Where to Donate in Canada 2024 to Maximize Impact

Donating to charities feels tougher this year as Canadians contend with rising living costs. From housing to groceries, affordability is a major challenge and the effects are widespread.

Food Banks Canada reported more than 2 million visits in March 2024 — the highest monthly total in the organization’s 43-year history — and the profile of food-bank users has shifted. Food Banks Canada notes that 18% of food-bank clients are currently employed, the largest share on record. That trend aligns with broader economic data showing real wages in Canada remain below pre-pandemic levels, according to the Organisation for Economic Co‑operation and Development.

Despite the squeeze, Canadians still give. Charity Intelligence (Ci) estimates total charitable giving in Canada was about $19 billion last year. Of the charities Ci evaluates — which represent roughly half of that total and include most large national charities — donations and special-event fundraising rose 6.2% in the most recent year and were up 3.4% the prior year, says Greg Thomson, Ci’s director of research. That generosity reflects a variety of motives: personal experience, family ties, workplace campaigns, and compassion for causes.

If you want your donation to make a measurable difference, these rankings highlight charities that stretch donor dollars the farthest. MoneySense has partnered with Charity Intelligence to present lists of Canadian charities with the strongest impact, helping donors prioritize effectiveness when resources are limited.

Charity Intelligence top 10 impact charities in Canada for 2024

Below are Charity Intelligence’s top impact charities. Use the quick links to jump to the list you care about:

1. Top 10 Impact Charities Overall
2. Top 10 Canadian Impact Charities
3. Top 10 International Impact Charities
4. Top 10 Impact Canadian Food Banks

Top 10 Impact Charities Overall

Charity	City	Sector	Subsector
Against Malaria Foundation Canada	Toronto, ON	International	Health
Canadian Foodgrains Bank	Winnipeg, MB	International	Food
The Citizens Foundation	Oakville, ON	International	Education
Effect Hope	Markham, ON	International	Health
EPIC Society	North Sydney, NS	Social Services	Youth
First Book Canada	Toronto, ON	Social Services	Education
Fresh Start Recovery	Calgary, AB	Social Services	Addiction Recovery
Indspire	Ohsweken, ON	Social Services	Education
Lifewater Canada	Thunder Bay, ON	International	Water, Sanitation & Hygiene
Operation Eyesight Universal	Calgary, AB	International	Health

Top 10 Canadian Impact Charities

Charity	City	Sector	Subsector
The Boundless School	Toronto, ON	Social Services	Education
Daily Bread Food Bank	Toronto, ON	Social Services	Food
EPIC Society	North Sydney, NS	Social Services	Youth
First Book Canada	Toronto, ON	Social Services	Education
Food for Life	Burlington, ON	Social Services	Food
Fresh Start Recovery	Calgary, AB	Social Services	Addiction Recovery
Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society	Burnaby, BC	Social Services	Food
Indspire	Ohsweken, ON	Social Services	Education
JUMP Math	Toronto, ON	Social Services	Education
RESET Society of Calgary	Calgary, AB	Social Services	Women

Top 10 International Impact Charities

Charity	City	Sector	Subsector
Against Malaria Foundation Canada	Toronto, ON	International	Health
Canadian Foodgrains Bank	Winnipeg, MB	International	Food
The Citizens Foundation	Oakville, ON	International	Education
CODE	Ottawa, ON	International	Education
Doctors Without Borders Canada	Toronto, ON	International	Health
Effect Hope	Markham, ON	International	Health
Farm Radio International	Ottawa, ON	International	Livelihood
Lifewater Canada	Thunder Bay, ON	International	Water, Sanitation & Hygiene
Mennonite Central Committee Canada	Winnipeg, MB	International	Development
Operation Eyesight Universal	Calgary, AB	International	Health

Top 10 Impact Canadian Food Banks

Charity	City	Sector	Subsector
Central Okanagan Food Bank	Kelowna, BC	Social Services	Food
The Compass	Mississauga, ON	Social Services	Food
Daily Bread Food Bank	Toronto, ON	Social Services	Food
Edmonton’s Food Bank	Edmonton, AB	Social Services	Food
Feed Ontario	Toronto, ON	Social Services	Food
Food for Life	Burlington, ON	Social Services	Food
Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society	Burnaby, BC	Social Services	Food
Interfaith Food Bank Society of Lethbridge	Lethbridge, AB	Social Services	Food
Moisson Mauricie	Trois-Rivieres, PQ	Social Services	Food
Moisson Quebec	Quebec City, PQ	Social Services	Food

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How your donations affect charities and their impact

Charities differ widely in how effectively they convert donations into lasting benefits. Charity Intelligence conducts in-depth reviews to estimate the change each organization produces per dollar donated. Its analysts examine program outcomes, administrative efficiency, transparency and funding needs to calculate an impact score.

Some charities can generate multiple dollars of social value for every dollar donated; in a few cases, Ci estimates a return approaching $7 per $1. Programs that solve underlying problems — for example, housing combined with mental health and harm reduction supports — can deliver downstream savings to the health-care system and other public services, amplifying the value of each donation.

By contrast, other well-intentioned programs may produce limited measurable benefits relative to their cost. “If you give to a charity that creates very little value when you could have helped significantly more people with your donation, a good part of your donation was wasted,” says Thomson. He uses the example of expensive, short-term programs such as sending a child to an expensive weeklong camp, where the long-term, measurable benefits are harder to demonstrate compared with the cost.

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What do impact ratings mean?

Charity Intelligence’s impact rating helps donors compare charities on how much social value they create per dollar. Ci has published top-impact lists since 2017 and evaluates charities using publicly available documents — financial statements, annual reports and websites — combined with direct outreach.

Ci assesses charities across four impact-related areas:

1. Results reporting
2. Financial transparency
3. Need for funding
4. Social value generated per $1 donated

The last item focuses on how much of each donated dollar reaches programs after administration, management and fundraising costs. Ci began publishing impact scores in 2018 and now includes this metric for roughly 275 of the 850 charities it reviews. For full details, see the methodology section below.

For 2024, Ci introduced a “program cost coverage” filter: charities with more than three years’ worth of funding sitting in investments or cash on their balance sheet were excluded from the impact lists. The intent is to prioritize organizations that genuinely need donations now rather than those with large reserves. Ci also continues to remove organizations that do not share financial information transparently; in 2023, any charity rated zero in financial transparency was excluded from Top Impact List consideration.

This year Ci also refined its impact calculations to reduce variability and improve consistency across scores.

Another 2024 update: Top 5 Impact Canadian Homeless Charities

Addressing homelessness remains a pressing challenge across Canada. Ci added a specific list highlighting five Canadian charities that deliver impact in housing, shelter and related supports:

Charity	City	Sector	Subsector
Calgary Homeless Foundation	Calgary, AB	Social Services	Housing/Shelter
Fresh Start Recovery	Calgary, AB	Social Services	Addiction Recovery
Progress Place	Toronto, ON	Social Services	Mental Health
RESET Society of Calgary	Calgary, AB	Social Services	Health
Street Health	Toronto, ON	Social Services	Health

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Why charitable impact matters

Impact-focused ratings give donors a practical way to direct funds where they will do the most good. “It’s all about helping the most people get the most change from your donation dollar,” Thomson says.

Some well-known charities deliver important services but are relatively expensive per unit of social value. For example, several Habitat for Humanity affiliates have consistently received “low” or “fair” impact ratings from Ci because the program’s cost per outcome is high. In contrast, Against Malaria Foundation Canada — a 2024 Top 10 Impact Charity — carries a “high” impact rating; Ci estimates a substantial social return on each dollar donated to malaria prevention programs. Thomson adds that overall charity ratings can be affected by transparency: if financial statements are hard to access, that lowers Ci’s transparency score and can reduce an organization’s overall evaluation.

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Why Canadians donate to charities

People give for many reasons: gratitude for care received, support for activities that shaped their lives, compassion, or because someone asked. Thomson notes that being asked — by friends, family, employers or charities — remains one of the most common drivers. Giving also feels personally rewarding.

If your goal is measurable impact, Ci’s lists can help identify charities that turn donations into significant social returns. Not every donor gives primarily for impact, and personal motivations are entirely valid. Ci’s resources are meant to guide donors when impact is a priority.

After selecting a cause you care about, consult Ci’s assessments to compare organizations. Ci reports that its top 10 impact charities deliver average returns of roughly $7 for every $1 donated, compared with an overall average return of about $1.50 among assessed charities. Search charityintelligence.ca to see if a charity you care about has been evaluated and what its impact rating is: low, fair, average, good or high.

Methodology

Charity Intelligence assigns impact ratings of “low,” “fair,” “average,” “good,” or “high” to about one-third of the charities it assesses. Impact is one of five metrics Ci uses; the others are results reporting, financial transparency, need for funding and the impact value of donations.

Impact contributes 20% of a charity’s overall star rating, but additional rules tied to impact (for example, a charity with a “fair” impact rating cannot exceed three stars) make impact a critical factor in the final evaluation. Ci calculates a demonstrated impact score and combines it with a data quality score to arrive at the impact rating.

Demonstrated impact score

This score measures social return on investment (SROI): the monetary value of a charity’s outcomes divided by its annual spending.

SROI = Total monetary value of a charity’s outcomes ÷ Charity’s annual spending

Annual spending is taken from a charity’s financial statements. To value outcomes, Ci uses publicly available information, direct responses from charities about the outcomes achieved, and external research to assign monetary values to those outcomes — for clients and for broader societal benefits, such as reduced use of public services.

Ci produces a best estimate for outcomes and then applies a risk adjustment where assumptions were necessary, producing a risk-adjusted SROI that is generally lower than the best estimate. The final demonstrated impact score blends the best estimate and the risk-adjusted figure.

Data quality score

This measures the quantity and reliability of outcome data a charity provides to Ci. Analysts examine how much the risk-adjusted SROI was discounted from the best estimate to judge confidence in the underlying data.

Impact rating

The demonstrated impact score and the data quality score are plotted together to determine an overall impact rating of “low,” “fair,” “average,” “good” or “high.”

Return to list of charities

Read more on donations:

• Financial gifts: What you need to know before giving money or investments
• Strategies for smarter charitable giving
• What are the tax benefits of donating to charity?
• Canada’s income tax brackets for 2024