MacKenzie Scott Allocates $7.17 Billion in 2025 Giving, Lifting Total Philanthropy to $26.3 Billion

Billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott disclosed on Tuesday that she awarded $7.17 billion in unrestricted grants to approximately 225 nonprofit organizations during 2025. The latest round of contributions raises her publicly reported charitable outlays to $26.3 billion since she began detailing her philanthropy in 2019.

Scott published the figures in a personal essay that emphasized the broader landscape of civic generosity in the United States. While acknowledging that large financial gifts often attract headlines, she wrote that money represents “a vanishingly tiny fraction” of everyday acts of support exchanged within communities.

Scope of 2025 Beneficiaries

The 2025 distributions covered a wide spectrum of causes. Recipients included several historically Black colleges and universities, organizations addressing poverty and racial inequity, and groups focused on climate-related challenges. As with her prior gifts, the donations were delivered without restrictions, giving each organization discretion to allocate funds according to its own priorities.

Scott did not provide a detailed list of grantees or the criteria used to select them, consistent with her practice of keeping operational specifics private. In earlier statements, she has said that a team of advisers reviews prospective beneficiaries and seeks “organizations with strong leadership teams and results,” especially those operating in areas with high food insecurity, elevated poverty levels, pronounced racial disparities, or limited access to traditional philanthropic capital.

Position Among Major Donors

The latest gifts solidify Scott’s place among the most active living donors. According to rankings maintained by Forbes, only Warren Buffett and Bill Gates have given away more money over their lifetimes. Forbes currently estimates Scott’s net worth at $29.9 billion, reflecting her substantial holdings in Amazon stock following her 2019 divorce from company founder Jeff Bezos.

Immediately after that divorce, Scott signed the Giving Pledge, a voluntary commitment by many of the world’s wealthiest individuals to devote the majority of their fortunes to charitable causes. Her approach has differed from that of some peers because she generally provides funds with no designated purpose, allowing recipient organizations to determine how best to deploy the capital.

Context in U.S. Philanthropy

Scott framed her 2025 announcement within broader national giving trends. Citing data released in June by Giving USA, she noted that Americans collectively donated more than $590 billion in 2024. The report also found that over 70 percent of adults contributed both time and money to people they know, while half extended similar help to strangers.

In her essay, Scott recounted personal experiences that influenced her philanthropic philosophy. She described receiving free dental work from a local dentist during college and recalled a Princeton roommate who lent her $1,000 to prevent her from leaving school in her sophomore year. That roommate, Jeannie Ringo Tarkenton, later founded Funding U, a lender that offers loans to students without requiring a co-signer.

By sharing those anecdotes, Scott argued that acts of compassion—financial or otherwise—are integral to civic life. She encouraged readers to view respect, empathy, and understanding as meaningful forms of contribution, equal in importance to monetary donations.

Imagem: Getty

Methodology and Philosophy

Scott has repeatedly stated that she aims to “de-emphasize privileged voices,” including her own, and spotlight the efforts of organizations working directly to address systemic inequities. Her grants are typically announced only after the recipient groups have received the funds, minimizing any requirement for them to prepare detailed proposals or reports prior to disbursement.

Advisers assisting Scott periodically review thousands of nonprofits across sectors such as education, public health, community development, and environmental stewardship. While the selection process is not made public, her team has indicated that data on organizational impact, leadership diversity, and financial sustainability inform funding decisions.

Future Outlook

Scott has not outlined a timetable for completing her philanthropic commitments, but her ongoing giving suggests she remains on pace to distribute the majority of her wealth well within her lifetime. With nearly $30 billion still under her control, additional large-scale donations are likely.

Observers in the nonprofit sector note that Scott’s practice of offering unrestricted capital has influenced other major donors to reconsider traditional grantmaking structures, which often impose strict conditions and reporting requirements. The long-term effects of this shift remain under examination by philanthropy researchers.

For the organizations receiving funds in 2025, Scott’s contributions represent new opportunities to expand programs, invest in staff, and strengthen financial reserves without the administrative burdens commonly associated with large gifts. Many recipients have indicated that such flexibility enables rapid response to emerging community needs.

By publicizing aggregate figures rather than itemized disbursements, Scott continues to focus attention on the collective impact of donors across all income levels. Her 2025 announcement underscores a message she has repeated since 2020: significant change is driven by countless acts of generosity, not solely by the most visible philanthropic fortunes.

Crédito da imagem: Getty Images