When employers match what staff donate or fundraise.
Matched giving is when a company matches its employees' charitable donations — usually 1:1, normally up to an annual cap per employee. It is the second half of workplace giving's "money" track, alongside Payroll Giving.
Everything we've written on Matched Giving.
- 01 Matched Giving Policy Template — 2026 UK SMB Guide
A practical matched giving policy template for UK SMBs — clauses, eligibility, caps, exclusions, approval workflow, and a copy-pasteable skeleton.
- 02 Matched Giving Ratios and Caps — 2026 UK SMB Guide
How to set matched giving ratios and caps for UK SMBs — 1:1 vs 2:1, annual caps, what firms actually budget, and when higher ratios make sense.
- 03 Best Workplace Giving Software UK 2026 — Compared
An independent 2026 comparison of workplace giving and matched giving software for UK SMBs — Benevity, Percent, Onhand, and where Leavely fits in.
- 04 Tax Treatment of Matched Giving in the UK — 2026 Guide
How HMRC treats UK employer matched giving — Corporation Tax deductibility, why Gift Aid doesn't apply to the corporate portion, and evidence requirements.
- 05 What Is Matched Giving? 2026 UK Employer's Guide
Matched giving — what it is, how UK employers run it, typical match ratios and budgets, and how to start small without overcommitting.
It works best when paired.
The strongest workplace-giving programmes layer two or three pillars together. Start here, add as you grow.
The questions HR keeps emailing us.
What is the typical UK matched giving ratio?+
1:1 is by far the most common. Some firms offer 2:1 for special events. Higher ratios are unusual.
Should the match cap be per donation or per year?+
Annual cap, almost always. £200–£500 per employee per year is common for UK SMBs.
Does matched giving qualify for Gift Aid?+
The matched portion is a corporate donation — Gift Aid does not apply. The donation is normally deductible against Corporation Tax.
This pillar is editorially independent — and underwritten by Leavely.
Leavely is leave management for UK SMBs. It's most relevant to the Employee Volunteering pillar, where it tracks paid volunteer days as a separate leave type — but it's where most of our HR readers come from, so we link it up here too.