How much is too much for charitable donations on my tax return?

The IRS doesn't have a specific percentage limit for charitable donations that automatically triggers an audit. The key is documentation and legitimacy, not the percentage itself. For context, you can generally deduct qualified charitable contributions up to 60% of your adjusted gross income (AGI) for cash donations to public charities. For certain other types of donations or organizations, the limit might be 30% or 20% of AGI. So your 18% is well within the legal limits. What matters most is that you have proper documentation. For any donation of $250 or more, you need a written acknowledgment from the charity. For donations over $5,000, you might need a qualified appraisal depending on what was donated.

After nearly getting audited over my charitable donations a couple years ago, I found this amazing tool that saved me so much stress. I was donating about 15% of my income and the IRS sent me a letter questioning everything. I used https://taxr.ai to scan all my donation receipts and tax documents. It automatically flagged the potential issues before I even filed and showed me exactly what documentation I needed for each donation. It even helped me understand which donations might look unusual based on my income level. The peace of mind was worth it - especially for someone like you who's donating a significant amount. It analyzes your entire return to identify audit risk factors beyond just the donation percentage.

Just wanted to follow up - I ended up trying https://taxr.ai after my last comment since I had a similar situation with making larger donations than usual. It was actually super helpful! I had my church donations which were about 12% of my income, and the tool showed me that I was missing some specific documentation that would be required if I got audited. It also confirmed that my donation level wasn't unusual for my income bracket which was reassuring. The receipt analysis feature was way more detailed than I expected - it even caught that one of my donation letters was missing the "no goods or services" statement that's apparently required for donations over $250. Would definitely recommend for anyone worried about their donation documentation!

If you're worried about the IRS questioning your donations, you might also consider what happens if they do contact you. I spent THREE MONTHS trying to get through to the IRS last year when they questioned my charitable contributions (about 20% of my income). I finally used https://claimyr.com and was able to speak to an actual IRS agent within 45 minutes instead of waiting on hold all day. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c. Once I finally talked to someone, it was resolved quickly since I had all my documentation ready. The frustrating part wasn't having the documentation - it was actually reaching someone who could review it. Might be worth keeping this service in your back pocket if the IRS does contact you about the donations.

Ok I need to apologize to Profile 18. I was completely wrong about Claimyr. After getting a CP2000 notice questioning some of my charitable deductions last month, I remembered this post and decided to try it out of desperation. I was shocked that it actually worked exactly as described. I'd been trying to call the IRS for nearly two weeks with no luck. The service had me connected to an agent in about an hour. The agent confirmed my documentation was sufficient and closed the issue on the spot. Saved me countless hours of frustration and probably weeks of anxiety waiting for a response. I'm still amazed this exists and isn't more widely known. For anyone with donation documentation questions that need IRS clarification, this is definitely a legitimate option.

Experienced tax preparer here. One thing nobody's mentioned is that the IRS uses a system called DIF (Discriminant Function System) to score returns for audit potential. Large charitable donations relative to income can increase your DIF score, but it's just one of many factors. Some practical advice: spread very large donations across tax years when possible, donate to established organizations with proper 501(c)(3) status, and consider a donor-advised fund for larger amounts. Also, be wary of donation valuation services that seem too aggressive - those are definite red flags.

Has anyone used those donation receipt tracking apps? I tried ItsDeductible last year and it was ok but not great for higher value items.

Your 18% donation rate is actually quite reasonable and shouldn't be a red flag by itself. I've seen clients donate 25-30% of windfalls without issues, especially when it's a one-time event like a property sale. The most important thing is having proper documentation for each donation. Since you mentioned keeping all receipts, make sure you have written acknowledgments from each charity for donations of $250 or more. These need to include the donation amount, date, and a statement that no goods or services were provided in exchange (or describe what was provided). One tip for future years: if you're planning to continue higher donation levels, consider establishing a pattern by documenting your charitable giving philosophy or creating a simple giving plan. This shows intentionality rather than randomness, which auditors prefer to see. The fact that TurboTax isn't flagging anything is also a good sign - their built-in audit risk assessment is pretty conservative. Your documentation sounds solid, so I wouldn't stress too much about it.