Nearly 90% of Australians give over $400 on average to social enterprises each year.  However, according to research commissioned by the Petre Foundation: "on an asset basis affluent Americans currently give around 10%-5% percent of their net worth to philanthropy.  Their Australian counterparts seem to be allocating less than 3%".

As a consequence, total giving in Australia as percentage of GDP is lower than that in the UK or the USA.

Some of the key points from "Giving Australia: Research on Philanthropy in Australia" (published in 2005).  In 2004:

• $7.7 billion from individuals. Of this, $5.7 billion was donated by 13.4 million people, 87% of adult Australians, in the year to January 2005. The average donation was $424 per year while the median donation was $100 (i.e. half of all donations were above this amount and half were below). A further $2 billion was provided by 10.5 million individuals through ‘charity gambling’1 or support for events.
  
• Australians individuals gave $5.7 billion in donations. 87% of adult Australians made at least one donation.
  
• The median total donation was $100; this means that half of the donors donated more than $100. 
• The average sum donated by donors was $424.
  
• Around 50% of people provided another $2 billion by way of participating in charitable gambling, charity auctions, dinners and other events where they received a benefit in return for their support. 
• This represented a total of $7.7 billion paid out to support a great variety of causes.
• Around 92% of this went to nonprofit organisations; government entities received the rest.
  
• Religious organisations, such as churches, mosques, temples and the like received over one-third of the $5.7 billion donated. Organisations providing community and welfare services, international aid and development and collecting for medical research received a little over 10% each. 
• The $5.7 billion was a big increase over 1997, when 69% of adults gave $3 billion. 
  
• Expressed as a percentage of GDP, Australians give more than Canadians, but considerably less than Americans.  
• $3.3 billion from 525,900 businesses, 67% of all businesses in the 2003-04 financial year. Business giving consisted of 68% in money ($2.21 billion), 16% in goods  ($0.52 billion) and 16% in services ($0.52 billion). Donations accounted for 58% of business giving ($1.9 billion – given by 58% of all businesses); sponsorship for 25% ($0.81 billion – given by 20%); and community business projects2 for 17%  ($0.54 billion – given by 19% of businesses).
  

• Contributions by country (% of GNP/GDP gifted )
• Australia   0.5%
  
• UK    0.63% to 0.77%
  
• USA    2.1%