Volunteer Hours by Country (2026): Comparative Global Statistics

Q: What should my nonprofit do with this data?

Use it to benchmark recruitment and retention, understand demographic targets, plan for hybrid/online options, and justify to your board why volunteer screening is cost-effective.

Q: Are background checks required for all volunteers?

Requirements vary by state, country, and role. Most US nonprofits should screen anyone with youth or vulnerable-adult contact. FCRA compliance is a legal baseline if using a third party screener.

Global volunteering reaches 970M people and nearly 4.99B hours in the US alone. Discover volunteer participation rates, hours contributed, and economic value across leading nations.

Volunteering is one of the most powerful forces for community change worldwide. This year, around 970 million individuals around the world participated in some form of volunteer work in 2024, representing about 12.5% of humanity , and the estimated worth of the time volunteered on a global scale is about 390 billion USD . To help nonprofit leaders, churches, and volunteer coordinators benchmark their efforts against national and international benchmarks, we've compiled the latest statistics on volunteer hours by country. This report is part of our volunteer demographics statistics hub.

Methodology & Accuracy Note: This report draws exclusively from government sources (U.S. Census Bureau, Statistics Canada, Australian Bureau of Statistics), official nonprofit tracking agencies (AmeriCorps, Independent Sector), and peer-reviewed national surveys. Every figure is tied to a primary source with a working URL. We exclude estimates and aggregator figures unless clearly labeled. The data spans 2023–2025, the most recent period for which validated international comparisons are available.

Key takeaways

4.99B volunteer hours in US (2023)

4.1B volunteer hours in Canada (2023)

618M volunteer hours in Australia (2025)

$36.14 US volunteer hour value (2025)

United States: Largest Formal Volunteer Workforce

The United States hosts one of the world's most robust and monitored volunteer ecosystems. 75.7 million Americans formally volunteered through an organization in the year ending September 2023, representing 28.3% of the population aged 16 and older . This represents a significant recovery post-pandemic: the formal volunteering rate climbed 5.1 percentage points between 2022 and 2023, the largest two-year jump on record and a 22% relative increase .

In terms of total hours contributed, Americans gave 4.99 billion volunteer hours in the year ending September 2023, valued at roughly $167.2 billion . The economic value of each volunteer hour has also grown: the estimate for the value of a volunteer hour was $36.14 in 2025, a 3.9% increase from 2024 .

Formal Volunteering Rate 28.3%

Gen X (highest rate) 27.2%

Informal help rate 54.2%

Formal volunteering has rebounded sharply post-pandemic, with 28.3% of US adults aged 16+ now volunteering formally. AmeriCorps & U.S. Census Bureau, 2024

Canada: Strong Participation Despite Recent Decline

Canadian volunteering tells a story of sustained engagement tempered by recent headwinds. In 2023, around 73% of Canadians aged 15 years or older were taking part in some type of volunteer work, either formally through an organisation or informally, with close to 24 million Canadians giving about 4.1 billion hours of volunteer work . On average, people who volunteered dedicated 173 hours to volunteer activities .

However, this represents a notable shift downward: the overall volunteer rate—which includes formal and informal volunteering—decreased by 8% in 2023 compared to 2018, with close to three in four people (73%) volunteering in 2023, compared with just under four in five people (79%) in 2018 . The economic value is substantial: in 2023, the economic value of the skills and time provided by volunteers in Canada was approximately $64 billion CAD .

73%

32%

Canada's overall participation rate (73%) masks a distinction between formal organization volunteering (32%) and informal community help. Statistics Canada, 2023

United Kingdom: Facing a Volunteering Crisis

The UK presents a more concerning picture. In 2021/22, just over a quarter (27%) of people aged 16 and over in England volunteered formally with a group, club, or organisation at least once in the year, meaning about 14.2 million people in the UK have volunteered at least once . However, levels of formal volunteering have continued to decline, and remain well below pre-pandemic levels, although the rate of decline has slowed .

The human impact is stark: the Centre for Ageing Better's 2025 analysis found that 1.16 million fewer people aged 50 and over are formally volunteering compared with 2019, equating to 110 million lost volunteering hours per year . On a more positive note, 49,907,338 hours were taken in the last 12 months in UK employer-supported volunteering time, though 140,445,656 hours went unused .

England's formal volunteering has declined from 45% participation a decade ago to 27% in 2023/24. UK Civil Society Almanac 2024, NCVO

Australia: Recovering and Growing

Australia's volunteer landscape is vibrant and expanding. More than 5 million Australians volunteered through organisations nationwide in 2025, contributing over 618 million hours, up from 490 million hours in 2020 . The broader picture is even more inclusive: 64.3% of the population aged 15 and over volunteer, totaling 3.2 billion hours with 14.1 million residents aged 15 and over volunteering .

The average hours volunteered per month is 18.9 hours, and 25.3% of volunteering is done online or at home . The top motivations for volunteering in Australia are clear: to help others, to be active, for enjoyment, for social and community connection, and to use skills and experience . For those concerned about safeguarding, volunteer screening is increasingly critical, and our identity verification features help organizations protect their communities.

Total volunteering rate 64.3%

Formal volunteers only 31.8%

Informal volunteers only 42.7%

Australia's 2023 data shows strong participation across both formal and informal volunteering. Snapshot of Volunteering in Australia 2023

New Zealand & Ireland: Comparative Perspective

Two smaller English-speaking nations round out the global picture with notably high engagement. An estimated 159 million hours of formal volunteer work are performed annually by persons in New Zealand , and New Zealand closely follows Australia with a 41.53% volunteer participation rate, contributing significant hours of formal volunteering annually .

Ireland offers recent granular data: In Quarter 2 2025, 654,400 people (16.1%) said they were involved in at least one voluntary activity, with an estimated total of more than 7.5 million hours volunteered per month or 11.5 hours per person a month . The largest number of volunteers were involved in a sporting organisation, at almost 261,000 people, or 6.4% .

41.9%

41.53%

38.93%

38.06%

Global leaders in volunteer participation rates show strong civic engagement across wealthy, stable democracies. BetterImpact Volunteer Statistics, 2025

Demographic Patterns Across Countries

Several consistent patterns emerge across nations. In the US, the age cohort of 35–44 years had the highest uptake at 32%, followed by the 45–54 years group at 26% . Similarly, Generation X (ages 43–58 in 2023) maintains the highest rate of formal volunteering across all generations in the United States .

Gender patterns also align: women formally volunteer at higher rates than men , though women tend to volunteer more than men, with 5.1 percent of women volunteering on an average day compared with 3.2 percent of men . Employment status matters globally; in Australia, people in paid employment are more likely to volunteer than those not in paid employment, but as paid work hours increase, the likelihood of volunteering decreases, with only 21.4% of those working 35+ hours per week volunteering .

Virtual Volunteering: A Permanent Shift

The pandemic accelerated a structural shift toward remote service. 18% of formal volunteers in 2023 served completely or partially online, marking the first year the federal volunteering survey tracked virtual service as a distinct category . In Australia, 25.3% of volunteering is done online or at home , and 18% of formal volunteers in 2025 are now serving online, representing a major transition toward digital and virtual volunteering .

For nonprofits managing volunteers across locations, adopting a thorough character reference process remains essential even for remote staff. Our volunteer background check guide covers best practices for both in-person and virtual teams.

What this means for your volunteer program

These global statistics reveal three critical takeaways for nonprofit leaders:

Recovery is real but fragile: US volunteering has bounced back strongly post-pandemic, yet the UK and older volunteer populations face persistent headwinds. Retention is harder than recruitment.
Gen X and middle-aged volunteers are your backbone: Ages 35–54 dominate across all countries. Don't overlook them while chasing young volunteers.
Online volunteering is structural, not temporary: With 18–25% of volunteers now working remotely, your systems must accommodate hybrid engagement.
Safeguarding is non-negotiable at scale: With 75.7M US volunteers and 24M Canadian volunteers, organizations managing large rosters face real liability. Running FCRA-compliant background checks protects your community and your nonprofit's reputation.

VolunteerBadge makes compliance simple. Our $5 per-check pricing with no monthly fees means you can screen every volunteer without breaking your budget. With built-in identity verification and dedicated nonprofit support, you'll meet legal standards while focusing on mission. Sign up free today and start screening your next cohort of volunteers with confidence. See how nonprofits like yours are using VolunteerBadge to stay compliant in our related article on background checks for nonprofits.

Download the data

Export all volunteer statistics by country, including hours, participation rates, economic values, and sources.

⬇ Download the data (.xlsx)

Frequently asked questions

Q: What's the difference between formal and informal volunteering?
A: Formal volunteering is unpaid work done through an organization, club, or group. Informal volunteering is direct help given to individuals—neighbors, friends, or family—outside any organization. The US Census, Statistics Canada, and UK surveys all track both separately.

Q: Why has UK volunteering dropped so much?
A: Economic pressures, cost-of-living inflation, and aging volunteer populations are key factors. Post-pandemic burnout and competing demands on time have also contributed. Deprived areas report higher financial barriers to volunteering.

Q: Which country has the highest volunteering rate?
A: Australia leads at 64.3% (formal + informal combined), with New Zealand at 41.53% and Canada at 73% (overall). The US is at 28.3% for formal volunteering alone, but includes 54.2% who provide informal help.

Q: How does volunteer hour value differ by country?
A: The US value ($36.14/hour in 2025) is calculated from federal wage data. Canada valued volunteering at approximately $64 billion CAD total in 2023 (across 4.1B hours). The UK calculates by occupational wage bands (£19/hour average). Calculation methods vary but all use replacement-cost approaches.

Q: What should my nonprofit do with this data?
A: Use it to benchmark recruitment and retention against national trends, understand demographic targets (Gen X is reliable), plan for hybrid/online options, and justify to your board why volunteer screening is cost-effective. If you volunteer hours in grant reports, use the official Independent Sector or government figures—they're legally defensible.

Q: Are background checks required for all volunteers?
A: Requirements vary by state, country, and role (direct child contact, financial access, etc.). Most US nonprofits and churches should screen anyone with youth or vulnerable-adult contact. FCRA compliance is a legal baseline if you use a third party like VolunteerBadge.

Sources & references

First published: July 31, 2026
Last updated: July 31, 2026

This is a living report. VolunteerBadge refreshes this analysis yearly as new government and nonprofit sector data become available. Global volunteering statistics change as economies, participation rates, and incentive structures evolve. Our role is to keep nonprofit leaders current with the most authoritative, sourced figures available.

Educational, not legal advice. This report is informational and does not constitute legal, tax, or HR advice. Requirements for volunteer screening, background checks, and compliance vary by jurisdiction, nonprofit type, and volunteer role. Consult your legal counsel and FCRA compliance guidelines before implementing any screening program.