Independent Sector, Health of the U.S. Nonprofit Sector
Independent Sector has posted its annual Health of the U.S.
Nonprofit Sector. Here is the description:
The Health of the U.S. Nonprofit Sector is a data-rich, accessible resource designed to provide a clear view of America’s charitable sector. It brings together key insights on how the nation’s 1.9 million registered nonprofits are shaped by economic and financial conditions, workforce dynamics, trust and governance, and public policy and advocacy.
And here are some of the key findings:
Most nonprofits (68%) expect demand for their services to increase in 2026, but only 31% of organizations said they are expanding how many people they serve
- In 2025, 81% of organizations surveyed struggled to raise enough funds to cover all of their costs, and 36% ended their most recent fiscal year with an operating deficit
- One third (33%) of nonprofits reported experiencing disruptions to government funding in the first 4-6 months of 2025
Three in four (75%) nonprofit organizations say that volunteers are important to their operations, but data from the U.S. Census Bureau suggest that formal volunteering is declining
- Over half of nonprofits surveyed (52%) say that volunteers are either very important or essential to their operations
- However, the percentage of Americans that volunteer has declined in the years since the COVID pandemic, dropping from 30% pre-Covid (2017, 2019) to 28% post-Covid (2023)
Nonprofits were the most trusted sector in American society in 2025, but trust in philanthropy lags behind
- 57% of Americans highly trust nonprofits, compared to 45% who highly trust the military and 42% who highly trust small businesses.
- 38% of Americans reported high trust in private foundations, nearly 20 percentage points lower than trust in nonprofits
- Only 33% of Americans say they highly trust people in their local community — a 3-point drop from 2024
Though nearly half of nonprofits (40%) say their employee benefits positively impact workforce recruiting and retention, 25% say insufficient benefits negatively impact their ability to attract and retain staff
- Two-thirds of nonprofits surveyed say they provide health insurance, but that number was much lower (12%) at organizations with budgets of less than $250,000
- More than one in ten (11%) of organizations surveyed reported at least 21% of their staff positions remain vacant, indicating challenges with recruitment and retention persist in the sector