Individuals

Why do we give to charity?

We asked more than 700 donors to share their thoughts on what influences them to give to charity.

Welcome to the Charities Aid Foundation

We help donors to give more impactfully and charities to build their resilience so they can do more of their life-changing work.

Personal giving From one-off donations to long-term giving, or designing your personal philanthropic strategy, we work together to help you realise your giving ambitions. Corporate giving You have the vision for making a difference. So do we. We help you plan how to give based on your goals. Services for charities Helping your charity or social enterprise become more resilient. Insights Discover the latest insights for donors and charitable organisations to help create a greater impact About us We are a leading charity, working at the centre of the giving world. We help donors to give more impactfully and charities to build their resilience so they can do more of their life-changing work. Donate  
 
 
 

Personal giving

From one-off donations to long-term giving, or designing your personal philanthropic strategy, we work together to help you realise your giving ambitions.

DISCOVER OUR PERSONAL GIVING SOLUTIONS

Corporate giving

You have the vision for making a difference. So do we. We help you plan how to give based on your goals.

DISCOVER OUR CORPORATE GIVING SOLUTIONS

Services for charities

Helping your charity or social enterprise become more resilient.

DISCOVER HOW WE SUPPORT CHARITIES

Insights

Discover the latest insights for donors and charitable organisations to help create a greater impact

Explore

About us

We are a leading charity, working at the centre of the giving world. We help donors to give more impactfully and charities to build their resilience so they can do more of their life-changing work.

Find out more about CAF

To find out the key motivations for why people give to charity, we asked more than 700 donors for insight into why they donate. Here are some of the key findings:

1. Personal values, a sense of morality and ethics 

96% of people gave to charity as they felt a sense of duty to give back to society and tackle inequality, using their own good fortune to help others.

2. Belief in a specific cause

Almost every donor interviewed identified with a specific cause they felt passionate towards - and for 75% of people this was the key influence behind their giving.

The causes that donors supported were varied, with some concerns broader than others - such as international development or the arts - compared to others that were more specifically focused, for example restoring old buildings.

Use our charity search to find a cause close to your heart.

Young girl with a horse

3. Faith and religion

Selfless giving is often a key component of many spiritual and religious belief systems and an overwhelming 71% of donors pointed to their religious values as a key motivation for their commitment to charity.

4. Personal experiences

61% of people interviewed spoke of personal, life-changing experiences that sparked their giving. These varied from having directly experienced the hardships of the developing world, to suffering a loss of a family member who battled a disease.

The reasons for giving are diverse and most people have more than one influence motivating them to give. Some of the other driving factors for giving included:

  • a belief that charities cannot do enough alone
  • family
  • the satisfaction they get from giving
  • determination to leave a positive legacy