It will come at no surprise that administrative fees on funds act as the main driver of community foundation operating revenues. No asset size cohort, on average, acquires less than two-thirds of all operating revenue from admin fees. There will, however, be differences in the extent to which community foundations of different sizes depend on other sources of revenue. Smaller community foundations will rely on direct fundraising and internal distributions to support operations to a greater degree than larger community foundations, who will see slightly more revenue come from specialized fee for service work.
In addition to sustaining a community foundation's operating model, diversified revenue can help create the needed capacity to pursue foundation-led community efforts (e.g. community leadership or special initiatives).
Averages were used to total 100%. (n=238)
| | $0-$25M | $25-$50M | $50-$100M | $100-$250M | $250-$500M | $500M+ | All |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % Administrative fees | 67% | 68% | 71% | 80% | 83% | 73% | 73% |
| % Fees for service | 1% | 0% | 1% | 1% | 2% | 3% | 1% |
| % Fundraising: operations | 11% | 11% | 9% | 5% | 3% | 4% | 7% |
| % Fundraising: programmatic | 7% | 6% | 4% | 4% | 3% | 6% | 5% |
| % Distribution from endowment/reserve | 11% | 10% | 9% | 8% | 5% | 5% | 8% |
| % Other revenue | 4% | 5% | 5% | 3% | 4% | 10% | 5% |