Round-Up Donations Add Up: 'Spare Change' Checkout Campaigns Raise $749 Million for Charities

Point-of-sale charitable donations, especially "round-up" campaigns, have sharply increased and brought in $749 million for charities in 2022, a 24% jump from 2020.

The average "round-up" donation is small - just 44 cents - but adds up to millions in annual fundraising because people are more likely to donate spare change than whole dollar amounts.

Consumer psychology, including perceptions of "pain" in parting with money and a preference for round numbers, helps explain why the round-up strategy works so well.

Transparency about where the money goes is important to customers, though some chains allow charities to get over 90% of round-up funds.

Overwhelming customers with too many checkout donation asks could backfire, and quick donations may not create meaningful charity connections like face-to-face solicitations can.