Charitable giving is down among evangelicals, according to a new report from Grey Matter Research and Infinity Concepts. According to the report, evangelicals’ financial generosity is down in every metric measured in a similar survey conducted three years ago.
In 2021, Grey Matter Research and Infinity Concepts found that the average evangelical gave away only 3.2% of their household income to either church or charity, and 19% had not made any charitable gifts in the previous 12 months.
In February 2024, the researchers gathered new data and found that among evangelicals, 61% gave to church in the previous 12 months, 50% gave to a charity or charities outside of the local church, and 42% gave to both.
Eleven percent of evangelicals gave to political causes, and 8% gave only to charities outside of the church. However, 31% did not make any charitable contributions in the previous year.
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The percentage of evangelicals who gave to their local church fell from 74% in 2021 to 61% in 2024. The proportion of evangelicals who did not make any charitable contributions inside or outside the church rose from 19% in 2021 to 31% in 2024.
“Giving is down for every single segment of the evangelical population we reviewed,” the report said. “The proportion who gave to either church or charity dropped 24% among the lowest income evangelicals, but also 7% among those earning $100,000 or more.”
“It fell 21% among people who infrequently or never attend church worship services, but also 10% among those who attend at least once a month,” the report continued. “It fell 19% among the youngest evangelicals, but also 6% among the oldest believers. Every group has shown a decrease in the proportion who give to either church or charity.”
The overall size of donations has also decreased relative to income since the previous study was conducted in 2021. In 2024, the average evangelical donor gave 3.3% of household income in the previous 12 months. That figure is down from 4% in 2021.
Some patterns remained consistent across the two reports, including the fact that older evangelicals are still more likely to donate than those from younger generations. Evangelicals with higher incomes are also still more likely to give than evangelicals with lower incomes.
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The report also found that evangelicals who attended church and engaged in spiritual disciplines more regularly were more likely to practice generosity.
