Legacy giving is a unique and meaningful form of philanthropy. It enables donors to continue supporting the causes they care about after they pass away, and due to the circumstances it allows them to give more than they could have done throughout their life. Legacy gifts are often larger than typical donations. However, most people don’t consider leaving part of their estate to charitable causes unless prompted, and very few report having been prompted to think about charitable giving while creating their estate plans.

To better understand motivations for and barriers to legacy giving, we surveyed 552 U.S. adults from households making $200,000 or more. Our new report shares insights into the legacy giving plans of these high-income households, from what their plans are to why they are motivated to give.