What Others Are Saying

The gold standard for giving.

How do you give? Is there a non-profit that you've been donating to for years? Or do you let the flood wash over you, acting when a heart string feels a tug? It turns out there's a better way: A small band of researchers, headed by refugees from the financial sector, scour the planet for organizations that have the maximum impact with the dollars they are given. This is the idea behind GiveWell, a charity-evaluating nonprofit started in 2006. Its mission is to identify organizations throughout the world that are doing good, and then subject them to careful scrutiny, including site visits. It posts the results, including extensive case files, on its website for free.Its motto: "Real change for your dollar." As we enter into the prime giving season, GiveWell provides a valuable service for the donor who has few preconceptions and just wants to make the world better.

-Pulitzer-prize winning columnist Gareth Cook, 11/20/2011 (archived here)

GiveWell [...] has completely changed the way I think about donating money.

GiveWell [...] has completely changed the way I think about donating money. [...] Like many start-ups, GiveWell is disruptive. It wants to transform philanthropy from a field where decisions are often governed by emotion and, even, marketing to one whose work is measured, tested and constantly optimized to produce the most good.

-Farhad Manjoo, 12/15/2013 (archived here)

Philanthropy has made huge strides in the last couple of decades, with far more emphasis on cost-effective interventions that are scalable to bring about change. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has helped lead the way, and Web sites like Givewell.org guide small-time donors.

-Pulitzer prize-winning columnist Nicholas Kristof, 11/20/2010 (archived here)

When bonus season came around, instead of deciding whether to buy a new suit, car, or a Caribbean vacation, hedge fund analysts Holden Karnofsky and Elie Hassenfeld, both then 25, agonized over which charities to donate to. They put so much time and effort into figuring it out that they eventually left their jobs… to start GiveWell, a nonprofit that evaluates charities with hedge-fund–level rigor.

-Alexandra Wolfe, November 23, 2011 (archived here)

On average, Americans spend more time watching television in one day than they do researching charities in an entire year. Finding good charities takes time. It means using the few organizations, such as GiveWell, that do in-depth studies of charities' effectiveness. And it means remembering that the best organizations, charitable or otherwise, are built on more than a good story or a charismatic leader.

-Ken Stern, December 27, 2012 (archived here)

Peter Singer (bio)

Ira W. Decamp Professor of Bioethics at Princeton University

GiveWell has filled a huge gap.

When I speak about why we ought to be doing more to help the world's poorest people — something I do often — the most frequent question I get is: how can we know that our donation will really help the poor? Until GiveWell came along, it was difficult to give a convincing answer to that question. Previous charity-rating organizations just looked at how much of a charity's income went to program expenses, rather than administration - and it doesn't take much thought to realize that that figure tells you nothing about how effective the charity's programs are. GiveWell has filled a huge gap, and at the same time has started a major trend towards greater transparency and demonstrated cost-effectiveness in the charitable world.

Dustin Moskovitz (bio) and Cari Tuna (bio)

Co-founder of Facebook and CEO of Asana | President of Good Ventures and GiveWell Board Member

The detail in which GiveWell explains its reasoning and the thoroughness of its research into its top charities are unmatched.

The detail in which GiveWell explains its reasoning and the thoroughness of its research into its top charities are unmatched, as far as we've seen. We've been impressed by the co-founders' dedication to their work, humility about what they know and what they don't, and ability to adapt the GiveWell model as they learn. While Good Ventures does not accept unsolicited requests for funding, we do consider all of GiveWell's recommended charities for substantial grants.

Chris Hughes (bio)

Co-founder of Facebook; founder of Jumo

I can't think of a better resource for a careful donor.

Having been an activist and donor in the social sector for a few years now, I have not run across a group of people doing more rigorous, demanding evaluations of non-profits than the GiveWell team. They bring a thoughtfulness and precision to each of the fields they study that is rare in the sector. I can't think of a better resource for a careful donor.

Paul Brest (bio)

President, Hewlett Foundation

A donor can feel confident that an organization recommended by GiveWell meets the highest standards of performance.

Alex Tabarrok (bio)

Bartley J. Madden Chair in Economics, George Mason University; co-author at Marginal Revolution

By far the best charity evaluator working today.

GiveWell, by far the best charity evaluator working today, has a new top ranked charity, the Against Malaria Foundation. Why is VillageReach, their best ranked charity for several years, no longer at the top? First, GiveWell is ranking more charities and charities are now more willing to provide GiveWell the kind of detailed information on outcomes that GiveWell demands. Thus, more charities are vying for the top spot. Even more important is this:

VillageReach was our top-rated organization for 2009, 2010 and much of 2011 and it has now received over $2 million due to GiveWell's recommendation. We do not believe that VillageReach has short-term funding needs…

When was the last time that a charity or evaluator told you that due to successful fund-raising there are now more urgent needs elsewhere? Impressive. As I have for several years, I will be following GiveWell's advice and donating to the Against Malaria Foundation and several of GiveWell's other top charities.

More:

• External evaluations: GiveWell has invited outsiders, often with relevant experience and credentials, to complete structured evaluations of our work. See all external evaluations to date along with information about the reviewers.
• Impact on donors: Donors have given millions of dollars to GiveWell's top-rated charities based on our recommendations. See our summary of key impact metrics as well as our collection of guest blog posts from donors who have used our research.