| Add New Donation |
ItsDeductible is a free tool that helps you value charitable donations and track them year round. You can use ItsDeductible to track donations of items, cash, mileage/travel expenses and stock.
For non-cash item donations, you can use ItsDeductible to:
What ItsDeductible Does
The IRS states, "To figure how much you may deduct for property that you contribute, you must first determine its
fair market value on the date of the contribution." (IRS Publication 561)
Per the IRS, "Fair market value is the price that property would sell for on the open market. It is the price that would be agreed on between a willing buyer and a willing seller, with neither being required to act, and both having reasonable knowledge of the relevant facts. If you put a restriction on the use of property you donate, the FMV must reflect that restriction." (IRS Publication 561)
ItsDeductible provides reliable estimates of the value of more than 1,500 common items. We do this by combining high-quality data for these items from different sources with sound, conservative estimation algorithms for assessing the fair market value of the items.
Our estimates are designed to reflect the spirit and intent of IRS publications 561 and 526.
How to Use ItsDeductibleIt is your responsibility to determine whether your item is comparable to the examples in ItsDeductible and to value it accurately.
To get started, choose any category and select Add or Edit to begin entering information.
You can either search or browse to find your items. Once you find your item, you'll enter a value for it on an Item Value Worksheet. Enter all items you donated on the same date. When you are finished, select Add Items To My Donation to see your Item Donation Summary.
From the Item Donation Summary associated with each donation date, you can select Add More Items or Done With This Donation.
When you are finished entering all items, select Done With Item Donations from the main Item Donations page.
If you do not find your item, select the Add It link, found at the bottom of each Item Value Worksheet, to add your own custom item and assign a value to it.
A charitable donation is a donation or gift to, or for the use of, a qualified organization. The donation must be voluntary and made without getting, or expecting to get, anything of equal value in return.
| Learn More | Show Examples |
ItsDeductible generates item values using a blend of data from various thrift and consignment stores. To do this, we collect the data throughout the year and provide updated item values - known as "established values" - at the end of the year. This ensures that the item values provided on your tax form accurately represent the fair market values of the items when they were donated.
To allow you to track your donations and estimate how they may affect your taxes, ItsDeductible provides "estimated values" for you to use throughout the year. These estimated values will be updated automatically with the established values when you import your information into TurboTax* at tax time.
Note: Estimated values are updated on an annual basis. For this reason, they can vary significantly from the established values provided at tax time.
Often, a relatively new laptop or cellphone can end up with a lower established value than you might expect because even newer technology has become available.
*When using TurboTax Online and Desktop (Deluxe and above)
Money donations include contributions made by cash, check, credit card, debit card or payroll deduction. Out-of-pocket expenses are also considered a monetary donation. For out-of-pocket expenses to be deductible, these expenses must be unreimbursed by the charity and be directly connected to the service you provide. They must have occurred only in the service of the charity and they cannot be your own personal or living expenses.
| Learn More | Show Examples |
| Learn More | Show Examples |
| Learn More | Show Examples |
Record keeping requirements for donations depend on the type and amount of the donation. When determining the amount of donation, do not combine separate contributions
made on different dates.
You must keep records showing the amount of money you donated to an organization in case the IRS asks you to provide documentation. Keep this documentation with your personal records.
Important: Recent changes to charitable tax law require the donor to keep records for all money donations, regardless of the amount. Records must include a bank record, credit card statement or written communication from the charity and show the name of the recipient's organization, the date of the contribution, and the amount of the contribution. This change affects donations made January 1, 2007 and beyond.
For donations made before January 1, 2007, the following documentation is required:
| Amount of Donation | Records to Keep |
| Less than $250 |
A written record of your own such as:
|
| $250 or more | A written acknowledgment from the recipient's organization |
| Amount of Donation | Records to Keep |
| Less than $250 | |
| $250 to less than $500 | |
| $500 to less than $5000 | |
| $5000 or more |
The IRS term for charity is a "qualified organization."
To find a qualified charity:
Examples of "qualified organizations" include:
| Show Examples |
The IRS defines fair market value as the price that property would sell for on the open market. It is the price that would be agreed on between a willing buyer and a willing seller, with neither being required to act and both having reasonable knowledge of the relevant facts.
| IRS Publication 561 |
Factors that affect the fair market value of an item include: condition, style, use, and age. ItsDeductible considers these factors together as contributing to an item's value.
You also need to consider the length of time you have owned an item.|
Items Owned
|
Deduction Can Be
|
| Less than one year | No more than the original price paid |
| More than one year | Generally at the fair market value (Consult IRS publication 526 for certain exceptions.) |
| Show Examples |
According to the IRS, there are no fixed formulas for determining the fair market value of your items, other than to know what similar goods are being bought and sold for.
The IRS recommends that you visit stores that sell used goods (such as thrift and consignment stores) and see what similar items are selling for to determine the fair market value for your donations.
ItsDeductible accomplishes this by aggregating information from various thrift and consignment stores.
ItsDeductible considers these factors together as contributing to an item's value. Because every item has a unique combination of style, condition, usability and age, we have aggregated these factors into three different "values":
|
Value
|
Factors | Examples |
|
High
|
Style | Top brands/manufacturers, features, materials, etc. |
| Condition | Looks new, no noticeable wear | |
| Use | Is still useful for the average consumer today | |
|
Medium
|
Style | Mid-level brands/manufacturers, features, materials, etc. |
| Condition | Shows slight wear | |
| Use | Could be used by most consumers today | |
|
Low
|
Style | Low end or outdated |
| Condition | Obvious wear/use, but still functional | |
| Use | Not useful for most consumers today |
| Learn More | Show Examples |
The IRS requires that to be tax deductible, an item must be in "good used condition or better." ItsDeductible values of Medium and High are comparable to IRS values of "good used condition or better."
The IRS also states that Items of "minimal monetary value" are not tax deductible. The IRS notes that "such used property may have little or no market value because of its worn condition. It may be out of style or no longer useful." IRS Publication 526
|
Value
|
Factors | Examples | Compare to IRS Description |
|
High
|
Style | Top brands/manufacturers, features, materials, etc. | Better than used condition |
| Condition | Looks new, no noticeable wear | ||
| Use | Is still useful for the average consumer today | ||
|
Medium
|
Style | Mid-level brands/manufacturers, features, materials, etc. | Good used condition |
| Condition | Shows slight wear | ||
| Use | Could be used by most consumers today | ||
|
Low
|
Style | Low end or outdated | Worn/Minimal monetary value |
| Condition | Obvious wear/use, but still functional | ||
| Use | Not useful for most consumers today |
| Learn More | Show Examples |
As per the table below, a "low" value is an indicator that a donated item is not in good used condition or better and therefore is not deductible. The IRS may also deny a deduction for any item with "minimal monetary value", such as used socks or underwear.
To make sure you don't inadvertently violate the policy, ItsDeductible will not allow you to make any entries for clothing and household items in the Low value column.
Note: If you make a donation of clothing or household items that you believe is worth more than $500 and it is NOT in "good used condition or better" (for instance, a worn antique chair), you can do this if you include a qualified appraisal of it with your return. IRS Publication 561
|
Value
|
Factors | Examples | Compare to IRS Description |
|
High
|
Style | Top brands/manufacturers, features, materials, etc. | Better than used condition |
| Condition | Looks new, no noticeable wear | ||
| Use | Is still useful for the average consumer today | ||
|
Medium
|
Style | Mid-level brands/manufacturers, features, materials, etc. | Good used condition |
| Condition | Shows slight wear | ||
| Use | Could be used by most consumers today | ||
|
Low
|
Style | Low end or outdated | Worn/Minimal monetary value |
| Condition | Obvious wear/use, but still functional | ||
| Use | Not useful for most consumers today |
It is your responsibility to determine whether your item is comparable to the examples in ItsDeductible.
When using the Item Value Worksheet (see example screenshot below), keep in mind that we provide assurance of accurate fair market values only. If you believe your item is not comparable to the items listed and their corresponding dollar values, please use the "Add it" feature to manually enter and value your item.
| IRS Publication 561 | IRS Publication 526 |
If you donate property with a fair market value that is more than the original cost of the property, special rules apply.
If you have owned the property for 12 months or less, then you are allowed to deduct only your original basis in that property. Your basis is either the amount you originally paid for it, or, if you received the property as a gift, your basis is what the original cost was to the original owner of the property. For example, if you buy a piece of art for $800 and donate it just six months later for $1,000, you are only allowed to deduct your basis of $800.| IRS Publication 526 |
*TurboTax Online and Desktop (Deluxe and above)