Christmas giving is coming earlier, says Enthuse
Howard Lake | 13 November 2026 | News
Christmas giving is arriving earlier, according to the latest annual report from fundraising technology provider Enthuse, which found that 2 December was the busiest day for donations in 2025.
The 2026 edition of Enthuse’s Christmas Giving Insights, which looks at December donations over several years, says this is the first time in the report’s history that 2 December has been the top day for donation volume. It took 4.7% of the month’s donations, a lower share than the 5.5% recorded by the previous year’s busiest day, 12 December. Enthuse says the gap between the best and worst days continues to close, which it links to more even giving after Covid and the rise of hybrid and remote working.
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First two weeks of December busiest
After 2 December, Enthuse lists 12 December and 1 December (both 4.6%), 11 December (4.5%) and 3 December (4.4%) as the next best days, and says all five of the busiest days fell in the first fortnight.
By contrast, it says three of the four top days between 2020 and 2023 fell in the fourth week of the month. The days of the first week averaged 4% of the month’s donations each, the second week 3.8% and the third 3.2%. Enthuse’s advice is that charities need festive campaigns ready to go from 1 December.
Later gifts are worth more
Volume is not the same as value. The highest average donation of the month came on 20 December, around 35% above the December average, followed by 22 December (about 31% above) and 19 December (about 29%). Across 15 to 24 December, average donation value was around 37% higher than in the first fortnight.
Enthuse’s conclusion is that charities should not choose between early and late December: plan for volume in the first half of the month, then keep campaigns running as Christmas approaches, perhaps adapting messages or suggested gift amounts for the second half.
Midweek and late morning
Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday were the strongest days, each averaging 3.5% of December donations, with Monday and Friday on 3.4%. The 0.1 percentage point gap between best and worst weekday is the narrowest in the report’s history, compared with 0.5 in 2023 and 1 in 2020. Weekends trailed, with Sunday at 2.7% and Saturday at 2.4%.
On timing, 10:00 and 11:00 each took 7.3% of the day’s donations, with 12:00 on 7% and 13:00 on 6.7%. Enthuse calls 10:00 to 13:00 the ‘golden window’ for giving. Every hour from 14:00 to 17:00 stayed above 6%, while activity fell to 5.5% at 21:00 and 4% by 22:00. It suggests sending emails and publishing social posts between 09:00 and 14:00, and avoiding times before 09:00 and after 21:00.
Looking ahead to 2026
Enthuse notes that 22 December 2026 falls on a Tuesday and suggests charities consider testing a higher-value appeal that day, as 22 December was the second best day for average donation value in 2025.
Enthuse provides donation and events registration technology to charities and was acquired by The Access Group in February 2026.
The report does not set out the sample size or methodology behind the figures. Enthuse has previously described the data as anonymised data points from its own platform, so the findings may not represent all UK Christmas giving.
You can download the report in PDF for free from Enthuse in return for registering your details.
- December 12th is most popular day for festive giving, says Enthuse (1 December 2025)
- 1 December the best day for festive donations in 2023 (21 November 2024)
- December giving insights revealed as Christmas planning gets underway (11 July 2023)
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.