Your donation can count at tax time now, even if you don’t itemize

We have some good news for our community of donors. Starting this year, a lot more people can deduct their charitable gifts on their federal taxes.

Until now, most people got no tax break for giving. To deduct a donation, you had to itemize, and about 90% of households take the standard deduction instead. If you’ve given $50 or $500 to Big City Mountaineers and wondered why it never showed up on your return, that’s probably why.

A new federal law changes that, starting with 2026.

What’s new

Beginning with the 2026 tax year, you can deduct cash gifts to qualifying charities on top of the standard deduction. You’ll claim it on the return you file in early 2027.

• Single filers: up to $1,000
• Married couples filing jointly: up to $2,000

The deduction is permanent. The limits aren’t adjusted for inflation, so they’ll stay at $1,000 and $2,000 unless Congress changes them.

What counts

• Gifts of money: cash, check, credit or debit card, or an online gift through our website
• Made to a public charity, like Big City Mountaineers
• Made between January 1 and December 31, 2026

What doesn’t count

• Gifts of stock, gear, or other property
• Gifts made through a donor-advised fund
• Gifts to most private foundations and to certain “supporting organizations”
• Anything over the $1,000 or $2,000 limit (extra amounts can’t be carried over to next year)

What it’s worth

A deduction lowers the income you pay tax on, so you save a percentage of your gift. For example, if you’re in the 12% federal tax bracket, a $500 gift lowers your federal taxes by about $60. If you don’t owe federal income tax, the deduction won’t change your bill.

For example, If you are in the 37% federal tax bracket and decided to max out your charitable gifting limit for a married couple at $2,000, that would result in a tax savings of $740.

Keep your records

• For any cash gift, keep a bank or card statement or a receipt from the charity showing its name, the date, and the amount.
• For a single gift of $250 or more, you need a written acknowledgment from the charity. We send one for every gift.
• If you got something in return, like a dinner or event ticket, only the amount above its value is deductible.

Why we’re sharing this

Every Big City Mountaineers expedition is fully subsidized, so the young people on our trips never pay to go. Gifts of every size make that possible. If this new rule makes your gift go a little further this year, great!

Gifts made by December 31 count toward your 2026 taxes. Make a gift here.

Big City Mountaineers can’t give tax advice. This post is for general information only. For questions about your own situation, please talk with a tax professional or visit IRS Topic 506.

Sources

• IRS Topic 506, Charitable contributions: amounts, start year, cash only, recordkeeping
• CPA Journal, Changes to Charitable Giving: public charities only, DAF and supporting-organization exclusions, permanence, no carryforward, taken on top of the standard deduction
• Fidelity Charitable, One Big Beautiful Bill: not indexed for inflation
• The Tax Adviser, Planning for new charitable contribution limits: 0.5% floor doesn’t apply to this deduction
• National Council of Nonprofits: 2020 and 2021 claim counts