Giving Tuesday 2021: Matching Donations and Finding The Right Charity

Tuesday, November 30th is Giving Tuesday 2021, an international day about giving support through charities and nonprofits by donating money or volunteering your time. In case you aren’t inundated with mailings already, this time of year is a big deal for charities, with 40% of donations occurring in the last six weeks of the year. Here are some ways you can “double your impact” with a matching donation.

Facebook Match (good toward any charity that accepts donations via Facebook). Starting at 8am Eastern on 11/30, Facebook will match $8 million in donations to U.S. nonprofits – up to $100,000 per nonprofit and $20,000 per donor. Donations will be matched for the first $2M, 10% for the next $6M.

For example, give directly with the donate button on the The Humane Society Facebook Page. You can also start your own fundraiser here or simply post up a donate button to support your favorite charity.

Double Up Drive. Check out the high-quality, spotlighted charities at Double Up Drive where your donation up to $10,000 can be matched dollar-for-dollar:

At Double Up Drive, we believe that public giving influences greater generosity and that resulting donations carry more impact. We raise money and awareness for highly effective charities by hosting matching drives that collect up-front pledges from large donors, to provide 1:1 matches for smaller contributors.

Check for an employer match. Try this lookup tool from DoubleTheDonation. Most of these programs don’t require you to actually give on a specific day, but you may want to start the process today so you don’t forget in the holiday rush.

Individual charities. Many charities are organizing their own matching program for #GivingTuesday. Here are some large charities have organized their own matches in the past, but I would check to make sure.

• American Red Cross
• UNICEF USA
• Feeding America

Also check with your favorite local community nonprofit. GivingTuesday.org has some additional ideas.

Having trouble deciding where to give? Here are some charity comparison sites that will help you pick where to send your help.

• CharityNavigator – Largest and well-publicized charity rating site, provides a 4-star rating based primarily on financial criteria.
• GiveWell – Tries to identify the best charities, not rate them all. Focused primarily on charities working internationally that “save or improve lives the most per dollar”. Examples are treating malaria and parasitic infections in developing countries.
• GreatNonProfits – Allows clients, volunteers, and funders to post personal reviews based on their experiences. Lots of reviews of smaller, local charities.
• GuideStar – Tries to be a one-stop shop for both financial data and in-depth analysis of charities. Must register (free) to see a lot of things, and pay a subscription fee for premium data (aimed at industry insiders).

Looking to volunteer your time? Check out Feeding America and VolunteerMatch to find a volunteer opportunity near you.