Why do people donate to charity?

Charity donations soar over the festive period. Yet generally fewer people are donating to charities. According to the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF), in 2024, 50% of the UK population donated to charity, down from 58% in 2019.  

Understanding why people give to charity can help you to better understand your donors. And that means you can finetune fundraising projects to emotionally connect with audiences, create persuasive campaigns, keep regular donors engaged, and ultimately, drive more donations. 

Here are five reasons people give money to charity.  

Because donating to charity aligns with donors’ values  

Donating to charity is an opportunity for donors to put their personal or faith values into action. Research from CAF shows that 96% of people gave to charity as they ”felt a sense of duty to give back to society and tackle inequality”. Giving to charity enables people to use their own good fortune to help others, driven by values such as compassion, social responsibility, and justice.  

CAF also found that 71% of people surveyed said their religious values were a key motivation for committing to charity. Charitable giving is a fundamental part of many religions, and some people donate as an expression of their faith.  

Because donors have an emotional connection with your mission  

People are far more likely to donate to your charity if they have a strong emotional connection with your mission or the people you support.  

Empathy and compassion are huge motivators to donate. That’s why stories from the people you support are such effective tools for fundraising – and even more so when they include powerful images or video. The more someone can relate to the people you support, the more likely they are to click on a “donate” button. 

For many donors, giving to charity is deeply personal. Some donate because they’ve had first-hand experience of a charity’s cause, or have even received support from the charity. Donors who have personal experience of your cause and work can become some of your most powerful advocates. You might want to consider asking if you can share their stories and motivations for supporting you.   

To make a positive difference 

Many donors want to contribute to the greater good, whether that’s preventing a disease, protecting the environment, or supporting vulnerable people. It’s the desire “to improve things for others, including other humans as well as non-human animals.” This can lead to a sense of personal fulfilment and purpose. Leaving a donation in a will is one way for donors to create a lasting impact and legacy.  

Alongside this, many donors want the satisfaction of making an impact – and to feel responsible for something good happening in the world. Charities can show donors that they’re making a meaningful difference by giving tangible examples of what a specific amount will fund. For example, Barnardo’s shows that a “£25 donation will help keep a child cosy with new bedding". Being specific can help to build donors’ trust and show exactly how they can make a valuable contribution to society.   

To feel good 

Research has shown that altruistic behaviour increases the happiness of the person helping others. “Helper’s high” is a term that describes the psychological effects of giving to charity. Generosity can stimulate dopamine and endorphins, the hormones that boost happiness. By helping others, donors can actually make themselves feel good too.  

Giving to charity can also make people feel grateful for what they have in their own lives. Learning how others are struggling, for example around health or finances, can bring into sharp focus everything that is going well for donors and inspire them to help people who are going through a difficult time.   

Because others are donating  

Often people donate because their peers are. We’re social creatures and our behaviour is often influenced by those around us. People are more likely to donate if they see others they know doing so. This is why peer-to-peer fundraising can be so successful (when people ask their family and friends to sponsor them). Similarly, the amount that people donate is influenced by how much others give. So if someone donates on a crowdfunding page, they’re likely to be positively influenced by the previous donation amount.  

To help this work for your charity, always give a suggested amount for donations – and one that you want to imply is the social norm. Also, make it really easy for donors to tell others that they’re supporting your charity, for example by making sure your content is shareable.