When we change the way we give, our communities can thrive.
Workers Defense member Sharon Medina from Houston standing among three pink balloons.
Photo credit: Pamela de Marion Silva Diaz (via Workers Defense Project - @workersdefense)
Participants in Freedom To Thrive's We Rise Leadership Development program wearing matching black t-shirts that read "WE RISE Abolitionist Convening 2023."
Photo credit: Freedom to Thrive (@freedom2thrive)
Dear JustFund community,
2024 was a year shaped by innovation, resilience, and, above all,
the power of listening. As I engaged funders and applicants in over 300 conversations, I gained valuable insights about your challenges, successes, and goals to solve our society’s most pressing issues. This feedback is shaping JustFund’s direction and has reinforced our commitment to building the nation’s go-to platform for equitable grantmaking.
For instance, when an individual donor joined JustFund to find new grantees, they shared that they wanted to expand the pool of applicants beyond the JustFund Search library of 18,000 nonprofits. We jumped into action, helping them launch their first ever Fund and supported them to run a national open call. Eighty new groups applied. When that same donor decided they didn’t want to move the grants through their Donor-Advised Fund (DAF), we offered them our JustFund Wallet solution, allowing the new donor to move one grant to JustFund, delegating the grant disbursement to us.
Our unique product intersects three software markets: grants management (GMS), nonprofit fundraising, and giving databases. This strategic intersections helps to bridge funding gaps, foster donor collaboration, and remove barriers and bottlenecks that prevent money from moving to communities that need it.
I’m proud to share JustFund’s remarkable year and the many ways we’ve advanced our collective mission to change the way we give so our communities can thrive. Thank you for being on this journey with us.
Warmly,
Iara Peng
Founder & CEO
over moved
$350 million
Milestones 2024
Hewlett Foundation Invests
$2 Million in JustFund
Investing in JustFund is one way that we can help build a more effective and equitable philanthropy sector – one that can meet nonprofits where they are and ensure that all communities, not just some, are able to thrive.
Nonprofits serving low-income, rural, and communities of color are often the furthest from philanthropic resources, and platforms like JustFund have the potential to help close the gap.
Marselle Alexander-Ozinskas, Program Officer in Hewlett’s Effective Philanthropy Group
Read the press release
32%
24% since 2023
Funding commitments on JustFund jumped more applicants received funding commitments compared to 2023
program sitting indoors in a circle.
Photo credit: Freedom to Thrive (@freedom2thrive)
By the Numbers
2024
In 2024, both funders and applicants significantly increased their engagement on JustFund, demonstrating how the right technology can build connections and power equitable grantmaking.
Grant cycles launched
Invite-only grant cycles
Open grant cycles
(29% ↑ v. 2023)
(9% ↑ v. 2023)
(69% ↑ v. 2023)
Average grant size $52,287 (4% ↑ v. 2023)
Applications submitted 6,838 (44% ↑ v. 2023)
Applicants receiving commitments
All-time Impact
Total Hours Saved by Applicants
466,375
Total Years Saved by Applicants
53 years
,232 (32% ↑ v. 2023)
The expansion of the funder community –consisting of private foundations, community foundations, collaborative funds, nonprofit organizations engaged in regranting, high net wealth individuals and philanthropic and wealth advisors – means more funding opportunities for applicants across more issue areas and geographic locations.
more funders launched grant cycles in 2024 vs. 2023
Most Money Moved in a Year
$84,359,754
Top 10 Communities Engaged
$55M
$47M
$41M
$35M
$33M
$32M
$31M
$26M
$26M
$22M
Note:
Black
Latino / Latina / Latinx
Women
LGBTQ+
Youth
Immigrant
Rural
People who are Justice-involved
Indigenous
Asian or Asian American / AAPI
With the latest updates, funders can create detailed scoring rubrics to facilitate their grant review process. Plus, it’s easy to share notes and scores with staff, advisory councils, or board members for each application.
In 0
Applications Scored: Grant Cycles Scored: 2
Reviewers Scoring: 204
JustFund Search
Award & Declination Email Templates
More than 3,600 emails were sent via the JustFund platform in 2024
JustFund introduced customizable email templates, allowing funders to communicate directly with applicants seamlessly within the platform. This new feature streamlines
the communication process, saving time,
reducing typos and errors, and providing
flexible editing options.
Funder Check-In
Connecting with your grantees and building relationships just got easier. Schedule check-in calls and reminders to your grantees, add, and attach call notes to your grantee’s file.
B n fi s
Grantmaking tasks, in one plac Streamlined set-u
Our robust search engine gives funders access to more than 18,000 applicant profiles on JustFund. It’s never been easier to find new organizations to fund and center equity in your grantmaking. More than
searches in 2024 4,500
Easy and accessible for team Deepens relationships
The Common Application
The engine that powers JustFund
The JustFund Common Application™ is the nation’s first — and only — common grant application platform designed to move money quickly to communities that are historically excluded from traditional philanthropy. Each applicant completes a profile and answers up to three specific questions and attaches up to three documents for every funding opportunity, as requested by the funder.
Key Benefits
Time-saving
Increased efficiency
More collaboration
Improved data management Money moves faster
More impact
I am extremely grateful for the streamlined, simplified process. This truly shows that you are thinking of the best interest of the applicant, many of us who are already strapped and stretched beyond capacity. These kinds of funding opportunities are super important and making them accessible to even the ‘least’ of applicants with the smallest capacity says a lot.
Thank you!
Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation
For Funders
Equity in Action Open Calls Connect Funders to New Applicants
increase in open calls compared to 2023 69%
Philanthropic advisors and high net wealth donors are joining foundations and other funders to run an open call on JustFund to easily find and fund to groups beyond their usual network. When you invite applicants to the JustFund community, you’re also increasing your impact because their profiles become visible to other funders who use the platform. When donors see who else is funding organizations, they are motivated to give.
Increased Impact and Transparency Follow-on Funding
All applicants applying to a grant cycle can use their common application profile to apply to other funding opportunities. Funders are able to track all follow-on funding to know how much their applicants successfully raise on JustFund and are able to build connections with aligned funders.
When I wanted to go beyond my usual network to identify grantees, JustFund brought the perfect mix
of agility and tech expertise to the table. Through their innovative open call feature, I was able to create a fund and discover 80 new organizations making an impact in criminal justice reform.
Steve Phillips, national political leader, donor, and JustFund Board member
57% of grants go to groups who find additional funding opportunities on the platform after receiving their first grant.
Additional funding found on JustFund
$199,501,413
...one week after the election. As many communities navigated feelings of uncertainty immediately after the 2024 election, funders looked to JustFund to connect them with groups on the frontlines and applicants flocked to JustFund in need of rapid response and long-term funding.
What Applicants Are Saying
Really easy application platform. We also just received an unsolicited grant of $50,000 so your approach works!
Beaux Berkeley, Environmental Health Watch
The concept is great. It's so hard to fill out the myriad of grant forms that are all different. I love that you are consolidating and helping nonprofits save time and money.
Thurston Climate Action Team
Lessons Learned
At JustFund, we embrace t e p ilosop y of “failing fast” and “failing often.”
By confronting c allenges ead-on, we turn setbacks into opportunities for
growt and innovation. T is mindset fuels our mission to create t e most
equitable grantmaking solution in t e sector. Here are t ree key lessons we learned in 202
Listening drives innovation: Engaging wit our users ensures we build a product t at truly meets sector needs
Progress beats perfection: Taking risks and iterating quickly leads to meaningful improvements
Failing isn’t a sunk cost: Quickly identifying ineffective approac es elps us focus on w at drives real impact.
Featured in
Who’s With Us
T e JustFund community is composed of foundations, pooled funds, collaborative funds, donor networks, individual donors, and p ilant ropic advisors. We’re grateful to ave worked wit so many excellent organizations in t e past and present.
Our Clients
JustFund is a nonprofit organization focused on moving more money to our communities so they can thrive. Our long-term goal is to have our service fees cover our expenses and for any future additional earned income to generate sustainable funding to the funds and applicants on our platform. Until that time, JustFund relies on the grant-based investments from our core partners who make it possible for JustFund to grow our team, invest in our product, and accelerate our impact. In 2024, we raised critical funds to deploy in 2025 and 2026 to advance our product.
JustFund Our Team
Meet the People Behind the Platform
Our dedicated staff, board, and advisory council are the driving force behind our mission, bringing expertise, passion, and leadership that propel JustFund forward.
A JustFund team member wearing a striped shirt and apron waving to the camera.
The JustFund team smiling and standing behind a pottery wheel.
Looking Ahead
We’re excited about all of the opportunities that lie ahead! As we chart our path in 2025, we’re focused on three goals:
Continue to lead in philanthropy tech
Drive long-term growth
Expand our community's impact
Join Us!
We listen to feedback from our users and the broader sector to improve our services and develop valuable new features that advance equitable grantmaking.
We have a clear client-focused path that will allow us to offer our suite of services to hundreds of funders interested in aligning their practice with their values.
We'll bring our innovative technology to new users and support the thousands of applicants on JustFund to ensure more money moves more quickly to communities that need it.
T here’s a place for everyone in the JustFund community! H ere s ho w to get starte d.
Funders Request a demo with our founder and CEO to learn how your grantmaking and accelerate your impact. JustFund can streamline
Applicants
Supporters
Register at to complete your common application profile for free and access new funding opportunities. JustFund.us
H elp us get to our goals faster by contributing grants or a program-related investment. Contact to learn more. iara@justfund.us
