Each year the the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) puts out the World Giving Index, a report designed to recognize charitable giving by rating the generosity of individuals and countries. The report recognizes charitable giving order to help donors, companies, charities and social organizations make a bigger impact. The idea is to give a little, get a lot so that aid goes further and does more good.

The aim of the CAF World Giving Index is to provide insight into the scope and nature of giving around the world. In order to ensure that giving is understood in its various forms, the report looks at three aspects of giving behaviour. The questions that lie at the heart of the report are:

Have you done any of the following in the past month?

• Helped a stranger, or someone you didn’t know who needed help? Donated money to a charity?
• Volunteered your time to an organisation?
• Fieldwork is conducted by the market research firm, Gallup,1 as part of its World Poll initiative2

CAF World Giving Index 2018

This ninth edition of the CAF World Giving Index presents giving data from across the globe over a five year period (2013-2017). The CAF World Giving Index 2018 includes data from 146 countries that was collected throughout 2017. 

CAF World Giving Index ranking and scores

The method used to calculate CAF World Giving Index scores remains identical to previous years. In order to establish a rounded measure of giving behaviour across the world, the CAF World Giving Index relies on a simple averaging of the responses from the three key questions asked in each country. Each country is given a percentage score and countries are ranked on the basis of these scores.

The next time you’re asked to help someone else or a cause, just remember this little nugget, give a little, get a lot.