# What a Peer-to-Peer Donor Is Worth (and How to Make Them Yours)

The gift was a favor to a friend. The donor becomes yours only if you act inside the window.

## Key takeaways
- America's 30 largest peer-to-peer programs raised $1.17 billion in 2025, up 3.4%, with 2.63 million participants (Peer-to-Peer Professional Forum).
- The average individual peer-to-peer fundraiser raises $244 (Raisely, 2025), and the fundraiser, not their donors, is often the most valuable name a campaign adds to your file.
- A P2P donor's first gift was a favor to the friend who asked, so the organization starts as a stranger inside its own donor file.
- P2P donors are most likely to give again within the first 90 days of the initial gift, and repeat giving falls off after that window compared with donors from other channels (NonProfit PRO).
- The conversion play is a thank-you from the organization that names the friend's campaign, one concrete report on what it funded, and one invitation of your own inside 90 days.

A peer-to-peer donor's first gift was a favor to the friend who asked, not a vote for your mission. That is the fact that sets their value: P2P campaigns bring in donors who mostly do not stay, as [NonProfit PRO's retention analysis](https://www.nonprofitpro.com/article/peer-to-peer-fundraising-brings-in-donors-but-most-dont-stay/) puts it, and the ones who become your donors are won by what you do in the 90 days after the gift. This article covers what a P2P donor and a P2P fundraiser are each worth, and the play that converts a friend's donor into yours.

## How big is peer-to-peer fundraising?

Large at the top and thinning in the middle. America's 30 largest P2P programs raised $1.17 billion in 2025, up 3.4% year over year, with participation up 3.6% to 2.63 million people, per the [Peer-to-Peer Professional Forum's 20th annual survey](https://www.peertopeerforum.com/us-top-thirty-peer-to-peer-fundraising-programs/). The American Heart Association's Heart Walk led at $121 million, and even the 30th-largest program, Cleveland Clinic's VeloSano ride, raised $14.5 million. Meanwhile 32% of nonprofits use peer-to-peer fundraising, down from 45% in 2023 (Nonprofit Tech for Good, 2026): the biggest programs keep growing while fewer organizations run one at all.

Peer-to-peer fundraising in 2025 (Peer-to-Peer Professional Forum Top 30 survey; Nonprofit Tech for Good 2026; Raisely 2025)

| Measure | Figure |
| --- | --- |
| Raised by the 30 largest U.S. P2P programs | $1.17 billion, up 3.4% |
| Participants across the Top 30 | 2.63 million, up 3.6% |
| Largest single program (American Heart Association Heart Walk) | $121 million |
| 30th-largest program (Cleveland Clinic VeloSano) | $14.5 million |
| Nonprofits using peer-to-peer fundraising | 32%, down from 45% in 2023 |
| Average raised per individual fundraiser | $244 |

**$1.17B** — raised by America's 30 largest peer-to-peer programs in 2025, up 3.4% year over year, with 2.63 million participants ([Peer-to-Peer Professional Forum, 20th annual Top 30 survey](https://www.peertopeerforum.com/us-top-thirty-peer-to-peer-fundraising-programs/))

For a small organization, the useful number is not the Heart Walk's. It is the $244 the average individual fundraiser raises (Raisely, 2025). A campaign with 50 fundraisers at that average brings in about $12,200, an illustrative figure built from the published average. Real money, but rarely transformative. The lasting value of a P2P campaign is the names it adds to the file, and that value depends entirely on what happens next.

## Who did a peer-to-peer donor actually give to?

The friend. The ask came from someone they know, the credibility behind it was the friendship, and the cause was often incidental. Many P2P donors complete the whole gift without ever visiting your website. Then the export lands in your donor file, where they look identical to every other first-time donor: a name, a date, an amount. They are not identical. A typical first-time donor at least chose your organization. A P2P donor chose their friend.

The general first-gift math is already unforgiving: 18.9% of first-time donors across all channels were retained to the next year in 2025, per the [Fundraising Effectiveness Project](https://publications.fepreports.org/archive/2025-q4/), and a P2P donor starts further back than most, because the tie that produced the gift belongs to someone else. NonProfit PRO's read of the channel is blunt: peer-to-peer brings in donors, but most do not stay.

**18.9%** — of first-time donors across all channels were retained to the next year in 2025, the cliff every P2P donor starts behind ([Fundraising Effectiveness Project, Q4 2025](https://publications.fepreports.org/archive/2025-q4/))

## When does the second gift happen, if it happens?

Early or not at all. P2P donors are most likely to give again within the first 90 days of the initial gift, and past that window their repeat giving drops off compared with donors acquired through other channels (NonProfit PRO). The friend's campaign is still fresh, the cause still has a face, and a well-made invitation can land. Ninety days later the gift is a forgotten line on a card statement. The window is the whole strategy.

> **The retention number you will not find here**
>
> A specific peer-to-peer donor retention percentage circulates in fundraising roundups without a named study behind it, so it does not appear in this article. The direction is verified: repeat giving concentrates in the first 90 days and falls off after. The percentage that matters is measurable on your own file anyway: twelve-month retention of donors whose acquisition source is tagged peer-to-peer.

## How do you convert a friend's donor into your donor?

With ordinary stewardship aimed at an unusual donor: someone who has given to you once and has never heard your case. The play runs inside the 90-day window, in order:

1. Thank them from the organization within days, separately from the platform receipt, and name the friend's campaign so the message makes sense to someone who may not remember your name.
2. Report back once, concretely: one sentence on what the campaign funded. This is the donor's first exposure to your case, so make it a result, not a brochure.
3. Make one invitation of your own inside the 90 days, framed as joining what their friend cares about. The [second gift](https://donorinsights.com/articles/second-gift-window) is where retention takes its largest single jump.
4. Tag the acquisition source as peer-to-peer in the donor file, so this cohort's retention and value can be read on their own.
5. Move the ones who give directly into the regular [welcome series](https://donorinsights.com/articles/donor-welcome-series). That second gift, the first one made to you, is the moment they stop being the friend's donor.

If the campaign is attached to an event, a walk or a ride or a gala, the attendees are a separate cohort with their own follow-up gap, covered in [what an event donor is worth](https://donorinsights.com/articles/event-donor-value). Keep the two lists distinct in the file: a P2P donor who never attended anything needs the case made from scratch, while an attendee has at least been in the room.

## What is the fundraiser worth, separate from their donors?

More than any single donor they recruited. The average individual fundraiser raises $244 (Raisely, 2025), and to do it they performed the hardest act in fundraising: they asked their own friends, with their own name on the ask. Steward them as a volunteer leader, not as a donor record. Their own thank-you, a first look at what the campaign funded, and an early invitation to fundraise again next season. A returning fundraiser brings their network back with them, and a lapsed one takes it away quietly.

**$244** — average raised per individual peer-to-peer fundraiser ([Raisely, 2025, via Nonprofit Tech for Good](https://www.nptechforgood.com/101-best-practices/online-fundraising-statistics-for-nonprofits/))

So what is a peer-to-peer donor worth? On arrival, one gift that was really a gift to someone else. Converted, a donor acquired at almost no cost who came with a built-in social tie to your cause. The campaign hands you the introduction. The 90 days that follow decide which of those two donors you actually got.

## FAQ

**Do peer-to-peer donors give again?**

Most do not stay (NonProfit PRO). When P2P donors do give again, it is most likely within the first 90 days of the initial gift, and repeat giving falls off after that window. Conversion depends on direct stewardship from the organization inside those 90 days.

**What does the average peer-to-peer fundraiser raise?**

$244 (Raisely, 2025). A campaign with 50 fundraisers at that average brings in about $12,200, an illustrative figure built from the published average. The names the campaign adds to the donor file are usually worth more than the campaign's own revenue.

**Is peer-to-peer fundraising growing?**

At the top, yes: America's 30 largest programs raised $1.17 billion in 2025, up 3.4%, with participation up 3.6% (Peer-to-Peer Professional Forum). But only 32% of nonprofits use P2P at all, down from 45% in 2023 (Nonprofit Tech for Good), so the format is concentrating in the programs that run it well.

**Should the fundraiser be treated differently from their donors?**

Yes. The fundraiser asked their own friends on your behalf, which makes them a volunteer leader, not a donor record. They get their own thank-you, an early report on results, and the first invitation to fundraise again. A returning fundraiser brings their network back with them.

**How is a P2P donor different from an event donor?**

An event donor was in the room and experienced the cause directly. A P2P donor may never have visited your website: their gift was a favor to the friend who asked. Both cohorts need follow-up, but a P2P donor needs the case made from scratch, which is why the two sources should be tagged separately in the file.

## Sources
- [Peer-to-Peer Professional Forum, 20th annual Top 30 survey (2025 results)](https://www.peertopeerforum.com/us-top-thirty-peer-to-peer-fundraising-programs/)
- [Nonprofit Tech for Good, 2026 report and online fundraising statistics (P2P adoption, Raisely per-fundraiser average)](https://www.nptechforgood.com/101-best-practices/online-fundraising-statistics-for-nonprofits/)
- [NonProfit PRO, peer-to-peer fundraising brings in donors but most don't stay](https://www.nonprofitpro.com/article/peer-to-peer-fundraising-brings-in-donors-but-most-dont-stay/)
- [Fundraising Effectiveness Project, Q4 2025 report (first-time donor retention)](https://publications.fepreports.org/archive/2025-q4/)

## Disclaimer

**Educational purpose.** This article is published for general informational and educational purposes only. It is not investment, financial, funding, donor, tax, legal, accounting, or fundraising advice, and reading it creates no advisory, fiduciary, or client relationship. Consult your own qualified professionals before making decisions.

**Not an offer.** Nothing here is an offer, solicitation, or recommendation to buy, sell, donate to, or fund any organization or security. Pray, Inc. DonorInsights.com is not a registered investment adviser, broker-dealer, law firm, accounting firm, or fundraising counsel, and publishes only impersonal commentary of general and regular circulation.

**Public data, no guarantee.** Analyses of named organizations rely on public sources such as IRS Form 990 filings, an organization's own published materials, and reputable press. These sources are believed reliable but are not audited or independently verified by us. The content may contain errors or omissions and is provided "as is" with no warranties of accuracy, completeness, or currency.

**Opinions and estimates.** Donor-level and financial figures for named organizations are our inferences and opinions, including forward-looking projections that are not guarantees of future results.

**No affiliation.** Named organizations are independent and are not clients, affiliates, sponsors, or endorsers of DonorInsights.com. Third-party names and trademarks belong to their owners and are used only for identification and commentary. Links to third-party sites are not endorsements.

**No reliance.** We accept no liability for any action taken based on this content.

**Corrections.** This analysis reflects public sources available as of publication. If you are an organization discussed here, or any reader, and you believe a figure or statement is inaccurate, email hello@donorinsights.com and we will review it and correct any error promptly.

Your use of this site is governed by our [Terms of Use](https://donorinsights.com/terms).

Source: DonorInsights.com — https://donorinsights.com/articles/p2p-donor-value