Canadian Donations to Charity Stable Despite Continued Pressure on Household Finances

At a time when many Canadians are still watching their budgets closely, charitable giving has proven more resilient than expected. A new Leger study shows that charitable giving in Canada remained steady over the past year, despite continued pressure on household finances and a broader climate of economic uncertainty.  

According to the findings, 54% of Canadians donated to a charity, foundation, or nonprofit organization in 2025. This figure is essentially unchanged from 2024 and 2023. Among donors, the average annual donation was $654, which was also stable compared with last year’s results. 

While Canadians are still feeling financial strain, they have not significantly pulled back from giving. Essentially, participation remained consistent, and the average donation amount per donor stayed steady. Intention data for 2026 suggests cautious optimism rather than retrenchment. 

When Canadians do give, the largest share of donations continues to go to health-related organizations, which account for 28% of total donations.  

• • Social services and social issues follow at 17%; 
  • Religious organizations at 13%; 
  • Animal-related causes now account for 12%. 

While most Canadians expect their donations in 2026 to remain about the same as in 2025, the overall outlook has improved slightly. 

Fourteen percent of Canadians say they expect to donate more this year, while 6% expect to donate less, resulting in a net giving intention score of +7, up from +5 a year earlier. 

Regional differences are also worth noting: 

• • Manitoba shows the strongest net giving outlook at +17; 
  • Quebec posts the weakest at +2; 
  • Across the rest of the country: the picture is more moderate, with signs of slightly greater generosity, but not a major behavioural shift. 

Most Canadians expect their charitable behaviour to stay consistent across a range of activities, from one-time donations to volunteering. Still, a few areas show modest growth potential. 

One-time charitable donations remain the most common form of participation, with 63% planning to make this type of contribution in 2026. There is some potential growth in donations tied to friends’ fundraising efforts or family members’ fundraising efforts, purchases of goods or services where proceeds support a cause, and charity lottery tickets. 

While economic conditions continue to influence decision-making, the overall results point to resilience rather than retrenchment. 

Leger also found that legacy giving, while still limited in practice, may represent a longer-term opportunity. 

• • Only 6% of Canadians have already arranged to leave a charitable donation in their will; 
  • 21% say they definitely or probably will do so in the future;  
  • Total share of Canadians who have already made, or are likely to make, a charitable bequest: 28%. 

Leger’s segmentation analysis also offers a useful lens on today’s charitable giving market. 

The research further highlights two key donor segments driving the market.  

The Intentional Donors:  

• • Account for 40% of donations 
  • They are disciplined, plan their giving, and tend to be older and financially stable 

The Heartfelt Donors: 

• • Account for 34% of donations 
  • They are more emotionally driven, more responsive to personal appeals, and more likely to engage beyond donating through fundraising or volunteering 

Leger, the largest Canadian-owned polling and marketing research firm, monitors views on charitable giving to keep a pulse on the not-for-profit sector. This represents the third annual wave of research into the sector, tracking results from past waves.

The results presented are based on online research conducted with a representative sample of Canadian adults 18 years of age and older from LEO’s (Leger Opinion) panel.

Sample sizes and field dates:

• • 2,624 Canadians Feb 20-23, 2026.
  • 2,633 Canadians Feb 14-16, 2025.
  • 2,694 Canadians Feb 16-19, 2024.

The data was statistically weighted according to Canadian Census figures. Many of LEO’s panelists were randomly selected through Leger’s telephone call centre (RDD), Panelists from harder-to-reach target groups were also added to the panel through targeted recruitment campaigns. The double opt-in selection process, a model to detect fraud and the renewal of 25% of the panel each year ensures complete respondent quality. To ensure a higher response rate and reach people on their mobile devices, Leger has developed high-performance Apple and Android apps. Respondents were randomly recruited through LEO’s (Leger Opinion) panel. 

The results presented in this study comply with the public opinion research standards and disclosure requirements of CRIC (the Canadian Research and Insights Council) and the global ESOMAR network. Leger is a founding member of CRIC and is actively involved in raising quality standards in the survey industry. President Jean-Marc Léger is a member of the CRIC’s Board of Directors and the Canadian representative of ESOMAR.

A margin of error cannot be associated with a non-probability sample in a panel survey, but for comparison purposes, a probability sample of 2,600 would have a margin of error of ±1.9%, 19 times out of 20.