After a four-year streak of tightening wallets, evangelicals’ giving habits have at last held steady, according to a new study by Grey Matter Research and Infinity Concepts.
Screenshot from The Generosity Landscape report from Infinity Concepts and Grey Matter Research
The survey of over 1,000 evangelical Protestants found the average respondent’s generosity level remained virtually unchanged from 2024 to 2025. Compared to 2020, however, the latest numbers show a 31% drop in giving to churches and charities as a percentage of household income. Just 10% of respondents gave nothing to any organization or individual.
“There has been little change over the past year, which is at least some good news. But when you consider the average evangelical Protestant gives away just 2.2% of household income, that good news is a pretty small ray of sunshine in an otherwise cloudy day,” the researchers noted in their report, The Generosity Landscape: How Evangelicals Give.
While critical of the low giving level, the report avoided drawing hard conclusions about the cause or broader implications, noting, “We do not know whether this represents long-term decline or a return to ‘normalcy’ after a pandemic-related increase.”
For comparison, the Giving USA 2025 report, which was produced by the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, showed the total number of Americans who donate to charities has been on the decline even as donation dollars (adjusted for inflation) have gone up. This seeming contradiction stems from the fact that the drop in donor numbers came from lower-income households while higher-income households increased their average gift size. Similarly, the Generosity Landscape report found that higher-income evangelicals were more likely to have donated.
However, income was not the primary indicator. Instead, researchers uncovered a strong correlation between giving and spiritual engagement. To measure this connection, each respondent was given a “Spiritual Engagement Score” based on participation in prayer, worship services, small groups, and Bible reading and study.
“People who are more engaged in their evangelical faith are simply far more likely to be givers,” the report explained. “Among all the differentiating factors in charitable giving—including age, income, and race—the most significant difference is consistently tied to Spiritual Engagement Score.”
Respondents at the highest spiritual activity level gave 3.42% of their household income to church and 1.82% to charity, while those with low or no engagement gave just 1.16% to church and 0.63% to charity. High spiritual engagement also correlated with a high rate of volunteerism.
“This means highly engaged believers are 82% more generous than moderate ones, and nearly three times as generous (189% more) as those with little or no engagement,” the report said.
For the first time, the researchers also looked at “nontraditional” giving methods, such as crowdfunding, social media, or donating directly to a friend or relative in need. The survey results suggested that evangelicals choose these methods in addition to, rather than as replacements for, traditional church and charitable giving. Concerns about the cannibalization of donors by online fundraising opportunities may be overblown, the researchers argued, because respondents who gave nothing to a church or charity also, in most cases, gave nothing to a crowdfunding or social media campaign.
The same pattern held among churches and traditional charities. The higher the giving to churches, the higher the giving to charities. Money given to one was not necessarily money taken away from the other.
“We find a rising tide of generosity lifts all boats,” the report said.
Overall, 72% of respondents gave to a church or traditional charity, while 40% gave to both. Just 16% used nontraditional methods alone, and that number drops to 11% if personal gifts to friends and family are excluded.
Other notable findings:
- Evangelicals 65 and older were most likely to donate money but least likely to volunteer.
- Only 12% of evangelicals gave to political causes.
- Respondents who typically attended church virtually were far less likely than those who typically attended in person to support their church financially.
- 21% of respondents gave through crowdfunding and 15% through social media.
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