NPT curates statistics from recent studies and reports on charitable giving in the U.S.

This page has been maintained annually since 2012 and was last updated in February 2026 with the latest available information.

Please refer to the footnotes for original sources.

General Philanthropy Statistics

• Americans gave $592.50 billion in 2024. This reflects a 6.3% increase from 2023.¹
• Corporate giving in 2024 increased to $44.40 billion—a 9.1% increase from 2023.¹
• Foundation giving in 2024 increased to $109.81 billion—a 2.4% increase from 2023.¹
• Giving by bequest in 2024 was $45.84 billion—a 1.6% decline from 2023.¹
• In 2024, the largest source of charitable giving came from individuals, who gave $392.45 billion, representing 66.7% of total giving.¹
• In 2024, the majority of charitable dollars went to religion (23%), human services (14%), education (14%), grantmaking foundations (11%), and public-society benefit (11%).¹
• Giving in 2024 increased in many sectors, with double-digit growth in gifts for public-society benefit organizations (19.5%), international affairs (17.7%), and education (13.2%). Giving declined precipitously to individuals (-11.9%).¹

Individual and Family Philanthropy Trends

• The average charitable donor in the U.S. is 64 years old and makes two charitable donations a year.²
• The majority of donors (63%) prefer to give online with either a credit or debit card.³
• The number of new donors increased by 2.3% in 2023, the first increase in new donors since Q1 of 2021.⁴
• More than half of the families that chose a foundation as their primary vehicle (55%) did so in order to establish a long-term philanthropic legacy.⁵
• Individuals remained the largest donor segment in 2023, representing 67% ($374.4 billion) of all US giving ($557.2 billion), a growth of 1.6% over 2022 in current dollars.⁶
• The average annual household giving by generation is as follows:⁶ 
  • The Silent Generation (Born 1925-1945) with $1,367
  • Baby Boomers (Born 1946-1964) with $1,212  
  • Generation Z (Born 1997-2012) with $785
  • Generation X (Born 1965-1980) with $732 and  
  • Millennials (Born 1981-1996) with $481
• 80% of younger donors expressed interest in alternative investments like impact investing.⁶

Charitable Organization Trends

• According to the most recent data available, there are more than 1.8 million recognized 501(c)(3) organizations in the United States.⁷
• In 2024, 501(c)(3) organizations made up the majority of 501(c) organizations in the U.S., with 1.6 million.⁷
• As of 2022, there were almost 13 million people employed in the U.S. nonprofit sector.⁷
• There are approximately 350K religious, 261K educational, 160K human services, 134K arts & culture, and 66K public-society benefit nonprofit organizations in the U.S. in 2025.⁸

Volunteering Trends

• An estimated 28% of U.S. adults—75.7 million Americans—volunteered between September 2022 and 2023, contributing an estimated 4.99 billion hours valued at approximately $167.2 billion.⁹
• Generation X had the highest rate of formal volunteering (27%) compared to Gen Z, Millennials, and Baby Boomers.⁹
• Baby Boomers had the highest rate of informal volunteering (59%).⁹
• In 2023, the estimated national value of each volunteer hour was $33.49, a 5.3% increase from 2022.⁴
• More than 54% of Americans—or 137.5 million people—informally helped their neighbors between September 2022 and 2023. This represents an increase of 3 percentage points over previous years. This translates into 12.9 million more informal helpers in 2023 than in 2021.¹⁰

Donor-Advised Fund Statistics

• There were 1,782,281 donor-advised fund accounts in 2023.¹¹
• Donor-advised funds held $251.52 billion in assets in 2023.¹¹
• Total contributions into donor-advised funds were $59.43 billion in 2023.¹¹
• Donor-recommended grants from donor-advised funds totaled more than $54.77 billion to charities in 2023.¹¹
• The average donor-advised fund account size was $141,120 in 2023.¹¹
• The average payout rate for DAFs was 23.9% in 2023.¹¹
• Compare the DAF payout rate to the mean payout rate of foundations in 2024: 8.7%.¹²

What is the State of Philanthropic Giving?

Philanthropy in the United States has continued to evolve alongside cultural, economic, and technological shifts. Recent data shows that while overall charitable giving rose in 2024, growth was uneven across donor types and sectors.

• Individual vs. Corporate Giving: Individuals still represent the largest share of total giving, but corporate and foundation contributions are expanding faster, fueled by strong earnings and ESG-aligned initiatives.
• Generational Change: At the same time, giving by bequest slightly declined, suggesting broader demographic transitions and the generational transfer of wealth beginning to take shape. Younger donors are increasingly reshaping how and why they give. Surveys show that Millennials and Gen Z donors prioritize values-based giving, favoring transparency, social impact, and immediate results.
• Digital Giving: Technology also remains a key driver in modern giving trends. With a majority of donors preferring online platforms for donations, charities that invest in digital experiences—such as personalized communication, recurring giving options, and mobile-friendly platforms—are seeing higher engagement.
• Donor-Advised Funds: Many donors are turning to donor-advised funds as vehicles for philanthropy. This shift underscores a growing emphasis on long-term outcomes, collaborative funding models, and authentic engagement rather than transactional donations.

Together, these trends point to a more connected, strategic, and diversified future for philanthropy.

Sources

¹  Giving USA 2025 Annual Report

²  Nonprofit Fundraising Statistics to Boost Results in 2024 (doublethedonation.com)

³  US Charitable Giving Statistics [2023] (reninc.com)

⁴ Independent Sector – Annual Health Report, December 2024

⁵ National Center for Family Philanthropy – Third National Benchmark Study, 2024

⁶ CCS Fundraising – 2024 Philanthropic Landscape

⁷ Candid.org

⁸  Categories of nonprofits | Cause IQ

⁹  AmeriCorps – Volunteering and Civic Life in America Research Summary

¹⁰ AmeriCorps – Renewed Engagement in American Civic Life

¹¹ National Philanthropic Trust – Donor Advised Fund Report 2024

¹² Foundation giving remained steady in 2023. What’s the outlook? (candid.org)

¹³ CAF World Giving Index 2024

About Us

Founded in 1996, National Philanthropic Trust is a national leader in donor-advised funds and one of the largest grantmaking institutions in the United States.

We are a public charity dedicated to providing philanthropic expertise to donors, foundations and financial institutions, enabling them to realize their philanthropic aspirations. Our mission is to increase philanthropy in society. Through our modern and mobile GivingPoint portal, we provide an enhanced giving experience for donors and trusted advisors.

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