# Charity ratings
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/charity-ratings/439109
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [February 25, 2008, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/charity-ratings/439109 "2008-02-25T19:38:32Z")
**Posts on this page:** 5
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@LonghornDave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LonghornDave)
#### Post date: [February 25, 2008, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/charity-ratings/439109/1 "2008-02-25T19:38:32Z")
Are there any companies that rate charities? I’m looking for information about how reputable they are, their efficiency, etc.
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### Author:  [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)
#### Post date: [February 25, 2008, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/charity-ratings/439109/2 "2008-02-25T19:47:29Z")
> **[Charity Ratings and Donor Resources | Charity Navigator](https://www.charitynavigator.org/)**
>
> Use Charity Navigator's ratings and resources to find and support highly rated charities that align with your passions and values. Whether you're looking to give toward international relief, the environment, animal welfare, or something else, we...
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### Author:  [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)
#### Post date: [February 25, 2008, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/charity-ratings/439109/3 "2008-02-25T23:53:45Z")
The national Better Business Bureau runs the “short version” [Give.org list,](http://www.give.org/reports/index.asp) with more comprehensive information [here.](http://us.bbb.org/WWWRoot/SitePage.aspx?site=113&id=4ef08b14-37cb-4974-a385-7f41f63b16b0)
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### Author:  [@Neptunian\_Slug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neptunian_Slug)
#### Post date: [February 26, 2008, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/charity-ratings/439109/4 "2008-02-26T01:44:31Z")
[QUOTE=runner pat]
> **[Charity Ratings and Donor Resources | Charity Navigator](https://www.charitynavigator.org/)**
>
> Give and volunteer with confidence by using Charity Navigator's ratings and resources to find highly rated charities that align with your passions and values.
[/QUOTE]
Charity Navigator only does analysis on the financial condition of a charity and their fundraising efficiency. They list things like CEO salaries and donor privacy policies, but those don’t factor into the ratings. They don’t make any qualitative judgement on the quality or the effectiveness of the programs, just that they spend money on their stated mission.
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### Author:  [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)
#### Post date: [February 26, 2008, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/charity-ratings/439109/5 "2008-02-26T02:21:56Z")
[GuideStar](http://www.guidestar.org) is another good resource. You can find more detailed financial information like their tax returns. You’d have to crunch the numbers yourself (or refer to Charity Navigator), but sometimes raw data is a better indicator of reputation since you can see exactly where the charity’s money comes from, how much their top people make every year in salary and benefits, and where their money goes, to the nearest dollar. Some of these forms are well over 30 pages long, so it takes some time to go over them, but it can be worth it.
Generally speaking, the less money the charity spends on administration and fundraising, the better. You want to shoot for 25% of the total budget or less for those costs. You also want to consider how it raises funds; one of the reasons I don’t donate to my local NPR station is because they use a telemarketing firm to solicit, and they engage in aggressive mailings. I don’t want my donation to go to some firm in Pittsburgh to raise money; I want my donation to go to programming.
Another thing you can do to gauge reputation is to do a Google News search to see what kind of press the charity is getting. If they get glowing press about the good work they’re doing in the community, that’s good. If their officers are getting arrested for stealing money, that’s not so good.
Robin