Online giving in 2026: 5 trends for charities

Recurring gifts, mobile giving, personal asks, AI and new tax rules: five online giving trends for 2026, each with its source, year and country.

Online giving is changing in five ways in 2026: monthly gifts remain a steady base, many gifts come from a phone, general appeals work less well, AI is still rare in fundraising and the tax rules in Belgium have changed. Below, each point comes with its source, year and country, and what a charity can do with it.

Trend 1: monthly gifts remain a steady base

Monthly giving brought in 27% of all online revenue in 2025 for US nonprofits (M+R Benchmarks 2026). One-time gifts did grow faster: 17% against 12% for monthly revenue.

Monthly donors tend to stay: after one year, 71% of monthly donors were still active, according to a summary of the same benchmark by Truesense. These are US figures. Do not apply them one to one to Belgium or the Netherlands, but use them as a direction.

In WeGlow: your donation form offers one-time and monthly gifts, each with its own amounts and labels per amount. You can also place the form as a widget on your own website.

Trend 2: a large share of gifts comes from mobile

In 2025, 43% of online donations were made on a mobile device, at US nonprofits (M+R Benchmarks 2026, quoted by Nonprofit Tech for Good). Mobile donors gave $88 per gift on average, desktop donors $168.

So build your donation page for a phone first. In WeGlow the donation form has three steps (amount, personal details, summary), works on a mobile phone and needs no account from the donor. The payment options you see depend on your organisation's payment provider: with Mollie these are Bancontact, iDEAL and credit card.

Trend 3: personal asks beat general appeals

In 2006, 81% of Dutch households gave after being asked for a gift; in 2025 only 34% did (Geven in Nederland 2026, VU Amsterdam). General appeals work less well than they used to.

That figure does not prove that personal asks work better, but it points that way: a request from someone you know stands out more. That is why supporters of organisations on WeGlow can start their own action page for a campaign or event. You can share it by link, WhatsApp, Facebook, LinkedIn or e-mail.

Every donation lights up as a candle on the WeGlow world map. A memorial is a personal occasion too: with WeRemember, organisations get memorial pages where donations are collected.

Trend 4: AI in fundraising is still rare

Only 4.5% of nonprofits use smart donation forms and 2.3% use predictive AI to spot future bigger donors. That comes from a survey of 826 nonprofits by Nonprofit Tech for Good, published in January 2026.

Most organisations therefore do not use AI for fundraising yet. A practical place to start is text. In WeGlow, Glowie can rewrite the story of your action in a personal, professional or urgent tone, and your original is kept until you pick a version. At milestones, such as the first gift or 50% of your goal, WeGlow also suggests sample texts for updates, which you adapt yourself.

Trend 5: giving habits and rules are changing in Belgium and the Netherlands

In 2025, 60% of Belgians said they give to charity, and most give up to €250 a year (Barometer of Philanthropy 2026 of the King Baudouin Foundation, via VRT NWS).

Since January 2025, the tax reduction for gifts in Belgium has fallen from 45% to 30%. It applies from €40 per organisation per year (Wikifin). Nearly one in five Belgians expects to give less as a result. In the Netherlands, €5.49 billion went to good causes in 2024 and 76% of households gave money or goods (VU Amsterdam).

Small gifts count, then, and a certificate makes things easier for Belgian donors. On the donation page of an organisation that has switched on fiscal certificates, WeGlow shows the option 'request fiscal certificate' from a gift of €40. The organisation issues the certificate itself, not WeGlow.

Want to apply this yourself? Register your organisation on WeGlow.world or get in touch.

Frequently asked questions

How do you recruit monthly donors in 2026?

Show monthly giving next to one-time giving and explain what a monthly gift concretely does. With WeGlow.world you offer both, with your own amounts and labels per amount. At US nonprofits, 27% of online revenue in 2025 was monthly, and after a year 71% of those donors were still active.

Should my donation page work on mobile first?

Yes, design for the phone first. At US nonprofits, 43% of online donations in 2025 were made on a mobile device. The WeGlow.world donation form has three steps and works on a mobile phone, without the donor creating an account.

Can I use AI for my fundraising?

Yes, but start small, for instance with text. According to a Nonprofit Tech for Good survey, only 4.5% of nonprofits use smart donation forms. In WeGlow.world, Glowie can rewrite your action story in a personal, professional or urgent tone, while your original stays saved.

Is WeGlow suitable for small charities?

WeGlow.world has a free plan, so you start without fixed costs. The platform charges 5% platform fee on each donation, which donors can cover so that 100% reaches your organisation. The Pro plan costs €40 a month or €400 a year, excluding VAT, and is optional.

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