This report pulls from giving data across 199 rescue missions from 2021 through 2025. It covers second-gift conversion, recurring participation, retention by donor tenure, revenue per donor, and reactivation, with a separate benchmark for organizations with 10,000+ active donors.
Key Findings
Revenue is up. Donor files are not. General donor revenue has grown to ~117% of 2021 levels, but 54% of missions saw active donor counts fall. Growth is coming from fewer donors giving more, not from a growing base.
The biggest losses happen in year one. Second-gift conversion sits at ~17% and second-year retention at 25 to 30% for new donors. Donors who make it to year three retain at 65 to 75%. That gap is where most files are quietly losing ground.
Recurring giving grew 26.7% in one year. Participation is still at 9% of active donors. The trend is real. Most missions haven’t built the infrastructure to capture it yet.
What You’ll Take Away
- Your numbers against the right peer group. Every metric is benchmarked against rescue missions specifically, with a separate cut for organizations with 10,000+ active donors.
- A clearer picture of where attrition is actually happening. Not just that retention is low, but where in the donor lifecycle the file is breaking down and what tends to move it.
- One clear place to start. Each section ends with a diagnostic question and concrete actions, so you leave with a direction, not just data.
