Every dollar is a choice
What could your money do if it were better spent?
A pair of earbuds. A luxury watch. A yacht. See what the same money achieves when it goes to the world's most effective charities — with every number traced back to its source.
27 rigorously evaluated charities · all figures sourced · all amounts USD
The trade-off
Same money. Different world.
Real things, at their real prices — and what the same dollars could do if they were better spent. Click any item to run its price through the calculator.
Prices are real list/sale prices in USD as of July 2026. Photos are freely licensed via Wikimedia Commons; some show a comparable product rather than the exact model.
Impact calculator
How much would you like to give?
Pick an amount (or enter your own), choose a charity, then click any outcome to see exactly how it's calculated.
Showing outcomes for $1,000 — all amounts in USD.
Methodology & disclaimer
Better Spent only includes charities and outcomes with credible, traceable cost-effectiveness evidence. Cost-per-outcome figures are adapted from The Life You Can Save's Impact Calculator (retrieved July 2026) and from evaluators including GiveWell, Founders Pledge, Giving Green, Animal Charity Evaluators, IDinsight, J-PAL, and Innovations for Poverty Action, plus peer-reviewed trials linked on each outcome. Charities or claims without a verifiable source were left out.
These figures are best estimates, not invoices. Many are statistical inferences from impact evaluations — generalizations from randomized trials, systematic reviews, and program cost data — rather than a literal price list. Real-world costs vary by country, year, and scale, and charities may allocate funds across programs based on where the need is greatest. Where an estimate is self-reported or unusually uncertain, the outcome's "Keep in mind" note says so.
Even with that uncertainty, the comparison holds: a widely cited analysis of more than 500 life-saving interventions in the United States found a median cost of about US$2.2 million per life saved, while the strongest global health charities are estimated to save a life for under US$5,500.
Better Spent is an independent project. It is not affiliated with The Life You Can Save or any listed charity, and it never handles donations — the donate buttons link directly to each charity's own website. Item prices are real list or sale prices in USD (July 2026). Some product photos depict a comparable product rather than the exact model. This site is for information only and is not financial advice.
Image credits — the following photos are from Wikimedia Commons: Apple AirPods Pro 3 (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Rolex Submariner (Public domain) · 2026 Sea-Doo GTX Limited 325 (CC BY 2.0) · 2026 Mercedes-Benz C 300 4MATIC Sedan (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Steinway & Sons Model D Concert Grand (CC BY-SA 3.0) · 1986 Piper Cheyenne 400LS (No known restrictions).