It's not too late to participate in Giving Tuesday

Does your nonprofit routinely participate in the annual online fundraiser Giving Tuesday? If so, you know it’s a can’t-miss opportunity to raise money and awareness about your organization and mission. Maybe you’ve already begun planning for Dec. 2, 2025!

If, however, you haven’t yet joined the thousands of charities and millions of supporters that come together on Giving Tuesday, consider doing so this year. The date is fast approaching, but there’s still time to mobilize resources and publicize your participation in this popular event.

History of growth

Giving Tuesday was founded in 2012 to encourage charitable supporters to donate during the holiday season, similar to how they participate in commercial shopping events such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Like Cyber Monday, Giving Tuesday wouldn’t be possible without technology. Participants use websites and social media platforms to expand awareness about issues and explain how their nonprofits are responding to them. Raising money online is the event’s central goal, but Giving Tuesday is also intended to educate potential supporters and encourage them to volunteer in their communities.

Since its establishment, Giving Tuesday has grown into an immensely successful event. In 2024, it had 36.1 million individual, charitable, for-profit business and government participants in the United States alone and raised $3.6 billion. These stats represent a 16% growth in donations and 7% increase in participants compared to 2023. And the Giving Tuesday nonprofit now works all year to inspire generosity, facilitate donations and research philanthropic trends.

How to get involved

If you’d like to get involved, visit GivingTuesday.org. The organization previously limited participation to those with a 501(c)(3) tax status. Now, all fundraising entities are welcome, including individuals and families promoting a charitable cause and for-profit businesses that pledge to donate a percentage of sales to charity. There’s no fee to participate in Giving Tuesday.

Donors can’t directly give money to your charity through the Giving Tuesday website or its social media accounts. However, the website offers a plethora of information, marketing tools and advice on leveraging your online presence and support base for maximum success on Dec. 2.

The extent to which your nonprofit participates is up to you, considering factors such as your staffing resources. If 2025 will be your first year participating, you might want to try a simple, focused objective. For example, use the day to remind supporters who’ll itemize 2025 tax deductions to make their gifts by Dec. 31. Or publicize the list of supplies your facility needs on an ongoing basis. Regular participants, however, may want to set an ambitious fundraising goal that exceeds last year’s total.

Tips for success

If you want to participate in Giving Tuesday on Dec. 2, start preparing now. The blog on the organization’s website provides weekly tips for nonprofits — or you can sign up to receive updates by email. For other ideas about encouraging donations at year end, contact us.

© 2025