GiveWell is a nonprofit dedicated to finding outstanding giving opportunities and publishing the full details of their analysis to help donors decide where to give. Their staff spends thousands of hours each year reviewing academic evidence and researching different global health and development programs to identify the most cost-effective, evidence-backed ones.

They don't focus solely on financials, such as assessing administrative or fundraising costs. Instead, they conduct in-depth research to determine how much good a given program accomplishes (in terms of lives saved, lives improved, etc.) per dollar spent. They currently recommend a short list of top charities that do an incredible amount of good, estimating these interventions can save a life for about $5,000 on average. The top charities are working to increase demand for routine childhood vaccines, distribute vitamin A supplements, and prevent malaria through net distributions and antimalarial medications.

Donations to the Top Charities Fund are granted on a quarterly basis to support cost-effective funding opportunities at their four top charities. GiveWell does not take any portion of donations made to the Top Charities Fund. Their work is fully funded by donors who choose to provide unrestricted funding.