Supporters who pledge to make recurring gifts are your most loyal donors, and securing their support requires a thoughtful engagement strategy. It’s easy to dream up new fundraising ideas and imagine wild success, but it’s a lot smarter—and more effective—to look to data.

Data can illuminate trends in donor behaviors and motivations that allow you to tailor your outreach efforts. Tracking data about your own supporters is an obvious (and critical!) place to start. But it can also be helpful to take a step back and look at broader fundraising trends.

That’s why we gathered these recurring giving statistics! We scouted out the most important insights from industry leaders on recurring giving behaviors and successes. Following these patterns can help make your appeals stronger.

If you’re ready to learn about the current state of recurring giving, start browsing our roundup of statistics below! Or, if you want to jump in and start improving your recurring giving program, check out how our software can help you do just that.

General Recurring Giving Statistics 

Here’s a great place to start! These general statistics clearly indicate that recurring giving is gaining popularity with donors. And that’s good news for nonprofits! 

Let’s dive into some of these numbers: 

• 57% of donors are enrolled in a recurring giving program, up from 46% the previous year. 
• In 2024, revenue from monthly gifts increased 5% while revenue from one-time gifts remained flat.
• Monthly giving accounted for 31% of all online revenue, up from 26% the previous year. 
• 73% of recurring gift payments use credit cards. 
• Nonprofits lose 20% to 30% of monthly donations to failed payments. Some payment processing providers can recoup this lost revenue, so do your research! 
  

The Takeaway: Recurring Giving Is On the Rise 

Why is this good news for nonprofits? Donors have become accustomed to the “subscription economy.” Whether it’s their local gym or a music-streaming service like Spotify or a movie-streaming service like Netflix, we’re all accustomed to paying a monthly charge.  

Because a recurring giving program provides a strong and reliable base of financial support, it’s a critical component of a successful strategy. Because of this, nonprofits should focus on making it as easy as possible to make a monthly commitment. 

It is recommended that every fundraising team explore ways to establish or strengthen a monthly giving program!  

Recurring Giving Frequency Trends 

Now that we’ve established the popularity of recurring giving and the importance of a strong program to nonprofit stability, let’s take a look at the preferred frequencies for recurring gifts. Some of these numbers might surprise you!

• 94% of recurring donors prefer to give monthly, 3% like to give weekly, 2% like to give annually, and 1% like to give quarterly. 
• 35% more recurring donations started on GivingTuesday in a year and led to more than $268K in recurring revenue for organizations on that day. 
• And 57% more recurring donations started on New Year’s Eve in that same year, garnering more than $367K in new recurring revenue!
• Including both one-time and monthly donations, December giving accounted for 26% of all online revenue. Year-end giving campaigns are highly effective: the last week of December alone accounted for 13% of the year’s total online revenue. 

The Takeaway: Recurring Donors Start Giving on Special Occasions and Prefer to Give Monthly 

There are two significant takeaways from this data. First, monthly giving is the most popular, so that should be an option on your donation form.  

Second, when there’s a natural seasonal spike in giving, it’s an opportune time to reach out to your donors to convert them to recurring givers. 

Recurring Giving Retention Rate Trends 

The first step is to convert one-time or first-time donors to monthly giving. But after that, you need to retain those donors! If monthly giving is a bucket, you want to be pouring in new donors at the top...and make sure no one is leaking out the bottom. 

Here are some interesting statistics about retention rates: 

• Overall donor retention is actually down. It’s decreased by 4.6% year over year, with nonprofits retaining an average of 13.8% of new donors each year. 
• The number of lapsed donors nonprofits recaptured fell 8.6% year over year, meaning it's getting harder to win back a donor that's drifted away. 
• Fundraising revenue is growing, up an estimated 3.7% year over year, but fewer people are donating. Growth is being driven by loyal, repeat donors. 
• More than half of recurring donors give again. 
• The average recurring donor sticks around for more than eight years, while non-recurring donors have a lifetime of only 1.68 years. 

The Takeaway: Donors Who Stick Around Give More 

The data clearly shows that once you have a recurring donor, steward them! The more you can retain donors, the stronger your program and your nonprofit will be. 

The most successful and largest nonprofits prioritize donor stewardship and retention outreach. The critical importance of these loyal donors can’t be stressed enough!  

Start Using Recurring Giving Statistics to Your Advantage  

The data is clear: recurring giving is rising, monthly donations are preferred, and donor retention is essential to nonprofit sustainability. Understanding these trends allows nonprofits to refine their strategies, ensuring they attract new recurring donors and retain them for years to come. 

However, while industry statistics offer valuable insights, they are just a starting point. Every nonprofit’s donor base is unique, and success comes from analyzing your data to see how your donors align with sector-wide trends. Are your supporters more likely to start recurring gifts on Giving Tuesday? Do your monthly donors stay engaged long-term? Are you losing revenue due to failed payments? 

The only way to answer these questions—and adjust your strategy accordingly—is by having a robust nonprofit CRM in place. A powerful CRM helps you track donor behavior, identify key trends, and personalize outreach, making it easier to convert one-time donors into long-term supporters. By investing in the right technology, nonprofits can optimize their recurring giving programs and create a sustainable foundation for the future. 

Start using data to your advantage and make recurring giving a core part of your fundraising success! 

If you’re looking for additional resources to explore ways to promote recurring giving successfully, here are some top articles to check out: 

• Top 15 Fundraising Software Picks for Better Results 

• The Nonprofit CRM Buyer's Guide: Top 25 Options