There are more than 1.3 million nonprofit organizations in the United States. These organizations are the fabric of communities across the country.
Many of these organizations are struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic. They rely on outdoor events, indoor galas, and other big fundraisers to serve the public. These events were canceled due to the pandemic.
On top of that, volunteer time dropped as did individual donations. You might want to help, but you’re not sure how during a global pandemic.
Did you know that you can donate online? You can make a huge contribution just by doing things you normally do throughout the day.
Read on to learn how you can find great charities to support and how to donate to them online.
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PayPal
PayPal offers programs for nonprofit organizations to accept direct donations. You may have a nonprofit organization online and want to make a donation to that organization.
PayPal also has a Giving Fund, which is a directory of nonprofit organizations that accept donations through the PayPal platform.
You can find organizations in a dozen different categories, from international organizations to local sports nonprofits.
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Walk for Charity
How would you like to get in shape and raise money at the same time? Many of those 5K fundraisers that charities use were canceled, but you can still raise money and get active.
There’s an app called Charity Miles, which is an app that you use to track your activity, whether you run, bike, or walk. You can get your company or friends to sponsor your activity. When you move, you raise money for a good cause.
Do you have a dog that you take out for a walk every day? You can use that time to raise money for an organization that helps animals.
WoofTrax is an app that you download to your phone. Your phone’s GPS tracks your walking activity. WoofTrax then makes a donation to rescue shelters across the country.
WoofTrax is funded by advertising and corporate sponsors, so you don’t have to ask people to sponsor you.
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Shop for a Cause
There’s great news for you if shopping is your favorite activity. There are several ways that you can raise money for a good cause while shopping at the same time!
Givevia is an app that you use to shop at over 1500 retailers. When you make a purchase, money is donated to a nonprofit organization.
The great thing about the app is that you often have promotional codes and discounts to encourage more shopping (and giving).
Do you do a lot of shopping on Amazon? The AmazonSmile program makes a donation every time you purchase an eligible product. You decide which charity you want to support.
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Play for a Cause
You might have attended a charity bingo game or casino night for a local organization. What if you learned you can play games online for a special cause?
There are gaming events online where you can raise money and have a great time doing it. Extra Life is a site where you pledge to play games online or at home. You get friends and family to sponsor you in your efforts.
The money raised goes to the Children’s Miracle Network, which is a network of children’s hospitals across the country.
Child’s Play is another organization that supports children’s hospitals and domestic violence shelters through games.
St. Jude’s Play Live raised more than $30 million through its Play Live fundraising events.
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Eighty Cents Makes a Difference
You’ve seen the ads where a donation for less than a dollar a day makes a huge difference. That’s true in the case of Share the Meal.
It’s an app provided by the United Nations World Food Programme. You open the app, tap on share a meal, and you feed a child for an entire day with just $.80.
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Use Embedded Links
Do you have a site of your own or a business that you run? You can partner with other organizations and pledge a certain percentage of the sale goes towards that charity.
It’s a great opportunity to tell a great story about how your partnership came to fruition. That generates goodwill for your brand, which can do a long way with your customers.
Another way to raise money through the partnership is to add an embedded link to your site which will encourage even more giving.
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Donate Online With Spare Change
There’s a good chance that you use your debit or credit card for the majority of purchases. You can round up your purchases and use that money to make a donation to a charity of your choice.
The Coin Up app does the work for you. All you need to do is download the app, choose your charity, link your debit card to it, and spend money like you normally do.
The app does the work for you. It rounds up your purchases, so your spare change goes to the charity. There is a $5.00 minimum donation each month, so if you don’t shop much, you’ll still make a donation.
How to Pick a Charity to Donate To
In an ideal world, you’d have enough money to support any and every charity in the world. This being a not quite so perfect world, you probably can’t give away all of your money.
You want to narrow down your donations to a few that you love to give your money to. Here are some tips that will help you narrow down the list to your favorite organizations.
Why Do You Want to Donate?
The first thing you need to do is to sit down and assess what your goals are. You might not be a major philanthropist, but you want your donations to have an impact.
Take some time to think about the difference you’d like to make in your community and the world. You might decide that you want to donate to an international organization for a global impact.
Check the Organization’s Mission and Vision
The donations you make should make a difference, but they should also align with your own values. Think of donating as an extension of who you are as a person. Your donations should reflect that.
Check the mission of the organization. The vision tells you where the organization is going. If these statements are aligned with you, then the organization should be on your list of charities to donate to.
Check Out the Financials
You want to make sure your funds are well-spent. You don’t want to donate to a non-profit only to find that the funds were spent on private jets.
Nonprofit organizations usually have an annual report for donors to read. Organizations that have more than $100,000 in annual donations have to file Form 990 with the IRS. This report is publicly available.
Do Your Research
You can do additional research online to learn more about nonprofit organizations. Charity Navigator, CharityWatch, and GiveWell are sites that seek to hold nonprofits accountable.
These sites rank and grade nonprofits based on publicly available financial data. Each site has its own method to grade nonprofits, so it’s best to do research on each site.
Keep Receipts for Your Donations
One of the changes made to the tax code in 2020 is how you can claim charitable deductions.
There was a major change in 2017 because of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. In order to claim a deduction on your taxes, your deductions would have to be larger than the standard deduction. Most taxpayers don’t meet that requirement.
There was a major change in the CARES Act, which was passed by Congress in 2020. Charitable deductions became an above the line deduction of up to $300. You no longer have to meet the standard deduction requirement.
That deduction was extended into 2021, with a deduction of $300 for individuals and $600 for those filing jointly.
There may be more changes in store as Congress continues to find ways to help nonprofit organizations. You’ll want to keep an eye on legislation and keep all of your charitable receipts.
Finding Ways to Donate Online
Charitable organizations do so much great work behind the scenes that they are definitely underappreciated. Many of these organizations are struggling to make ends meet in order to serve the public good.
You can make a huge difference to these organizations when you donate online. There are so many ways to make an immediate difference. You can go out for a walk, shop, or make a direct donation.
You want to ensure that your money is used to help support these organizations. Do your research and learn about these organizations before you decide which organizations to support.
Head over to the Lifestyle section of this site for more ways to make a positive impact.