How to Donate to the Most Effective Animal Welfare Charities

Last Updated: July 22, 2022

Animals in intensive farms are caged, crammed, mutilated, and indoors for all of their life. 70 billion land animals are slaughtered every year—ten times the human population on Earth. Effective animal campaigns affect between 10-100 chicken-life years per dollar spent. You can help animals in need by donating to the most effective animal charities recommended by Animal Charity Evaluators.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Understanding The Problem

1
Read the key facts on factory farming. Humans slaughter 70 billion land animals every year—2,000 land animals die every second. Chickens are by far the most globally killed species for meat, and 30 billion chickens are alive now.
- Farmed animals are extremely neglected. Within animal funding, only 1% goes towards farmed animals, although over 99% of domesticated animals are in factory farms. Animal shelters received 65% of US animal donations in 2015, despite holding less than 1% of animals.
- Mammals and birds are sentient and can suffer. Fish too can almost certainly suffer—and we kill 1 trillion fish per year. As we also kill trillions of insects every year, we should assume that insects have some level of sentience until proven otherwise.

Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Finding an Effective Charity

1
Consult Animal Charity Evaluators. Animal Charity Evaluators reviews and recommends animal charities based on their effectiveness. Here are their three recommended charities for 2022:
- Faunalytics connects animal advocates with information. Faunalytics publishes independent research and promotes existing research and data for individual advocates through its website’s content library.
- The Humane League works to improve animal welfare standards through grassroots campaigns, movement building, vegan advocacy, research, and advocacy training, as well as through corporate, media, and community outreach. The Humane League founded the Open Wing Alliance, an international animal advocacy coalition, to end the use of battery cages globally.
- The Wild Animal Initiative works to strengthen the animal advocacy movement by creating an academic field dedicated to wild animal welfare. They compile literature reviews, write theoretical and opinion articles, and publish research results on their website and in peer-reviewed journals.
2
Read the charity reviews by Animal Charity Evaluators. They publish their research behind their recommendations for free. When reading Animal Charity Evaluators' charity reviews, look at the following:
- What does the charity do?
- What’s the cost-effectiveness?
- How transparent is the charity on its impact?
- Are there high-quality studies on the charity’s impact?
- How much more funding can the charity effectively use?
- Does the charity have strong and honest leadership?
3
Choose your favorite animal charity. Some people may prefer to help a specific species, such as chickens. Others may select a charity that supports the animal welfare advocacy movement. Ultimately, the best animal charity is the one that best aligns with your values and preferences.
4
Consider donating to Animal Charity Evaluator’s Recommended Charity Fund. The Recommended Charity Fund supports the top-rated animal charities recommended by Animal Charity Evaluators, and you can read their transparent reasoning in their reports of grant distributions.
- By finding the most cost-effective donations, the Fund allows time-constrained donors to save time and be confident that their contributions are making a difference.

Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Multiplying Your Impact

1
Share your donation with a friend. By encouraging others to donate to effective charities, you multiply the impact of your gift. For example, you can talk to a friend at dinner or share your donation on social media.
2
Take the Giving What We Can Pledge. The pledge helps you donate a meaningful portion of your income to improve the lives of others. It can help you live up to your values, meet like-minded people, and inspire others to follow suit. Sign the pledge here.
- Almost 10,000 people signed the Giving What We Can Pledge, a non-binding pledge to donate more than 10% of your income to effective charities.
3
Stay motivated. Sometimes it's easy to forget why we made a certain decision. Every time you help a farmed animal, such as by donating to effective animal charities, keep in mind that your decision just made the world a slightly better place.