Religious giving statistics: how Americans give across faiths

Verified religious giving statistics with named sources: religion drew $146.54B (23% of US giving) in 2024 per Giving USA 2025, plus Muslim zakat, Jewish household, and congregational data from Lake Institute, ISPU, and the Lilly Family School.

Book a demoGivebear for faith communities

Last updated July 2026 by Fatih

Quick answer

Religion is the largest single destination for US charity: Americans gave an estimated $146.54 billion to religion in 2024, about 23% of the $592.50 billion total, according to Giving USA 2025. That share has fallen from 62% in 1984. Muslim Americans gave about $1.8 billion in zakat in 2021, and 74% of Jewish households gave in 2022, at an average of $10,588.

Key takeaways

  • Congregations receive close to 29% of US charitable dollars, and about 81% of their revenue comes from individual contributions (Lake Institute).
  • Households attending worship weekly are 28 times more likely to give to religious causes (Philanthropy Panel Study).
  • About 62% of religious households give to charity, against 46% of households with no religious affiliation.

Who this is for: Nonprofit and development staff benchmarking faith-based fundraising; Journalists and editors who need cited religious giving figures; Researchers and students studying philanthropy and religion; Clergy, church administrators, and faith leaders planning stewardship

Religion is the single largest destination for US charitable dollars: Giving USA 2025 (Lilly Family School of Philanthropy) estimates Americans gave $146.54 billion to religion in 2024, about 23% of the $592.50 billion donated to all causes.

That dominance is shrinking in relative terms: religion's share of total giving fell from 62% in 1984 to 34% in 2011 to 23% in 2024, even as the dollar total kept rising. This page rounds up verified, cited figures on cross-faith giving for nonprofits, journalists, faith leaders, and researchers.

Across Christian, Muslim, and Jewish communities the pattern holds: worship attendance and recurring habits are the strongest predictors of how much households give, which is why digital and recurring giving infrastructure matters for congregations.

Religion's share of US giving

Giving USA 2025, produced by the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University, estimates religion was the largest single category of US charitable giving in 2024 at roughly $146.54 billion, about 23% of the $592.50 billion total.

Religion's relative share has declined over four decades, from 62% of total giving in 1984 to 34% in 2011 and 23% in 2024, even as the dollar amount continued to rise; in 2024 the 1.9% nominal increase translated to roughly a 1% decline after inflation.

Givebear chart of money raised over time

Inside the congregation

Congregations receive close to 29% of all US charitable dollars, and on average about 81% of a congregation's revenue comes from individual contributions rather than grants or government funds, the Lake Institute on Faith & Giving's National Study of Congregations' Economic Practices (NSCEP) found.

The same body of research underscores how concentrated congregational finances are on member generosity, which makes recurring and digital giving channels meaningful for sustaining year-round operating income.

Giving across faith traditions

Muslim Americans gave an estimated $1.8 billion in zakat in 2021, averaging about $2,070 per household, according to research from the Muslim Philanthropy Initiative at the Lilly Family School and the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU); Ramadan is the dominant season for that giving.

Among Jewish Americans, roughly 74% of households gave and donated an average of $10,588 in 2022 per the Lilly Family School's American Jewish Philanthropy study, a participation rate similar to non-Jewish households (about 72%) but at higher average amounts.

What predicts faith giving

Worship attendance is the strongest predictor in the data: households attending weekly are 28 times more likely to give to religious causes, and monthly attenders give about $1,737 more to religion annually than those who attend less often, the Philanthropy Panel Study (Lilly Family School) shows. About 62% of religious households give to charity of any kind, versus 46% of households with no religious affiliation.

On the operational side, the Ministry Brands 2026 Church Giving Report finds that recurring digital donors give more on average and stay longer than one-time givers, which is the practical case for offering a recurring option wherever a congregation takes gifts.

Sources

Giving USA 2025, Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University Indianapolis (2025); Lake Institute on Faith & Giving, National Study of Congregations' Economic Practices / NSCEP (2019); Muslim Philanthropy Initiative (Lilly Family School) and the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding, Muslim American zakat research (2022).

Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, American Jewish Philanthropy 2022 (2023); Philanthropy Panel Study, Lilly Family School of Philanthropy (2017); Ministry Brands 2026 Church Giving Report (2026).

Practical use cases

  • Cite the headline figure that religion drew $146.54B, about 23% of US giving in 2024, in articles, grant applications, or board decks
  • Compare giving across Christian, Muslim, and Jewish communities using one sourced reference
  • Support stewardship and capital-campaign cases with attendance-and-giving correlation data
  • Contextualize the long-run decline in religion's share of total US giving

Key features

  • Religion received $146.54 billion in 2024, roughly 23% of all US charitable giving (Giving USA 2025, Lilly Family School of Philanthropy)
  • Religion's share of total US giving fell from 62% in 1984 to 23% in 2024 (Giving USA 2025)
  • Congregations took in about 29% of all US charitable dollars, with 81% of congregational revenue coming from individuals (Lake Institute, NSCEP)
  • Muslim Americans gave an estimated $1.8 billion in zakat in 2021, averaging $2,070 per household (Muslim Philanthropy Initiative and ISPU)
  • About 74% of US Jewish households gave, donating an average of $10,588 in 2022 (Lilly Family School, American Jewish Philanthropy)
  • Households that attend worship weekly are 28 times more likely to give to religious causes (Philanthropy Panel Study, Lilly Family School)

Common questions

What percentage of US charitable giving goes to religion?
Religion received about 23% of all US charitable giving in 2024, totaling an estimated $146.54 billion, according to Giving USA 2025 from the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. That makes religion the single largest recipient category, ahead of human services and education, which each drew about 14%.
Is religious giving going up or down?
In current dollars, giving to religion rose 1.9% in 2024, but adjusted for inflation it slipped about 1%, per Giving USA 2025. Over the longer term, religion's share of total US giving has fallen steadily, from 62% in 1984 to 34% in 2011 to 23% in 2024, even though the dollar total has grown.
How much do Muslim and Jewish Americans give?
Muslim Americans gave an estimated $1.8 billion in zakat in 2021, about $2,070 per household, per research from the Muslim Philanthropy Initiative and ISPU. Roughly 74% of US Jewish households gave, donating an average of $10,588 in 2022, according to the Lilly Family School's American Jewish Philanthropy study.
Does worship attendance affect giving?
Yes. The Philanthropy Panel Study (Lilly Family School) finds households that attend worship weekly are 28 times more likely to give to religious causes than those who never attend, and monthly attenders give an average of $1,737 more to religion per year.

More in Research

Keep reading

See it with your own funds.

Book a 30-minute walkthrough. No slides and no hard sell: we set Givebear up around how your organization already gives.

  • Your funds, set up the way your treasurer reports them
  • Where a kiosk would go, and what it costs
  • The reports your board will actually see

Rather set it up yourself? Start free

Loading available times

Or open the booking page