Fundraising Efficiency Report
How much does it cost each charity to raise $1?
Cost per dollar raised: The most efficient charities spend less than $0.10 to raise each $1. Best practices suggest spending no more than $0.25 per $1 raised. Charities spending more may have inefficient fundraising operations, high marketing costs, or simply less effective campaigns. Lower is better!
Charities Analyzed
3244
With fundraising data
Total Raised
$527.7M
Donations & fundraising
Fundraising Costs
$111.4M
Total spent fundraising
Avg Cost per $1
$0.21
Sector average
1013
<$0.10/$ raised
|
1579
>$0.50/$ raised
Efficiency Scale
$0.00$0.10 (Excellent)$0.25 (Good)$0.35 (Average)$0.50+ (Poor)
The scale shows cost per dollar raised. Charities on the left (green) are most efficient, spending less to raise each dollar. Best practice is to stay under $0.25.
Average by Sector
Environment
$0.39
per $1 raised
Religion
$0.52
per $1 raised
International Aid
$0.57
per $1 raised
Community Development
$0.66
per $1 raised
Social Services
$0.84
per $1 raised
Education
$1.25
per $1 raised
Advocacy
$1.61
per $1 raised
Other
$3.59
per $1 raised
Sports & Recreation
$5.09
per $1 raised
Animal Welfare
$5.46
per $1 raised
Health
$8.42
per $1 raised
Arts & Culture
$20.84
per $1 raised
ICNPO Category Benchmarks
International Classification of Non-Profit Organisations — standardized benchmarks for cross-sector comparison
Philanthropic Intermediaries and Voluntarism Promotion
8 charities
$0.24
AverageDevelopment and Housing
28 charities
$0.38
PoorEnvironment
64 charities
$0.39
PoorReligion
465 charities
$0.53
Very PoorInternational
15 charities
$0.57
Very PoorSocial Services
215 charities
$0.84
Very PoorEducation and Research
1199 charities
$1.25
Very PoorLaw, Advocacy and Politics
8 charities
$1.61
Very PoorHealth
478 charities
$8.45
Very PoorCulture and Recreation
629 charities
$21.50
Very PoorMost Efficient Fundraisers
| Charity | Amount Raised | Fundraising Cost | Cost per $1 | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
$6.2M 95% of revenue | $14 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
Kitty Kingdom Health | $91K 100% of revenue | $10 | $0.00 | Excellent |
Kairos Foundation NZ Inc Education | $38K 55% of revenue | $5 | $0.00 | Excellent |
$108K 50% of revenue | $15 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
Nyingje Trust International Aid | $6K 100% of revenue | $1 | $0.00 | Excellent |
Avonhead Community Trust Religion | $21K 44% of revenue | $5 | $0.00 | Excellent |
Waikato Regional Property Trust Community Development | $29.2M 97% of revenue | $7K | $0.00 | Excellent |
Garden Marlborough 2004 Incorporated Education | $94K 17% of revenue | $32 | $0.00 | Excellent |
$459K 95% of revenue | $157 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
Live Better (Cultural Centre Trust) Arts & Culture | $165K 98% of revenue | $61 | $0.00 | Excellent |
$53K 99% of revenue | $22 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
Dominican Sisters Of Wanganui Religion | $256K 48% of revenue | $117 | $0.00 | Excellent |
Wairoa Rock Church Trust Religion | $205K 95% of revenue | $98 | $0.00 | Excellent |
TE ORA HOU TE TAIRAWHITI TRUST Education | $278K 99% of revenue | $135 | $0.00 | Excellent |
$107K 75% of revenue | $53 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
Life Education Trust Manawatu Education | $94K 68% of revenue | $52 | $0.00 | Excellent |
$274K 29% of revenue | $158 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
Wekaweka Valley Community Trust Environment | $54K 87% of revenue | $40 | $0.00 | Excellent |
$114K 93% of revenue | $87 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
$95K 56% of revenue | $73 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
$272K 46% of revenue | $243 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
Dress for Success Rotorua Charitable Trust Social Services | $57K 66% of revenue | $54 | $0.00 | Excellent |
$39K 100% of revenue | $38 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
$441K 39% of revenue | $461 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
$110K 36% of revenue | $117 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
$207K 66% of revenue | $225 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
$183K 96% of revenue | $207 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
Cool Bananas Youthwork Trust Religion | $191K 99% of revenue | $220 | $0.00 | Excellent |
$136K 17% of revenue | $160 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
Stop Demand Foundation Social Services | $8K 100% of revenue | $10 | $0.00 | Excellent |
Good News Baptist Church Religion | $92K 91% of revenue | $129 | $0.00 | Excellent |
Inspired Faith Church - Oamaru Religion | $134K 92% of revenue | $200 | $0.00 | Excellent |
$24K 92% of revenue | $37 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
$282K 95% of revenue | $430 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
$57K 34% of revenue | $90 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
$111K 97% of revenue | $174 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
$12K 100% of revenue | $20 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
$91K 100% of revenue | $149 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
$2K 4% of revenue | $3 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
$243K 78% of revenue | $418 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
Amped4Life Trust Health | $124K 80% of revenue | $217 | $0.00 | Excellent |
Marlborough Four Paws Environment | $151K 52% of revenue | $274 | $0.00 | Excellent |
$26K 58% of revenue | $48 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
$315K 97% of revenue | $596 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
$453K 55% of revenue | $859 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
Straight Up Trust Social Services | $247K 97% of revenue | $470 | $0.00 | Excellent |
Mercury Bay Lions Club Charitable Trust Arts & Culture | $185K 95% of revenue | $354 | $0.00 | Excellent |
Forum North Trust 2013 Education | $1.1M 98% of revenue | $2K | $0.00 | Excellent |
$42K 71% of revenue | $81 | $0.00 | Excellent | |
Eastside Baptist Church Religion | $81K 60% of revenue | $159 | $0.00 | Excellent |
Understanding Fundraising Efficiency
Efficiency Bands
- <$0.10: Lowest cost-to-raise band
- $0.10-$0.20: Within commonly-cited benchmarks
- $0.20-$0.35: Mid-range cost-to-raise
- $0.35-$0.50: Above sector-typical cost-to-raise
- >$0.50: Highest cost-to-raise band — context matters (e.g. early-stage, niche cause)
Factors Affecting Efficiency
- Type of fundraising (events vs appeals vs regular giving)
- Donor acquisition vs retention costs
- Scale of operations
- Marketing and campaign costs
- Investment in donor relationships
Data sourced from Charities Services register and annual returns. Our datasets may not be complete. Automated analysis can produce errors. If you believe any data on this page is incorrect, please contact us at hello@charitydata.co.nz.
For informational purposes only. Not investment advice.