Top-Rated Nonprofits in California 2026
California has 141 nonprofits with $214.2B in combined revenue. The top-rated organization is California Baptist University with an Efficiency Score of 87/100.
California has 141 nonprofits in the IRS Form 990 dataset ranked here by efficiency score. The LakeQuality nonprofit efficiency rubric combines program-spending ratio (50%), revenue growth consistency (20%), fund reserves (20%), and CEO compensation ratio (10%) into a 0-100 composite.
Reading the ranking: top of the list typically combines strong program-spending discipline (the highest-weighted factor) with stable multi-year revenue and reasonable executive compensation. Large hospital and university systems often appear near the top in any state — their scale lets them keep program ratios high while still investing in infrastructure. Each nonprofit links to its full Form 990 profile. For donors trying to choose between organizations, the efficiency grade is a useful triage — but the underlying program-spending ratio, the multi-year revenue trend, and the comp ratio matter more than the composite letter on any individual decision.
Top 20 of 141 Nonprofits in California
Nonprofit financial data for California is sourced from IRS Form 990 filings, which all tax-exempt organizations must file annually.
Frequently Asked Questions
California Baptist University is the top-rated nonprofit in California with an Efficiency Score of 87/100 (Grade A) and $439.7M in annual revenue.
California has 141 nonprofits in our database with a combined $214.2B in total revenue.
The Efficiency Score (0-100, A-F) measures nonprofit effectiveness based on program expense ratio (50%), revenue growth consistency (20%), fund reserves (20%), and CEO compensation ratio (10%). Higher scores indicate more efficient organizations.
Efficiency Score: program expense ratio (50%), revenue growth consistency (20%), fund reserves (20%), CEO compensation ratio (10%).