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Last year, Austrians donated over a billion euros again. However, with a total of 1.07 billion euros, the overall amount declined slightly for the second year in a row.
On Wednesday, the Fundraising Association Austria cited inflation, recession, and a growing number of crisis hotspots as the reasons for this decline. However, the proportion of donors in society (79 percent) is at an all-time high. Donations were particularly affected by the flood disaster in eastern Austria in 2024. Environmental and animal welfare causes also saw an increase. Support for development cooperation continued to decline in importance. According to the umbrella organization of donation organizations, this puts life-saving projects at risk.
Steady growth in donations between 2008 and 2022
Between 2008 and 2022, domestic donations continued to grow every year. According to a press release, the amount rose from 360 million euros to a record high of 1.1 billion euros in 2022. A turning point came in 2023. “The main reasons were declining support for Ukraine aid, economic stagnation, and record inflation,” according to the Fundraising Association. Nevertheless, donations remained at a very high level. “The analysis of the past year of donations underscores the great resilience of the local donation system, which is supported by 82 percent of private households. Despite comprehensive social challenges, people living in Austria have hardly cut back on their support for charitable causes – a testament to the great appreciation for charitable work,” said Ruth Williams, Managing Director of Fundraising Association Austria.
More and more people are giving money
According to a survey of 1,000 people conducted by Public Opinion, the proportion of donors in the population is not only consistently high, unlike in many other countries, but actually rose in 2024. A total of 70 percent of people in this country said they had donated in the previous year. Residents of the western provinces of Salzburg, Tyrol, and Vorarlberg were particularly generous (88 percent), while Upper Austrians were the least likely to open their wallets. The amount of individual donations was also significantly higher in the west at 202 euros per person than in Vienna at 119 euros or Burgenland and Lower Austria at 109 euros.
The large number of individual contributions (81 percent) under 200 euros was decisive for the good overall total in Austria. Only 2.6 percent donated more than 1,000 euros.
- source: vienna.at/picture: Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
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