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
20
With fundraising data
Total Raised
$132.2M
Donations & fundraising
Fundraising Costs
$19.5M
Total spent fundraising
Avg Cost per $1
$0.15
Sector average
6
Excellent
|
8
Inefficient

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

Other
$0.38
per $1 raised
CharityAmount RaisedFundraising CostCost per $1Rating
$3.8M
44% of revenue
$115K
$0.03
Excellent
$1.1M
17% of revenue
$40K
$0.04
Excellent
$17.7M
58% of revenue
$911K
$0.05
Excellent
$7.9M
36% of revenue
$417K
$0.05
Excellent
$3.9M
48% of revenue
$277K
$0.07
Excellent
$93K
0% of revenue
$7K
$0.07
Excellent
$307K
70% of revenue
$33K
$0.11
Good
$32.8M
66% of revenue
$3.7M
$0.11
Good
$12.6M
99% of revenue
$1.6M
$0.12
Good
$20.8M
86% of revenue
$3.4M
$0.16
Good
$6.9M
35% of revenue
$1.4M
$0.20
Average
$9.1M
60% of revenue
$2.2M
$0.24
Average
$8.5M
60% of revenue
$2.5M
$0.30
Average
$3.9M
91% of revenue
$1.3M
$0.33
Average
$101K
1% of revenue
$35K
$0.34
Average
$689K
2% of revenue
$255K
$0.37
Poor
$462K
13% of revenue
$241K
$0.52
Very Poor
$749K
2% of revenue
$405K
$0.54
Very Poor
$436K
0% of revenue
$480K
$1.10
Very Poor
$61K
0% of revenue
$177K
$2.88
Very Poor

Understanding Fundraising Efficiency

Efficiency Grades

  • Excellent (<$0.10): Top performers, very efficient
  • Good ($0.10-$0.20): Within best practices
  • Average ($0.20-$0.35): Room for improvement
  • Poor ($0.35-$0.50): Below average efficiency
  • Very Poor (>$0.50): Significant concerns

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