What Is the Best Suicide Prevention Charity?

There isn’t a single “best” suicide prevention charity for everyone. The right choice depends on where you live, which populations you want to support (for example, LGBTQ+ youth or bereaved families), and whether you value direct crisis services, community prevention, research, or policy advocacy. Strong, well-established options include Vibrant Emotional Health (which operates the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline in the U.S.), Samaritans (UK & Ireland), The Trevor Project, the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP), The Jed Foundation (JED), Crisis Text Line, PAPYRUS (UK), and the International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP). Below is a guide to help you compare and choose with confidence.

How to judge what “best” means for you

Before you donate, it helps to define what impact you want your money to have. The following criteria are commonly used by independent evaluators and donors to assess suicide prevention organizations.

• Impact model: Clear, evidence-based programs that plausibly reduce suicide risk (for example, 24/7 crisis response, school-based systems change, lethal-means safety, postvention support).
• Reach and equity: Ability to serve the communities you care about, including youth, LGBTQ+ people, rural areas, and communities of color.
• Quality and safety: Use of trained staff/volunteers, clinical oversight, data safeguards, and continuous improvement.
• Transparency: Public reporting on outcomes, finances, leadership, and independent audits (for U.S. groups, look for GuideStar/Candid transparency and Charity Navigator ratings).
• Use of funds: Reasonable administrative costs for the model; clear explanation of how donations translate into services.
• Partnerships and policy: Work with schools, health systems, and governments to scale effective practices, plus advocacy for evidence-based policy.

Using these benchmarks helps compare very different organizations—like a hotline versus a research funder—on a level playing field and ensures your donation aligns with your goals.

Standout organizations by focus area

24/7 crisis services and access to care

These nonprofits operate or enable immediate, around-the-clock support—often the most direct way to help someone survive a crisis and access follow-up care.

• Vibrant Emotional Health (U.S.): Operates the nationwide 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline via a network of local centers; donations can bolster capacity, specialized lines (e.g., Spanish, Veterans via VA partnership), and text/chat access. Highly rated on U.S. charity evaluators as of 2024.
• Samaritans (UK & ROI): Trusted 24/7 helpline (116 123), email, and outreach; strong volunteer model and rigorous safeguarding across thousands of locations.
• Crisis Text Line (U.S.): 24/7 text and WhatsApp support with trained counselors; English/Spanish options; ongoing product and safety improvements following earlier data-privacy concerns addressed in 2022.
• Lifeline Australia: 24/7 phone and digital crisis support (13 11 14) plus community training and suicide-safe messaging.
• Talk Suicide Canada: Phone (1-833-456-4566) and text; integrates with provincial services and Indigenous-led supports.

Donations to crisis services typically increase counselor coverage, reduce wait times, expand text/chat channels, and strengthen follow-up care—factors linked to better outcomes.

Youth and LGBTQ+ focused support

Young people—especially LGBTQ+ youth—face elevated suicide risk. The following groups combine crisis intervention with prevention in schools and communities.

• The Trevor Project (U.S.): 24/7 phone/text/chat for LGBTQ+ youth, research on risk/protective factors, school trainings, and advocacy; top-rated by Charity Navigator as of 2024.
• The Jed Foundation (JED) (U.S.): Partners with high schools and colleges to build comprehensive, evidence-informed systems that reduce suicide risk; strong transparency and impact reporting.
• PAPYRUS (UK): HOPELINE247 for people under 35, safety-planning, school engagement, and advocacy on safer messaging and means reduction.
• Active Minds (U.S.): Student-led mental health and suicide prevention programs across campuses; peer education and culture change.

If you want to help prevent crises before they start—by strengthening school systems, training adults, and supporting vulnerable youth—these organizations are strong bets.

Research, training, and policy change

These groups work upstream—funding science, training providers, and advancing policy reforms that can reduce suicide at population scale.

• American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) (U.S.): Funds research, supports loss survivors, trains communities, and advocates for evidence-based policy; highly rated on U.S. charity evaluators as of 2024.
• International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP): Global network advancing research, best practices, and World Suicide Prevention Day; supports country-level capacity building.
• Zero Suicide Institute (global, via EDC): Trains health systems in the Zero Suicide framework to improve identification, treatment, and transitions of care.
• Centre for Suicide Prevention (Canada): Evidence synthesis, practitioner training, and community education across provinces and territories.

For donors interested in systemic and long-term impact, research and policy organizations can amplify your contribution beyond any single helpline.

Equity- and identity-centered supports

Tailored services can improve trust and outcomes for communities facing higher barriers to care or disproportionate risk.

• BlackLine (U.S./Canada): Peer support and crisis line for Black, Brown, Indigenous, and LGBTQ+ communities, centering culturally responsive care.
• Trans Lifeline (U.S./Canada): Peer-run crisis support and microgrants; policies designed to reduce harmful involuntary interventions except in imminent danger.
• The Steve Fund (U.S.): Mental health programs for young people of color in schools and community groups, addressing disparities tied to suicide risk.

If your priority is closing equity gaps in access and outcomes, these organizations emphasize culturally informed, community-led support.

How to decide where to give—and maximize your impact

Use the steps below to align your donation with outcomes you care about and to vet organizations’ quality and transparency.

1. Pick a focus: Crisis response now (hotlines, text/chat), prevention for youth or specific communities, or research and policy change.
2. Check independent ratings: For U.S. charities, review Charity Navigator and Candid/GuideStar profiles; scan audited financials and outcomes reports.
3. Look for outcome metrics: Examples include average speed-to-answer, texter/caller de-escalation rates, school system changes, or policy wins tied to reduced risk.
4. Support local capacity: Consider donating to a local 988-affiliated crisis center or your local Samaritans branch, which may be under-resourced.
5. Consider monthly giving: Recurring gifts help hotlines staff up predictably and maintain 24/7 coverage.
6. Ask about data privacy and safety policies: Especially for digital services, confirm strong safeguards and ethical crisis intervention practices.

Following these steps helps you move from a well-meaning gift to a strategic investment in lives saved and crises prevented.

If you or someone you know needs help now

Help is available 24/7. If you’re in immediate danger, call your local emergency number. If you can, reach out to a trusted person and a crisis service:

• U.S.: Call or text 988, or chat via 988lifeline.org
• UK & ROI: Samaritans 116 123 or samaritans.org
• Canada: Talk Suicide 1-833-456-4566; Youth can also contact Kids Help Phone (1-800-668-6868 or text CONNECT to 686868)
• Australia: Lifeline 13 11 14
• Worldwide: Find local helplines via IASP (iasp.info/resources/Crisis_Centres/) or Befrienders Worldwide (befrienders.org)

You are not alone. Trained counselors can listen, help you stay safe, and connect you with ongoing support.

Summary

No single charity is “best” for every donor. If you want to strengthen immediate, life-saving response, consider Vibrant/988, Samaritans, or Crisis Text Line. For youth and LGBTQ+ prevention, The Trevor Project, JED, and PAPYRUS stand out. If you prefer systemic change, AFSP, IASP, and Zero Suicide Institute advance research, training, and policy. Use independent ratings, outcome metrics, and equity considerations to choose confidently—and consider supporting a local crisis center to expand frontline capacity where you live.

What charities help with self harm and suicide?

Harmless is the national centre of excellence for self harm and suicide prevention. We save lives by providing support, information, training and consultancy about self harm to individuals who self harm, their friends, families and professionals.

What is the best suicide prevention charity to donate to?

List of Best Suicide Prevention Charities

• Brain & Behavior Research Foundation.
• NAMI NATIONAL.
• USA Cares, Inc.
• Project Sanctuary.
• Active Minds. Washington , DC.
• Suicide Awareness-Voices of Education. BLOOMINGTON , MN.
• The Trevor Project. West Hollywood , CA.
• American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. New York , NY.

What is the charity rating for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention?

Four-Star rating
Rating Information
This charity’s score is 100%, earning it a Four-Star rating.

Which is the most well-known mental health charity?

NAMI is the National Alliance on Mental Illness. We are the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization.

• Call. 1-800-950-6264.
• Text. Text “NAMI” to 62640.
• In a crisis? Call or Text 988.