Embed from Getty Images
After MacKenzie Scott received a reported $38 billion settlement in her divorce from Lex Luthor Jeff Bezos, she took the “Giving Pledge,” promising to donate to charitable causes until the “safe is empty.” Since then, MacKenzie made good on that promise a billion times over, giving to thousands of nonprofits and other worthy organizations such as HBCUs, food banks, climate organizations, education funds, and more. According to an April 2025 update to her website, Yield Giving, MacKenzie gave more than $19 billion to 2,450+ non-profits.
MacKenzie just announced a year-end summary of all of the nonprofits she’s donated to in 2025. Last year, she donated $2.6 billion. This year, she gave $7.1 billion, which almost triples 2024’s tally and brings her lifetime total in donations up to $26.3 billion.
Philanthropist and billionaire MacKenzie Scott announced Tuesday she has given $7.1 billion in donations to nonprofits so far in 2025, a major increase over her recent yearly contributions.
Writing in an essay on her website, Scott said, “This dollar total will likely be reported in the news, but any dollar amount is a vanishingly tiny fraction of the personal expressions of care being shared into communities this year.”
Scott acknowledged donating $2.6 billion in 2024 and $2.1 billion in 2023. The gifts this year bring her total giving since 2019 to $26.3 billion. Scott’s donations have captured the attention of nonprofits and other charitable funders because they come with no strings attached and are often very large compared to the annual budgets of the recipient organizations. Forbes estimates Scott’s net worth at $33 billion, most of which comes from Amazon shares she received after her 2019 divorce from company founder Jeff Bezos.
With the exception of an open call for applications in 2023, it is not possible to apply for her funding nor to reach her directly, as Scott maintains no public-facing office or foundation. Organizations are usually notified through an intermediary that Scott is awarding them a donation with little prelude or warning.
In advance of her announcement on her website, Yield Giving, more than a dozen historically Black colleges and universities revealed they had received $783 million in donations from Scott so far this year, according to research from Marybeth Gasman, a professor at Rutgers University and expert on HBCUs.
“One of the things that I really admire about Mackenzie Scott is that she is like an equity machine,” Gasman told the Associated Press, especially at a time when efforts to promote equity in education have come under attack from the Trump administration. She also said Scott’s gifts to HBCUs this time are bigger than the round of donations she made in 2020…In total, Gasman has tracked $1.35 billion in donations from Scott to HBCUs since 2020.
Scott’s recent donations to HBCU’s include $50 million to Norfolk State University, $63 million to Prairie View A&M University and $50 million to Bowie State University. On Friday, Scott donated $25 million to Lincoln University of Pennsylvania.
In addition, UNCF, which is the largest provider of scholarships to minority students, received $70 million from Scott, and said it will invest the gift in a collective endowment it is building for participating HBCUs. Another $50 million went to Native Forward Scholars Fund, which had also received a previous gift from Scott and provides college and graduate scholarships to Native American students.
Unlike Scott’s gifts, most foundations or major donors direct grants to specific programs and require an application and updates about the impact of the nonprofit’s work. Scott does not ask grantees to report back about how they used the money.
I love MacKenzie’s approach to her donations. She doesn’t make herself available to be lobbied, picks organizations that she trusts to do what’s best for their communities, and does not give the money with any strings attached. What a concept for someone who yields that much money and power! Imagine if everyone had that mindset. Anyway, people who work for entities that have gotten money have been sharing first-hand accounts on social media and they’re all very positive, which is really great to hear. I wish more philanthropists were like MacKenzie.
Forbes reports that in terms of lifetime donations, MacKenzie is now America’s third most generous philanthropist, right behind Warren Buffet ($65 billion) and Bill Gates ($48 billion). A bit of trivia for you: She just surpassed Michael Bloomberg and George Soros, whose reported donation totals are $21.1 billion and $24.2 billion, respectively. However, when you factor the donations into percentage of wealth, MacKenzie jumps up to second place behind Soros. That’s pretty impressive for someone who’s only been a solo billionaire for six years.
After her most recent grant announcement on Tuesday, MacKenzie Scott is now America's third-most-generous philanthropist by dollar amount, and second by percentage of wealth. More insights and context in my latest for @Forbes:https://t.co/TIGfNFYe4x pic.twitter.com/aKmQXIbUTx
— Phoebe Liu (@_pheebini) December 11, 2025
Such a class act.
I love this lady. In a world where wealth disparity is continuing to grow we need every penny of wealth re-distribution she’s providing an amazing role model when it is so badly needed.
Sure she’s an admirable individual, but the answer to poverty, inequality, environmental destruction, and the cost of living crisis isn’t philanthropy. It’s taxation. Tax billionaires. They shouldn’t exist.
This is true. But taxing excessive wealth isn’t going to happen anytime soon. Until that day, philanthropy which can’t be bought, lobbied, or manipulated is all we’ve got. Mackenzie Scott should be celebrated everywhere.
SHE’S INCREDIBLE. 🎉
Meanwhile, her ex-husband is buying the Met Gala for his new wife. 🙄#teamMacKenzie
Where is Jeff Bezos’s name rank on this list?
She’s doing such good work. I don’t believe billionaires should exist but if as long as they’re around they should all be like Mackenzie Scott.
Yep. This is how you billionaire.
Such an amazing person doing so much good.