What Can You Donate to Charity Besides Cash?

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When most people think about giving to charity, they think of cash: a check, a card payment, a transfer. It’s simple, and for many gifts it’s the right choice, but it isn’t the only option or always the most tax-efficient. You can also donate appreciated stock, real estate, business interests, and other assets, often to a donor-advised fund. Donating the asset itself can cost you less in tax than selling it first and giving the proceeds, which leaves more for the causes you support.

Which assets make sense, and how the tax works, depends on your situation. Before your next significant gift, ask your advisor what you could give besides cash.

Which assets can you give to charity?

Common appreciated assets include:

• Publicly traded stock: Shares held in a brokerage account, including concentrated positions you’ve been meaning to diversify.
• Restricted stock: Vested shares subject to lock-up periods or trading restrictions. Unvested shares generally can’t be given.
• Private company stock and business interests: Shares or ownership stakes in a privately held company, LLC, partnership, C-corp, or S-corp, including before or during a sale process. These gifts are more complex.
• Real estate: Appreciated property, including investment real estate, in certain situations.

Depending on the sponsoring charity, donors have also given:

• Cryptocurrency and other digital assets
• Oil, gas, and mineral rights or royalties
• Farmland and other agricultural assets
• Fine art, collectibles, and other tangible personal property
• Life insurance policies
• Private equity, hedge fund, and limited partnership interests

The sponsoring charity reviews every gift, and the more unusual the asset, the longer the review. Acceptance and tax treatment vary by charity and by asset. Appreciated stock can be especially tax-efficient to give, while other assets are treated differently. Your advisor and the sponsoring charity can tell you whether a specific asset is accepted and how it would be treated.

What if you’re giving an asset you’re about to sell? 

If you’re giving closely held shares or other business interests, give early in the sale process, before the deal is effectively certain. Once the deal is locked in, the most tax-efficient way to give may no longer be available. The window is often narrow and usually closes well before the closing date. The contribution has to be completed before a binding agreement to sell is signed, and ideally earlier.

The sponsoring charity also can’t be legally obligated to sell the shares. That is what allows the charity, not you, to be treated as the seller for tax purposes. If you wait too long, you may owe tax on the gain as if you had sold the shares yourself.

Talk to your advisor before you sign anything. They can help you work out whether an asset qualifies, what the timing requirements are, and how the gift fits your overall tax picture. Bring this guide to your next advisor meeting and ask if a donor-advised fund is right for you.

What does the gift make possible?

A well-planned gift of an appreciated asset can put more money in the hands of the organizations you support. It might be a business you spent years building, a property that grew in value over decades, or shares worth far more than you paid. Any of these can do more for a cause than a cash gift that costs you the same.

What is a donor-advised fund, and how does it help with a sale?

A donor-advised fund is a charitable giving account held by a sponsoring charity. It’s one of the most practical ways to give appreciated and complex assets before a sale.

You contribute now and get a tax deduction in the same year. The money can be invested for potential growth. Then you recommend grants to the charities you want to support on your own schedule, rather than under deal deadlines.

A donor-advised fund’s key features include:

• It takes complex assets. A donor-advised fund can accept assets that most charities can’t take directly.
• The sponsor holds the assets. Once you contribute, the sponsoring charity is the legal owner of the assets, with authority over how they’re invested and granted. You can recommend investments and which charities receive grants. Your contribution is irrevocable.
• Grants can be anonymous. A private foundation files a public Form 990-PF with the IRS each year that lists its grants. A donor-advised fund doesn’t require your name to appear on grants, which matters if you value privacy.
• Private stock can be deducted at fair market value. A gift of private company stock to a donor-advised fund is generally deductible at fair market value. The same gift to a private foundation is generally limited to what you paid for it.

The amount available for grants will go up or down with the investments you recommend. Growth is possible, but not guaranteed.

Frequently asked questions

Can you donate private stock or a business interest to a donor-advised fund?

Yes, in many cases, subject to the sponsoring charity’s review and acceptance. Not all assets qualify, and gifts above IRS thresholds generally need a qualified appraisal from an independent appraiser. Your advisors and the sponsoring charity also need to coordinate well before the deal is final.

Can you give assets like cryptocurrency or art? 

Yes, many donors do, depending on the sponsoring charity and the asset. Appreciated stock is straightforward and especially tax-efficient to give. Art and collectibles can be given but are treated differently for tax purposes. The sponsoring charity reviews each gift, and your advisor can tell you how a specific asset would work for you.

What’s the difference between giving an appreciated asset and giving cash?

Cash is simple and can be deducted against a larger share of your income, which is why many donors choose it. If you give an appreciated asset you’ve held for more than a year, you may avoid tax on the gain and deduct the asset’s fair market value. The better choice depends on your situation and the asset, and your advisor can help you compare.

What if you already sold and only have cash?

You can still give. A donor-advised fund accepts cash, and you may still get a charitable deduction for that tax year if you complete the contribution by December 31. Giving the asset itself before it’s sold is one of the most efficient ways to give. If that window has passed, giving the cash proceeds to a donor-advised fund and recommending grants over time is still a good approach.

If you haven’t sold yet and hold publicly traded stock, you can give those shares in kind, with no sale required first.

Do you need an advisor to donate appreciated assets?

For complex assets, yes. Restricted stock, private company shares, real estate, and business interests all need your advisor involved. These gifts take careful timing and coordination, especially around a sale, so they belong in your deal team’s hands alongside the sale itself. For publicly traded stock, the process is fairly simple.

This content is for educational and marketing purposes only and is not tax, legal, or financial advice. Tax outcomes depend on your individual circumstances and current law. Invested assets may rise or fall in value, and growth is not guaranteed. Invested assets are not insured against loss. Investment options and asset acceptance are determined solely by the sponsoring charity and not by Renaissance Acquisition Company LLC or its affiliates, agents, successors and assigns (collectively, “Ren”). Please consult your own tax, legal, and financial advisors before making charitable, legal, or financial decisions.