Skip to content

3 Charitable Giving Tax Changes to Know for 2026

Steven Swierkowski, CFP®, RICP®

For most people, charitable giving starts with the cause. You see a need, you want to help, and you write a check or click the donate button. 

But here’s the thing: a little planning can sometimes make those same gifts more impactful from a tax perspective, too. Here are a few updates to the tax rules around charitable giving for 2026 worth knowing. 

1. You Can Deduct Some Cash Donations Even If You Take the Standard Deduction  

For years, one of the quirks of the tax code was that if you took the standard deduction, your charitable gifts usually didn’t give you a tax benefit.

Since roughly 90% of taxpayers take the standard deduction, this applied to a lot of people.

As part of the One Big Beautiful Bill, taxpayers can now deduct certain charitable cash donations when taking the standard deduction. Here are the maximum allowable deductions if using the standard deduction:

    • Up to $1,000 for single filers
    • Up to $2,000 for married couples filing jointly

This deduction applies to donations made by check, credit card, online payment, or payroll deduction to qualified charitable organizations.

For many donors who give regularly, but don’t itemize deductions, this creates at least some tax benefit. 

2. New Limits for Itemized Charitable Deductions 

For taxpayers who do itemize deductions, there’s significant changes beginning in 2026 which reduce, and possibly limit for high earners, the deductibility of charitable donations.

Charitable deductions will now have a floor based on Adjusted Gross Income (AGI).

Specifically, taxpayers can only deduct the portion of charitable contributions that exceeds 0.5% of their AGI.

So, if someone has $200,000 in AGI and itemizes deductions, the first $1,000 of charitable donations would not be deductible.

There’s also a cap affecting individuals in the top marginal tax bracket (37%).

For those taxpayers, the value of itemized charitable deductions is limited to a 35% tax benefit. 

3. The Maximum Qualified Charitable Distribution Is Increasing  

For individuals who give later in life, Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs) after age 70 ½ can be a powerful way to support charities and reduce taxable income.

A QCD allows someone to send money directly from an IRA to a qualified charity instead of taking the distribution as taxable income.

Because the money goes straight from the IRA to the charity, the distribution is never considered taxable income in the first place.

For 2026, the annual QCD limit increases to $111,000 per person.

Some other key QCD rules:

    • Individuals must be age 70½ or older to make a QCD.
    • The payment must go directly from the IRA to a qualified 501(c)(3) charity.
    • QCDs can count toward Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs).

Final Thought 

Charitable giving is ultimately about supporting the causes that matter most to you, and a little planning can also help you make the most of your gifts from a financial perspective.

If you’d like to explore these strategies in more detail, we’ve put together a Charitable Giving Guide that walks through several simple ways to structure your donations more thoughtfully.

Nick Murphy, CFP® is the founder of Counterweight Private Wealth, a fee-only, fiduciary wealth management firm serving high-net-worth individuals navigating significant financial transitions. Counterweight provides comprehensive financial planning, tax strategy, tax preparation, and investment management.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute personalized financial, tax, or legal advice. Please consult qualified professionals regarding your specific situation.

Counterweight Private Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) with its principal offices in Raleigh, NC and Wilmington, NC. Registration of an investment adviser does not imply any specific level of skill or training and does not constitute an endorsement of the firm by the Commission. Counterweight Private Wealth only transacts business in states in which it is properly registered or is excluded or exempted from registration. A copy of Counterweight Private Wealth’s current written disclosure brochure filed with the SEC which discusses among other things, its business practices, services, and fees, is available through the SEC’s website at: www.adviserinfo.sec.gov.

Please note, the information provided in this document is for informational purposes only and investors should determine for themselves whether a particular service or product is suitable for their investment needs. Please refer to the disclosure and offering documents for further information concerning specific products or services. All investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal. Statements of future expectations, estimate, projections, and other forward-looking statements are based on available information and author’s view as of the time of these statements. Accordingly, such statements are inherently speculative as they are based on assumptions that may involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Past performance of various investment strategies, sectors, vehicles and indices are not indicative of future results.

This material is not intended to be relied upon as a forecast, research, or investment advice, and is not a recommendation, offer, or solicitation to buy or sell any securities or to adopt any investment strategy. The information and opinions contained in this material are derived from proprietary and nonproprietary sources deemed to be reliable, are not necessarily all inclusive, and are not guaranteed as to its accuracy. This material is provided for educational purposes only and does not constitute investment, legal, tax, or accounting advice. Please consult with a qualified professional for this type of advice for your own unique situation.