Americans continue overwhelmingly to donate to a wide range of charitable causes, with more than91 percent of them participating at some level of giving, a newly released survey shows.


The second annual charitable giving survey by Freelanthropy LLC, a free online charitable search program, provides details about how much Americans contribute to charities and the types of organizations to which they give.


Some of the surveys findings were surprising and changed dramatically from the results reported last year, says Dan Sheehy, founder and president of Freelanthropy.com. This updated information allows us to expose patterns of giving to help nonprofit organizations get the most out of their fundraising efforts.


The Freelanthropy Charitable Giving Index, conducted in conjunction with market research firm Synovate, of Chicago, breaks down, based on age, sex, income, employment, marital status, and region, how Americans give to charities.


Research supports that people are more interested now than ever in giving to charities through the Internet, and Freelanthropy.coms services provide people with an easy and accessible way to give to their charity of choice, Sheehy says.


The study found that seniors have the highest percentage of givers. Among Americans 65 and older, 96 percent contributed to a charity.


Health and human services ranked as the first or second charitable giving choice for 63 percent, or nearly two-thirds, of all respondents. A surprising 74 percent of study participants ranked arts and culture as their last or second-to-last charity choice.


Lower-income Americans are among the nations most generous givers, with 48 percent of households earning less than $25,000 per year giving at least $100 per year, the survey data showed. Also, married couples are more likely than the general population to give, and more likely to give at levels of $100 or more, the study determined.