We will always keep it plan and real about what’s happening in the sector that you need to know about. Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) have emerged as one of the greatest growth strategies for new funding and frequently misunderstood prospect opportunities in our sector. With more than $251 billion in assets under management and annual contributions continuing to climb, DAFs now represent a significant and growing share of annual giving. Yet many nonprofits, particularly those smaller ones with limited staff and resources, have been largely not tapping into this new market opportunity.

DAFs are structured in ways that reward sophisticated organizations with strong donor relationships, compelling narratives, and proactive engagement strategies. The good news: the door is not locked. Organizations willing to build their DAF literacy, invest in donor relationships, and align with the values driving today’s philanthropic marketplace can unlock transformative resources.

As fundraising professionals committed to the sectors driving principles, the framework guiding how philanthropy moves, governs, and sustains capital for long-term impact, we have identified five proven strategies that nonprofit leaders can implement to access and grow their DAF giving.

Understanding the DAF Landscape: Why It Matters Now

Before diving into strategy, context is essential. Donor Advised Funds allow individuals to make a charitable contribution, receive an immediate tax deduction, and then distribute grants from that fund over time to qualifying nonprofits. They are administered by sponsoring organizations including Fidelity Charitable, Schwab Charitable, Vanguard Charitable, JP Morgan Chase, and community foundations and have exploded in popularity over the past decade.

$251.5B+

Total DAF assets under management in the U.S. (2024) NPT DAF Research Collaborative

 

$64.8B

Total recently reported DAF grants distributed (2024) NPT DAF Research Collaborative

 

1.7M+

Individual DAF accounts active in the United States as of (2024) NPT DAF Research Collaborative

 

The growth trajectory is not slowing. According to our Giving USA 2024: Annual Report on Philanthropy, individual giving through vehicles like DAFs has become a cornerstone of total charitable output. For nonprofits, this means that traditional major gift cultivation approaches must now be supplemented with a sophisticated understanding of how donors move money through these intermediary vehicles.

Strategy 1

Build Deep Relationships with Community Foundation DAF Officers

Community foundations are often the most overlooked gateway to DAF capital. While national commercial sponsors like Fidelity and Schwab hold the largest asset pools, community foundations play a unique role: they maintain geographic focus, value local impact, and often have dedicated staff who serve as connective tissue between donors and nonprofits.

Successful organizations invest meaningfully in these relationships not as transactional asks, but as ongoing partnerships built on shared values and demonstrated impact. This requires proactive communication, site visits, and consistent impact reporting that speaks directly to a community foundation’s strategic priorities.

KEY ACTIONS:

• Schedule quarterly briefings with community foundation program officers, not just during grant cycles
• Provide regular impact reports aligned to the foundation’s stated community priorities
• Invite DAF officers to site visits, program events, and leadership convenings
• Request introductions to DAF account holders whose giving interests align with your mission

It is also worth noting that community foundations are increasingly developing equity-focused DAF products and pooled funds specifically designed to increase giving to underserved organizations. Nonprofits should research whether local community foundations have launched such initiatives and position themselves as ideal grant recipients within those frameworks.

Strategy 2

Cultivate Individual DAF Donors as Major Gift Prospects

One of the most common mistakes nonprofits make is treating DAF giving as a separate track from major gift fundraising. In reality, DAF donors are major donors, they have demonstrated financial sophistication, tax planning awareness, and a deliberate intent to give. The difference is that their capital is parked in a separate vehicle before it reaches you.

The implication is clear: your major gift cultivation strategy must include a DAF discovery component. Development staff should be trained to identify DAF holders within your donor base, ask the right questions, and make the right asks at the right time.

53%	Of high-net-worth donors with DAFs say they would give more to specific nonprofits if asked (U.S. Trust Study of High Net Worth Philanthropy)

 

KEY ACTIONS:

• Add DAF discovery questions to your donor intake and stewardship conversations
• Train major gift officers to recognize language signals that indicate DAF ownership
• Include DAF-specific language in gift acceptance policies and planned giving materials
• Use wealth screening tools that flag potential DAF holders in your database
• Recognize DAF gifts in donor acknowledgment materials at the same level as direct gifts

Strategy 3

Optimize Your DAF Discoverability and Digital Presence

In an era where donors increasingly research causes and organizations before initiating grants, digital discoverability is not optional, it is foundational. This is particularly true for DAF giving, where donors often self-direct their grants without a formal application or cultivation process.

National DAF platforms, including DAF Direct, a tool created by nonprofit organizations to facilitate direct DAF-to-nonprofit giving on websites allows donors to give directly from their DAF account with a simple button click. Organizations that have not integrated these tools into their donation infrastructure are losing grants to organizations that have.

40%	Of nonprofits registered with DAF Direct report receiving their first-ever DAF grant within 60 days of integration.

 

$1B+	Granted through DAF Direct-enabled giving since the platform’s launch

 

KEY ACTIONS:

• Register your organization with DAF Direct and embed the giving widget on your website’s donation page
• Ensure your organization is correctly listed with GuideStar/Candid and has an updated, verified profile
• Update your website’s giving FAQ to include language about DAF giving instructions
• Include your EIN prominently in donation materials to facilitate DAF grant processing
• Create a dedicated landing page or giving guide for DAF donors with step-by-step instructions

Beyond technical integration, organizations should audit their content from a DAF donor’s perspective. Does your annual report speak to the kind of long-term, systems-change investments that DAF donors often prioritize? Are your impact metrics aligned with the language of outcome-driven philanthropy? These seemingly small communication choices matter enormously in the DAF ecosystem.

Strategy 4

Leverage Employer-Sponsored and Workplace DAF Programs

Many donors hold DAFs through their employer’s corporate giving platform or through workplace-sponsored accounts provided by major financial institutions. This is an underutilized access point, particularly for organizations with donors who work in sectors with robust workplace giving programs — including technology, finance, and healthcare.

Companies like Microsoft, Google, Salesforce, and many others have corporate DAF programs that channel significant charitable capital. Understanding these programs — and ensuring your organization is registered and eligible within them — can open a meaningful secondary channel for DAF giving.

KEY ACTIONS:

• Register with major corporate giving platforms
• Research whether your top corporate donors have employer matching programs connected to DAF vehicles
• Create employer-specific impact narratives for donors to use in workplace giving campaigns
• Identify board members and major donors who could champion your organization internally at their firms
• Offer dedicated staff support for donors navigating employer DAF gift processing

There is also a growing movement among younger donors, particularly millennials and Gen Z to use employer-sponsored DAFs as an entry point into more intentional philanthropy. Organizations that build strong brands among emerging donors in their twenties and thirties will find themselves well-positioned as those donors mature into mid-level and major gift relationships in the coming decade.

Strategy 5

Build a DAF Pipeline Through Planned Giving and Legacy Conversations

Perhaps the most powerful and most underutilized DAF strategy is integrating DAF conversations into your planned giving and legacy program. While DAFs are most misunderstood as vehicles for current giving, a growing number of donors are naming nonprofits as successor beneficiaries in their DAF agreements, essentially treating the fund as an extension of their estate plan.

This creates an extraordinary opportunity for organizations with mature planned giving programs. By initiating legacy conversations with longtime donors, particularly those who may already hold DAFs, development teams can secure future grants that outlast the donor’s lifetime.

$73B+

Estimated DAF assets held by donors aged 70+ who have not yet designated final beneficiaries, a significant legacy giving opportunity

 

68%	Of DAF account holders have not yet designated a successor beneficiary, according to the National Philanthropic Trust

 

KEY ACTIONS:

• Integrate DAF successor beneficiary conversations into legacy society cultivation materials
• Train gift planning staff to discuss DAF estate planning alongside traditional planned giving instruments
• Recognize donors who name your organization as a DAF successor at the same level as planned giving society members
• Partner with estate planning attorneys and financial advisors to co-host DAF legacy planning seminars
• Create a legacy society that explicitly includes DAF successor designations as qualifying membership criteria

Legacy giving through DAFs also presents an important equity opportunity. Community foundations and local DAF programs increasingly serve as vehicles for first-generation wealth holders, small business owners, and donors from communities that have historically been excluded from estate planning conversations. Nonprofits that engage these donors early — with culturally competent, accessible messaging about DAF legacy giving — will be among the first to benefit as this wealth transfers.

DAFs Are A Competitive Landscape: Prepare Accordingly

Donor Advised Funds are not a passing trend. They are a permanent and growing feature of the new philanthropic landscape. Organizations that invest in DAF strategy today will position themselves to compete for an increasingly large share of charitable capital in the years ahead.

The five strategies outlined here:  building community foundation relationships, cultivating individual DAF donors as major gift prospects, optimizing digital discoverability, leveraging workplace DAF programs, and integrating DAF conversations into legacy giving are not mutually exclusive. The most successful organizations will pursue all five simultaneously, building a comprehensive DAF infrastructure that treats this funding vertical as a strategic priority rather than an afterthought.

The capital is available. The question is whether your organization has the strategy, relationships, and the will to access it. Go for it!