At the Community Foundation, we support charitable giving through a variety of ways. One of the most popular for individuals and families is a Donor Advised Fund (DAF). A Donor Advised Fund is a charitable investment account for the sole purpose of supporting non-profit organizations and causes an individual cares about. DAFs offer investment growth on contributions into the fund that appreciate tax-free, which increases the impact of giving over time.
Donor Advised Funds are continuing to grow in popularity across the US and are offered by a wide range of sponsoring organizations. In Fiscal Year 2024, the Donor Advised Fund Research Collaborative, in partnership with the National Philanthropic Trust, compiled data from 1,485 DAF providers including 99 national sponsors, 788 community foundations, and 598 single-issue charities. The findings of the study reflect how national trends are also occurring in our local communities.
Nationally, DAFs grew significantly in 2024. The total number of DAF accounts reached a record high of 3.56 million, driven primarily by an increase in accounts at donation processors. These new payment processors, such as Chariot, have made both sending and accepting donations a more streamlined process. As technology evolves, we are considering how to integrate new options for fundholders. Despite this increased growth, Community foundations continue to make up the largest provider of DAFs, representing 53% of all sponsors.
Total assets in DAFs grew 27.5%, reaching $326.45 billion. Contributions to DAFs increased by 37.3% and totaled $89.64 billion, following a decline in FY 2023. Grantmaking from DAFs also continued to rise, with a 19.0% increase, reaching $64.89 billion of distributed funds to nonprofit organizations across the US.
Locally, we are seeing similar trends. Contributions into the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation increased from 2023 to 2024 by 38%, totaling nearly $26M. DAFs held at the Community Foundation distributed $28.8M in grants in calendar year 2024 and increased by 11% in CY 2025 to $31.9M.
The average DAF size nationally was $91,611 in FY 2024. Locally, the median fund balance hovers around $75,000. While many people may think that Donor Advised Funds are only for the exceptionally wealthy, both locally and nationally we see how a modest fund size can go a long way in supporting causes donors care about.
If you’re interested in learning more about how a Donor Advised Fund can support your charitable giving, we’d love to chat! Please reach out to Senior Philanthropic Relationship Manager, Alex Gross at agross@cacfonline.org or 434-443-4018.