Each year, $100 is donated to a charity on behalf of every moderator on the Stack Exchange network. In 2025, a total of $49,300 USD was donated to seven different organizations. These organizations focus on causes important to Stack Exchange communities. The distribution of funds to each charity was determined by the percentage of moderators who selected that organization in a poll.
For this year’s campaign, the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) was added, following requests from moderators for an animal welfare-focused charity. Moderators also specifically requested the inclusion of the Internet Archive, an organization whose mission resonates with many Stack Overflow and Stack Exchange users. The Internet Archive became the second most highly selected charity, after Doctors Without Borders, which has consistently been the top choice in recent years.
Learn more about the organizations and see how the funds were distributed:
$14,983 to Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières)
Doctors Without Borders is an independent global movement providing medical aid where it’s needed most.
$13,292 to Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is building a digital library of Internet sites and other cultural artifacts in digital form. Like a paper library, they provide free access to researchers, historians, scholars, people with print disabilities, and the general public. Their mission is to provide Universal Access to All Knowledge.
$5,558 to Trans Lifeline
Trans Lifeline is a grassroots hotline and microgrants 501(c)(3) non-profit organization offering direct emotional and financial support to trans people in crisis—for the trans community, by the trans community.
$4,833 to Electronic Frontier Foundation
The Electronic Frontier Foundation is the leading nonprofit organization defending digital privacy, free speech, and innovation.
$3,867 to International Fund for Animal Welfare
The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) is a global non-profit helping animals and people thrive together. They rescue, rehabilitate, and release animals, and restore and protect their natural habitats.
$3,625 to Rainforest Alliance
The Rainforest Alliance is an international non-profit organization working to build an alliance to protect forests, improve the livelihoods of farmers and forest communities, promote their human rights, and help them mitigate and adapt to the climate crisis.
$3,142 to Girls Who Code
Girls Who Code is a nonprofit organization which aims to support and increase the number of women in computer science by equipping young women with the necessary computing skills to pursue 21st century opportunities.
With these most recent donations, Stack Overflow’s total contributions on behalf of moderators have reached nearly three-quarters of a million dollars—$731,800 USD. Moderators dedicate significant time and energy to maintaining functional, safe, and educational spaces on these sites, enabling people worldwide to share information and learn.
Beyond acknowledging the network’s moderators, gratitude is extended to all users for their questions, answers, comments, votes, flags, and all other contributions that create and curate this extensive knowledge base. Donating to charities engaged in meaningful work within the broader global community serves as a way to honor all community members whose contributions form the foundation of the Stack Exchange network.
