North Carolina charitable giving statistics show activity across several distinct channels: regulated professional-fundraiser campaigns, community foundation funds, grants, scholarships, and targeted relief programs. The figures below are reported measures for specific periods, not a complete census of every charitable gift made in the state.
Table of contents
- Regulated charitable solicitations
- Community Foundation donors and funds
- Grants and nonprofit recipients
- Targeted and emergency funds
- Scholarships and education
- Statewide reach and philanthropic capacity
Regulated charitable solicitations
The North Carolina Secretary of State’s charitable-solicitation reports provide a defined view of giving captured under the state Charitable Solicitations statute. These figures focus on licensed charities and professional-fundraiser campaigns, so they should not be read as total statewide giving.
In FY 2020-2021, licensed fundraisers collected $34,055,649.92 from North Carolinians for charities. Charities netted $26,588,279.24 from those campaigns, and the aggregate share going to charity programs was 78.07%. The report also said professional-fundraiser receipts declined by $10.8 million from the prior annual-report period to FY 2020-2021. These measures are reported in Giving During COVID: Charity Effectiveness Remains Near a Record High Despite Down Giving in 2020-2021.
The next annual report included multistate campaigns that reported North Carolina residents among their donors. Those campaigns reported $1,237,705,658.59 in total giving in FY 2021-2022 and netted $1,053,536,778.21 for charities. The national-campaign aggregate share going to charities was 85.12%. Because these were multistate campaigns, the totals describe campaigns that included North Carolina donors rather than donations made only within North Carolina. The figures come from the North Carolina Secretary of State Charitable Solicitation Licensing 2021-2022 annual report release.
North Carolina licensed fundraisers collected $58,049,394 between July 1, 2022, and June 30, 2023. Charities received $43,874,708 net from that reported giving, or 75.58% of the total. The source is the Secretary of State’s Annual Report Marks Continued Growth in Charitable Donations in 2022-2023.
The FY 2023-2024 report separates North Carolina professional-fundraiser campaigns from national solicitation campaigns. Professional fundraisers raised $27,053,713.61 from North Carolinians, while charities netted $16,428,035.64 for programs. The aggregate program share for those North Carolina campaigns was 60.72%.
For national solicitation campaigns including North Carolina citizens, gross receipts were $359,021,058.98 in FY 2023-2024. Those campaigns sent $191,811,928.56, or 53.43%, to charities’ programming. The report also notes that its national figures cover campaigns including North Carolina citizens, not all charitable giving by North Carolina residents. These FY 2023-2024 figures are reported in the 2023-2024 Charitable Solicitation Licensing Division Annual Report.
Community Foundation donors and funds
The North Carolina Community Foundation (NCCF) offers a different perspective: activity administered through one community foundation and its affiliate and fundholder network. In 2021, NCCF reported 4,198 donors making gifts and $56.5 million in total contributions. It administered 1,219 total charitable funds and opened 45 new funds that year. The figures appear in the 2021 Impact Report: Strengthening Our Connections.
NCCF reported 1,250 total charitable funds in 2022 and added 56 new funds. Its 2022 Chairman’s Challenge raised $593,000 for community grantmaking funds across North Carolina. In 2023, NCCF reported 1,281 total charitable funds, established 41 new funds, and reported $27.3 million in grants to charitable organizations. The 2022 measures are from Growing Our Roots, and the 2023 measures are from Rooted In Generosity and Creating Opportunities For Hope.
These reports show the scale of a philanthropic intermediary and its connected funds. They do not represent every North Carolina donor, nonprofit, foundation, or charitable transaction. They also use different measures: contributions, funds administered, new funds, and grants are not interchangeable totals.
Grants and nonprofit recipients
NCCF made 2,500 grants totaling $25.5 million in 2021. Its affiliate foundations awarded more than $1.1 million in grants, received more than 1,200 grant applications, and made nearly 500 grants. This combination of applications and awards illustrates demand for local grant support, while the affiliate figures show activity distributed through regional philanthropic structures.
In 2022, NCCF distributed 2,798 grants to charitable organizations, and affiliate foundations made nearly 600 grants. In 2023, NCCF made 3,055 grants to charitable organizations. The annual grant counts are reported in the 2021 Impact Report, 2022 Impact Report, and 2023 Impact Report.
| NCCF measure | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total charitable funds | 1,219 | 1,250 | 1,281 |
| New funds | 45 | 56 | 41 |
| Grants to charitable organizations | 2,500 | 2,798 | 3,055 |
The 2023 report also identifies a focused eastern North Carolina example. The Burevitch Endowment awarded $550,000 to 13 organizations in eastern North Carolina in 2023. Since its establishment in 2015, the endowment had made $8 million in grants. These are endowment-specific figures and should not be combined with NCCF’s statewide grant total.
Targeted and emergency funds
Targeted funds show how charitable dollars can be directed toward immediate community needs and organizational capacity. NCCF’s North Carolina Healing Communities Fund distributed 115 grants totaling $4.25 million in 2021. The average grant was $36,957, and 16 grantees received capacity-building services. Eighty-eight percent of the fund’s grantees had annual operating budgets below $1 million.
The 2022 report describes a separate $1.25 million distribution from the Healing Communities Fund. It also presents 149 grants totaling $5.5 million across the fund’s reported grantmaking. These are retained as separately stated report measures rather than combined into one total. The relevant source is NCCF’s 2022 Impact Report.
Other targeted funds addressed specific populations and local priorities. The Women’s Fund of North Carolina awarded more than $17,500 in grants in 2021, and the Burevitch Endowment matched it with another $17,500. Women for Women of Pitt County granted $75,000 to food, meals, leadership, counseling, and emergency victim-assistance programs in 2021. These examples are reported in NCCF’s 2021 Impact Report.
Together, these measures describe several forms of community leadership: direct grants, emergency support, organizational strengthening, matching funds, and services for smaller nonprofits. The reports identify the amounts and recipients’ focus areas, but they do not provide a statewide total for all emergency or targeted charitable giving.
Scholarships and education
Education is another substantial area of reported charitable distribution. NCCF awarded $1.1 million in scholarships in 2021. Those scholarship dollars reached 40 North Carolina public and private colleges and universities, including 16 community colleges.
In 2022, NCCF awarded more than $1.1 million in direct scholarships to 265 students. Seventy-five recipients were first-generation college students, and more than $980,000 in scholarship funds went to North Carolina institutions. NCCF scholars attended 41 North Carolina colleges and universities, including 14 community colleges.
NCCF reported $1.3 million in scholarships to students in 2023. Its report lists 347 scholarships awarded and 309 students receiving scholarships, with $1.1 million in scholarship funds going to North Carolina institutions. The report presents scholarships awarded and students receiving scholarships as distinct measures; they should not be treated as identical counts. These figures come from the 2023 Impact Report.
| Education measure | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scholarship dollars reported | $1.1 million | More than $1.1 million | $1.3 million |
| Students or scholarship reach reported | 40 institutions | 265 students; 41 institutions | 309 students; 347 scholarships |
| Community-college connection | 16 colleges | 14 colleges | Not stated in the supplied report measure |
The education figures show both student-level support and institutional reach. They describe NCCF scholarship activity, not all scholarships awarded by North Carolina colleges, nonprofits, employers, or other charitable organizations.
Statewide reach and philanthropic capacity
NCCF’s affiliate foundation network served 60 North Carolina counties in its 2021-2023 reporting. In 2023, NCCF affiliates made 629 grants totaling $1.5 million. This network-level activity adds a geographic dimension to the foundation’s statewide role.
NCCF reported $439 million in unaudited assets as of December 31, 2023. Its 2023 report said more than $270 million in grants and scholarships had been awarded since 1988. The 2022 report had reported more than $243 million in grants and scholarships administered since 1988. Because these are cumulative report measures from different year-end reports, they are presented as stated and are not converted into an independently calculated growth rate.
For additional historical context, NCCF reported more than $460 million in assets at the end of 2021 and more than 300 North Carolina nonprofit organizations with agency endowments. In 2023, its women’s giving circles had 313 members and awarded $180,000 in grants to nonprofits. These measures appear in the 2021 Impact Report and 2023 Impact Report.
The statewide picture therefore has several layers: regulated campaigns reported by the Secretary of State; community foundation contributions and funds; grants to nonprofit organizations; scholarships; targeted relief; affiliate networks; and long-term assets. Each layer has a defined scope and measurement period. Reading them together can inform community leadership decisions, but no single figure in these reports should be interpreted as the total amount of charitable giving in North Carolina.