For many nonprofits, the end of the year means one final appeal for donations. And for many individuals, it means an avalanche of letters and emails full of stories that pull at our heart strings and compel us to make a donation. Few of us can afford to give to all of the organizations or causes we want to support, so how do we decide which ones should receive our hard-earned money?

Your Budget. Sorry to start off with math and spreadsheets, but it’s important to know how much you can afford to give. Decide if you want to make one bigger donation or if you want to spread your charitable dollars over several organizations. Does your employer offer a match?
Take Inventory. List the organizations that you had a personal experience with over the last year. Did you adopt a pet from an animal shelter? Did you spend a lot of time at your public library? Did you enjoy a trip to a zoo, museum, or science center? Did you take in a performance at a ballet or community theater (virtual or in person)? Chances are, most, if not all, of these places are nonprofits that rely on annual donations.
Take Another Kind of Inventory. What are your core values? What inspires you to take action? What topics or causes inspire you to speak up or speak out? Now, match those core values with organizations that address those values in some way. Contact your local community foundation if you need help identifying those groups.
Play Detective. Once you’ve figured out your charitable giving budget and narrowed down the list of organizations that are most important to you, investigate what your chosen charities need the most. Cash is always nice, and if you prefer to make a simple cash donation, you absolutely should! For some organizations, however, goods may be what they need the most. While they could purchase the goods they need with the money you give them, they may appreciate it more if YOU purchased what was needed and donated it to the organization. You might also consider holding a mini-drive by asking your friends and family to contribute. The best way to find out is to call or visit their website.
Give Local. National nonprofit organizations have a lot of resources when it comes to fundraising. When you give local, often you’re supporting a nonprofit run mostly by volunteers who don’t have a lot of time to fundraise. It’s also much easier to see your dollars at work.

That’s it! Be sure to keep your donation receipts somewhere safe and accessible for tax time.

This post was originally published Nov. 2021 and updated Nov. 2022.