Giving USA 2026: The Annual Report on Philanthropy for the Year 2025Giving USA Foundation and Indiana University Lilly Family School of PhilanthropyTotal U.S. giving, source shares, annual growth, and bequest giving trends.Cerulli Anticipates $124 Trillion in Wealth Will Transfer Through 2048Cerulli AssociatesProjection of $124 trillion in total transfers, including $18 trillion to charity.Planned giving: the state of charitable bequests in the USUSLegalWills.comAnalysis of more than 10,000 wills, including residual bequest values.
Research behind the numbers
The reports, surveys, government guidance, and academic research supporting each section of our 2026 planned giving statistics guide.
Return to Statistics2026 Estate Planning ReportTrust & WillNational survey of 5,000 U.S. adults on estate-document ownership and planning behavior.2025 Wills and Estate Planning StudyCaring.comWill ownership and reasons Americans delay estate planning, based on YouGov panel research.How Many Americans Have a Will?GallupLong-running telephone polling on U.S. will ownership, including age and income comparisons.
Notice 2025-67: 2026 retirement plan and IRA limitsInternal Revenue ServiceOfficial inflation-adjusted 2026 limits, including qualified charitable distributions.Qualified Charitable Distributions from Individual Retirement AccountsCongressional Research ServiceQCD eligibility, tax treatment, annual indexing, and split-interest distribution rules.
New survey: donors who budget give moreVanguard Charitable and The Harris PollSurvey of more than 2,000 U.S. adults on charitable budgets, DAF use, and annual giving.2025 Planned Giving ReportFreeWillEvidence on charitable inclusion and gift size among users of online estate-planning tools.What Makes Them Give? Donor Insight ReportThe Stelter CompanyNational research on current planned givers, prospective givers, and nonprofit outreach.
The Transformative Power of Legacy SocietiesCrescendo Interactive, 2025 Marketing StudySurvey research from 340 nonprofit respondents on legacy society size and practice.The final outcome of charitable bequest gift intentionsRoewen Wishart and Russell N. James III, Journal of Philanthropy and MarketingPeer-reviewed study of 700 confirmed bequest intentions across ten charities.
Qualified Charitable Distributions from Individual Retirement AccountsCongressional Research ServiceDefinitions and restrictions used in the QCD and donor-advised fund answers.2025 Planned Giving ReportFreeWillAge, demographic, and estate-planning behavior used in the donor outreach answer.The final outcome of charitable bequest gift intentionsWishart and JamesResearch supporting the distinction between intentions and realized estate gifts.