National DAF Day (October 9, 2025) is a great moment to move dollars from intention into action. If you have a donor-advised fund (DAF), consider recommending grants to charities that have met CharityWatch’s most rigorous standards for financial efficiency, governance, and transparency. Our Top-Rated list highlights organizations that spend 75%+ of their cash expenses on programs, keep their cost to raise $100 to $25 or less, do not hold excessive assets in reserve, and that meet governance benchmarks—while also earning “open-book” status for disclosing core financial documents to CharityWatch and the public.
Browse the Top-Rated picks below by cause and recommend a grant from your DAF directly through your sponsor (e.g., Fidelity Charitable, Vanguard Charitable, National Philanthropic Trust, DAFgiving360) using the charity’s name and EIN (tax ID number) from its profile page. For the full, continuously updated directory of Top-Rated charities, see CharityWatch’s Top-Rated Charities page.
Also, we hope you will consider making a donation to CharityWatch this National DAF Day in support of our independent watchdog work and the charity ratings that result from it. In your DAF portal, search for CharityWatch (American Institute of Philanthropy, Tax ID #33-0491030) and recommend a grant for general support so we can put your gift to work where it’s needed most. No DAF? You can also donate directly on our website.
Thank you for giving wisely—and for powering the watchdog that makes wise giving possible.
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| Drug Policy Alliance | A- |
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| Asia Foundation | A |
| Asia Society | B+ |
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| National Urban League (National Office) | A- |
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| Action on Smoking and Health | B+ |
| Food and Water Watch | B+ |
| Media Research Center | B+ |
| Project on Government Oversight (POGO) | A |
| Public Citizen Foundation | A |
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| Hispanic Federation | A |
| Hispanic Scholarship Fund | A+ |
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| Bowery Residents’ Committee (BRC) | B+ |
| Coalition for the Homeless | A |
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| Center for Victims of Torture | B+ |
| Committee to Protect Journalists | B+ |
| Human Rights First | A |
| Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) | A- |
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| American Red Cross | A- |
| Farm Aid | A |
| Good360 | A- |
| The Y (National Office) | A |
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| Action Against Hunger-USA | A |
| City Harvest | B+ |
| Feed My Starving Children | A |
| Feeding America | A- |
| Food Bank For New York City | A- |
| The Hunger Project | B+ |
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| Trevor Project | A- |
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| ProLiteracy Worldwide | A- |
| Charity | Rating |
|---|
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| National Council on Aging (NCOA) | B+ |
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| AFS-USA | A- |
| Clinton Foundation | A- |
| International Peace Institute | A |
| United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee | A- |
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| Concerns of Police Survivors (COPS) | A+ |
| Tunnel to Towers Foundation | A+ |
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| American Battlefield Trust | A |
| Corporate Accountability | A |
| League of Women Voters Education Fund | A- |
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| Compassion & Choices | A |
| Compassion & Choices Action Network | A+ |
| Death with Dignity National Center | A- |
| Starlight Children’s Foundation (National Office) | B+ |
| Sunshine Foundation (National Office) | A |
| Charity | Rating |
|---|---|
| Global Fund for Women | A |
| Legal Momentum | B+ |
| Ms. Foundation for Women | B+ |
| National Women’s Law Center | A- |