What are the different giving pledge options?

The 🔸10% Pledge

We’re best known for the 🔸10% Pledge to give at least 10% of lifetime income (with the option to factor in wealth) to the most effective charities.

We think that the 🔸10% Pledge is the best option for a typical person living in a high-income country (such as the United Kingdom, United States, Germany, Australia). As of today, over 9,418 people have taken the 🔸10% Pledge.

The 🔹Trial Pledge

We also offer a 🔹Trial Pledge, which is a scaled-down version of the 🔸10% Pledge. You still commit to giving a percentage of your income (or wealth), but you can choose how much (above 1%), and for how long you want to give.

You’ll be able to use the Pledge Dashboard to record your giving and see how close you are to meeting your target. When your 🔹Trial Pledge comes to an end, you can choose to:

• Extend it at the same amount
• Extend it at a different amount
• Take the 🔸10% Pledge if you are ready

A 🔹Trial Pledge is an excellent way to keep yourself on track and motivated, and will give you a feel for what it's like to take the 🔸10% Pledge.

The Further Pledge

Some of our members wish to go beyond the standard 10% of the 🔸10% Pledge and take The Further Pledge. This involves choosing an annual amount they can live on and then pledging to give everything above that to charities they believe will do the most good. We do not attempt to push our members into taking The Further Pledge; it is simply another way to give that some people prefer.

Our co-founder Toby Ord took The Further Pledge when he co-founded Giving What We Can.

Other giving pledges offered elsewhere

Since the founding of Giving What We Can, many other organisations in the effective altruism community have offered other pledges that are targeted to specific groups of people. You may also want to consider:

• One For The World’s 1% pledge to GiveWell’s top charities
• The Life You Can Save’s variable pledge amount, which is designed to feel like a ‘barely noticeable amount’ for a year
• The Founders Pledge for equity holders to donate at least 5% of equity upon a liquidity event
• The Generation Pledge for wealth inheritors to give at least 10% of inheritance within five years of inheriting
• The High Impact Athletes pledge for athletes to give at least 2% of their annual winnings