Frequently Asked Questions

We are your partner for smarter donations

What is Donational?

Donational is your charitable advisor. We help you identify high-impact charities for causes that matter most to you.


Who is Donational?

Donational is run at-cost by a team of dedicated members building useful tools for the greater good. Donational is led by Ian Yamey and a talented team of volunteer technologists, researchers, designers and marketers who want to bring their shared experiences to the world of charitable giving.

We have taken the following pledge:

We, the humans of Donational, come together to recognize and claim our power to build a world that reflects on and reckons with history. We hope to create an environment of abundance and generosity, to build a future where people, the planet and all living beings can flourish.

How does Donational work?

It’s 3 simple steps:

  1. Tell us about yourself and your values

    Answer our survey to tell us what causes matter to you

  2. Discover expert recommended charities

    Select from our personalized recommendations to build your charitable portfolio

  3. Pledge your income, make an impact

    Tell us how much you'd like give and we send it to your charities


How much does each charity in my portfolio get?

You can split your overall donation across your selected charities as you see fit.For example, if you have a $100 monthly donation and 4 charities in your portfolio, the allocation can be 20%/10%/50%/20%


Can I add or remove charities to my portfolio?

Yes! You can add any 501(c)3 organization to your portfolio


Can I make edits to my portfolio?

Yes! You can split your overall donation across your selected charities as you see fit.


What sources do you use to make your charity recommendations?

We work with the best researchers in the charitable giving space, including: GiveWell, The Life You Can Save, Charity Navigator, Giving What You Can, Animal Charity Evaluators and others.


Is my portfolio private or public?

Your portfolio is private by default. You can share your portfolio page with others if you’d like.


How does Donational make money?

We run at-cost by charging a small 2% platform fee to partners to cover our hosting and administration costs. This allows us to continue to help you — and others — make a greater impact.


Can I automate when and how much I give?

Yes! We offer monthly, annual & one-off giving.


Can I make a one-off donation too?

Yes!


Are my donations tax-deductible?

Yes! Donations are tax-deductible. You will receive a tax-deductible receipt for each donation.


How do the charities receive my donation?

Donations are directly distributed to charities and make use of smart features like donation pooling to ensure that charities spend more on making an impact, and less on processing donations. Standard card and direct debit payment processing fees may apply.


How much does the average American donate annually?

2.8% of income