy sector, including the production of CO₂-reduced fuels.

Foundation advisory boards decide on the awarding of prizes and distinctions.