We search for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar.
The gold standard for giving.
How we maximize your gift's impact:
Give based on what your donations will actually do.
Some charities are much better than others.
The same donation could:
Save a child's life.iBased on the approximate donation required to save a child's life by donating to Malaria Consortium's seasonal malaria chemoprevention program.
— Learn more
Send a child to a better school for a year and a half.iBased on the approximate donation required to put a child through a year and a half of school at a charter school.
— Learn more
Both causes matter, but saving a child's life is more important than 1.5 years of school.
See how much good your donation could do with our top charities.
As seen in
More than 50,000 donorsiBased on our records of donors who've contributed either to GiveWell or to our recommended charities.
— Learn more have trusted GiveWell to direct their donations. Together, they have given over $500 millioniBased on our records of the money we've directed to our recommended charities since 2011.
— Learn more to the organizations we recommend.
These donations will save over 75,000 livesiBased on our cost-effectiveness analysis and our records of money we've directed to our recommended charities since 2011.
— Learn more and provide cash grants of over $90 millioniBased on our records of money we've directed to GiveDirectly since 2011, and our understanding of how GiveDirectly transfers funds to its very poor recipients.
— Learn more to the global poor.
Check our work.
It's right to ask questions of any charity that promises incredible impact. It's hard to do incredible things.
We publish the full details of our analysis so you can fully vet our reasoning. We also share mistakes we've made which are relevant to evaluating our work.
Why our top charities work in lower-income countries.
Helping people in high-income countries is expensive, and the gains can be more marginal. People living in low-income countries face many problems that have ready solutions, such as children dying from malaria or suffering from parasitic worms.
Donating internationally is the most cost-effective way to provide lifesaving help.
"For almost a decade I've trusted GiveWell to guide most of my donations. Without them, I couldn't answer the question that matters most to me: How can I do the most good with my limited funds?"
- Dan Heath,
New York Times bestselling author, former GiveWell board member, and donor since 2010
Frequently Asked Questions
What is GiveWell?
GiveWell is an independent nonprofit focused on helping people do as much good as possible with their donations. We recommend a short list of top charities that we update annually. All of our research is free and available to the public.
Who works at GiveWell?
GiveWell was founded by two individuals working in the finance industry in 2007. Our team has grown quite a bit since then! For more, see our story and meet our team.
How does GiveWell make money?
GiveWell is a nonprofit that is funded by donors who choose to support our mission. We don’t take any fees from donations directed to charities we recommend, nor do we receive any fees from charities for being featured on our site.
Will my donation be tax-deductible?
GiveWell (a.k.a. The Clear Fund) is a federally-recognized tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization. GiveWell can accept donations on behalf of our recommended charities. U.S. donors can donate to GiveWell for our operations or the support of our recommended charities and take tax deductions to the extent permitted by the law. More information is available here on the tax-deductibility of donations to GiveWell and our recommended charities, including for donors based outside of the U.S.
Does GiveWell recommend charities for every cause?
We do not. GiveWell's mission is to recommend charities that we believe can save or improve the greatest number of lives per dollar donated. We focus on the areas that we believe are most promising to achieve this aim. This has led us to research and recommend charities working in global health and poverty alleviation because your dollar can go further overseas.