John Howard
Americans donated an incredible $373 billion to charities in 2015. That money was collected from individuals, estates, foundations, and companies, according to the annual report Giving USA.
A new record of $359 billion was set in 2014.
Individual donors were far and away the biggest supporters of various charities. They donated $264.6 billion for a 4% increase year-over-year.
Donations from foundations jumped 6.5% to $58.5 billion and charitable bequests rose 2% to $31.8 billion. Corporate giving totaled $18.5 billion, an increase of 4%.
US corporations gave us $18.5 billion, also an increase of 4%.
The report says economic recovery and stabilizing household finances helped lead the increase in charitable giving.
The report said that religious organizations received more donations than any other group, taking in nearly $120 billion last year. Education-based organizations ranked second with donations increasing by 9% to $57.5 billion.
Donations to international organizations also jumped after two years of declines, rising 17.5% to $15.8 billion.
The report says charity giving accounts for about 2% of U.S. gross domestic product.
