Volunteer Burnout Report (2026): Turnover, Stress & the Real Cost of Losing Volunteers
Burnout is widespread in nonprofits, and it pushes volunteers out the door. See the latest figures on retention, causes of volunteer lapse, and what it costs your program.
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Volunteers carry a large share of America's service work, and many of them are stretched thin. This report pulls together the most credible recent data on volunteering participation, burnout among nonprofit leaders and staff, why people step away from volunteer roles, and what that churn costs in practical terms. It is part of VolunteerBadge's broader research on the people who keep community programs running, and it is written for nonprofit and church leaders who need numbers they can defend in a board meeting or a grant report.
Key takeaways
How many people volunteer, and how the pandemic shifted it
The most authoritative baseline comes from the federal civic engagement survey. AmeriCorps reports that more than 28 percent of Americans formally volunteered between September 2022 and 2023, and that they contributed an estimated 4.99 billion hours with an economic value of $167.2 billion. The Census Bureau, which co-runs the survey, notes that the 2023 national rate still sits 1.7 percentage points below pre-pandemic levels, even though it rose 5.1 points in two years, the largest expansion since tracking began in 2002, per the U.S. Census Bureau.
The rebound was uneven. AmeriCorps recorded the formal rate at 23.2 percent in 2021, down from 30 percent in 2019, during the height of the pandemic. Women volunteered at a higher rate than men in the latest data, according to NonProfit PRO's coverage of the AmeriCorps release.
For program leaders, the takeaway is that the volunteer pool is large but it is not infinite. Recruitment that works in one season can stall in the next, and every lapsed volunteer has to be replaced. Our faith-based volunteer statistics and homeless shelter volunteer statistics explore how these national patterns show up in congregations and service agencies.
Burnout is a leadership problem before it is a volunteer problem
The clearest recent measure of sector-wide strain comes from the Center for Effective Philanthropy's State of Nonprofits 2024 report. Based on 239 leaders, it found that 95 percent express some level of concern about burnout, and that 33 percent are "very much" concerned about their own burnout. Half said they worry more about it than they did a year earlier. The same study found that about three in four leaders see staff burnout affecting, at least slightly, their ability to achieve their mission, as noted in the CEP press release.
A newer, smaller panel points in the same direction. A 2025 survey of 250 nonprofit professionals by the grant platform Instrumentl found that 42 percent reported burnout in the past year, and that 58 percent did not feel comfortable discussing it with leadership. Because the panel is small and not nationally representative, treat it as directional.
Staffing pressure that spills onto volunteers
When paid staff are stretched, volunteers absorb the gap. The National Council of Nonprofits' 2023 workforce survey asked organizations what blocked recruiting and retaining staff, and stress and burnout ranked as a top barrier. Salary competition and budget constraints ranked higher.
Burnout in this sense is not only an emotional issue. It is a capacity issue: a team running on fumes cannot train, schedule, or thank volunteers well, and that is often when volunteers quit. For practical steps on keeping a schedule manageable, see our guide to volunteer recognition and retention.
Why volunteers actually leave
Most volunteer departures are not dramatic. In a program-tracking study in Ontario, Canada, published in PMC, volunteers most often left because they moved away, followed by school or work commitments, and general busyness. Issues specific to the program were a much smaller share. A separate 2024 study of volunteers in two volunteer-involving organizations found that 12.3 percent of participating volunteers had quit, and that personal commitments were the most common reason volunteers considered leaving.
The lesson is mixed. Many departures are beyond your control, but some are not. Other research points to a 65 percent average retention rate that VolunteerHub attributes to AmeriCorps; we could not locate that figure in a primary AmeriCorps table, so treat it as a secondary citation. Also reported secondhand, a Volunteer Canada survey found that 56 percent of leavers cited poor organization management, which suggests that scheduling, communication, and role clarity matter.
Satisfaction is the strongest lever you control
The UK's NCVO Time Well Spent 2023 research shows a sharp gap between satisfied and dissatisfied volunteers. Only about a quarter of dissatisfied volunteers said they were likely to keep volunteering, while the large majority of satisfied volunteers did. The UK context differs from the U.S., but the pattern is consistent with what program coordinators report.
Two practical points follow. First, screening and onboarding that feel fair and well-organized help volunteers trust the program from day one. Our step-by-step check workflow and volunteer import tools are designed to reduce the administrative drag that frustrates coordinators and volunteers alike. Second, the Independent Sector and Do Good Institute estimate matters here: it translates volunteer time into dollars for budgets and grant reports.
What volunteer hours are worth, and what churn costs
Independent Sector and the Do Good Institute estimate the value of a volunteer hour at $36.14 for 2025, a 3.9 percent increase. The figure is a replacement-cost estimate, not a precise price for every role, so use it alongside other impact measures. Every volunteer who leaves takes that value with them, plus the training time you already invested. Multiply your own annual hours by the state rate listed in the Independent Sector state data to see what a 10 percent drop in hours would mean for your program.
What this means for your volunteer program
The data point to three priorities for nonprofit and church leaders: protect volunteers from overload, respond quickly to dissatisfaction, and make the administrative side of volunteering easy. Burnout is shaped by scheduling, unclear roles, and lack of appreciation, and those are factors you can change. Screening is part of that equation too. Clear, compliant background checks with identity verification help you onboard people quickly and confidently, which is one less source of friction for busy coordinators. VolunteerBadge offers FCRA-compliant background checks with identity verification and no monthly fees, and our identity verification, character reference, and pricing pages show exactly how it works. For organizations serving specific populations, our guides on state background check requirements and running a homeless shelter volunteer program cover the compliance details. If you are building a program from scratch, our nonprofit solutions page and the VolunteerBadge Academy offer training resources.
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Download the data
Every statistic in this report is listed with its source, year, and link in a downloadable spreadsheet.
Frequently asked questions
How many Americans volunteer through organizations?
According to AmeriCorps, more than 28 percent of Americans, or about 75.7 million people, formally volunteered between September 2022 and 2023.
How common is burnout among nonprofit leaders?
In the CEP's 2024 State of Nonprofits survey of 239 leaders, 95 percent expressed some level of concern about burnout. This is a survey of concern, not a clinical diagnosis.
Why do most volunteers stop volunteering?
In the Ontario program study, moving away, school or work commitments, and general busyness were the most common recorded reasons. Program-related issues were a much smaller share.
What is a volunteer hour worth?
Independent Sector and the Do Good Institute estimate $36.14 per hour for 2025. It is a replacement-cost estimate, not a market price for every role.
Does satisfaction affect whether volunteers stay?
In NCVO's 2023 research, 81 percent of satisfied volunteers said they would likely continue, compared with 26 percent of dissatisfied volunteers.
Do volunteers need background checks?
Requirements depend on your state, the population you serve, and your organization's policies. Read our state background check guide and consult legal counsel for your specific obligations. This article is educational, not legal advice.
