2025 Nonprofit Trends: What Worked, What Didn’t, What’s Next

2025 Brought Big Changes For Nonprofits

Across the nonprofit sector organizations felt a shift in 2025 — not because of a single moment, but because of the compounding pressure and changes across fundraising, technology, and donor behavior. From digital and fundraising teams to executive leadership, our conversations with nonprofit leaders throughout the year highlighted the same tensions again and again:

• how to grow revenue while donor participation shrinks

• how to adopt new technology without overwhelming staff

• how to keep supporters meaningfully connected in an increasingly mobile-first world.

As economic conditions shifted, technology evolved rapidly, and donor expectations continued to rise, nonprofits were forced to adapt in real time. Some changes unlocked new opportunity. Others exposed long-standing challenges the sector can no longer afford to ignore. We'll explore all of this in our 2025 recap, let's jump in.

Technology and Digital Transformation

As with years past, 2025 marked an acceleration in digital adoption across the nonprofit sector — but not all technology shifts were created equal. That mattered, especially this year.

One of the most consequential changes came from Apple’s iOS 26 update, which fundamentally reshaped how messages appear and behave on iPhones. New interface elements, enhanced AI-driven features, and changes to message previews altered how donors encountered nonprofit communications — often without organizations realizing it at first. Despite some backlash from end users, iOS 26 is here to stay and nonprofits must adapt.

These updates could affect how nonprofit texts are perceived on iPhones — for example, messages landing in an unknown sender folder may require more careful list opt-in strategies to ensure visibility.

How iOs26 affected nonprofits:

• Delaying mobile messaging updates led to noticeable engagement declines

• Peer-to-peer, event, and urgency-driven messages were most affected

• Small details mattered more than ever: message length, previews, visuals, and timing

What we saw consistently: nonprofits that delayed adapting their mobile messaging strategy experienced noticeable drops in engagement, particularly for peer-to-peer campaigns, event reminders, and urgency-based appeals. Message length, preview text, visual hierarchy, and timing suddenly mattered more than ever! Teams that treated iOS 26 as a cosmetic update struggled; those that treated it as a behavioral shift adjusted faster and recovered performance sooner.

For mobile communicators and nonprofits, these changes matter because they shape the overall mobile experience — especially for donors using iPhones as primary devices.

Why Mobile Matters For Nonprofit Websites

At the same time, mobile engagement reached a tipping point. Nonprofits have an average of 12,708 website visitors per month. [NextAfter]. Organic traffic (website traffic generated by unpaid search results) generates 44% of all nonprofit website visits. [M+R Benchmarks]

With the majority of nonprofit website traffic now coming from phones, mobile-first engagement is no longer a competitive advantage. It is the baseline. In fact, 57% of nonprofit web traffic comes from mobile devices. Organizations that failed to optimize donation flows, confirmation experiences, and follow-up messaging for mobile saw friction compound (and donations decrease) across the donor journey.

Nonprofits must remember this when communicating with their constituents. The top three sources of website traffic are direct / email (22%), organic search (17%), and social media (16%). [HubSpot]. Missing out on mobile means missing out on a direct line of engagement with supporters. Our friends at FundraiseUp agreed. "Many nonprofits continue to treat mobile traffic as an afterthought, missing massive untapped potential".

The Dialogue You Need in 2026: RCS Messaging

We already know that texting continues to outperform email. Texting has 99% open rates, compared to email at around ~30%. You also know, that here at Mission Generosity, we believe in a mobile-first engagement and that a holistic, omni-channel strategy is integral to fundraising success.

What is RCS Messaging?

RCS (Rich Communication Services) is the next generation of text messaging that turns standard SMS into a richer, app-like experience on mobile devices. It allows organizations to send branded messages with images, buttons, carousels, and interactive calls to action directly in a user’s messaging inbox. For nonprofits, RCS creates more engaging, trusted, and conversion-friendly donor communication without requiring an app download.

Why RCS matters for Nonprofits

RCS messaging is here to stay and nonprofits can no longer ignore it. Mobile messaging with iOS 26 in particular has big changes and implications for nonprofits using RCS:

• Unknown Sender Screening: Messages from numbers not in contacts go to a separate folder

• Polls and Custom Backgrounds: Add interactive elements to group chats

• Typing Indicators & Apple Cash: See when others are typing; send/receive money via Apple Cash

• Group Enhancements: Better group interactivity and context within conversations

This matters because RCS allows nonprofits to:

• Create richer storytelling on mobile

  RCS lets nonprofits use images, carousels, and branded layouts to show impact—not just describe it.

• Higher engagement than SMS alone

  Interactive buttons and visual content drive stronger click-through and response rates than plain text messages.

• A more trusted donor experience

  Verified sender IDs and branded messages help build credibility and reduce confusion or spam perception.

• Built for mobile-first donors

  As donors increasingly engage on their phones, RCS meets them with a modern, app-like experience inside their inbox.

• Clear calls to action that convert

  Tap-to-donate buttons, RSVP actions, and quick replies remove friction and increase conversions.

• Better insights and optimization

  Read receipts and interaction data help nonprofits understand what resonates and refine campaigns.

Tactics for Record-Breaking Peer-to-Peer Events Using RCS

For peer-to-peer fundraisers and event organizers, a mobile-first environment using RCS is crucial to participation and fundraising success. Clobbering together participant communications, last-minute run/walk/ride day changes, fundraising coaching, volunteer recruitment, etc. across various platforms can be frustrating....and risky.

Nonprofits embracing a mobile-first environment saw exponential success compared to ones that used multiple platforms. "When fundraisers receive coaching via text and use a mobile app to raise 178% more than non–mobile-first participants!"

The Parkinson's Foundation raised 2.5X more by leading with mobile-first communications. Grab their case study here and learn more about peer-to-peer event success with a mobile-first lens here.

Key Takeaway: Mobile-First Is No Longer Optional

The bottom line: Mobile-first is the baseline, not an add-on. In 2026, nonprofits that aren't thinking with a mobile-first lens will see fewer donations, a poor-quality donor experience, leading to decreased donor engagement and a lower fundraising year.

Conclusion: What 2025 Taught Us — and What Comes Next For 2026

Ending 2025, nonprofits find themselves more digitally capable than ever, and more stretched. It doesn't have to be that way in 2026. Nonprofits must adapt to a mobile-first world. This doesn't have to be a drain on staffing or volunteer resources, or budget. When done right and well, it can lead to unparalleled success.

The lessons of the year are clear:

• diversify revenue streams

• invest in mobile-first engagement

• adopt technology strategically rather than reactively.

Just as important, organizations must rethink how they nurture smaller donors, support overextended staff, and create engagement paths that go beyond one-time transactions.

Looking ahead to 2026, the nonprofits best positioned to succeed won’t be the ones using the most tools, they’ll be the ones using their tools more intentionally. Mobile will continue to serve as the connective tissue between campaigns, events, advocacy, and stewardship. The organizations that build with clarity, restraint, and human-centered strategy will enter 2026 not just prepared for change, but ready to lead through it.