Where do you find a list of the best charities?

Charity Navigator and GuideStar research and evaluate charities based on financial health and accountability, listing top-rated charities in dozens of categories. The IRS provides Select Check to search for legitimate charities.

Researching lists of top-rated charities enables educated choices. CharityNavigator.org and GuideStar.org break down broad categories into causes and associated charities. Two ways to use these websites include choosing a category or searching by keywords, causes or charity names.

Data on all legitimate tax-exempt 501(3)(c) not-for-profit charities is published on the IRS' official website, IRS.gov. Contributions to designated charities are tax deductible. Charity Navigator and GuideStar both list top-rated IRS-designated charities.