December may be known as “Giving Season,” since about a third of all donations are made this month, but Americans are generous all year round.
From small acts of service like helping a stranger to change a tire or volunteering in a blood drive to historic cases of financial largesse, pitching in is part of our national identity.
Some credit faith, in one of the most religious of all industrialized countries. Others cite a long history of mutual aid and an entrepreneurial spirit that supports an occasional boost to help people lift themselves up.
Whatever the answers, Americans donate more than any other people in the world. Here’s the breakdown:
7X as much
That’s what Americans donate per capita relative to their European counterparts. In 2023, that totaled $557.16 billion, two-thirds from individual donors. The top 50 philanthropists gave $12 billion — down 28 percent from 2022 — including $3 billion from former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Corporations added $37 billion, or 7 percent. More broadly, middle-income donors average $3,296 a year. People who make less than $50,000 donate at higher rates than all other income levels, short of the highest earners.
When I’m 64
The average donor is on the verge of retirement, as baby boomers outgive other generations with around $1,225 annually. That’s almost $700 more than the last-place millennials. Gen Z came in second, at $785; almost half of them donated exclusively to disaster relief. The 2024 Bank of America Private Bank Study of Wealthy Americans found that older donors are more often driven by a sense of duty, while younger donors are more likely to gauge the success of their efforts by public recognition.
A $600 billion disaster
That’s how much Americans donated in 2021, adjusted for inflation, an all-time high amid the disastrous financial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Up to 13 million gave away all or part of their stimulus checks. It tracks: Donations often increase in times of crisis, disaster and war, even in faraway lands. One in four Americans has sent donations to Ukraine since Russia invaded in 2022, plus over $500 million from corporations such as Epic Games, Amazon and Microsoft.
“There’s a different cultural approach to philanthropy in the U.S. We have a tax system that supports it; public institutions that celebrate it; and educational, social and cultural organizations that require it to thrive. It’s part of our expanded understanding of what it means to be American.” —Amir Pasic, dean, Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, Indiana University
Carnegie’s nine-tenths
Scottish immigrant turned steel and oil tycoon Andrew Carnegie donated nearly all of his wealth before he died in 1919, totaling $6.5 billion in modern currency. That funded universities, conservatories, pensions, scientific research and Carnegie Hall. He paid for 7,500 church pipe organs and roughly 3,000 libraries, 1,687 in the U.S. In “The Gospel of Wealth,” published in 1889, he argued that it was a disgrace for a man to die rich.
Oxytocin by half
One study found that infusing subjects with oxytocin, commonly used to accelerate labor during birth, led to a 48 percent increase in donations. Researchers believe the “cuddle hormone,” which contributes to relationships and emotional bonding, enhances the “warm-glow” feeling that results from doing good — and could play a role in encouraging us to give more.
10,000 scams
That’s roughly how many times charitable causes were used to defraud Americans in 2023, costing $22.5 million. It’s a huge leap from 2019, when there were fewer than 4,000 such reports. One scammer feigned pancreatic cancer and collected $40,000 on GoFundMe. The IRS offers a free tool to vet charities and warns that con artists tend to prefer cash, gift cards, cryptocurrency or wire transfers.
60% off
That’s how much of their gross income American taxpayers can deduct each year for cash and noncash donations to charitable organizations. Congress first created the deduction in 1917, hoping to offset the impact of tax hikes made to fund World War I, originally capped at 15 percent. The U.S. has one of the world’s more generous tax policies in this regard.
This story appears in the December 2024 issue of Deseret Magazine. Learn more about how to subscribe.