How to Choose a Nonprofit to Donate To: A Legitimate Children's Charity Checklist
To choose a nonprofit to donate to, verify its 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status through the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search, check whether it is a BBB accredited charity or has a Charity Navigator rating, and look for clear, specific information about how donations are used. A legitimate charity will never pressure you to give immediately or ask for payment by gift card, wire transfer, or cryptocurrency.
Figuring out how to choose a nonprofit to donate to is harder than it should be. There are more than 1.8 million registered nonprofits in the United States, and while most are legitimate, telling a well-run local charity apart from a poorly managed one, or an outright scam, takes a few minutes of research most donors skip. Here is exactly what to check before you give, and how to verify a charity is legitimate before your money leaves your account.
Step 1: Confirm the Charity's Tax-Exempt Status
Every legitimate charity soliciting tax-deductible donations should be a registered 501(c)(3) organization. You can confirm this yourself, for free, using the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search (TEOS) at irs.gov/charities. Search by the organization's name or its Employer Identification Number (EIN), which any legitimate charity should provide on request without hesitation.
This single step also tells you whether your gift will be eligible for a donation tax deduction, which matters if you plan to itemize or claim the new non-itemizer deduction available starting in 2026.
Step 2: Check Independent Ratings, Not Just the Charity's Own Website
A charity's own website will always describe itself favorably. Independent watchdog organizations exist specifically to verify those claims:
BBB Wise Giving Alliance (Give.org) evaluates charities against 20 standards covering governance, finances, and fundraising practices. A charity rating of "BBB Accredited" means the organization has been independently reviewed and met all 20 standards.
Charity Navigator rates larger nonprofits on a four-star scale based on financial health and accountability.
Candid (formerly GuideStar) awards transparency seals based on how much financial and operational data an organization voluntarily discloses.
Smaller or newer local charities are sometimes too small to be rated by these platforms yet. That does not automatically mean something is wrong, but it does mean you should rely more heavily on the next two steps.
Step 3: Look at How Donations Are Actually Used
A commonly cited benchmark among charity watchdogs is that at least 70 percent of a nonprofit's budget should go toward actual programs, not administrative or fundraising costs. Some newer organizations or those providing more resource-intensive services may reasonably run higher overhead, but a legitimate charity should be able to clearly explain where your money goes, not offer vague generalities.
Ask directly: what specific program does this donation fund? How is impact measured? A charity that cannot answer clearly, or that only offers emotional language without specifics, is a reason to slow down.
Step 4: Watch for Red Flags
Charity fraud costs donors millions of dollars every year, and fraudsters rely on a fairly consistent set of tactics:
Pressure to give immediately. Legitimate charities let you decide on your own timeline. Phrases designed to create urgency are a warning sign.
Unusual payment requests. Legitimate charities rarely, if ever, ask for gift cards, wire transfers, or cryptocurrency. These payment methods are difficult to trace and nearly impossible to recover.
Imposter or lookalike names. Scammers sometimes register domains that are one letter off from a well-known or local charity's actual website. Always type the organization's URL directly rather than clicking a link from an email or social media message.
Vague answers about fund usage. If you ask a specific question and get a generic, feel-good non-answer, treat that as a signal to look elsewhere.
Step 5: Consider Local vs. National
Both local and national children's charities can be legitimate and effective, but they solve different problems. A large national organization often has more scale and broader name recognition, while a small local charity, when it is well-run and transparent, tends to offer something national organizations structurally cannot: direct, visible impact in your own community, and often a much higher percentage of each dollar reaching the specific children it serves, since overhead and administrative layers tend to be smaller.
Applying This Checklist to For Children Partners
For Children Partners is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit (Federal Tax ID: 92-0864139), rated A+ by the Better Business Bureau. One hundred percent of every donation goes directly toward funding school meals for children in Wake County, NC, with no portion diverted to overhead. You can verify our tax-exempt status independently through the IRS search tool described above, and our About page includes our full organizational background, founding story, and program details for anyone who wants to look closer before giving.
Ready to Support Wake County Children?
Every donation directly funds school meals for children who fall outside federal assistance eligibility. Donate Today
Prefer to Give in Person?
Join us on September 24, 2026 at Millbrook Manor in Raleigh for Eat, Drink and Be Giving 2026, an evening of cocktails, hors d'oeuvres, and fundraising to support Wake County children facing food insecurity. Get Tickets
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I verify a charity is legitimate before donating? Confirm its 501(c)(3) status through the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search, check its rating on BBB Wise Giving Alliance or Charity Navigator, and review how clearly it explains its use of funds. Be cautious of any organization that pressures you to give immediately or requests unusual payment methods.
What percentage of donations should go to programs versus overhead? A commonly cited benchmark is at least 70 percent of a charity's budget going directly to programs. Some newer or smaller organizations may have different ratios for legitimate reasons, so this figure should be one factor among several, not the only one.
Is a small local charity as trustworthy as a large national one? Both can be equally trustworthy if they are transparent and properly registered. Local charities often have lower overhead and more direct, visible community impact, while national organizations typically offer greater scale. The right choice depends on what matters most to you as a donor.
What red flags suggest a charity might not be legitimate? Pressure to donate immediately, requests for payment by gift card or wire transfer, vague or evasive answers about how funds are used, and website URLs that closely mimic a well-known organization's name are all signs to investigate further before giving.
How can I check if For Children Partners is a legitimate charity? For Children Partners is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit (Federal Tax ID: 92-0864139) and is BBB Accredited with an A+ rating. Both can be independently verified using the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search and BBB Give.org.
How do I find the best charities for children near me? Start with the checklist above: confirm 501(c)(3) status, check independent ratings, and review how transparent nonprofit organizations in your area are about fund usage. For families in Wake County, NC specifically, For Children Partners works directly with local schools and is one option worth reviewing using this same process.
The Bottom Line
A few minutes of research protects every dollar you give. Confirm tax-exempt status, check independent ratings, understand how funds are used, watch for red flags, and decide what balance of local impact versus national scale matters most to you. Whatever charity you ultimately choose, that small amount of due diligence ensures your generosity reaches the children it is meant to help.
Donate Today to Support Wake County Students
About the Author
Written by the For Children Partners Program Team.
Reviewed by E.K. Simmons, Founder of For Children Partners Inc.
For Children Partners Inc. is a registered 501(c)3 nonprofit organization (Federal Tax ID: 92-0864139), rated A+ by the Better Business Bureau. 100% of every tax-deductible donation goes directly toward providing school meals across Wake County, NC.
