What is a Donor-Advised Fund (DAF)?

A donor advised fund allows individual donors to donate charitable contributions to organizations through a fund maintained and operated by a 501(c)(3) organization, a 'sponsoring organization'.

With DAFs, an individual can contribute a specific amount, receive an immediate tax deduction, then grant out funds over time to their favorite causes.

Grants from DAFs were $54.77 billion in 2023 and the average DAF account size at Community Foundations was $528,209, according to the National Philanthropic Trust.

Who Manages Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs)

Some of the larger DAF organizations, include Fidelity Charitable and Vanguard Charitable, and public national charities, such as the National Philanthropic Trust. Community Foundations are also DAF sponsoring organizations.

Can a Nonprofit Apply for Grants from a DAF?

Unfortunately, nonprofits cannot directly apply to a DAF, like applying to a typical Foundation.

Donor-Advised Fund holder names are NOT publicly listed, only the grants given to an organization. However, as a nonprofit, it helps to understand who common DAF organizations are, like those listed above.

While you're unable to apply to grants through DAF funds, you can:

• research organizations who have received DAF grants
• tell potential donors that you accept DAF contributions
• review your donors who have given through DAF organizations

How to Search Donor-Advised Funds in Grant Frog

• Start a free trial of Grant Frog
• Click Foundation Discovery in the menu
• Choose the Financials tab
• On Donor-Advised Fund, choose Yes
• You can then combine it with other filters