{"id":58519,"date":"2015-01-07T16:16:27","date_gmt":"2015-01-07T21:16:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bloomerang2dev.wpengine.com\/?p=58519"},"modified":"2026-01-29T09:38:37","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T14:38:37","slug":"donor-retention","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bloomerang.com\/blog\/donor-retention\/","title":{"rendered":"A Guide to Donor Retention: Why It Matters for Nonprofits"},"content":{"rendered":"

What is donor retention?<\/h2>\n

If you’re a fundraiser or nonprofit development professional, you’ve likely heard the term “donor retention.”<\/strong> It’s one of the hottest topics of discussion in the nonprofit sector. But what exactly is donor retention? And why is it important?<\/p>\n

Quite simply, donor retention is a measure of how many donors continue to donate to your organization.<\/strong> Nonprofits with a high donor retention rate have long-term supporters who come back year after year. Nonprofits with a low donor retention rate must continually acquire new donors or larger gifts to keep up.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

The current state of donor retention<\/h2>\n

The Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) and the Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy at the Urban Institute worked together to establish and maintain the Fundraising Effectiveness Project<\/strong><\/a>. The Fundraising Effectiveness Project provides a platform for these organizations to conduct research that helps nonprofits improve their fundraising results faster.<\/p>\n

Each quarter, FEP releases its findings, including changes in average donor retention rates over time. The most recent report for Q3 2025<\/a> shows that retention rates have increased slightly from 31.7% in Q3 2024 to 31.9% in Q3 2025. Compared to retention rates in Q3 2024, retention rates have decreased across all donor size segments. This trend was most pronounced among major donors ($5K-$50K), with a year-over-year decline of 1.0 p.p. However, this segment still has the second-highest retention rate year-to-date at 52.0%, with supersize donors ($50K+) taking the lead at 56.6% retained year-to-date. Micro donors ($1-$100) still have the lowest retention rate at 21.3%.<\/p>\n

\"Infographic<\/p>\n

This data illustrates the need for effective donor retention strategies, especially for smaller donors. While it\u2019s important to actively retain major donors, they likely have a stronger bond and passion for your mission. Small donors require more pointed efforts to retain their support.<\/p>\n

The golden rule of donations<\/h2>\n

The FEP reports also explore donor frequency, specifically for new and repeat donors. New donor retention rates are even lower than the national average for all donors. However, if you can get a second donation (otherwise known as the golden donation), your retention rates increase dramatically because repeat donor retention is much higher.<\/p>\n

According to FEP, the new donor retention rate held steady at 14.0%, whereas the repeat donor retention rate increased slightly by 0.2 p.p., with a 43.6% year-to-date retention rate. While there was little change in these retention rates year-to-date, this stark difference in the percentage of new and repeat donors retained underscores the importance of soliciting that second gift for long-term retention.<\/p>\n

\"Infographic<\/p>\n

The report also shows that donors who contribute more frequently are more likely to give again, with a one-time donor retention rate of 19.2% year to date, two-time donor retention rate of 38.5% year to date, three-to-six-time donor retention rate of 62.5% year to date, and seven-plus-time donor retention rate of 87.3%.<\/p>\n

Again, soliciting a second gift can exponentially increase donor retention, as does soliciting subsequent gifts thereafter. Nonprofits that focus on receiving that golden donation naturally increase their average donor retention rate (about threefold!) because of this higher repeat retention rate.<\/p>\n

\"Infographic<\/p>\n

“The Q3 data points to a sector showing resilience, even as donor numbers level off and retention sees modest improvement.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

While large and repeat donors continue to drive much of the growth, the long-term health of the sector depends on broadening participation. Re-engaging lapsed donors and cultivating new supporters into lasting relationships will be essential to sustaining momentum. This focus is also guiding our work to strengthen the FEP project\u2014expanding its capabilities, deepening community participation, and enhancing the insights we provide. By equipping organizations with timely, actionable data, we aim to help them build more inclusive and effective fundraising strategies for the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

– Woodrow Rosenbaum,
\nChief Data Officer at GivingTuesday
\n<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

How to calculate your donor retention rate<\/h2>\n

You can calculate your nonprofit\u2019s donor retention rate by dividing the number of repeat donors this year by those who donated last year. For example, if you have 159 donors who gave again this year but had 300 who gave last year, your donor retention rate would be 53%.<\/p>\n

\"Donor<\/p>\n

It can become tiresome to calculate this equation by hand. We recommend investing in software that will help you automatically track your retention rate every year. This way, you\u2019ll not only get today\u2019s retention rate but also an overview of how well your retention rate is improving over time.<\/p>\n

Bloomerang’s free donor retention calculator<\/h3>\n

You can also use our free donor retention calculator<\/strong><\/a> below to visualize how your donor retention rate can impact your fundraising revenue. Simply plug in some basic information about your fundraising efforts and current donor retention rate to see what an increase in donor retention can do for your fundraising campaigns.<\/p>\n\n

Why does your donor retention rate matter?<\/h2>\n

Maybe this is the first time you\u2019ve ever thought about your donor retention rate, or maybe you\u2019ve had a pretty good idea of what your rate is but don\u2019t think it\u2019s anything to be worried about.<\/p>\n

If you don\u2019t consider donor retention, you\u2019ll risk a higher attrition rate (the rate at which you lose donors). Take a look at how unchecked donor attrition can harm your organization over time:<\/p>\n

\"Chart<\/div>\n

You can see how quickly your pool of donors could evaporate, meaning increasingly less funding for your nonprofit. Just a small change in your donor retention rate (for instance, 10%) can cost your organization thousands of dollars!<\/p>\n

\"Chart<\/p>\n

Once they\u2019re gone, they\u2019re (almost all) gone.<\/h2>\n

Maybe you\u2019re thinking, \u201cOkay, so what if donors don\u2019t give in consecutive years? They might come back someday.\u201d<\/p>\n

Think again.<\/p>\n

According to FEP\u2019s most recent data, the number of recaptured lapsed donors has decreased 8.6% year over year, meaning it\u2019s increasingly difficult to gain back support from former contributors.<\/p>\n

You cannot rely on this small recapture rate to compensate for low donor retention, which is why it\u2019s crucial to retain donors from the beginning of their relationship with your organization.<\/p>\n

Why donor retention matters more than ever<\/h2>\n

If a new donor gives only once\u2014as nearly 70% do\u2014then you\u2019re often left with a loss on your initial investment to gain that new donor. The true benefit of acquiring a donor can only come when you retain that donor over the long term.<\/p>\n

While acquisition will always be important, nonprofits must focus on ways to keep new and existing donors coming back year after year.<\/p>\n

Watch Bloomerang Co-Founder Jay Love discuss the donor retention issue with Bill Stanczykiewicz, Ed.D., on an episode of his podcast \u201cFirst Day Podcast.\u201d<\/p>\n