Give with your eyes open.
Good intentions deserve good information. Explore charities across the USA, UK and Europe, compare their approaches, and check the evidence before giving.
There is more to a charity than a good cause
Consider mission, finances, governance and outcomes together. A spending ratio does not establish impact, and a directory score is not a financial audit. Compare organisations working on similar problems and read their current reports.
Source-checked profile research
Doctors Without Borders USA: For a donor interested in emergency medical assistance, the important distinction is between delivering clinical care directly and supplying equipment to other providers. MSF describes a model built around medical teams, needs assessments, logistics and access negotiations. This is useful context for comparing its approach with a medical-supply organisation, but it is not proof that one model is universally better.
Feeding America: Feeding America is relevant to donors researching food insecurity in the United States. Its official description distinguishes a nationwide network from the local food banks, pantries and meal programmes that provide community access. This matters because a national donation and a donation to a particular local member may support different priorities.
Direct Relief: Direct Relief describes its mission as improving health for people affected by poverty or emergencies. For donors, a useful comparison is between supporting medical resources and supporting an organisation that runs clinical services directly. Both can contribute to care, but their activities and evidence should be assessed differently.
Original giving guides
How to choose an effective charity
A practical donor checklist for checking a charity’s work, evidence, finances and accountability before you give.
Understanding our charity scores
What the directory’s scores and spending percentages mean, what they leave out, and how to use them without false certainty.
Why charity overhead is not the same as impact
Learn what overhead ratios can tell you, why low costs alone do not prove effectiveness, and which questions to ask instead.
Our editorial and corrections policy
How this directory distinguishes source-checked research from legacy listing data, handles corrections, and approaches advertising.