How do you choose - there are so many good ones?

I like to give to smaller charities as they often get left out.

DH and I have always been grateful for our sight and as we both love dogs have supported Guide Dogs for years. I also supported Sight Savers so one home charity one abroad. Recently our lovely son in law has developed pancreatic and liver cancer so I have changed some of my giving to Pancreatic Cancer UK- among all the cancers this is the one that strikes most terror for me remembering my nursing days and the severity and speed of this disease. I was also approached by the most charming couple of men in Sainsburys re the Air Ambulance and a dear neighbour who recently died wanted any donations in remembrance of him to f
go there so I did that as well. My charity in 2019 as Lady Captain of our golf club is Help for Heroes- we live quite near the DNRC Stamford Hall so its a local one.

After a TV appeal by an international charity, showing the desperate plight of children in Yemen, I texted a donation. After that, as they had my mobile number, they started phoning me and, as I donate regularly by DD, to MSF and one other charity, I wasn't prepared to take on another regular commitment, but they kept ringing. As this gave me their phone number, I then blocked it. Badgering tactics, trying to wear down donors, is, IMO, counter-productive.

I do not give to charities that has a CEO earning a vast wage. I support certain medical conditions because I worked as a nurse and I also support RNLI as DH's work involved ships and the sea.
Any charity that rings me and asks me to increase my donations gets taken off my list.

I have DDs to RNLI, KSSAIR, Salvation Army and volunteer at Crisis, Sams and collect for RBL in November. No Red Nose day, Children In Need, nothing else.

I make a choice based on ones where I've had personal experience, such as the Motor Neurone Disease Association or the local hospice.
If this isn't relevant to you I'd look at reading about people who've been helped by the good work that people do and pick one or two which touched my heart.

I have a monthly direct debit to the charity closest to my heart, then do others as/when. So many of the tv appeals are so heartbreaking but of course we cannot donate to them all. The billions that have gone into Africa over the years, LiveAid etc it just seems that nothing ever changes, still so much poverty and hardship.

Local homeless shelter by buying stuff from their A*****n wish list when I can afford it.
Also bale of hay for animal shelter.
I really like the RNLI and like to get my cards from them but this year noticed that part of the cost is for 'taxes'. I thought charities were tax exempt so haven't bought my cards yet.
Otherwise just for disaster appeals.

I change every year. Last year was guide dogs this year a local hospice

I support 5 charities all year round and always look for one to give a one off donation to at Christmas. One thing I always ask for the one off is 'how much of my donation will be used for admin charges'? most of my charities are animal ones, something close to my heart, although I do support Water Aid, clean drinking water should be everyone's right, and I support Lifeboats. I live by the sea and these volunteers risk their lives daily. All my other charities are animal ones. Last year and the year before I paid for 2 persons meals at Crisis for Christmas plus a donation to the Hillside Animal rescue. this year I may go out and buy warm clothing to give to our street sleepers, we have so many here. Maybe thermal undies or something. Haven't quite decided.

I only donate to charities, local and distant, where I can see where my money goes.

The local air ambulance which frequently flies over our house, the RNLI, and I sponsor a Guide Dog in memory of our beloved Sasha. Come the new year, I will also start to sponsor a Hearing Dog.

I donate locally - our local hospice and air ambulance. The only national charity I give to is RNIB. They were really good to my grandfather so I want to give something back.

We donate quite a lot of money every month to various charities. I am afraid I stay close to home with some, I do not give to animal charities or those giving abroad. I feel for the poor children abroad but I am not sure the money goes to the right place. It often ends up in the hands of unscrupulous governments.

I also give to the Rickshaw challenge.

I object though when some of my chosen charities ring me up to ask me to increase my donation. I tell them that if I choose to give more I will give it to someone else and they should be grateful for what we do give them.

Pretty much local for me every time. I can usually find detailed info of those running them and how the income is disbursed.

I support a Hospice (I may need them one day), the Air ambulance because it is often called out to this area and the RNLI because they are not funded by the government and they are all volunteers.

Yes I support Mary's Meals and with the help of my friends recently held a tea party to raise money for them . Great fun .

Pick a small, local charity which 'does what it says on the tin'. The larger ones pay their senior executives hundreds of thousands of doners' pounds. It is a money-go-round racket and not what people think they are contributing to.

Applegran what a lovely post. It has really lifted my spirits on such a miserable day. I donate to what ever touches my heart. More often than not, to UK charities that benefit children or the homeless.

Giving to charity is a very personal thing. I only give to charities after I have ‘researched’ them as much as possible. To my mind there are far tooo many now anyway.

No rules but I do look at how they spend their funds and how much is taken by big CEO salaries...

Animal charities as animals need humans for survival and also the Armed Forces as having lost relatives in both wars and observing the trauma many are still suffering both mental and physical from on going conflicts around the world.

I crochet for a charity called Knit a Square. I don't send them money because they only use PayPal but I send things to Knit for Life in the UK who fundraise for them and have named them on Easyfundraising. I recently bought a lap top (which doesn't work and I am still trying to send back) and they got over £23 just for that one purchase.
For actual payments I give to LendwithCare. I usually choose people in the occupied territories in Palestine to lend to or Zambia or Zimbabwe.
In this country it tends to be one off things. Often injusticies people are trying to fight. I think you have to be very careful with crowdfunding and I choose things that can be checked.

I tend to donate to charities that I have had some sort of connection with. McMillan Nurses (nursed my mum), charities connected with infant loss ( angel grandson) and the British Heart Foundation (DH has heart disease). Most of my donations are through friends and neighbours doing sponsered events.

I tend to favour animal charities, always have done. But there is so much wrong with our world that so much charity support is even necessary in the 21st century. But I'm sure every penny is appreciated.

Give to the charity which appeals to you the most, easy peasy, what's the difficulty!