Data show donations rising despite fewer donors

Data show donations rising despite fewer donorsNew data from the Fundraising Effectiveness Project shows that, even though total charitable dollars raised in 2025 grew by an estimated 5%, the number of donors declined by roughly 3.6%, continuing a downward trend that began in 2021.According to the FEP, the increase in giving was largely driven by larger gifts, particularly at the "major" and "supersize" giving levels, which saw increases in both the number of gifts and the total dollars increased.Giving was also concentrated in the fourth quarter of the year, in line with standard trends.Giving was up only 3.7% through the third quarter, meaning an especially strong final quarter lifted the full-year figure significantly, the FEP said.Nonetheless, this growth masks a continued contraction in grassroots support and underscores the importance of diversifying donor strategies to ensure long-term sustainability.Of course, the overall growth in giving is encouraging on the surface, the FEP said, but the patterns highlighted by the data point to what the group said was a growing reliance on fewer, larger gifts, which raises concerns about long-term sustainability for the sector if broader donor participation continues to shrink.That said, the rate of donor decline has been slowing since 2022, which may signal an inflection point, the FEP said."Whether this deceleration reflects structural improvement or simply a smaller pool to lose from is a critical question the sector must watch closely heading into 2026," the group said.For more information, visit https://bit.ly/45VMd5b.■