You can also use the lists to find charities with big impact that help with a cause you’re passionate about. After you’ve narrowed down the cause you want to donate to, take a look at Ci’s 2024 Top 10 Impact Charities, which deliver average returns of $7 for every $1 donated, compared with the overall average return of $1.50. You can also look up your favourite charity by name (or search by sector) on charityintelligence.ca to see if it has been assessed for impact and, if so, what the impact rating is: “low,” “fair,” “average,” “good” or “high” Obviously, a better-than-average rating is what you’re after.
Methodology
Ci assigns impact ratings of “low,” “fair,” “average,” “good” and “high” to about one-third of the charities it assesses. Impact is just one of five metrics Ci uses to rate charities. The other four are results reporting, financial transparency, need for funding and the impact value of the donations.
The impact rating currently accounts for 20% of a charity’s star rating score; however, additional rules based on the impact rating (e.g., a charity with fair impact can be no higher than a 3-star charity) make impact the most important metric in determining the overall star rating. Ci uses a demonstrated impact score to calculate a charity’s impact rating, as explained below.
Demonstrated impact score
This score measures social return on investment (SROI), or the amount of social good that charities generate per $1 donated. SROI is expressed as a ratio—say, $5 of returns for every $1 donated, as follows:
SROI = Total monetary value of a charity’s outcomes ÷ Charity’s annual spending
Annual spending is straightforward and easy to find, since it usually appears in a charity’s annual report and financial statements.
How does Ci come up with a value for the outcomes of a charity’s work?
The data researchers first look at publicly available information and reach out to each charity to ask: What outcomes did you achieve this year?
For an organization that supports unhoused youth, for example, Ci would ask about the benefits youth received from the charity. Was it simply a place for them to sleep? Or did they also get a meal in the morning, plus counselling or referrals for support or care?