Who donate most in the world

 They're known for their incredible wealth but want to leave the world renowned for their generosity. As such the world's richest are literally giving it away. Here we list the world's most generous philanthropists (with their donations in dollars as they're mostly American) and the foundations they fund, just in case you want to get in touch.

Scores of the world's wealthiest people have taken to his philosophy, donating their riches to hundreds of causes.

We worked with our friends at Wealth-X, a firm that does research and valuations on ultra-high net worth individuals, to compile a list of the 20 most generous people in the world, ranked by total charitable giving to date.

Since you need to have a lot to give a lot, Wealth-X also determined each person's Generosity Index, which is the ratio of their lifetime donations to their current net worth. Some people, like retail magnate Chuck Feeney, known as the "James Bond of philanthropy," have indices over 100% because they have given away more money than they currently have.

With a total combined donation amount of $106.8 billion, these 20 individuals are the top philanthropists in the world.

1. Chuck Feeney

Lifetime Giving: $7.5 billion (all of current net worth)

Feeney decided to give all of the cash he made from Duty Free shops to good causes via his The Atlantic Philanthropies. Now 81 years old, he’s even given his house away and lives in rented accommodation.

2. Karen and Jon Huntsman

Lifetime Giving: $1.55 billion (160% of current net worth)

Husband and wife team, the Huntsman’s made their billions through chemicals. Jon survived prostate and mouth cancer and, as a result, established the Huntsman Cancer Institute.

3. W. Barron Hilton

Lifetime Giving: $1.3 billion (137% of current net worth)

Barron Hilton, of Hilton Hotels fame, joined the company bearing his father’s name in 1950. Following his father’s example, he has committed the bulk of his personal fortune to the Hilton Foundation.

4. Gordon and Betty Moore

Lifetime Giving: $5.37 billion (71% of current net worth)

Moore co-founded Intel in 1968 but these days he is focused on philanthropy. He retired from his corporate positions in 2006 and currently runs the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation with his wife

5. Eli and Edythe Broad

Lifetime Giving: $4.22 billion (57% of current net worth)

Through The Broad Foundation, billionaire financier and housebuilder Eli Broad and wife Edythe have created groundbreaking independent institutions in each of its three investment areas of public education, science, and the arts.

6. Irwin and Joan Jacobs

Lifetime Giving: $706 million (50% of current net worth)

Irwin Jacobs cofounded mobile chipmaker Qualcomm in 1985, but since retiring from its board in 2012, he has focused on giving away his fortune through the Jacobs Family Foundation. It funds community change and works to empower individuals.

7. George Soros

Lifetime Giving: $12.1 billion (49% of current net worth)

Known as the man who broke the Bank of England, billionaire Hungarian financier Soros is also one of the world’s most generous people. He launched his philanthropic work in South Africa in 1979. Since then he has given most of his wealth to his Open Society Foundations, which works in over 100 countries around the world.

8. Julian and Josie Robertson

Lifetime Giving: $1.56 billion (43% of current net worth)

The “Wizard of Wall Street” Julian Robertson earned his billions from hedge funds. Now alongside his wife and family, he has created the Robertson Foundation to fund not-for-profit groups and to encourage philanthropy from the billions he made from the financial boom in the 1980s and 1990s

9. Bill & Melinda Gates

Lifetime Giving: $32.91 billion (41% of current net worth)

Easily the most famous philanthropists in the world, the Gates’ have encouraged other billionaires to give their cash to their foundation. Warren Buffett (below) did so saying he didn’t have a clue how to give his immense cash away. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation issues grants for initiatives and programs across the globe, focusing on agricultural development, emergency relief, global libraries, urban poverty, global health, and education

10. Warren Buffett

Lifetime Giving: $25.54 billion (39% of current net worth)

Despite being one of the world’s richest men, Warren Buffett always shunned the trappings of wealth and still lives in the first house he bought. Buffett made a commitment to gradually give all of his cash to philanthropic foundations and will leave the bulk of his wealth to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

A philanthropist is someone who engages in philanthropy; donating their time, money, and/or reputation to charitable causes. The term may apply to any volunteer or to anyone who makes a donation, but the label is most often applied to those who donate large sums of money or who make a major impact through their volunteering, such as a trustee who manages a philanthropic organization or one who establishes and funds a foundation.[1]

A philanthropist may not always find universal approval for their deeds.[2] Common accusations include supporting an unworthy cause (such as funding art instead of fighting world hunger) or having selfish motivation at heart (such as avoiding taxes or attaining personal fame). A philanthropist is also someone who cares for someone else's needs instead of their own.

World Giving Index

Some countries around the world are notably generous, and being rich is not a requirement. The World Giving Index (WGI) is an annual report published by the Charities Aid Foundation. The report is the world's largest survey of charitable endeavors from around the world. The 10th annual report analyzes data from the past ten years, uncovering trends in people's charitable actions through times of economic crisis, economic recovery, and geopolitical unrest.

The report surveyed over 1.3 million people in 125 countries to collect this data. The report looks at three aspects of giving behavior: helping a stranger, dmonating money to a charity, and volunteering time to an organization. Of the three giving behavior aspects, helping a stranger is the most commonly performed worldwide, with more than 2.5 billion people having helped a stranger in the last ten years.

After ten years of surveying the charitable actions of over 100 countries, CAF has concluded that no one trait that indicates a country's generosity. The top charitable countries represent different levels of wealth, cultures, religions, and geographies. For example, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Indonesia are all classified by the United Nations as lower-middle-income countries; however, they are all in the top ten most charitable countries in the world.

The United States has been the number one country on the WGI report for the last ten years, with a score of 58%. Of those surveyed, 72% reported helping a stranger, 61% reported donating to a charity, and 42% reported having volunteered their time to an organization. The U.S., however, has seen a decrease in its numbers over the years. Myanmar is the second-most charitable country in the world, with an overall score of 58%. Despite being a lower-middle-income country and relatively low, Myanmar has the highest percentage of people donating to charities at 81%. Myanmar has a high population of Theravada Buddhists for whom small, frequent acts of giving are the norm.

New Zealand's overall charitable score is 57%. New Zealand is the only country to be in the top ten countries for all three giving measures. New Zealand ranks ninth for donations (65%), ninth for helping strangers (64%), and sixth for time volunteered (41%). Over the past decade, New Zealand's levels of giving have been relatively stable, ranging between 57% and 61%. New Zealand's neighbor mAustralia is the fourth-most charitable country in the world. With an overall score of 56%, Australia has the eighth-highest rate of donating to charities of 68% and the ninth-highest rate of helping strangers of 64% (tied with New Zealand and Malawi). Like New Zealand, Australia's level of giving has been relatively stable over the past decade, ranging from 55% to 60%.

Ireland is the highest-scoring European country and also has an overall score of 56%. Of those surveyed, 62% reported helping a stranger, 69% reported donating to a charity, and 38% reported having volunteered their time to an organization. Ireland fluctuates more than other top 10 countries, with levels of giving over the past decade ranging from 53% to 60%. Canada is the sixth-most giving country in the world. Canada's overall score is 55%, with 63% donating to charities, 64% helping strangers, and 37% volunteering at an organization. Canada's levels of giving have fluctuated significantly over the past decade. Since 2014, Canada's level of giving has declined from 60% to 49%.

The United Kingdom has an overall charitable score of 54%. The U.K. has the second-highest donation rate of 71%, a helping strangers rate of 60%, and a volunteer rate of 30%. The U.K.'s donation rate comes as no surprise as the country has a long philanthropic tradition. Over the last decade, the U.K.'s lowest giving level was 50%, and its highest was 57%. The Netherlands is the eighth-most charitable country in the world, with an overall score of 53%. The Netherlands, like the U.K., has the second-highest donation rate in the world of 71%. Over the past decade, the level of giving has been slightly more stable in the Netherlands than it has in the other high scoring European countries, the U.K. and Ireland. Levels of giving have ranged from 51% to 56%.

Sri Lanka's overall level of giving is 51%. Sri Lanka has the highest rate of volunteering in the world of 46%. Of those surveyed, 50% of respondents reported donating to a charity, and 55% reported helping strangers. Despite being classified as a lower-middle-income country, Sri Lanka is still one of the world's top ten most charitable countries. Indonesia is the tenth-most charitable country in the world with an overall level of giving of 50%. Of those surveyed, 69% reported having donated to charities (the seventh-highest rate globally), 42% reported helping a stranger, and 40% reported volunteering at an organization (seventh-highest in the world). Like Myanmar and Sri Lanka, Indonesia's giving is high despite being classified as a lower-middle-income country.