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What can your giving do?
Pick a giving rate and watch your annual gift, the estimated tax savings under the 2026 rules, and the true cost of generosity update together.
FREE CALCULATOR · MONEY
Charitable Giving Calculator
How much should you give — and what does it really cost? Turn your income and a giving rate into an annual and monthly donation, then price the 2026 tax savings with the itemizer floor and the non-itemizer cap, so you see the true cost after tax.
How it works: your gift is income × giving rate, split by 12 for the monthly figure. If you itemize, the first 0.5% of your income doesn't count toward the deduction; if you don't itemize, only cash gifts to public charities count, up to $1,000 (single) or $2,000 (joint). Tax savings are the deductible gift × your marginal bracket, and the true cost is the gift minus the savings. Estimates only — not tax advice.
How the charitable giving math works
Giving has two moving parts: how much you give and what the tax code gives back. The first is simple arithmetic — income × rate. The second is where the 2026 rules matter, because itemizers and non-itemizers play by different caps.
The formulas
donation = income × giving rate · monthly gift = donation ÷ 12 · itemizer deductible = max(0, donation − 0.5% of income) · non-itemizer deductible = min(donation, $1,000 single / $2,000 joint) · tax savings = deductible × marginal bracket · true cost = donation − savings
Worked example: 3% of $100,000
At $100,000 of income with a 3% giving rate, the gift is $3,000 — about $250 a month. A non-itemizer filing jointly can deduct the first $2,000 of cash gifts to public charities; at a 22% marginal bracket that is $440 of estimated federal tax savings, making the true cost $2,560.
If the same person itemized instead, the 0.5%-of-income floor is $500, so $2,500 is deductible and the savings rise to $550 — the true cost drops to $2,450. The same gift, two different price tags.
Where this comes in handy
- Setting a giving rate for the year: slide from 1% to 10% and see what each rate means in dollars per month — abstract percentages become rent-sized numbers.
- Deciding whether to bunch: if your gift sits under the itemizer floor or over the non-itemizer cap, the verdict flags it — that's your cue to consider bunching two years of gifts into one itemized year.
- Pricing a year-end gift before December 31: a late-year gift needs to clear the right cap; run the numbers before the deadline instead of guessing in January.
- Budgeting the true monthly cost: the true-cost figure is what actually leaves your wallet — useful when generosity has to share a budget with everything else.
- Comparing strategies: pair the output with the 2026 giving guide's four smart moves — donor-advised funds, appreciated stock, and IRA QCDs can beat a plain cash gift.
- Sanity-checking the tax story: the savings estimate shows exactly how much of each gift the tax code is "covering" — the rest is pure generosity.
For the full 2026 rules — the $1,000/$2,000 non-itemizer deduction, the 0.5% floor, bunching, donor-advised funds, appreciated stock, and QCDs — see the guide Year-end charitable giving 2026. For holiday spending, use the gift budget calculator.
Charitable giving — frequently asked questions
What counts as a deductible gift?
Cash gifts to public 501(c)(3) charities — your church, a food bank, a disaster-relief fund. For the 2026 non-itemizer deduction, gifts to donor-advised funds and private foundations are excluded, so give directly to the operating charity to count.
Do I have to itemize to get any tax benefit?
Not in 2026. Non-itemizers get a dedicated deduction for cash gifts up to $1,000 (single) or $2,000 (married filing jointly). Itemizers get the regular charitable deduction instead, but the first 0.5% of income is floored out — small gifts from itemizers may deduct to nothing.
My gift is under the 0.5% itemizer floor — what should I do?
Bunch. Move two or three years of gifts into a single year — often through a donor-advised fund — so the combined gift clears the floor and you itemize that year, then take the standard deduction in the other years. The calculator's verdict flags when you're under the floor.
When is the deadline for 2026 gifts?
December 31, 2026. The gift must be delivered by year-end — a check dated December 30 but delivered in January counts for January. Appreciated stock transfers need even more lead time, so don't start the paperwork in late December.
What records do I need to keep?
Keep bank or credit-card records for every gift, and get a written acknowledgment from the charity for any gift of $250 or more — it must state whether you received any goods or services in return. The calculator can't keep records for you; the acknowledgment letter is what the IRS asks for.
Is donating stock really better than cash?
Often, yes. Donating appreciated stock held over a year lets you skip the capital gains tax entirely and deduct the fair market value — a double benefit cash can't match. The catch: the shares must go directly to the charity (or a donor-advised fund), not be sold first.
Does this calculator include state tax savings?
No — the savings estimate is federal only. Some states conform to the federal deduction and some don't, so your actual total could be a little better. The federal number is the main lever for most givers.
Is this tax advice?
No. It's a planning estimate built from the 2026 rules — useful for budgeting and strategy, not for filing. Tax rules can change; check current IRS guidance or a tax professional before you file.