Report: Giving Trends Vary Depending on US Region

Credit: Fidelity Charitable

Here’s a question for you: Does location determine the level of donor generosity? When we think about our economy, we know that there are people who make a higher income in certain parts of the country and those who make a lower income on other parts of the country—so those factors can impact how much a donor gives to charity. It’s an interesting thought, and one that requires further analysis. This infographic dove a little further into this with its “Fidelity Charitable Giving by Geography 2017 Report,” which looked at activity in three representative cities for four areas of the country—Northeast, South, Midwest and West—to highlight the regional differences.

The study found that not only did grant sizes differ, so did the popular category of nonprofit. Let’s take a closer look at the report.

The Northeast

The three representative cities that the study looked at in the Northeast were Boston, Bridgeport, CT, and New York.

• Average grant size was $6,019.
• 61 percent of grant dollars went to local charities.
• Most popular grant recipients were education charities, which included Harvard University and Columbia University.

The South

In the South, the study looked at Atlanta, Dallas and Washington, D.C.

• Average grant size was $2,936.
• 54 percent of grant dollars went to local charities.
• Giving towards religious charities (churches and other belief communities) encouraged other types of giving locally and globally.

The Midwest

Chicago, Cincinnati and Minneapolis were the three representative cities in this region.

• Average grant size was $4,509.
• 60 percent of grant dollars went to local charities.
• Donors in the Midwest strongly supported medical charities, such as St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.

The West

In this region, the study looked at these following cities: Denver, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

• Average grant size was $5,374.
• 46 percent of grant dollars went to local charities.
• Donors strongly supported animal welfare and environmental charities, such as the Nature Conservatory.

Do these regional giving trends match up to your donors’ giving? To learn more, click here.