Trust & Will, a digital estate planning platform, reported that users committed an estimated $2.5 million in future charitable gifts within two weeks of launching its Featured Nonprofit Program. The early results point to estate planning platforms becoming a structured entry point for planned giving at the moment donors formalize long-term financial decisions.
Trust & Will links estate planning with charitable selection
Trust & Will launched the Featured Nonprofit Program in May with three inaugural partners, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Doctors Without Borders USA, and Susan G. Komen. The program places nonprofit options inside the estate planning workflow, allowing users to include charitable beneficiaries while drafting legal documents.
The company says the early engagement translated quickly into commitments. Users allocated an estimated $2.5 million in future charitable gift value during the first two weeks of the program.
Trust & Will also reported more than $4 billion in total estimated bequest value facilitated through its platform across all nonprofit causes. The company said the median bequest value increased from $10,000 historically to $15,000 in 2025, indicating higher-value planned giving decisions among users.
Planned giving remains a structurally uneven fundraising channel across the nonprofit sector. Large organizations with dedicated legacy teams tend to capture a disproportionate share of bequests while smaller nonprofits often lack the infrastructure to compete for long-term gifts.
Trust & Will said 127 organizations have joined its broader nonprofit partnership program since November 2025, which provides donor notifications and access to engagement tools.
Nonprofits position estate planning as a long-term funding channel
Participating organizations describe estate planning as a critical moment for securing future support because donors are actively making decisions about family, health, and asset distribution.
Casey Saunders, co-interim chief development officer at Doctors Without Borders USA, said estate planning allows supporters to extend their impact beyond their lifetime while contributing to sustained humanitarian operations.
The comment reflects a broader funding challenge for nonprofits that rely on long-term investment in healthcare delivery, emergency response, and research programs. These missions often depend on predictable future revenue rather than short-term fundraising cycles.
Susan G. Komen highlighted similar dynamics in breast cancer funding. Trish Davis, vice president of major gifts and planned giving, noted that long-term gifts support sustained investment in research, care, and patient services.
For nonprofits, estate planning platforms offer access to donors at a point where charitable intent can translate into legally binding commitments rather than informal pledges.
Expansion Plan Targets Local Nonprofits and Raises Privacy Questions
Trust & Will plans to expand the Featured Nonprofit Program in January 2027 to include nonprofit recommendations based on user location, including state and ZIP code data.
The company noted that the recommendation system is still under development and aims to surface organizations connected to users’ communities rather than only national charities. Trust & Will disclosed the intent is to make the experience more locally relevant for users creating estate plans.
The company also addressed donor privacy concerns tied to nonprofit data access. Trust & Will said donors only share information when they explicitly name a nonprofit in their estate plan and can revoke consent at any time.
Participating nonprofits must pass a verification process before accessing donor data and are contractually restricted from selling or transferring that information. Trust & Will maintains SOC 2 Type II compliance and operates as both a certified B Corporation and Public Benefit Corporation.
The expansion will test whether estate planning platforms can redistribute planned giving opportunities toward smaller local nonprofits that traditionally lack visibility in legacy donation pipelines.