Donation value guide for 2024

Giving away things you no longer want or need can bring happiness to others who could use them. An added bonus: You get a tax break for your charitable gifts if you donate to a qualifying organization and itemize your deductions.

However, it’s your job to keep track of the items you give to charity so you can report their value to the IRS. Donated clothing and other household goods must be “in good used condition or better,” according to the IRS charitable contribution guide. If you claim a deduction of $500 or more for a used item that’s not in good condition, the IRS says you’d better get an appraisal.

Several of the most popular tax software programs will help you figure out the value of your donated items. If you need a quick estimate, the lists below give you an approximate value of commonly donated items as suggested in the Salvation Army’s donation value guide. If you don’t see your item in the list below and an appraisal isn’t required, Goodwill recommends using 30 percent of the item’s original price as a good starting point for determining tax value.

Remember, you must itemize your deductions on your tax return to be able to claim a tax break for your donations, and must choose between claiming the standard deduction and itemizing your deductions. With the standard deduction worth $14,600 for a single filer ($29,200 for a married couple) in 2024, your total itemized deductions must add up to more than that amount for it to make sense to itemize deductions. In other words, these days only people with hefty itemized deductions get a tax break for charitable contributions.

How to deduct your donated goods

You don’t have to send in a list of donated items with your tax return. Just keep the information with your personal records and put the total contribution amount on your Schedule A, Itemized Deductions (or your tax software will do it for you).

Be sure to get a receipt from the charity when you donate your goods — again, for your personal records. The nonprofit won’t put a dollar value on the receipt, but the paperwork will help you prove that you did, indeed, donate the property if the IRS asks.

If you make a single non-cash gift worth between $250 and $500 (for example, if you donate a vehicle), you’re required to have a receipt or a written acknowledgment of your gift from a qualified charitable organization.

If the total of all your contributed property comes to more than $500, you must file IRS Form 8283 with your tax return.