Donating is perhaps the most virtuous act of compassion towards other people. It helps make someone else's life better and supports them in times of misfortune. Not to mention how it can be an incredibly rewarding experience.
At any given time, hundreds of thousands of people around the world are in need of medical and other care. Doing something to help the less fortunate is important.
The Android and iPhone apps below allow you to do just that. With them, you can donate to charities around the world fighting for good causes to help bring change.
1. ShareTheMeal
ShareTheMeal is exactly what it sounds like: an initiative to end global hunger. It was founded in 2014 by the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) which is the world’s largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger.
According to ShareTheMeal, donating just $0.80 can feed a child for a whole day. Since that's such a small amount and might not be worth breaking out your card for, you can of course donate as much as you are comfortable with.
If you'd like to go one step further and make donation a habit, ShareTheMeal also allows you to start a monthly donation. This is a great option for salaried employees who want to make a strong social impact on the world. The app shows specific countries where ShareTheMeal is working towards a unique cause. You can also view the latest data on the number of meals shared and the number of supporters who have donated for that cause.
Each cause is marked with certain tags such as Emergency, Economic crisis, COVID-19, and Food baskets to better describe the conditions and level of severity in that country. You can also see an overview of each region, including the problems it's facing and how ShareTheMeal is helping to solve them.
Download: ShareTheMeal for Android | iOS (Free)
2. Impact
Impact is a fusion between a fitness app and a charity app. It tracks the number of steps you take and converts those steps into money for charity. You can measure and track calories for your walks, jogs, runs, and indoor workouts. Companies sponsor your steps through CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) and the money is forwarded to an Indian nonprofit of your choice.
For every kilometer you walk/jog/run, the Active Workouts Tracking feature raises roughly $0.07 for your chosen social cause. Via the Passive Step Tracker feature, Impact counts your steps throughout the day every day and donates about $0.14 for every 5,000 steps taken. You can also create teams, challenge friends, and take part in ongoing events.
For each cause, you can see an overview. This includes the company sponsoring it, the money raised so far, the number of people supporting the cause, and a description of the company and what it aims to achieve with the cause. You can track your activity and how much you have contributed to each one.
Download: Impact for Android | iOS (Free)
3. Freerice
Freerice is a simple multiple-choice question-and-answer game with a charitable goal. It works in association with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP). For each right answer you give, you automatically donate money worth 10 grains of rice. It is worth noting that the number of grains donated with each right answer is subject to change, based on the ad revenue earned by Freerice.
You can change the difficulty level of the game to whatever you are comfortable with, and track your score. As you play Freerice and answer the questions correctly, you'll see ads on your screen. This triggers an automatic payment to the WFP to help fund several of its projects—not just for rice, but according to the severity of each cause.
You can customize the kind of questions asked and join groups to work together with other members. This can allow you to make bigger and better-rounded contributions. You can also track your contributions (measured in grains of rice) and compare them with the leaderboard for more motivation.
Download: Freerice for Android | iOS (Free)
4. Cauze
Cauze is perhaps the most social media-like charity app on this list. You can scour through various nonprofits and other profiles to select which cause you'd like to donate to. Each cause has a following, so you can see which ones are the most popular in your local area, as well as around the world. The UI of the app can feel a little clumsy at times, but it's easy to get used to after spending some time in the app.
One of the features we really liked was the ability to view your giving history. Cauze allows you to download a receipt for all your contributions made in the prior year. Alongside adding funds to your Cauze balance, the app also supports contributing monthly for the people who want to donate regularly and make a stronger impact.
You can share your contributions with your friends on social media and inspire them to do the same. Under your profile, you can view all the nonprofits and causes that you follow and stay updated on them as new donations come in.
Download: Cauze for Android | iOS (Free)
Bring Positive Change Now
The world can never have enough helping hands. And with the number of crises that the world faces regularly, you can help bring a positive change in times of need, fear, and scarcity. A few dollars or minutes of your time could mean a meal or cup of fresh water for someone who doesn't always have those blessings.
With these apps, there's never been an easier way to take quick actions and help fight for the greater good. Whatever your capacity may be, no contribution is ever too small to make. Whether you donate a dollar or a dime, a step or your time, help is always appreciated by somebody, somewhere.