If you’ve been working in direct mail fundraising for any length of time, you’ve probably found yourself in at least one budget meeting where you’re explaining why this channel still deserves investment. Sound familiar?

We get it. In fact, it’s one of the main reasons we started DM Benchmarks back in 2018 . And, it’s why we’re inviting you to participate in the 2026 Direct Mail Benchmarks report—our eighth year gathering and analyzing this critical sector data.

If you’ve never read DM Benchmarks, here’s the TLDR: it’s the only all-Canadian report that measures the success of direct mail fundraising. We’re looking at the metrics that matter most to you and your leadership team—response rates, average gifts, cost per dollar raised, cost to acquire a new donor, renewal rates, and more.

It’s the kind of information that helps you understand where you’re excelling and where there might be room to improve. And it’s only made possible by charities – like you! – who submit your results for analysis.

And we make it worth your while! When you contribute your direct mail data, you’ll receive a comprehensive report showing how your program performs compared to the broader nonprofit sector.

Want to go even further? When we gather data from at least ten organizations within a specific vertical—hospital foundations, higher education institutions, animal welfare groups, environmental organizations—we can create benchmarks tailored to that sector.

This matters because direct mail performance varies significantly across different types of charities. So make sure you invite your fundraiser friends at peer organizations to get involved, too!

Participating in Benchmarks affects every single direct mail fundraiser in Canada. You see, every charity that participates strengthens the dataset for everyone. A larger, more diverse group of participants leads to more accurate and meaningful sector-wide conclusions. You’re essentially contributing to a shared knowledge base that helps all of us make smarter decisions about direct mail fundraising!

Direct mail continues to be one of the most reliable fundraising channels available, even though it sometimes gets dismissed in favour of newer approaches. By participating in DM Benchmarks, you’re shaping the future of where this channel can go. You’re contributing to a body of evidence that supports continued investment in direct mail across the sector.

The 2026 report will reflect the collective experience and results of organizations like yours—charities that understand direct mail’s value and want to keep improving how we use it.

Ready to participate? You can access the submission form here and contribute your organization’s results.

Your participation helps make this resource possible while giving you insights you can use immediately. If you have questions about what data to submit or how the process works, visit the submission form where you’ll find detailed guidance.

We’re looking forward to what the eighth year of this report will reveal about our sector’s direct mail programs—and we hope your organization will be part of it.