As Ramadan Ends, British Muslims Continue to be a Leading Force in UK Charitable Giving

As Ramadan draws to a close, British Muslim charitable giving continues to soar.

Last week, the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) released its annual UK Giving Report, revealing that £15.4 billion was donated by the public in the past year. While this marks a nationwide decline in charitable contributions compared to previous years, it underscores the ongoing generosity of British Muslims.

Despite comprising only 6% of the population, British Muslims remain a generous minority, outsizing their charitable impact by more than double their proportional share, making a significant contribution to the third sector. In 2024, research by Blue State estimated that British Muslims donated between £1.48 billion and £2.22 billion. At MCF, we estimate that at least £200 million of this total was given during Ramadan alone, underscoring the importance of charitable contributions during the holy month. Despite the broader decline in charitable giving, Muslim donors are giving more than ever, accounting for a substantial share of donations and breathing new life into the British third sector.

The generosity of Muslim donors is well-documented across several academic articles and research. In 2021, think tank Ayaan institute found that Muslim charitable giving amounted to nearly £708 million annually. More recently, Blue State’s UK Giving Behaviours Tracker: 2024, revealed that Muslim giving significantly outpaces the national average, with annual contributions averaging £708: more than four times higher than those of non-religious donors. Their research estimated the total annual value of Muslim-giving to be between £1.48 billion to £2.2 billion. Moreover, our own study in 2023, British Muslim Charitable Giving Report II: The Impact of the Cost-of-Living Crisis, found that British Muslims were more likely than the general public to increase their giving in the year ahead: 27% said they would give more, compared to just 12% of the general public. Meanwhile, only 19% of Muslims said they would give less, compared to 24% of the general population. These figures highlight how deeply embedded giving is within Muslim communities, a commitment sustained throughout the year, not just during the month of Ramadan. Charitable giving may be falling across the UK, but not among British Muslims, a further demonstration of their significant contribution to the charity sector.

Recent economic woes have fuelled financial uncertainty within the general public as we continue to recover from the covid pandemic and cost-of-living crisis. Including the rise in costs for energy and food, the employment market has harshly affected the country, perhaps underscoring the decline in charitable giving. This uncertainty has also impacted British Muslims, who are 2.5 times more likely to worry about unemployment and job security than the UK average. Despite these insecurities, charitable giving among British Muslims seem to remain consistent across income levels, contrasting the national trend. In the face of such financial crises, charitable giving remains to be a priority among British Muslims, reflecting the importance of observing charitable habits in the Islamic faith.

Beyond financial contributions, British Muslims are more involved in charitable activities including volunteering and societal involvement on a community level, in contrast to the general UK population. According to CAF’s recent report, 10% of respondents said that they volunteered in 2024, equivalent to 5.6 million adults, a decline of 1.5 million since 2023. Yet, our study in 2023 found that 43% of British Muslims have volunteered, a significant difference demonstrating British Muslim contribution to charities. The power of Muslim giving is exhibited in multiple facets of the charitable sector, on all rungs of the ladder: a trend that is only gaining strength.

In light of these findings, it is clear that British Muslims are not only sustaining but elevating the charitable landscape in the UK. Their unwavering generosity—despite economic hardship, rising financial insecurity and broader societal disengagement—demands recognition. As national giving trends falter, the Muslim community’s steadfast commitment to philanthropy, volunteerism, and civic participation offers both a counter-narrative and a model for the sector. Their contributions are not peripheral; they are central to the vitality and future of the third sector. It is time this impact was acknowledged accordingly—by charities, policymakers, and society at large.