The Wealthy Give Less

Middle and Low Income People Give More

Being a part of the top income earners doesn't mean they give more. The total dollars given by this group has increased, but the percent of income has decreased. 

The Chronicle for Philanthropy reports, "As the recession lifted, poor and middle class Americans dug deeper into their wallets to give to charity, even though they were earning less. At the same time, according to a new Chronicle analysis of tax data, wealthy Americans earned more, but the portion of the income they gave to charity declined."  Americans earning $200,000 or more are giving 4.6% less than they were in 2012 that they were in  2006. You can see more of the report at The Chronicle of Philanthropy website.  

As Wealthy Give Smaller Share of Income to Charity, Middle Class Digs Deeper

Giving was down in our largest cities. Among the top 50 markets giving was down in 2012 in 36 markets.  Giving rates in New England bump along the bottom. Percent of income giving in the Hartford and Providence metro's were 1.9%. Boston wasn't much better at 2.3%. Salt Lake City and Memphis were the most generous. They gave more than 5% of income.

Despite the disparity, American charities continue to pursue high income donors. This begs the question. What is more valuable...the one really big gift or smaller contributions from many donors?