Monthly Giving Statistics (2026): Sustainer Retention, Average Gifts & the Faith-Giving Gap
Monthly giving statistics for 2026: sustainer retention curves, recurring share of revenue, average gift sizes, and faith-giving gaps, all sourced for nonprofit leaders.
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Monthly giving is one of the few fundraising channels that compounds: a donor who signs up for a recurring gift is far more likely to still be giving a year later than someone who made a single gift. This report pulls together the 2026 benchmarks that matter most for nonprofit and congregational leaders, from national giving totals to sustainer retention, payment-method effects, and the gap between what faith donors intend to give and what they actually do. It is part of our statistics hub for fundraising data.
Key takeaways
How big is the individual giving pool?
Individuals remain the backbone of American philanthropy. Giving USA 2026, as summarized by Alford Group, reports that individuals supplied 64% of 2025 giving, and that the number of givers fell 3.6% for the fifth straight year. BWF's read of the same report puts individual giving at $394.20 billion, up 4.1% in current dollars but only 1.4% after inflation. Monthly giving sits inside that pool, which is why the donor-count decline matters for recurring programs.
Where recurring giving fits in nonprofit revenue
Recurring giving is a meaningful revenue line, but averages hide wide variation. Virtuous' 2026 benchmark, based on 771 mid-sized U.S. nonprofits, puts recurring giving at 20.96% of total revenue on average, while top-quartile organizations reach 44%. A separate analysis from Positive Equation finds that monthly donors now account for 84% of all recurring revenue, up from 73% in 2021, and that the median organization has only 4% of its donors on recurring schedules.
Online channels show the same pattern. Bloomerang's 2026 roundup reports that monthly giving revenue rose 12% in 2025 and accounted for 27% of all online revenue. The M+R figure of 27% appears in a Fundeasy summary of M+R Benchmarks 2026, which we treat as secondary.
Sustainer retention: the core advantage
Retention is where monthly giving separates itself from one-time gifts. The M+R Benchmarks 2026 study, as reported by NonProfit PRO, found that 71% of sustainers were still active after 12 months and 54% of monthly gifts remained active after two years. Over the same study, new online donors retained at 24% and one-time online donor retention came in at 48%.
The early months are the danger zone. The Chronicle of Philanthropy's playbook cites one study showing nonprofits typically keep close to 90% of their sustainers, compared with about 45% of all donors. That figure is older and reflects a different sample, so treat it as a ceiling rather than a current norm. For a practical comparison, RKD Group's Animal Care benchmark reports an overall sustainer retention rate of 76.7%, with individual organizations ranging from 58% to 97%.
Retention benchmarks compared
Published retention numbers differ because each report defines the donor base differently. Use the table to pick the benchmark that matches your own file, not the highest one you find.
| Report | Retention measure | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| FEP Q4 2025 (via Bloomerang) | Overall donor retention | 43.3% |
| FEP Q4 2025 (via Bloomerang) | Repeat donor retention | 59.3% |
| FEP Q4 2025 (via Bloomerang) | First-time donor retention | 18.9% |
| Neon One 2026 (via DonorInsights) | Non-recurring donors | 32.41% |
| M+R Benchmarks 2026 | Sustainers active at 12 months | 71% |
Because monthly donors retain at a much higher rate, a file with many sustainers can show a healthy overall rate even while one-time donors leave. That is why sustainer retention should be tracked month by month, as Gratefully's donor analytics guide recommends. The volunteer recognition report covers a related retention question on the volunteer side: appreciation keeps people active.
Payment method and churn
How a donor pays can predict how long they stay. Epiphany benchmarking data shows median 13th-month retention of 77% for sustainers giving by electronic funds transfer, compared with 56% for those using credit cards. The same analysis found digital-acquired sustainers retained at a 64% median, against 20% for digital non-sustainers. The payment mix itself is not uniform: one 2026 roundup reports that 91% of recurring donors use a credit card, while another puts card use at 73% of recurring payments. Those two figures conflict, so verify against your own processor data before planning around either.
Average gift size: monthly versus one-time
Bloomerang's 2026 compilation lists the industry average one-time gift at $139 and the average monthly gift at $28. Its own customers reported an average recurring gift of $57, roughly twice the monthly industry figure. Smaller averages are normal for sustainers, so the value comes from frequency and duration, not from a single large check. Funraise, a fundraising software vendor, reports a $47.32 average monthly gift on its platform, a figure that reflects one vendor's customer base.
Value of a monthly donor
Monthly donors are worth more over time. Positive Equation reports a median annual value of $275 for monthly donors, compared with $100 for non-recurring donors. Converting existing donors can also be efficient: Epiphany data found that donors converted from one-time to monthly giving generated about $90 more in annual value per donor than those acquired straight into a monthly program.
Faith-based giving: intention versus action
Congregations face a specific version of the monthly-giving gap. Givelify's 2026 Giving in Faith report, which combines a survey of 1,987 faith-based donors with $7.2 billion in analyzed donations, finds that 95% aspire to give one or more times a month, but only 30% actually do. Its definition counts giving in at least nine of twelve months. For church treasurers, that gap is an opportunity: most people already want to give regularly, and a recurring option removes the friction. Our faith-based volunteer statistics report covers the people side of congregational capacity.
What this means for your volunteer program
Recurring donors and volunteers share a pattern: the people who commit early and stay connected are the most valuable. Corporate and individual giving are both shifting toward structured, repeatable support, as our corporate giving statistics report also shows. Organizations that run food drives, meal programs, or congregational outreach also need to screen the volunteers who handle cash, keys, or vulnerable people. VolunteerBadge offers $5 FCRA-compliant background checks with identity verification and no monthly fees, so your team can onboard volunteers as confidently as donors. Review current pricing, see how identity verification works, and learn how to import your volunteer roster. For a step-by-step walkthrough of compliance, the VolunteerBadge Academy is a good starting point, and our guide to comparing background check companies covers what to ask a vendor.
Ready to screen your volunteers without monthly fees?
Start with VolunteerBadge: $5 background checksDownload the data
Every statistic in this report is listed in the downloadable workbook, with its source and link.
Frequently asked questions
Q: What is a good monthly donor retention rate?
M+R Benchmarks 2026 reports an average of 71% of sustainers still active after 12 months, and some practitioners cite 70 to 75% as a healthy range.
Q: How much of online revenue comes from monthly giving?
Bloomerang reports monthly giving accounted for 27% of all online revenue in 2025, and Virtuous puts total recurring giving at 20.96% of revenue for the average nonprofit.
Q: Why do published donor retention rates differ so much?
Vendors count donors and organizations differently. FEP's overall, repeat, and first-time rates differ from Neon One's non-recurring figure, so match the benchmark to your own donor base.
Q: Does payment method affect how long donors stay?
Epiphany benchmarking found 77% median 13th-month retention for EFT sustainers versus 56% for credit card sustainers in the 2024 cohort.
Q: Are monthly gifts smaller than one-time gifts?
Yes. Bloomerang lists an average one-time gift of $139 and an average monthly gift of $28, but monthly donors carry higher lifetime value because they give more often and stay longer.
Q: How can a church close the gap between intention and action?
Givelify reports 95% of faith donors aspire to monthly giving but 30% actually do, so offering a simple recurring option is a direct lever.
