Charity KPI Examples: What to Measure and Why
A comprehensive guide to key performance indicators for UK charities, with 20 example KPIs across financial, programme, fundraising, and operational categories, plus guidance on choosing and reporting KPIs.
Key performance indicators (KPIs) help charities track whether they are achieving their goals, using resources effectively, and making a genuine difference. The right KPIs give trustees confidence, satisfy funders, and help managers make evidence-based decisions about where to focus limited resources.
TL;DR: Charity KPIs fall into four main categories: financial health, programme outcomes, fundraising performance, and operational efficiency. Most charities should track 10-15 KPIs across these areas. The Charity Commission expects trustees to monitor performance, and most major UK funders now require outcome-level reporting. Plinth helps charities track programme KPIs and generate the reports funders and trustees need.
What Are KPIs in the Charity Context?
KPIs are quantifiable measures that indicate how effectively an organisation is achieving its key objectives. In the charity sector, they serve a different purpose from KPIs in commercial businesses — the goal is not profit maximisation but mission fulfilment and responsible stewardship of charitable funds.
Definition: A Key Performance Indicator (KPI) in the charity context is a measurable value that demonstrates how effectively an organisation is achieving its charitable objectives, managing its resources, and delivering value to its beneficiaries. Charity KPIs typically span four domains: financial sustainability, programme effectiveness, fundraising performance, and operational efficiency.
The Charity Commission's guidance on the trustees' annual report (Charities SORP FRS 102) requires charities to report on their achievements and performance. While the Commission does not prescribe specific KPIs, it expects trustees to identify the measures most relevant to their work and report against them. According to the Charity Governance Code, boards should "agree goals and KPIs for the charity's work, and regularly review progress against these."
For the UK's 170,862 registered charities (Charity Commission, March 2025), the challenge is not whether to use KPIs, but which ones to choose. Measuring too much creates administrative burden; measuring too little leaves you flying blind.
KPI Examples by Category
The following table provides 20 example KPIs across the four main categories. Not every charity needs all of these — select the ones most relevant to your mission, your funders' requirements, and your trustees' information needs.
| # | Category | KPI | How to Measure | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Financial | Reserves as months of operating costs | Total free reserves ÷ monthly operating expenditure | Shows financial resilience; Charity Commission recommends charities justify their reserves level |
| 2 | Financial | Fundraising return on investment | Gross fundraising income ÷ fundraising expenditure | Measures efficiency of fundraising activity |
| 3 | Financial | Proportion spent on charitable activities | Charitable expenditure ÷ total expenditure × 100 | Public and regulators expect the majority of funds to reach beneficiaries |
| 4 | Financial | Income diversity ratio | Largest single income source as % of total income | Over-reliance on one funder is a governance risk |
| 5 | Financial | Restricted vs unrestricted income ratio | Unrestricted income ÷ total income × 100 | High restricted income limits organisational flexibility |
| 6 | Programme | Number of beneficiaries reached | Count of unique individuals accessing services | Basic measure of reach and scale |
| 7 | Programme | Beneficiary outcome achievement rate | % of beneficiaries achieving target outcomes | The core measure of programme effectiveness |
| 8 | Programme | Service completion rate | % of enrolled beneficiaries completing the programme | Low completion signals design or accessibility issues |
| 9 | Programme | Beneficiary satisfaction score | Average score from post-service feedback surveys | Measures quality from the user's perspective |
| 10 | Programme | Cost per beneficiary outcome | Total programme cost ÷ number of positive outcomes achieved | Shows value for money; increasingly requested by commissioners |
| 11 | Programme | Demographic reach vs target population | % of beneficiaries from priority demographic groups | Ensures services reach those most in need |
| 12 | Fundraising | Donor retention rate | % of previous-year donors who gave again this year | Widely cited in fundraising as significantly cheaper than acquiring new donors |
| 13 | Fundraising | Average gift value | Total donations ÷ number of donations | Tracks donor engagement depth |
| 14 | Fundraising | Grant application success rate | Successful applications ÷ total applications × 100 | Measures effectiveness of fundraising strategy |
| 15 | Fundraising | Lifetime donor value | Average total giving per donor over their relationship | Long-term indicator of fundraising health |
| 16 | Operational | Staff turnover rate | Number of leavers ÷ average headcount × 100 | High turnover damages service continuity; charity sector turnover is typically estimated at 15-20% |
| 17 | Operational | Volunteer retention rate | % of volunteers active for 12+ months | Volunteers are a critical resource; retention reflects organisational health |
| 18 | Operational | Safeguarding incident rate | Number of incidents per 1,000 beneficiaries | Core governance and compliance measure |
| 19 | Operational | Data collection completeness | % of required data fields completed across active cases | Incomplete data undermines reporting and decision-making |
| 20 | Operational | Time from referral to first contact | Average working days between referral and initial engagement | Measures responsiveness, particularly important for vulnerable populations |
How to Choose the Right KPIs for Your Charity
Choosing the right KPIs requires balancing three considerations: what your mission demands, what your funders require, and what you can realistically collect. Here is a practical framework.
Start with your Theory of Change
Your Theory of Change or logic model identifies the outcomes your programmes are designed to achieve. Your programme KPIs should map directly to these outcomes. If your ToC says your mentoring programme improves young people's confidence and employability, then you need KPIs that measure confidence and employment outcomes — not just how many mentoring sessions you delivered.
Ask what decisions each KPI will inform
Every KPI should trigger an action if it moves significantly. If your service completion rate drops below 70%, what would you do? If your fundraising ROI falls below 3:1, what would you change? If a KPI would not change any decision regardless of its value, it is not worth tracking.
Match the frequency to the decision cycle
Not every KPI needs monthly tracking. Financial KPIs may be reviewed quarterly by the board. Programme outcome KPIs might be assessed at programme completion points. Operational KPIs like safeguarding incidents need real-time monitoring. Set reporting frequencies that match the pace of decision-making for each area.
A common challenge highlighted by the Charity Finance Group is that boards often receive too much data and too little insight. The solution is fewer, better KPIs — not more.
Keep the total manageable
Most charity experts recommend tracking 10-15 KPIs at board level. Individual programme managers may track additional operational metrics, but the board dashboard should focus on the most strategically important indicators. Plinth's monitoring and reporting features allow you to set up layered dashboards — a board-level summary that drills down into programme-level detail as needed.
Common Mistakes with Charity KPIs
Measuring only outputs
Outputs (people served, sessions delivered, events held) are necessary but insufficient. They tell you what you did, not what changed. Funders increasingly expect outcome-level KPIs alongside output data. The National Lottery Community Fund, which distributes over £600 million annually and regulated £102 billion in charity income in 2024-25 (Charity Commission Annual Report), explicitly requires outcome reporting for its grants.
Choosing KPIs because they are easy, not because they are important
It is tempting to track what your systems already capture rather than what your mission requires. If your most important outcome is improved beneficiary wellbeing, but you only measure attendance, you are optimising for the wrong thing. Invest in the data collection — through outcome surveys and structured case management — that captures what actually matters.
Setting targets without baselines
A target of "80% of participants reporting improved confidence" is meaningless without knowing your current baseline. Before setting targets, collect at least one round of baseline data. If this is your first year measuring a particular outcome, focus on establishing the baseline rather than hitting a target.
Ignoring qualitative evidence
KPIs are quantitative by definition, but they should not be the only evidence your charity uses. Beneficiary stories, case studies, and qualitative feedback provide context that numbers alone cannot. The most compelling funder reports combine KPI data with narrative evidence. Sector guidance from NCVO and others consistently emphasises that funders value qualitative case studies alongside quantitative outcome data.
Treating KPIs as static
Your KPIs should evolve as your organisation matures. A new charity might focus on output KPIs while it builds its outcome measurement capacity. A mature charity should be tracking outcomes and efficiency metrics. Review your KPI framework annually and adjust as your strategic priorities shift.
How to Report KPIs to Funders and Trustees
Reporting to trustees
Trustees need a clear, concise dashboard that they can review in the time available at a board meeting — typically 15-20 minutes for the performance section. Use a traffic light system (red/amber/green) to flag KPIs that need attention. Include trend data showing performance over time, not just the current quarter. Provide brief commentary explaining significant movements.
The Charity Governance Code recommends that boards regularly monitor performance against agreed objectives. A well-designed KPI dashboard is the most efficient way to fulfil this responsibility. The Charity Digital Skills Report 2025 found that 28% of charity boards have poor digital skills, suggesting many struggle to engage with data-driven KPI reporting.
Reporting to funders
Different funders require different levels of detail. Map your KPIs to each funder's specific reporting requirements at the start of the grant, not at reporting time. The most common funder requirements include:
- Output data: Beneficiary numbers, demographics, activities delivered
- Outcome data: Evidence of change, typically measured through pre/post surveys
- Financial data: Expenditure against budget, with explanations for variances
- Case studies: 1-2 examples illustrating the human impact behind the numbers
- Learning: What worked, what did not, and what you would do differently
Plinth generates funder reports that combine KPI dashboards with AI-drafted narrative summaries, reducing the time from days to hours. Because the data comes directly from your programme delivery, the numbers are always up to date and consistent.
Reporting to the public
The Charity Commission expects larger charities to publish their achievements and performance in their annual report. Increasingly, charities also share impact data on their websites and in supporter communications. Public-facing KPIs should be simpler and more accessible than internal reporting — focus on 3-5 headline figures that communicate your impact clearly.
According to research published by GOV.UK, public trust in charities is closely linked to transparency. Charities that proactively share performance data build stronger relationships with donors and the wider public.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many KPIs should a charity track?
At board level, 10-15 KPIs is typically the right range. This gives trustees enough information to govern effectively without being overwhelmed. Programme managers may track additional operational metrics below this level. The key is that every KPI at board level should inform a strategic decision.
What KPIs do funders care about most?
Funders care most about outcome KPIs — evidence that their money has created real change. The Association of Charitable Foundations encourages funders to focus on learning and impact, and the most commonly valued reporting elements include beneficiary outcome data, cost-effectiveness information, and qualitative case studies that illustrate the human impact behind the numbers.
Should we benchmark our KPIs against other charities?
Where benchmarking data is available, it adds valuable context. Sector-specific benchmarks exist for fundraising efficiency (Institute of Fundraising), financial health (Charity Finance Group), and staff turnover (NCVO Almanac). However, benchmarking is more useful for operational and financial KPIs than for programme outcomes, which vary too much between organisations and contexts to compare meaningfully.
How do we measure outcomes if our beneficiaries are hard to reach?
Hard-to-reach populations — rough sleepers, undocumented migrants, people in crisis — pose genuine measurement challenges. Use shorter, more accessible data collection methods: verbal surveys, observational assessments by practitioners, or proxy indicators. Even imperfect outcome data from hard-to-reach groups is more valuable than no data at all. Plinth's flexible survey tools support multiple collection methods including practitioner-completed assessments.
What is the difference between a KPI and a metric?
All KPIs are metrics, but not all metrics are KPIs. A metric is any measurable data point. A KPI is a metric that has been identified as key to assessing performance against a strategic objective. Your charity might track dozens of metrics; only the most important ones — those that indicate whether you are achieving your goals — should be elevated to KPI status. See our guide to data analytics for charities for more on turning metrics into insight.
Recommended Next Pages
The Complete Guide to Outcome Measurement — How to measure the programme outcomes that form your most important KPIs.
What is Impact Reporting? — How to communicate your KPI results to funders, trustees, and the public.
Data Analytics and Reporting Dashboards for UK Charities — How to build dashboards that present your KPIs effectively.
Measuring Grant Impact — Strategies for tracking and reporting the impact of funded programmes.
Last updated: February 2026