By Teri Sullivan

The new 2026 DAF Fundraising Report, funded by the for-profit companies Chariot and K2D Strategies, confirms what many nonprofit fundraisers have suspected for years: donor advised funds (DAFs) are no longer a niche giving vehicle. They’re becoming a central part of how donors manage their philanthropy.

DAF donors are among your best.

The DAF Fundraising Report analyzed more than $26 billion in charitable giving from 54 nonprofit organizations and found that DAF revenue grew 75% between 2021 and 2025, far outpacing the 12% growth in non-DAF giving. Even more compelling, donors who switched from traditional giving methods to using a DAF more than doubled their annual support, with the average increase exceeding tenfold.

For planned giving officers, these findings reinforce an important reality: DAF donors are often among your organization’s most committed givers.

The report also found that DAF donors have retention rates 13 percentage points higher than non-DAF donors and typically make significantly larger gifts.  Those are characteristics planned giving teams are looking for when identifying prospects for charitable gift annuities, charitable trusts or legacy commitments.

DAFs aren’t just tools for the rich.

Perhaps the biggest misconception the report dispels is that DAFs are only for ultra-high-net-worth donors. In fact, two-thirds of all DAF gifts are under $1,000, and only 2% exceed $25,000. DAF use is growing across every giving level, especially among mid-level donors, which has important implications for gift planning.

Instead of waiting until someone becomes a major donor, planned giving professionals should begin identifying and cultivating DAF users as early as possible. A donor making a $500 DAF gift today may be demonstrating a long-term, intentional approach to charitable giving.

Collaborate with your teams.

Organizations seeing the greatest success are integrating DAF messaging across annual giving, major gifts, planned giving, digital fundraising and donor stewardship.

While current law generally prohibits using DAF assets to fund life income gifts like charitable gift annuities or charitable remainder trusts, DAF owners are often ideal prospects for gifts of appreciated assets, bequests, beneficiary designations and other planned giving vehicles. Understanding how donors use their DAF can open the door to conversations about their overall philanthropic goals rather than focusing on a single gift transaction.

Make your data work for you.

Many nonprofits still struggle to properly identify, track and steward DAF donors because of inconsistent coding and incomplete donor information. Planned giving officers should advocate for stronger data practices, since knowing who uses a DAF today can help identify tomorrow’s legacy donors.

There is no public registry of DAF account holders, and sponsoring organizations generally do not disclose who has opened an account. Even when a grant is made, the donor can choose to remain anonymous. As a result, identification relies on relationship-building, thoughtful data collection and analysis rather than searching a public database. You may wish to add a data field (if one does not exist) such as “DAF holder (Yes/No/Unknown).”

1. Review your giving records and look for:
   1. Checks or ACH payments where the donor name differs from the account holder.
   2. Donors who have made multiple grants from the same sponsoring organization.
2. Encourage donors to self-identify.
   1. Send out a special survey or add to an existing donor survey.
   2. Mention the advantages of DAF giving during conversations with planned and major gift donors and in your marketing.
3. Pay attention to wealth indicators. DAF ownership is more common with those who:
   1. Have appreciated securities.
   2. Have sold a business.
   3. Exercise stock options.
   4. Give six- or seven-figure gifts.
   5. Bundle several years of charitable deductions into one tax year.
4. Watch for giving patterns. DAF donors often:
   1. Make one or two larger gifts each year.
   2. Give late in the calendar year after funding the DAF.
   3. Alternate between personal gifts and DAF grants.
   4. Continue giving after retirement age because the charitable assets are already set aside.

Consider appending age and wealth information to the donor database (Sharpe can help), if you don’t already have this information.

Here to stay.

This report reinforces that donor advised funds are expanding the pipeline of donors who think strategically about their philanthropy and are solidifying themselves as one of the strongest indicators that a donor may be ready for a deeper, long-term relationship with your organization.

Teri Sullivan is vice president of marketing for Sharpe Group and serves as co-producer of the podcast Sharpe Insights: Conversations With Your Planned Giving Experts. You can connect with Teri via email or on LinkedIn.