GivingTuesday: what it is, when it is, and how to make it count

GivingTuesday is the Tuesday after US Thanksgiving, a day set aside to give after a weekend built around buying. In 2026 it falls on Tuesday, December 1. This guide covers where it came from, what the latest numbers show, and how to take part well, whether you have money, time or just a voice.

What GivingTuesday is

GivingTuesday started in 2012 as a simple idea: after Black Friday and Cyber Monday, set aside a day to do good. According to its own About page, it was "born and incubated at the 92nd Street Y and its Belfer Center for Innovation & Social Impact in New York City," and is now an independent nonprofit. Wikipedia's history of the movement credits Henry Timms at the 92nd Street Y as founder and the United Nations Foundation as a co-founding partner, with the first GivingTuesday held on November 27, 2012, and the organization spinning off from the Y in 2019.

It isn't a single charity or a fund. Nobody collects the money centrally. It's a shared date and a shared nudge: nonprofits run campaigns, companies announce matches, neighborhoods organize drives, and individuals give wherever they like. The organization also runs a year-round research effort, the GivingTuesday Data Commons, which produces the national estimates quoted on this page.

When is GivingTuesday?

The rule is easy: it's always the Tuesday after American Thanksgiving, which means it lands between November 27 and December 3.

The GivingTuesday website lists the 2026 date as December 1.

What the 2025 numbers show

The GivingTuesday Data Commons estimated that GivingTuesday 2025 was a record. Its 2025 results release reports, for the US:

The same release puts cumulative GivingTuesday giving since 2012 at $22.5 billion. Two things stand out. First, the fastest growth wasn't in dollars at all. It was in volunteering and in people speaking up for causes. Second, the total counts many people giving modest amounts. Its size comes from breadth.

Ways to take part (money is only one)

GivingTuesday describes generosity broadly: giving some of what we have, helping a neighbor or stranger, and "showing up for an issue or people we care about," in the words of its mission page. Here's a menu.

Give money, thoughtfully

• Pick one or two organizations you already know and trust instead of reacting to whichever email arrives first.
• Look for an announced match. Many nonprofits line up a matching donor for the day, and your employer may match too. See how workplace matching gifts work.
• Consider making it recurring. A monthly gift started on GivingTuesday keeps working all year.
• Give unrestricted if you trust the group. It lets the charity spend where the need is greatest.
• Budget ahead. Setting money aside through the year makes December giving painless. A sinking-fund tracker like SinkJar, a free offline savings-jar app, works for a "giving jar" the same way it does for car repairs.

Give time or goods

• Sign up for a volunteer shift that starts in December or January, when many groups see sign-ups drop. Our volunteering guide covers how to find a good fit.
• Run a mini drive at work or school. Our guide to organizing a food drive has a step-by-step plan.
• Ask your local food bank what it actually needs before you buy anything. See what food banks need most.

Give your voice

• Share why you support a cause, in your own words. A personal note travels further than a reposted graphic.
• Write a review or a thank-you to a local nonprofit, or tell a volunteer what their work meant to you.
• Offer a skill: a résumé review for a job-training program, photos for a shelter's adoption listings, a spreadsheet for a tiny PTA.

Or do something unplanned and kind. We keep a long list of random acts of kindness ideas.

How to avoid GivingTuesday scams

Any day when lots of people give is a day scammers show up. The Federal Trade Commission's GivingTuesday consumer alert offers four core tips, summarized here:

1. Confirm the charity is real. Get its exact name and research it. Check ratings from groups such as the BBB Wise Giving Alliance or CharityWatch, and confirm registration with your state charity regulator (find yours through NASCO). Watch for names that sound like well-known charities.
2. Check where your money goes. Call the charity directly and ask how much of your donation will support the programs you care about.
3. Pay safely. Credit card or check is safest. The FTC says that if someone insists you can only pay by cryptocurrency, a payment app, gift card or wire transfer, it's likely a scam.
4. Double-check links. Look at who is asking and who receives the money, even when a friend shares it. Crowdfunding money goes to the organizer, who may not be closely tied to the cause.

If you think you've found a fake charity, report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and to your state charity regulator.

Sources

1. GivingTuesday — GivingTuesday 2025 results (Data Commons estimates)
2. GivingTuesday — About / mission
3. GivingTuesday — Home page (2026 date)
4. Wikipedia — GivingTuesday (history, founders, date rule)
5. Federal Trade Commission — Donate to charities (not scammers) on Giving Tuesday
6. Federal Trade Commission — ReportFraud.ftc.gov
7. BBB Wise Giving Alliance — Give.org
8. CharityWatch
9. National Association of State Charity Officials (NASCO)