May 2026
Nonprofit Trends by MissionWired
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The Narrative: Context & Takeaways
Fundraising growth is holding steady from April to May, and both acquisition and new donors are up YOY.
May is a high-energy time of year with graduations and, for many, a transition toward summer. With a significantly increased attention to the news as the midterms approach, a spike in international conflict and disasters, and several awareness- and fundraising-focused holidays in May from Mental Health Awareness Month to Endangered Species Day, there were many reasons and motivations for donors to support the causes they care about. The result? Overall, giving metrics are up across the board for nonprofits.
Fundraising overall saw solid growth year over year, with May revenue up +12% YOY and gifts up +15% YOY. After some softness in the first months of the year, we’re seeing momentum in two months in a row of positive YOY growth. This puts our YTD about 1.34% above 2025.
Trending alongside overall growth in giving is increased attention to acquisition and a resulting lift in new donors. New donor metrics increased in April and May, and acquisition in May was up 32% higher than 2025.
We’ll be watching how the next few months unfold: The expectation of summer slowness and the shift in donor attention to support of political candidates may create headwinds for nonprofit fundraising efforts. But an increase in political news may well inspire donors to support the causes closest to them, so we may see midterm news elevate giving overall.
+12%
Average total revenue increase YOY
+26%
New donors YOY
+15%
Average total gift increase YOY
$76
Average gift, flat MOM
Navigate Results:
Results
| 2025 | 2026 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average Revenue | $208,832.76 | $211,633.04 | + 1.34% |
| Average Total Gifts | 3,817 | 3,871 | + 1.42% |
| Open Rate | 28.64% | 31.70% | + 10.69% |
| Click Rate | 1.90% | 1.50% | - 21.12% |
| New Donors | 41.63% | 39.14% | - 5.98% |
| Opt-Out Rate | 0.41% | 0.44% | + 7.83% |
| Average Revenue | $197,154.90 | $221,553.43 | + 12.38% |
| Average Total Gifts | 3,638 | 4,158 | + 14.29% |
| Open Rate | 26.38% | 30.71% | + 16.42% |
| Click Rate | 1.77% | 1.36% | - 23.13% |
| New Donors | 40.84% | 40.98% | + 0.34% |
| Opt-Out Rate | 0.30% | 0.48% | + 58.32% |
| Average Revenue | $37,531.78 | $48,139.80 | + 28.26% |
| Average Revenue | $199,653.88 | $206,673.95 | + 3.52% |
| Average Revenue | $406,849.05 | $398,287.58 | - 2.10% |
| Average Total Gifts | 466 | 593 | + 27.17% |
| Average Total Gifts | 3,046 | 3,303 | + 8.42% |
| Average Total Gifts | 8,428 | 8,124 | - 3.75% |
| Open Rate | 24.06% | 28.19% | + 17.16% |
| Open Rate | 26.61% | 29.36% | + 10.36% |
| Open Rate | 36.67% | 38.05% | + 3.75% |
| Click Rate | 2.43% | 2.02% | - 16.71% |
| Click Rate | 1.87% | 1.27% | - 32.22% |
| Click Rate | 1.34% | 1.19% | - 11.59% |
| New Donors | 40.99% | 44.03% | + 7.41% |
| New Donors | 42.88% | 34.51% | - 19.53% |
| New Donors | 40.75% | 38.75% | - 4.90% |
| Opt-Out Rate | 0.58% | 0.48% | - 17.52% |
| Opt-Out Rate | 0.32% | 0.44% | + 39.36% |
| Opt-Out Rate | 0.33% | 0.39% | + 19.43% |
| Average Revenue | $37,298.83 | $32,999.50 | - 11.53% |
| Average Revenue | $155,116.50 | $183,946.40 | + 18.59% |
| Average Revenue | $403,053.03 | $468,664.82 | + 16.28% |
| Average Total Gifts | 458 | 477 | + 4.06% |
| Average Total Gifts | 2,505 | 3,067 | + 22.43% |
| Average Total Gifts | 8,059 | 9,339 | + 15.89% |
| Open Rate | 18.26% | 28.83% | + 57.88% |
| Open Rate | 24.91% | 26.42% | + 6.06% |
| Open Rate | 36.17% | 36.97% | + 2.21% |
| Click Rate | 2.17% | 1.65% | - 24.10% |
| Click Rate | 2.08% | 1.17% | - 43.61% |
| Click Rate | 0.98% | 1.22% | + 24.05% |
| New Donors | 41.71% | 43.19% | + 3.55% |
| New Donors | 42.25% | 35.44% | - 16.10% |
| New Donors | 38.44% | 44.07% | + 14.64% |
| Opt-Out Rate | 0.43% | 0.63% | + 49.23% |
| Opt-Out Rate | 0.25% | 0.42% | + 66.51% |
| Opt-Out Rate | 0.25% | 0.39% | + 53.52% |
Revenue
Average Revenue Raised
The view below shows the average revenue raised across all digital channels for a nonprofit organization – excluding mid-level ($1,000+) donations and recurring (monthly) donations.
Average Total Gifts
Included below is the average number of total 1x gifts per nonprofit organization across all digital channels – excluding mid-level ($1,000+) and recurring (monthly) donations.
Average Gift
Defined as total revenue/total gifts, this chart shows the average 1x donation made across digital channels – excluding mid-level ($1,000+) and recurring (monthly) donations.
Acquisition
Average New Donors
Across all digital channels, the chart below shows, on average, how many 1x donations a nonprofit organization saw from first-time donors – excluding mid-level ($1,000+) and recurring (monthly) donations.
Average Active List Composition
Looking at all active email files, the chart below shows the average percentage of new acquisitions (new leads) that were added to the email file. This view shows the current year-to-date over previous years.
Email Engagement
Open Rate
Defined as total opens/total sent, this view shows the average email open rates across nonprofit organizations.
Click Rate
The view below shows the average click rate, defined as unique clicks/unique opens across nonprofit organizations.
Opt-Out Rate
The view below shows the average opt-out rate, defined as total opt-outs/total emails sent across nonprofit organizations.
Our Methodology
The results displayed are a view of more than 60 nonprofits across a variety of sectors. We have taken the metrics from these nonprofits and created averages for each of the KPIs so that nonprofits can easily see how their results compare. All fundraising metrics encompass all digital channels – including but not limited to email, SMS, advertising, and web. Each metric is broken down by nonprofit size, defined by the size of the active email file.
- Large: sending to 300,000 + unique emails in a month
- Medium: sending to 100,000-299,999 unique emails in a month
- Small: sending to less than 100,000 unique emails in a month
These metrics have excluded donors and donations more than $1,000 – often defined as mid-level – as well as monthly donors and donations.