In 2009, wealthy nations gathered at the United Nations Climate Change Conference pledged to mobilize US$100 billion annually in “climate finance” to help their more vulnerable counterparts. Following the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement’s ratification, climate finance provided and mobilized by developed countries has nearly doubled. However, we know very little about how well such funds are meeting the distinct needs of recipient countries. This paper helps to fill this gap, examining the extent to which mitigation-related official development assistance (ODA) — which is critical for achieving emissions reductions mandated by the Paris Agreement — aligns with the priorities expressed in recipient countries’ climate action plans (also known as nationally determined contributions, or NDCs). We focus on conditional targets, which can only be achieved with international support, and find that their publication does not appear to increase the alignment of mitigation ODA. We discuss three potential mechanisms to account for this lack of response (path dependence; NDC quality; sidelined recipients) and weigh evidence in support of each one. We conclude with implications for research and practice, with an eye toward enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of future disbursements.