How to Donate Ethereum (ETH) to Charity
Ethereum donations go wrong in one main way: ETH sent on a layer 2 network or another blockchain lands at the right-looking address on the wrong network. Here's how to send it on Ethereum itself, what gas costs, and what to do if a transaction stays pending.
By Global Relief Group · Last updated:
Ethereum mainnet only
Not Base, Arbitrum, Optimism, Polygon or BNB Smart Chain. Our 0x address exists on all of them, but we only credit ETH on Ethereum.
Gas is paid in ETH
A plain ETH transfer uses 21,000 gas. The price per unit of gas rises and falls with demand.
Look-alikes aren’t ETH
WETH, stETH and “ETH (BEP-20)” are tokens, not ETH, even though they share the name.
Ethereum mainnet, not a layer 2
Ethereum now has a family of “layer 2” networks built on top of it, such as Base, Arbitrum One, Optimism, ZKsync Era and Linea. They use the same kind of 0x address and many exchanges let you withdraw ETH straight to them, often for a lower fee. Coinbase, for example, lets you choose the network when you send, and Base’s own documentation suggests withdrawing ETH from Coinbase on Base.
That convenience is the risk. Our Ethereum address is valid on every one of these networks, so if you choose Base or Arbitrum, your exchange will happily send the ETH, and it will arrive at our address on that layer 2, not on Ethereum. We only credit ETH sent on Ethereum mainnet, and recovering ETH from another network is not guaranteed. When your exchange asks for the network, choose Ethereum (sometimes shown as ERC-20).
ETH, not a token that looks like it
- “ETH (BEP-20)” on BNB Smart Chain is a pegged token backed by ETH held in reserve, not ETH. Because our 0x address is also our BNB address, it would arrive as a token on BNB Smart Chain, not as an Ethereum donation.
- WETH (wrapped ether) is an ERC-20 token that represents ETH one-for-one. It isn’t ETH itself; unwrap it to ETH in your wallet first.
- stETH and other liquid staking tokens represent staked ETH and its rewards. They are tokens, not ETH.
Step by step
From an exchange
- Open Withdraw or Send and choose ETH. Paste our
0xaddress from the donation screen. - Choose the Ethereum network. Check it again: this is the step where donations go wrong.
- Enter the amount and confirm. The exchange shows its own withdrawal fee first.
- Copy the transaction hash from your withdrawal history (where to find it) and submit it on our confirmation step.
From MetaMask or another wallet
- Switch the wallet to Ethereum Mainnet. Wallets remember the last network you used, so check the network selector before you start.
- Send ETH to our address. Paste it rather than typing it. Our address is shown in mixed upper and lower case: that’s a built-in checksum, so wallets can spot a mistyped character.
- Review the network fee your wallet estimates, then confirm.
- Copy the Transaction ID from the Activity tab and submit it on our confirmation step.
Gas fees explained
Every Ethereum transaction pays for “gas”, the unit for the computing work the network does. Fees are paid in ETH and usually quoted in gwei; one gwei is a billionth of an ETH.
- Base fee: set by the network according to demand, and burned.
- Priority fee: a tip to the validator who includes your transaction. When demand is high, a higher tip gets you in sooner.
- How much gas: a plain ETH transfer from an ordinary wallet uses 21,000 gas. Your fee is the gas used multiplied by the base fee plus the tip. For example, at a 10 gwei base fee and a 2 gwei tip, that’s 0.000252 ETH; actual fees are often much lower.
- You’re refunded the difference if you set a maximum fee higher than what was actually needed.
Sending from an exchange is different: you pay the exchange’s own withdrawal fee, shown before you confirm, and the exchange handles gas.
Pending transactions
If you send with a low fee when the network is busy, your transaction can stay pending. In MetaMask, open the pending transaction and choose Speed up, which resends it with a higher fee using the same “nonce” (its place in your wallet’s queue), so you don’t pay twice. Cancel replaces it with an empty transaction to yourself, which also costs gas and only works while the original is still pending.
Ethereum transactions from one wallet go through strictly in order, so a stuck transaction holds up any you send after it. Sort out the oldest one first. Once your donation is in a block, it’s final after about 15 minutes; our team verifies it and sends your receipt.
Sending from a smart-contract wallet
If you give from a smart-contract wallet such as a Safe multisig, the ETH moves as an “internal transaction” inside your wallet’s transaction. You still have a normal transaction hash to submit: in Safe, copy the Transaction hash of the executed transaction, not the “Safe transaction hash” (safeTxHash), which doesn’t exist on Etherscan. On Etherscan the payment shows under the Internal Transactions tab rather than as a plain transfer. Etherscan’s “Success” status refers to the outer transaction, so check that the internal transfer itself went through. The same applies to some exchange withdrawals.
Tax: US donors
ETH you have held for a long time may have grown in value. The IRS treats it as property, and its rules for donating a digital asset are:
- Held more than a year: your deduction is generally the fair market value on the day you give it.
- Held a year or less: it is generally the lower of what you paid and the fair market value.
- Claiming more than $5,000 for crypto gifts in a year (similar gifts are added together) generally needs a qualified appraisal, and the charity signs Section B of your Form 8283.
Your receipt from Global Relief Group (EIN 27-3281810) records the coin and quantity received. This is general information, not tax advice: check with a qualified tax adviser. Our US crypto donation tax guide goes into more detail.
Common questions
Can I send ETH on Base or Arbitrum to save on fees?
Not for a donation to us. We only credit ETH sent on Ethereum mainnet. ETH sent on a layer 2 arrives at our address on that network, and recovering it isn’t guaranteed.
My exchange shows ETH on “BEP-20”. Is that the same?
No. That’s a token on BNB Smart Chain that represents ETH. Choose the Ethereum network instead.
Why is your Ethereum address the same as your BNB and USDC address?
Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain and other EVM networks all use the same address format, so one address works on all of them. That’s why the network you select decides where the funds go: we accept ETH and USDC on Ethereum, and BNB on BNB Smart Chain.
Can I donate WETH or staked ETH?
Not directly. Unwrap WETH to ETH in your wallet first. For stETH or other staking tokens, convert to ETH before donating.
My MetaMask transaction has been pending for hours. What should I do?
Use Speed up to resend it with a higher fee. Don’t send a second donation while the first is pending: if both go through, you’ll have given twice.