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The value of a volunteer’s time in the United States increased $1.30 an hour during 2024 to $34.79, an increase of 3.9% from 2023, when value is averaged across all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.
Four areas cracked the $40 per hour mark, with the District of Columbia topping the list at $52.06 per hour, followed by Massachusetts at $42, Washington State at $41.70 and California hitting $40.14.
Puerto Rico was the least expensive at $17.32, even with an increase of $1.50 per hour. Mississippi was the next least expensive at $27.01, with an increase of $1.59 per hour.
The data is from Independent Sector and the Do Good Institute at the University of Maryland’s School of Public Policy. The value is measured based on annual average hourly earnings estimates that are available from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Learn more about the methodology.
The estimates might understate the full value of volunteer service because they do not consider the many intangible benefits provided by volunteers that cannot be easily quantified, according to the researchers.
“Volunteering is more than an act of kindness; it is a vital service that strengthens our communities and society as a whole. From responding to the diverse and urgent needs in our local areas to addressing the most daunting social challenges, volunteers are the unifying threads that bind us as a nation,” Independent Sector President and CEO Akilah Watkins, Ph.D., said via a statement. “To most effectively tackle our most pressing challenges, we must reinvest in volunteerism. And that includes acknowledging and celebrating volunteers not just during National Volunteer Month, but every day of the year.”
Nathan Dietz, research director at the Do Good Institute is the researcher responsible for calculating the estimates. “The estimated value of an hour of volunteer time, which reflects the value that volunteer labor adds to the capacity of nonprofit organizations, increased again in 2024. The increase of 3.9% is greater than the overall annual inflation rate (2.9%), which shows that the contributions of volunteers are more valuable today than ever before,” he said via a statement.
For more on the Value of Volunteer Time, the methodology, and the historical national and state-level data, visit independentsector.org/value-of-volunteer-time.
