Worst Charities to Donate To (By the Data)
Published April 1, 2026 · IRS 990 filing data
Not all charities are equally efficient with your money. Some spend over 90% of donations on programs that serve their mission. Others spend the majority on fundraising, executive salaries, and administrative overhead. Using IRS 990 data, we identify the nonprofits with the lowest Efficiency Scores — the organizations where the least amount of each donated dollar reaches the intended cause.
Bottom 25 by Efficiency Score
| Rank | Nonprofit | Score | Program % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cincinnati Museum Center | 53/100 | 78% |
| 2 | Legacy Foundation | 53/100 | 78% |
| 3 | Carnegie Hall Society Inc | 57/100 | 78% |
| 4 | Gothic Corporation | 58/100 | 78% |
| 5 | Art Institute Of Chicago | 58/100 | 78% |
| 6 | Furman University | 58/100 | 78% |
| 7 | University Of Oregon Foundation | 58/100 | 78% |
| 8 | Wheaton College | 58/100 | 78% |
| 9 | Phillips Exeter Academy | 58/100 | 78% |
| 10 | Culver Educational Foundation | 58/100 | 78% |
| 11 | Robert W Woodruff Health Sciences Center Fund Inc | 58/100 | 78% |
| 12 | The Carnegie Hall Corporation | 58/100 | 78% |
| 13 | Southwestern Medical Foundation | 58/100 | 78% |
| 14 | California Academy Of Sciences | 58/100 | 78% |
| 15 | Kenneth C Griffin Museum Of Science And Industry | 58/100 | 78% |
| 16 | National Cable Satellite Corporation | 58/100 | 78% |
| 17 | Minnesota Orchestral Association | 58/100 | 78% |
| 18 | Denver Art Museum Inc | 58/100 | 78% |
| 19 | Alvin Ailey Dance Foundation Inc | 58/100 | 78% |
| 20 | Artis Naples Inc | 58/100 | 78% |
| 21 | Thomas Jefferson Foundation Inc | 58/100 | 78% |
| 22 | Jazz At Lincoln Center Inc | 58/100 | 78% |
| 23 | Menil Foundation Inc | 58/100 | 78% |
| 24 | Dallas Museum Of Art | 58/100 | 78% |
| 25 | Johnny Morris Ozarks Heritage Preserve | 58/100 | 78% |
Red Flags to Watch For
- Program spending below 65%: If more than 35 cents of every dollar goes to non-program expenses, the charity is likely inefficient.
- CEO pay exceeding 2% of total expenses: Executive compensation should be reasonable relative to the organization's size.
- Declining revenue with growing expenses: An organization that is shrinking but spending more is burning through reserves.
- Excessive fundraising costs: Spending more than $0.35 to raise each $1.00 suggests expensive or inefficient fundraising methods.
Context Matters
Low Efficiency Scores do not always mean fraud or waste. Some legitimate reasons for lower program spending include: new organizations investing in infrastructure, organizations in capital-intensive fields (hospitals, universities), and those going through leadership transitions. Always check the best-rated charities to see what good efficiency looks like.
For CEO compensation data across nonprofits, see nonprofit CEO salary data.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes a charity inefficient?
An inefficient charity spends a disproportionate share of donations on overhead (administrative costs, executive compensation) and fundraising rather than programs. Our Efficiency Score considers program spending ratio (50%), revenue growth (20%), reserves (20%), and CEO compensation ratio (10%).
How much should a charity spend on programs?
The widely accepted benchmark is that a well-run charity should spend at least 75% of total expenses on programs. Top-rated charities typically spend 85-95% on programs. Charities spending less than 65% on programs raise red flags.
Where does charity data come from?
All data comes from IRS Form 990 filings, which nonprofits with revenue over $200,000 must file annually. These are public records available through ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer and the IRS itself.
About This Data
All data from IRS Form 990 filings via ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer API. See our methodology.