Every major gift starts with understanding what drives generosity. For today’s affluent donors, that story is changing fast. A decade ago, nearly 9 in 10 wealthy households gave to charity each year. Today, participation has slipped to around 81% according to the updated numbers released as part of the 2025 Bank of America Study of Philanthropy.  

At first glance, this may be an alarming statistic, but there’s more than meets the eye. Wealth is rapidly changing hands as part of the Great Wealth Transfer, driving both growth and concentration of wealth.

Windfall’s data shows affluent households now hold more than 73% of total U.S. consumer wealth, up sharply over the past two years. The number of donors may be down, but the pool of affluent households and available wealth keeps growing. Their generosity is growing, too, as evidenced by increases in average gift sizes among this cohort. Taking a closer look at Windfall’s dataset, there are more affluent Americans than ever before, and they now control a larger share of the nation’s wealth than at any point in recent history.

For nonprofits, this shift means the donor base is getting smaller but more powerful. Broad participation campaigns don’t go as far as they once did. The focus now should be on identifying and engaging the households driving this growth in wealth.

It’s a reminder that fundraising success today is less about reach and more about relevance. The organizations that understand where wealth is moving and how to connect with it will be the ones that thrive.

This is further illustrated by Bank of America’s findings that the dollars flowing from high net worth households have surged, up roughly 30% over the past decade. The average affluent household now contributes more than $33,000 annually, which is over 10 times that of the general population.

At Windfall, we hear this firsthand, working with thousands of nonprofits leveraging wealth screening and predictive modeling for major gifts. The affluent giving landscape is concentrating: fewer hands, larger checks, and more selective motivations. That makes it more important than ever for fundraisers to use data to identify, engage, and steward their most valuable donors.

The New Reality of Affluent Giving

Affluent giving has become both more generous and more strategic. The Bank of America Study of Philanthropy reveals that most wealthy donors continue to prioritize local causes. The majority of respondents say their primary giving remains close to home (79%), followed by national (32%), state (15%), and international (13%) causes.

This local bias is critical for fundraisers who rely on national prospect pools. The key isn’t just finding capacity; it’s finding connection. This shows up in giving patterns across community foundations, schools, and local health or arts organizations, where donors can see the impact of their dollar. At the same time, national and international causes have an opportunity to engage these donors by connecting global initiatives back to the communities and values they care about most. Windfall’s geographic affinity insights help teams focus on the wealthy households most likely to engage.

Why Participation Is Falling and What That Means

The decline in participation does not reflect less compassion. Many affluent households are channeling giving through more formal vehicles or taking time to evaluate the impact of their philanthropy. This can take several forms, with donors more carefully evaluating organizations before making a gift or usage of giving vehicles like Donor Advised Funds that enable them to bunch gifts and defer grant-making decisions. 

The same study shows that “expert” donors, those who consider themselves highly knowledgeable about charitable giving, contribute over $28,000 annually, compared to $12,070 among “knowledgeable” donors and $4,466 among “novices.” In other words, the most informed donors give the most. 

Donors want to better understand the impact of their giving and give to organizations that further their values. For nonprofits, this means education and transparency are essential. Impact reports, clear program metrics, and visible results move donors from curiosity to confidence, and confidence drives larger gifts. And as we’ll discuss later, direct mail and digital programs may require multiple touches and more engagement than historically. With the plurality (50%) of wealthy donors in the study’s sample thinking of themselves as novices concerning charitable giving, there is an opportunity for your organization to be their trusted guide.

Using Data to Identify the Best Prospects

For most fundraisers, the challenge isn’t a lack of potential donors; it’s prioritization. Wealth screening helps surface households with capacity, but today’s tools can go further by revealing indicators of intent and engagement readiness.

Windfall’s data allows nonprofits to see which households are not only wealthy but also actively connected to philanthropy. Key indicators include:

• Foundation association: Officers and trustees of private or family foundations often manage structured giving vehicles and have experience making multi-year commitments.
  
  
• Nonprofit board members: Board service often signals donor capacity and, when combined with affinity categories, can show alignment to your mission. A current board member of a related cause is far more likely to consider a significant gift.
  
  
• Liquidity triggers: Money-in-motion signals such as recent real estate transactions, SEC stock transactions, significant political campaign contributions, and promotions can indicate fresh capacity for giving.
  
  
• Affinity categories: Philanthropic interests can surface whether a household historically supported education, health, environment, or arts causes, and whether that support tends to be local, regional, or national. 

When you layer these insights together, wealth screening becomes more than a list of names. It becomes a strategic guide for your fundraising. An affluent donor who lives in your backyard and serves on a nonprofit board isn’t a cold lead. They’re a warm connection waiting for the right outreach and story to spark a conversation.

Turning Data Into Engagement

Research has proven that affluent donors engage most often through digital channels and traditional direct mail. In the last year, 72% of surveyed affluent households received outreach via email, and 62% via mail. In-person events reached only about 20% of households. This underscores the need for integrated, personalized digital journeys rather than one-size-fits-all events or direct mail alone.

At the same time, the study uncovered a powerful behavioral driver: volunteerism. Organizations that can drive engagement with wealthy constituents through volunteerism benefit from larger gifts.  

🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Volunteers
Gave an average of $13,522

👤 Non-Volunteers
Gave an average of $4,950

The takeaway is clear. Volunteer opportunities are not just community-building activities. They are one of the most effective conversion tools for major gifts. By identifying high net worth households who live nearby, match your cause affinity, and exhibit philanthropic engagement, you can invite them into programs that naturally deepen connection before an ask is ever made.

This points to a second major opportunity. While 81% of wealthy donors reported giving, just 43% volunteered their time in 2024, leaving a wide gap for engagement.

Stewardship and Business Case for Wealth Screening

Engagement is only half the battle. The real challenge is keeping donors involved year after year. The most generous donors in the study weren’t just wealthier; they were more informed and analytical. They expect transparency, timely reporting, and a clear understanding of their impact.

Wealth data gives fundraisers the clarity to meet those expectations. By understanding where each donor is financially and behaviorally, teams can personalize stewardship that builds trust and keeps them giving.

The numbers tell the story. Annual giving rises sharply with wealth. High-income households with under $1 million in net worth gave just shy of $7,500 a year, while those between $5 and $20 million gave about $21,000. Affluent donors not only give more, they also expect a more strategic, data-informed relationship.

Windfall clients use wealth and career data in conjunction with Predictive AI to identify their best major gift prospects and which households are likely to renew, upgrade, or lapse. This turns stewardship into a focused growth strategy that directs time and effort where it matters most.

Building a Data-Driven Development Strategy

Fundraisers don’t need to choose between relationship-based and data-based development. The most successful organizations are integrating both. Wealth screening provides the context; thoughtful outreach and stewardship turn that insight into action.

A practical roadmap looks like this:

1. Identify capacity and connection. Use wealth and behavioral data to isolate households with both financial ability and philanthropic alignment.
   
   
2. Engage with relevance. Reach out through email and mail first, then tailor in-person efforts for top-decile donors based on wealth and propensity scores.
   
   
3. Activate through purpose. Offer volunteer and committee opportunities to strengthen emotional ties. Leverage career intelligence to offer volunteer opportunities tailored to a donor's professional role, function, or life stage (e.g., mid-career vs. retirement).
   
   
4. Steward with transparency. Provide clear, data-driven reporting to meet the expectations of today’s sophisticated donors.

The result is a development program that operates with precision. Instead of broad, reactive outreach, your team can focus on a smaller, high-value segment of households most likely to advance your mission.

The Case for Action

Affluent donors are giving more, but they’re also more selective. Their decisions are intentional, informed, and often rooted in personal connection or local impact. Fundraisers who understand the data behind wealth, timing, and motivation will be better equipped to build lasting relationships.

Wealth insights help reveal where generosity is growing and how to meet donors where they are. The future of major giving will belong to organizations that combine authentic relationships with a real understanding of their donors’ capacity and intent.

Request a demo to see how Windfall’s data and modeling can help your team develop strategies that identify, engage, and steward your most valuable donors.

Sources:

• Bank of America. 2025 Study of Philanthropy: Charitable Giving by Affluent Households
• Windfall. Proprietary Data and Predictive Modeling Insights