In 2023, I donated 46,645 $, which represents ~75% of my post-tax income.
[My donations are a bit messy, since I often asked employers or clients to donate my “salary” to a charity instead of having it paid out to me and only then re-directing it. Sometimes this limited my choices of where to donate, and not all employers offered this. I work on AI Safety and so my donations go towards GHD which reflects my hedging and has some other philosophical reasons I am happy to share if you reach out to me.]
Going forward, I will re-evaluate whether to include or even prioritize animal welfare in my giving (I had previously decided against that, but I’m now questioning my reasoning behind that decision).
[Edited to include new donations that I just made]
This mostly covers smaller amounts of work test compensation that wasn’t claimed or re-directed immediately, or work that I was offered money for but ultimately turned down the payment. I don’t want to name any organization here but am happy to share details if you are curious.
Congratulations! 75% of your post-tax income is impressive. I am at 63%, but I don’t think I can cut much more of my living expenses (currently living at 120% of the US Federal poverty level). I guess I must be saving too much for retirement. As you, I am also debating how much to contribute to animal welfare, so your thoughts are useful.
Thanks for your reply. I don’t know your financial situation so I don’t want to make assumptions but I think saving for retirement or building some general runway is important, and I would never want you to think that you aren’t doing enough, especially if you are donating 63% (!) of your income. That’s fantastic! And there will always be someone who donates more than you 😉 it’s not a race! 63% might be what works for you, and that’s great.
I should also note that while I have always been frugal, I was only able to donate this much because for a large part of the year, I didn’t have to pay anything for housing (and, sometimes, meals), and I didn’t count “immediate” donations of the kind mentioned above as income, so this maybe explains the high percentage. In 2024, I will likely move, and other changes in my personal life will likely mean I will get a lot closer to ~50% or less.
Going forward, I will re-evaluate whether to include or even prioritize animal welfare in my giving (I had previously decided against that, but I’m now questioning my reasoning behind that decision).
I would be curious to know what led you to such reevaluation.
In 2023, I donated 46,645 $, which represents ~75% of my post-tax income.
[My donations are a bit messy, since I often asked employers or clients to donate my “salary” to a charity instead of having it paid out to me and only then re-directing it. Sometimes this limited my choices of where to donate, and not all employers offered this. I work on AI Safety and so my donations go towards GHD which reflects my hedging and has some other philosophical reasons I am happy to share if you reach out to me.]
My 2023 donations will be split as follows:
GiveWell (Top Charities Fund): 26,655 $
GiveDirectly: 6,000 $
Malaria Consortium: 3,000 $
CEA [1]: 3,150 $
Misc [2]: ~2,340 $
Effektiv Spenden (as gift vouchers): ~5,500 $
Going forward, I will re-evaluate whether to include or even prioritize animal welfare in my giving (I had previously decided against that, but I’m now questioning my reasoning behind that decision).
[Edited to include new donations that I just made]
This is compensation for contracting work that I negotiated an hourly salary for which I then never claimed.
This mostly covers smaller amounts of work test compensation that wasn’t claimed or re-directed immediately, or work that I was offered money for but ultimately turned down the payment. I don’t want to name any organization here but am happy to share details if you are curious.
Congratulations! 75% of your post-tax income is impressive. I am at 63%, but I don’t think I can cut much more of my living expenses (currently living at 120% of the US Federal poverty level). I guess I must be saving too much for retirement. As you, I am also debating how much to contribute to animal welfare, so your thoughts are useful.
Hi Diego!
Thanks for your reply. I don’t know your financial situation so I don’t want to make assumptions but I think saving for retirement or building some general runway is important, and I would never want you to think that you aren’t doing enough, especially if you are donating 63% (!) of your income. That’s fantastic! And there will always be someone who donates more than you 😉 it’s not a race! 63% might be what works for you, and that’s great.
I should also note that while I have always been frugal, I was only able to donate this much because for a large part of the year, I didn’t have to pay anything for housing (and, sometimes, meals), and I didn’t count “immediate” donations of the kind mentioned above as income, so this maybe explains the high percentage. In 2024, I will likely move, and other changes in my personal life will likely mean I will get a lot closer to ~50% or less.
Thanks for sharing, MvK!
I would be curious to know what led you to such reevaluation.