Giving Tuesday In MA: Bay State Is Most Generous, Report Says

As Americans dig into their bank accounts for #GivingTuesday — a national observance founded on social media to encourage more philanthropy — some states can be counted on to lead the charge. And when it comes to that kind of generosity, no state gives more than Massachusetts, according to an analysis of Google search terms.

It's not official, but an analysis by Digital Third Coast suggests Bay State residents are always looking for a way to give. The analysis looked at four popular search terms — “best charities to donate to,” “places to donate near me,” “volunteer opportunities near me” and “what percentage of income should be donated to charity.” The site then calculated search volume for those terms per capita in Massachusetts.

Massachusetts wasn't alone in New England, where every state ranked in the top 20.

The top five states were Massachusetts, Delaware, Michigan, New Hampshire and Virginia.

Southern states dominated the lower tier. Louisiana ranked 50th, followed by New Mexico, Oklahoma, Montana and Arkansas. See how other states compared here.

Last year, Americans raised an estimated $275 million for nonprofit groups on #GivingTuesday, which is observed the Tuesday after Thanksgiving and often launches the end-of-the-year giving season. Today (Nov. 27) is #GivingTuesday 2018.

The analysis doesn’t show how much people in our state actually gave.

The global #GivingTuesday movement got its start in 2012 at the Belfer Center for Innovation at the 92nd Street Y, a cultural center in New York City. It harnesses the power of social media — you’ll see the #GivingTuesday hashtag popping up on your accounts — and the generosity of people and corporations to unite people around the values of community service and giving.

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