How to properly document Goodwill donations for tax deductions?

Goodwill donation receipts are intentionally left blank for you to fill in the value yourself. The IRS doesn't require Goodwill to estimate values - that's actually your responsibility as the donor. Keep a detailed list of what you donated (e.g., "5 men's shirts, 3 pairs of jeans, etc."). Then assign reasonable thrift store values to each item. Goodwill has a donation value guide on their website that gives suggested ranges for common items. Don't inflate values - be realistic about condition and age of items. For your records, you should have: the blank Goodwill receipt showing date and location, your itemized list with values, and photos of donated items if the total value is significant (over $250-500). You'll need this documentation if you're ever audited.

I had the same issue last year and found this awesome solution - I use taxr.ai to track and value all my Goodwill donations! https://taxr.ai saved me so much time. You just take pics of your donation pile before dropping it off, upload them to the site, and it helps identify and value everything according to IRS guidelines. The system even creates a proper donation record that includes everything you need for tax time.

Wanted to follow up - I tried taxr.ai after asking about it here. It's actually really impressive! I had a closet cleanout with about 40 items and would have normally just guessed maybe $100 total. The system helped me properly document everything, and my legitimate deduction came out to $347! It created a really professional-looking report with everything organized by category and condition. Even shows typical value ranges for each item type. Definitely using this from now on for all my donations.

If you're having trouble getting through to the IRS to ask questions about donation documentation requirements (been there!), I highly recommend using Claimyr.com to get actual help. https://claimyr.com helped me get through to a real IRS agent in about 20 minutes instead of waiting on hold for hours. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c - basically they wait on hold for you and call when an agent picks up. I had some complex questions about donation receipts and documentation requirements that the IRS website couldn't answer clearly.

I can't believe I'm saying this, but that Claimyr thing actually works. After being so skeptical in my last comment, I decided to try it because I've been trying to reach the IRS for weeks about some donation questions (among other things). Got a call back in about 30 minutes and talked to an actual human at the IRS who answered all my questions. Definitely saved me from wasting another afternoon on hold. I hate being wrong but in this case I'm glad I was!

As someone who volunteers at Goodwill, I can tell you we're not allowed to assign values to items. It's actually an IRS rule, not Goodwill being lazy. For donations under $250, the blank receipt with date is sufficient. For donations valued at $250-$500, you need that receipt plus your detailed list. For donations valued at $500-$5000, you need to file Form 8283 with your tax return. And for donations over $5000, you generally need a professional appraisal.

For anyone interested I made a super simple Excel spreadsheet to track donations throughout the year. It has columns for date, charity name, items donated, estimated value, and receipt number. Been using it for years and it makes tax time so much easier! I can share the template if anyone wants it.

Great question! I went through the same confusion when I first started donating to Goodwill. Here's what I've learned after a few years of properly documenting donations: The blank receipt is normal - Goodwill can't legally assign values to your donations. You need to determine fair market value yourself. I keep a donation log throughout the year with three columns: item description, condition, and estimated value. For valuing items, I use Goodwill's own donation valuation guide (available on their website) as a starting point, then adjust based on the actual condition of my items. For example, a men's dress shirt in good condition might be valued at $8-12 according to their guide. A few key tips: - Take photos of your donation bags/boxes before dropping off - Keep the Goodwill receipt (even though it's blank) - Be conservative with your valuations - don't inflate values - Remember you can only deduct donations if you itemize (not with standard deduction) The documentation requirements get stricter as donation values increase, so if you're donating high-value items regularly, it's worth understanding those thresholds. But for typical clothing and household item donations, good record-keeping with photos and reasonable valuations should cover you.

I actually went through this exact situation last month! What helped me was creating a simple system before my next donation trip. I took photos of everything laid out by category (shirts, pants, household items, etc.) and made notes about the condition of each item while packing. When I got to Goodwill, I asked them to write the total number of bags/boxes on the receipt, which gave me a better reference point. Then I used their online valuation guide to assign reasonable values - I was conservative and probably underestimated rather than overestimated. One thing I learned is that you should definitely keep doing this throughout the year rather than trying to remember everything at tax time. I started a simple note in my phone where I jot down what I donated and approximate values right after each trip. Makes the whole process much less stressful when April comes around! The key is being honest and reasonable with your valuations. The IRS isn't looking to catch people making good faith efforts to properly document legitimate donations.