Average Fundraiser Salary in Washington D.C., United States for 2025

In this article, we will look at the average Fundraiser salary for 2025 in Washington D.C. and how that compares to other countries and professions. We'll also look at interesting salary data points like median salary, 25th and 75th percentile salaries, salary amounts based on experience, bonus ranges and more!

The data in this article has been compiled using official government salary data, salary surveys, and other sources such as job postings which contain salary information.

All salary information is in the local currency, which is the United States dollar. To keep things simple, we are using the USD currency code instead of the currency symbol $.

How Much Does a Fundraiser Make in Washington D.C.?

A Fundraiser working in Washington D.C. will typically earn around 79,500 USD per year, and this can range from the lowest average salary of about 39,500 USD to the highest average salary of 127,700 USD.

Average Annual Salary79,500 USD
Average Monthly Salary6,625 USD
Average Lowest Salary39,500 USD
Lowest Monthly Salary3,291 USD
Average Highest Salary127,700 USD
Highest Monthly Salary10,641 USD

These are average salaries for a Fundraiser in Washington D.C. and include benefits such as housing and transport. It's also possible for a Fundraiser to earn more or less than the average salaries shown above.

Fundraiser salaries will vary a lot based on your experience, location, skills, and gender. Keep reading below to research more data on each of these areas.

Distribution of Fundraiser Salaries in Washington D.C.

So we've looked at the average salaries a Fundraiser will earn in Washington D.C.. The next interesting data point is the distribution of salaries.

Salary ranges

We already know that a Fundraiser can earn between 39,500 USD and 127,700 USD on average in Washington D.C.. This is known as the range in statistics.

The difference between the maximum and minimum values is a good indicator of variability in salaries, and can be used by employers to figure out how much they can expect to pay, and for employees to know how much they can earn.

Median salary

The median salary for a Fundraiser in Washington D.C. is 79,500 USD. This is the middle value in the distribution of salaries.

What this means is that approximately 50% of the population earn less than 79,500 USD, and 50% of the population earn more than 79,500 USD.

If you are earning more than the median salary, that's a good indicator that you are being paid well.

If you're not earning more than the median salary, your objective should be to increase your earnings to be at least as high as the median salary (which you can do by asking for a pay rise, looking for a better paying job, etc).

Percentiles

Percentiles are similar to the median salary, but instead of looking at the middle value, they look at the values in the top and bottom half of the distribution.

For the average Fundraiser salary in Washington D.C., 25% of the population are earning less than 55,100 USD while 75% of the population earn more than 55,100 USD.

75% of the population earn less than 102,700 USD, and 25% of the population earn more than 102,700 USD.

Like the median salary, the 25th and 75th percentile salaries can be used to determine which quartile you fall into so that you know whether you are being paid well enough compared to others in your profession and location.

The difference between a median and an average salary

The median and average salary are both indicators you can use to see if you are being paid fairly based on the overall population.

  • If your salary is higher than the average and the median salary, you are earning well compared to others.
  • If your salary is lower than the average and the median salary, it could indicate you are not being paid well enough.
  • If you are somewhere in between then it's tricky to determine if you are being paid well enough and you might need to research more closely.

Fundraiser Salary by Experience Level in Washington D.C.

The most important factor in determining your salary after the specific profession is the number of years experience you have. It stands to reason that more years of experience will result in a higher wage.

We have researched the average Fundraiser salary based on years of experience to give you an idea of how the average changes once you've worked for a certain amount of time.

  • 0 - 2 Years Experience. A Fundraiser in Washington D.C. that has less than two years of experience can expect to earn somewhere in the region of 49,700 USD.
  • 2 - 5 Years Experience. With two to five years of experience the average Fundraiser salary would increase to 64,800 USD.
  • 5 - 10 Years Experience. From five to ten years of experience as a Fundraiser, the average salary would be 87,500 USD.
  • 10 - 15 Years Experience. Once you have more than ten years of experience the average salary reaches around 102,700 USD.
  • 15 - 20 Years Experience. A Fundraiser with 15 to 20 years of experience can earn an average of 111,700 USD.
  • 20+ Years Experience. For a Fundraiser with more than 20 years, the expected average salary increases to 118,900 USD.

Average Salary by Experience Chart

0-2 Years-
49,700 USD
2-5 Years+32%
64,800 USD
5-10 Years+34%
87,500 USD
10-15 Years+19%
102,700 USD
15-20 Years+8%
111,700 USD
20+ Years+7%
118,900 USD

Fundraiser Salary by Education Level in Washington D.C.

As well as experience in a job, your education plays a big role in how much you can earn. A lot of higher paying positions require a high level of education, but how much can a degree increase your salary?

In our research we have compared the salaries of employees in the same job and career level with different levels of education to see how much more you can earn at each education level.

The salary you can earn based on your education is very specific to both your location and the career path you choose.

In our research, we looked at the average salary for a Fundraiser in Washington D.C. based on the education level of the employees in order to find out whether a better education level would increase your salary.

  • High School. A Fundraiser in Washington D.C. with a high school education can earn an average salary of 64,800 USD.
  • Certificate or Diploma. A Fundraiser in Washington D.C. with a certificate or diploma education can earn an average salary of 89,200 USD.
  • Bachelor's Degree. A Fundraiser in Washington D.C. with a bachelor's degree education can earn an average salary of 112,700 USD.

Average Salary by Education Chart

High School-
64,800 USD
Certificate or Diploma+40%
89,200 USD
Bachelor's Degree+25%
112,700 USD

How Much is a Master's Degree or MBA Program?

The approximate cost of a master's degree or post-graduate program like an MBA in United States is around 39,500 to 118,000 USD and takes two years to complete.

As you can see above, there are financial benefits from reaching master's degree level, but don't expect to see much of a salary increase until you have completed the degree.

It's common for people to pursue an MBA or other post-graduate program in order to switch to a a job that pays more. On average, you can expect to earn around 10% more when switching to a new company.

Whether you decide to pursue a master's degree depends on many factors. If you are able to afford it, the numbers suggest that the return on investment is worth it and you could recover the costs in a few years from the salary increase you would receive.

Fundraiser Salary Compared by Gender

In the modern age, we know that there should never be a pay gap between men and women. Unfortunately, in many professions, there is still a significant difference between the salaries earned by men when compared to the salary of women in the same job.

In Washington D.C., a male fundraiser will earn an average of 78,700 USD, while a female fundraiser will earn around 75,400 USD.

This means that a male fundraiser earns approximately 4% more than a female fundraiser for performing the same job.

Average Salary by Gender Chart in Washington D.C.

Male-
78,700 USD
Female-4%
75,400 USD

Fundraiser Average Pay Raise in Washington D.C.

In many countries, an annual pay raise is often given to employees to reward their service with a salary increase.

From our research, we can see that the average pay raise for a Fundraiser in Washington D.C. is around 10% every 18 months.

The national average pay raise across all professions and industries in United States is around 8% every 16 months.

In this case, we can see that the number of months between the average pay raise is higher than the typical 12 months.

To make the data more meaningful, we can calculate what the approximate annual pay raise would be using a simple formula:

Annual Increase = ( Increase Rate ÷ Months ) × 12

So for this example, it would be:

Annual Increase = ( 10 ÷ 18 ) × 12  = 7%

What this means is that a Fundraiser in Washington D.C. can expect to receive an average pay raise of around 7% every 12 months.

Annual Pay Raise by Industry in Washington D.C. for 2025

In the chart below, you can see the average annual pay raise percentages for each of the major industries in United States.

You will see that companies in bigger and more lucrative industries tend to have the higher annual pay raises.

Banking-
4%
Energy-
8%
Information Technology-
3%
Healthcare-
7%
Travel-
2%
Construction-
6%
Education-
1%

Fundraiser Bonus and Incentive Rates in Washington D.C.

Another part of your overall compensation in a job is how much bonus you receive. Some job roles will be more likely to pay a bonus than others and also more likely to have higher bonus rates.

Generally speaking, jobs that are more involved with direct revenue generation will receive higher bonuses based on the performance towards revenue goals.

A Fundraiser is a moderate bonus based job, with 55% of employees reporting at least one bonus in the last 12 months.

45% reported that they had not received any bonuses in the previous 12 months.

For the employees that did receive a bonus in the previous 12 months, the reported bonuses ranged from 3% to 6%.

Received Bonus-
55%
No Bonus-
45%

What are the Types of Bonus?

There are a number of difference types of bonus you can receive in a job. Including:

  • Individual performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee for general performance in the job. It's the most common type of bonus.
  • Company performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to a company employees to share profit with the staff.
  • Goal based bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee (or a team) for achieving specific goals, objectives, or milestones.
  • Holiday bonus - This type of bonus is usually paid around the holidays, often the end of the year, and is a token of appreciation for the hard work throughout the year.

Government vs Private Sector Salaries

Another commonly asked question is whether you get paid a higher salary working in the public (government) sector or the private sector.

Public sector employees in United States earn approximately 6% more than private sector employees in the same role.

Public Sector-
98,800 USD
Private Sector-6%
93,100 USD

Salaries for Jobs Similar to a Fundraiser

In the table below, we have salary information for jobs that are similar to a Fundraiser in Washington D.C..

Job TitleCategorySalary
Activity AideFundraising and Non Profit35,000 USD
Activity CoordinatorFundraising and Non Profit30,800 USD
Activity LeaderFundraising and Non Profit60,100 USD
Adoption SpecialistFundraising and Non Profit109,700 USD
Assistant Programme OfficerFundraising and Non Profit61,200 USD
Campaign ManagerFundraising and Non Profit121,800 USD
Charities AdministratorFundraising and Non Profit69,400 USD
Charities FundraiserFundraising and Non Profit74,200 USD
Civil ServantFundraising and Non Profit35,500 USD
Civil Service AdministratorFundraising and Non Profit48,500 USD
Community Health WorkerFundraising and Non Profit30,000 USD
Community Relations RepresentativeFundraising and Non Profit51,300 USD
Community Service ManagerFundraising and Non Profit105,800 USD
Community VolunteerFundraising and Non Profit29,600 USD
Community WorkerFundraising and Non Profit27,300 USD
Custodial WorkerFundraising and Non Profit35,600 USD
Education Planning SpecialistFundraising and Non Profit105,800 USD
Foundation AssistantFundraising and Non Profit46,200 USD
Foundation DirectorFundraising and Non Profit142,100 USD
Foundation Program Coordinator Fundraising and Non Profit88,500 USD
Fundraising CoordinatorFundraising and Non Profit49,800 USD
Fundraising DirectorFundraising and Non Profit151,800 USD
Fundraising ManagerFundraising and Non Profit130,400 USD
Grant WriterFundraising and Non Profit40,300 USD
Healthcare Social WorkerFundraising and Non Profit34,300 USD
Homeless Shelter WorkerFundraising and Non Profit30,800 USD
Major Gift OfficerFundraising and Non Profit34,000 USD
Orphan Program CoordinatorFundraising and Non Profit48,300 USD
Rehab AideFundraising and Non Profit39,800 USD
Rehabilitation AideFundraising and Non Profit34,800 USD
Social WorkerFundraising and Non Profit30,100 USD
Sponsorship CoordinatorFundraising and Non Profit46,700 USD
Volunteer CoordinatorFundraising and Non Profit41,000 USD

Salary Comparison by City

If you want to compare salaries with different cities in United States, you can use the links below to explore the data for each specific city we have researched.

CityAverage Salary
Atlanta66,400 USD
Austin81,000 USD
Baltimore72,700 USD
Boston80,200 USD
Bristol61,400 USD
Chicago85,500 USD
Cincinnati64,500 USD
Cleveland64,800 USD
Dallas80,300 USD
Denver80,900 USD
Detroit78,200 USD
Honolulu61,700 USD
Houston83,300 USD
Indianapolis76,600 USD
Iowa City63,100 USD
Jacksonville78,200 USD
Kansas City71,800 USD
Kent61,800 USD
Las Vegas76,800 USD
Long Beach69,700 USD
Los Angeles90,900 USD
Memphis72,700 USD
Miami67,200 USD
Minneapolis68,200 USD
New Orleans64,200 USD
New York91,700 USD
Oakland65,700 USD
Oklahoma City72,700 USD
Orlando63,500 USD
Philadelphia83,000 USD
Phoenix88,300 USD
Sacramento71,200 USD
San Antonio83,700 USD
San Diego87,400 USD
San Francisco84,800 USD
San Jose86,800 USD
Seattle80,900 USD
Tampa65,500 USD
Vancouver64,200 USD

Salary Comparison by State

The table below includes links to the average salary for each state in United States.

StateAverage Salary
Alabama80,200 USD
Alaska68,800 USD
Arizona84,900 USD
Arkansas68,500 USD
California79,800 USD
Colorado72,400 USD
Connecticut72,700 USD
Delaware70,100 USD
District of Columbia66,200 USD
Florida83,000 USD
Georgia83,300 USD
Hawaii72,400 USD
Idaho71,400 USD
Illinois79,600 USD
Indiana74,300 USD
Iowa71,800 USD
Kansas73,100 USD
Kentucky76,000 USD
Louisiana77,400 USD
Maine70,000 USD
Maryland80,900 USD
Massachusetts79,500 USD
Michigan83,700 USD
Minnesota74,500 USD
Mississippi71,200 USD
Missouri77,300 USD
Montana65,700 USD
Nebraska68,500 USD
Nevada72,700 USD
New Hampshire70,000 USD
New Jersey83,800 USD
New Mexico73,500 USD
New York88,600 USD
North Carolina78,200 USD
North Dakota65,200 USD
Ohio78,700 USD
Oklahoma71,700 USD
Oregon72,400 USD
Pennsylvania83,800 USD
Rhode Island69,400 USD
South Carolina78,200 USD
South Dakota71,700 USD
Tennessee83,800 USD
Texas80,800 USD
Utah68,400 USD
Vermont63,700 USD
Virginia81,200 USD
Washington81,200 USD
West Virginia69,200 USD
Wisconsin80,200 USD
Wyoming67,900 USD

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