Marts&Lundy’s annual $10M+ Gifts Report tracks publicly announced mega-gifts made in 2025 using data from The Chronicle of Philanthropy’s Big Charitable Gifts database. The analysis includes only gifts and commitments of $10 million or more from individuals and family foundations within the United States. It offers advancement professionals and institutional leaders a data-driven view of where transformational philanthropy is flowing and what it means for strategic fundraising priorities.
Read the summary below and download the report to see trends in Higher Education, Healthcare, Independent Schools, and Arts & Culture.
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Contents:
Total $10M+ Giving in 2025
Charitable giving at the $10 million+ level strengthened significantly in 2025, building on 2024 gains and signaling a period of renewed expansion in philanthropy.
In 2025, the number of mega-gifts increased by 10%, the number of donors by 6%, and the total value by 21%. The year’s headline total was shaped in part by a single $2 billion gift—the largest recorded across all sectors—but growth was not driven by this outlier alone. Even after removing the top gift, the remaining $10 million+ contributions totaled $12.1 billion, exceeding comparable totals from both 2024 and 2023.
A Summary of $10M+ Giving
The $2 billion top gift was made to Oregon Health & Science University by Phil and Penny Knight. Beyond this contribution, MacKenzie Scott was the second-largest donor, making 43 separate $10 million+ gifts totaling more than $1.5 billion. Growth in 2025 was predominantly driven by eight- and low nine-figure giving.
Growth in the number of gifts was concentrated at the $10 million–$24 million and $50 million–$99 million levels, with corresponding increases in total dollars at those ranges. In contrast, giving in the $25 million–$49 million range was relatively flat year over year. This pattern suggests a widening base of ultra-high-net-worth donor engagement and reinforces the importance of well-defined, compelling priorities that resonate with donors capable of transformational giving.
Planned Giving Trends
Planned giving remained a durable source of transformational support.
Planned gifts totaled $781.9 million in 2025, representing 6% of all $10 million+ giving. While total dollars were essentially flat year over year — up slightly from $780.4 million in 2024 — the number of mega-planned gifts increased markedly, rising from 22 in 2024 to 33 in 2025. Since 2016, planned gifts have contributed more than $8.3 billion in total, underscoring their sustained importance as an essential component of any long-term fundraising strategy.
Regional Giving Trends
California and New York again led the nation in mega-gifts.
Organizations in 44 states and Washington, D.C. received $10 million+ gifts in 2025. For the sixth consecutive year, organizations in California and New York received more $10 million+ gifts than those in any other state. In total dollars, contributions to organizations in Oregon, New York, and California each exceeded $1 billion, with Oregon’s total driven largely by the $2 billion Knight gift to OHSU. New York-based organizations received 42 gifts totaling $1.9 billion, while California organizations benefited from 53 gifts amounting to $1.6 billion.
In a sign of the expanding scope of large-scale philanthropy, at least 10 gifts of $10 million+ were made to organizations in 13 states and Washington, D.C., the largest number recorded nationally over the past 10 years. Mega-gift giving exceeded $100 million for recipient organizations in 27 states and D.C., also a 10-year high.
Sector Trends
Higher Education reached new heights while Health giving recalibrated.
In 2025, Higher Education reasserted its leadership as the recipient of mega-gifts, reaching its largest share of total giving since 2018. Excluding contributions to private foundations, 71% of all mega-gift dollars went to Higher Education, surpassing the $10 billion threshold. Meanwhile, health-related giving was below $2 billion for the first time since 2020, ending a four-year stretch during which Health received at least 20% of total mega-gift dollars annually.
How each sector stacks up for the share of mega-gifts*
71% Higher Education
12% Health
5% Arts & Culture
2% Independent Schools
10% Other Causes**
Note: Due to rounding, percentage totals may not equal 100%
* Excludes gifts to private foundations
** Other causes such as human and social services, environmental organizations, community foundations, and general education.
Other Trends
MacKenzie Scott continued to be among the most active mega-donors, making 32 separate $10 million+ gifts to Higher Education alone in 2025, with total giving exceeding $1.1 billion across all sectors. Her sustained giving pattern reinforces the continued importance of tracking broad-based, high-volume philanthropy alongside singular, institution-defining gifts.
Let’s Connect!
We welcome the opportunity to talk with you about your organization’s approach to building principal gift and transformational gift programs.
Email us: info@martsandlundy.com
Call us: +1 201-460-1660