(image from afpglobal.org)
Donors boosted their financial support of charities by 4.3% during the first quarter of 2026 when compared to the same period of 2025, a rate that barely outstripped inflation and decelerated from the 5.4% growth seen between first-quarter 2024 and first-quarter 2025.
At the same time, the number of first-quarter 2026 contributors slipped by 0.8%, according to new data from the Fundraising Effectiveness Project (FEP).
The first-quarter 2026 data showed the recent trend of more money coming from fewer donors continued. But while the number of donors declined, the downward trend slowed a bit. In the previous year-over-year comparison, between first-quarter 2024 and first-quarter 2025, donor counts dropped by 2.3%
“Over the past year, the Fundraising Effectiveness Project data has consistently pointed to the need for nonprofits to expand their donor base and strengthen engagement beyond their largest supporters,” Ann Hale, executive vice president of the AFP Foundations for Philanthropy, said in a statement. The AFP collaborates with GivingTuesday on the FEP.
Hale’s statement continued: “This quarter’s findings suggest encouraging signs in retention and stewardship, even as new donor acquisition remains a challenge. The opportunity now is to build on that momentum during the year-end giving season by focusing not only on acquiring donors, but on strengthening donor stewardship and creating clear pathways for deeper, long-term engagement.”
The latest report did feature at least one substantial shift. The FEP implemented its first major methodology update in five years. Changes include the frequency with which organizations are added or deleted to the panel of those surveyed during the course of the year; the method by which late-in-the-quarter donations are accounted for; and, the “weight” given to each organization in the panel or nonprofits surveyed, best on whether the organization’s size or focus was over- or underrated in the sample, when compared to the nonprofit community as a whole.
See more of the data at https://thenonprofittimes.com/npt_articles/fewer-donors-more-dollars-and-methodology-changes-at-fep/
