Donor attrition

What Is Donor Attrition?

Donor attrition refers to the loss of existing donors who cease to contribute to a nonprofit organization over a period. It is a critical metric within philanthropy and fundraising metrics, indicating the percentage of supporters who do not renew their donations. High donor attrition rates can significantly impact an organization's financial health, as it necessitates greater efforts and marketing expenditure on donor acquisition to maintain or grow revenue. Understanding and addressing donor attrition is fundamental for ensuring long-term financial stability.

History and Origin

The concept of donor attrition, while always implicitly present in charitable giving, gained significant attention within the nonprofit sector as organizations began to adopt more sophisticated fundraising strategies and data tracking methods. As the field of nonprofit management evolved, practitioners and academics started applying business principles, such as customer retention, to donor relationships. Academic research, such as studies by Adrian Sargeant in the early 2000s, highlighted the financial implications of donor attrition, demonstrating that even small improvements in retention could lead to substantial increases in a donor's lifetime value. A 2005 article published on Issue Lab, for example, noted that despite the potential benefits of enhancing donor retention, academic interest had been scant, and the emphasis remained firmly on donor acquisition.¹⁰ This marked a turning point, underscoring the need for more focused attention on retaining existing supporters rather than solely pursuing new ones.

Key Takeaways

• Donor attrition measures the rate at which donors stop giving to an organization.
• High attrition rates can lead to increased costs for acquiring new donors, straining a nonprofit's budget.
• Effective donor retention strategies are generally more cost-effective than constant new donor acquisition.
• Understanding the reasons behind donor attrition is crucial for developing targeted stewardship and engagement efforts.
• Monitoring donor attrition provides vital insights into the overall health and sustainability of a fundraising program.

Formula and Calculation

Donor attrition is typically calculated as the inverse of the donor retention rate. To determine the donor attrition rate, an organization first calculates its donor retention rate.

The formula for Donor Retention Rate is:

Where:

• Number of Retained Donors this Year refers to the count of donors who gave in the previous period and also made at least one gift in the current period.
• Number of Donors Last Year is the total count of donors who made at least one gift in the previous period.

Once the donor retention rate is known, the donor attrition rate can be derived:

For example, if an organization had 1,000 donors last year and successfully retained 600 of them this year, its retention rate would be ( (600 \div 1000) \times 100% = 60% ). Consequently, its donor attrition rate would be ( 100% - 60% = 40% ). This calculation serves as a key performance indicator (KPI) for fundraising effectiveness.

Interpreting Donor Attrition

Interpreting donor attrition involves more than just looking at the raw percentage; it requires understanding the underlying causes and implications for an organization's budgeting and strategic planning. A high donor attrition rate, for instance, signals a "leaky bucket" problem, where efforts to bring in new donors are undermined by the rapid loss of existing ones. For North American nonprofits, overall donor retention rates were around 46.6% in 2023, implying an attrition rate of approximately 53.4%.⁹ For first-time donors, attrition is often much higher, with some reports indicating that only around 19% of new donors are retained year-to-date in Q4 2024.⁸

Organizations should analyze attrition by donor segments, such as first-time donors versus repeat donors, or by donation size (e.g., micro, small, mid-level, major). High attrition among new donors suggests issues with initial engagement and cultivation, while attrition among long-term donors might point to a decline in perceived impact or donor fatigue. Effective data analysis helps pinpoint these trends, allowing organizations to tailor their outreach and engagement strategies to specific donor groups, thereby improving overall retention.

Hypothetical Example

Consider "Helping Hands," a fictional nonprofit organization focused on providing educational resources to underserved communities. In 2024, Helping Hands had 5,000 active donors. By the end of 2025, they review their donor database and find that only 3,500 of those 2024 donors made a contribution in 2025.

To calculate their donor attrition rate:

1. Identify the number of retained donors: 3,500
2. Identify the total donors from the previous year: 5,000
3. Calculate the donor retention rate: $$\text{Retention Rate} = \frac{3,500}{5,000} \times 100\% = 70\%$$
4. Calculate the donor attrition rate: $$\text{Attrition Rate} = 100\% - 70\% = 30\%$$

This 30% donor attrition rate indicates that 1,500 donors from the previous year did not contribute again. Helping Hands can now use this insight to investigate why these donors lapsed, perhaps by reviewing their customer relationship management system for engagement history or conducting surveys.

Practical Applications

Understanding donor attrition is paramount for effective nonprofit management and strategic resource allocation. Organizations leverage donor attrition data in several ways:

• Resource Allocation: Since acquiring new donors can be significantly more expensive— costing approximately $1.50 per dollar raised to acquire a new donor compared to $0.20 to retain an existing one, according to Nonprofit Learning Lab —⁷ minimizing donor attrition can lead to substantial savings. By reducing the number of lapsing donors, nonprofits can reallocate funds from costly acquisition campaigns to programs or enhanced donor engagement.
• Fundraising Strategy: Nonprofits use attrition rates to refine their fundraising strategies. If attrition is high among new donors, it might prompt a re-evaluation of their onboarding process or initial communication efforts. If long-term donors are lapsing, it could signal a need for more personalized communication or demonstrating impact more clearly.
• Predictive Modeling: Advanced organizations use historical donor attrition data to build predictive models, identifying donors who are at high risk of lapsing. This allows them to proactively implement targeted interventions, such as personalized outreach or special engagement opportunities, to prevent churn.
• Performance Benchmarking: Comparing an organization's donor attrition rate against industry benchmarks, such as those provided by the M+R Benchmarks Study, helps assess performance relative to peers. The 2025 M+R Benchmarks Study, for instance, indicates that existing donors are far more likely to give again (62% retention) than new-to-file donors (23%). Thi⁶s kind of data provides context and highlights areas for improvement.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Transparent reporting of donor attrition and retention rates to boards and other stakeholders demonstrates an organization's commitment to efficiency and sustainability, fostering trust and long-term support.

Limitations and Criticisms

While donor attrition is a vital metric, relying solely on it has limitations. A key criticism is that it often presents a simplified view of donor behavior, not fully capturing the nuances of why individuals stop giving. For instance, a donor's change in financial circumstances is a frequently cited reason for lapsing, rather than dissatisfaction with the organization itself. Fur⁵thermore, a low attrition rate doesn't automatically imply strong donor relationships; it could mask a stagnant donor base if the organization isn't also actively acquiring new supporters.

Another drawback is the historical overemphasis on donor acquisition at the expense of retention efforts within the sector. Thi⁴s can lead to a cycle where nonprofits continuously spend significant resources on attracting new donors, only to lose a large percentage shortly thereafter. The focus on short-term fundraising gains can sometimes overshadow the long-term benefits of cultivating loyal donors, which have a higher return on investment. The cost to acquire new donors can be several times more than retaining existing ones, and it can take over a year for a donor relationship to become profitable. Eff³ective donor management requires a holistic approach that balances both acquisition and retention strategies, rather than an exclusive focus on minimizing attrition.

Donor Attrition vs. Donor Retention

Donor attrition and donor retention are two sides of the same coin, both measuring the continuity of donor relationships, but from opposite perspectives. Donor attrition quantifies the rate at which donors discontinue their support, representing the outflow of supporters from an organization's donor base. It highlights the donors lost within a specific period. Conversely, donor retention measures the rate at which donors continue to support an organization, indicating the percentage of supporters who renewed their contributions from one period to the next. It represents the successful maintenance of donor relationships.

The confusion between the two often arises because they are directly inverse metrics: if an organization has a high attrition rate, it inherently has a low retention rate, and vice versa. For example, if a nonprofit retains 60% of its donors, its attrition rate is 40%. While attrition focuses on the negative—the loss of donors—retention emphasizes the positive—the preservation of donor relationships. Nonprofits typically aim to minimize donor attrition while maximizing donor retention, as sustained support from existing donors is generally more cost-effective and contributes significantly to an organization's long-term sustainability.

FAQs

What causes donor attrition?

Donor attrition can stem from various factors, including a lack of timely and meaningful communication, insufficient demonstration of impact, changes in a donor's financial situation, or competing interests from other nonprofit organizations. Sometimes, donors may also lapse due to poor customer relationship management practices or an overwhelming number of solicitations.

Why is donor attrition important to track?

Tracking donor attrition is crucial for assessing the efficiency and effectiveness of a nonprofit's fundraising efforts. A high attrition rate signals underlying issues that can erode the donor base and threaten future revenue. By understanding the rate of donor loss, organizations can implement targeted strategies to improve donor retention, ultimately enhancing financial stability and optimizing the lifetime value of their supporters.

What is a good donor attrition rate?

There isn't a universally "good" donor attrition rate, as it can vary by organization size, mission, and the type of donor (e.g., first-time vs. repeat). However, lower attrition rates are always desirable. For first-time donors, attrition is typically much higher than for repeat donors. According to the Fundraising Effectiveness Project, the retention rate for new donors dropped to 19% in Q4 2024, meaning an 81% attrition rate. For repea²t donors, the retention rate was higher at 69%, indicating a 31% attrition rate. Generally¹, a lower attrition rate indicates healthier donor relationships and a more sustainable fundraising model.