Charities Rated

When looking for charities to donate too it may seem difficult to decide what charity to select: how does one know what the best charities are and how does one check out charities?  While it is true that there are hundreds, possibly thousands of charities looking for donations and support, it is possible to check out charities and discover the best charities by reviewing how charities are rated.  Charities rated information provides the individual with a general assessment of the overall charity, how well the charity functions and allows the individual to quickly select the very best charities in existence.  Giving is always kind, but some organizations are not always forthcoming with information or well managed.  By viewing charity ratings it becomes possible to determine which of all the current charities in existence are the best, are well managed and that is putting all the money that the organization receives to good use.


Find Ratings of Charities Online

With the use of a search engine anyone is moments away from discovering sites that rate charities online.  For example, major search engines list the American Institute of Philanthropy as a website that offers charity ratings and thereby makes to process of choosing the best charities a simpler process.  Charities rated information provides the individual seeking out the best charities with a summary about a particular charity and how that charity utilizes received funds.  At the American Institute of Philanthropy (AIP), charities are given a grade level which determines the quality of the charity in question.  An “A” is given to the best charities, a “B” to the charities that meet the grading criteria and so on and so forth.

Charities are rated via the grading scale, one that is very similar to academic grading criteria.  An “A” means that the charity is excellent; a “B” means that the charity being rated is considered good, a “C” suggests that the charity is satisfactory, and anything below a C denotes that the charity being rated exhibits some issues.  When choosing charities to donate too, it is a good idea to select a charity that has a charity rating between A and C.

Charity ratings are also made available at Charity Guide.  The Charity Guide website is accessible at: (http://www.charityguide.org/volunteer/charityratings.htm) gives a full explanation of charity rating criteria and a listing of the best charities available.  Meanwhile, additional information about charities can be found at the Better Business Bureau’s Wise Giving site: it gives web visitors an opportunity to check out varies charity reports and to see if a charity has received any complaints against the organization.  The site also offers a BBB charity Accreditation which acts as an indication that the charity meets the standards set forth by the Better Business Bureau.  You can visit the BBB Wise Giving section at:
http://us.bbb.org/WWWRoot/SitePage.aspx?
site=113&id=5fe39041-face-4ffb-8551-1ace558f9082

If interested in a charity’s financial dealings, one can research as charity at Charity Navigator (http://www.charitynavigator.org/).  At the Charity Navigator website one can immediately access a listing of the 10 best charities, and they can also read about charities that ten to run in the red in terms of financial management.  There are more than 500 charities rated on the Charity Navigator website and there is a searchable feature as well as an A-Z directory for locating charity rated information.  If looking for sound advice about how to select a charity to donate too, again the Charity Navigator serves as an excellent website.


Who Rates Charities?

Groups like the AIP as well as other charity rating sites rate charities and are considered charity watchdogs.  The AIP in particular is a nonprofit organization so the organization does not get paid to make its ratings.  The likelihood that the ratings provided are biased or skewed is nil – the organization does not ask organizations to pay for reviews and ratings, and the AIP was established by individuals with a solid financial background.  The knowledge obtained by the members of the AIP Committee Board provide them with the unique know how needed in terms of rating how a charity deals with the money it collects via donations.


Why Are Charities Rated?

Charities are rated so that an individual, a business, or a corporation can make a wise decision about the organization(s) they choose to donate too.  Not all charities are created equal and there are, unfortunately, organizations that exist that are not truthful in their dealings with the public.  To ensure that the best charities are chosen, one can check out charities thorough watchdog organizations that look into the background of the charities being researched.  The way charities are managed is just as important as the cause that a charity addresses.  If funds are not managed appropriately, a donator’s dollar may not necessarily be as well spent as it would have been if given to a charity that has good control over its finances.