Phil and Penny Knight’s donation tops the Chronicle of Philanthropy’s list of 2025’s biggest gifts

The Chronicle of Philanthropy’s annual list of the biggest charitable donations from individuals or their foundations totaled $5 billion in 2025. Topping the list was $2 billion from Nike co-founder Phil Knight and his wife, Penny, followed by a $746.7 million donation from Warren Buffett and a $500 million pledge from the mother and stepfather of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.

Nearly 40% of the $5 billion total came from the Knights’ gift to Oregon Health & Science University. More than $1.3 billion, or about one-quarter of the total, came from four donations to Buffett family foundations.

The top three gifts went toward cancer care and research, a private grantmaker, and an international effort to fight hunger and malnutrition among women and children.

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