Latest figures show Irish donations to charity continued to rise, but are over €100 less per capita than our nearest neighbours.
A new report shows the average donation to a charity by an Irish individual was €185 in 2012. But this number jumps to €289 per person in Britain.
The figure increases even further when compared to the United States, which saw people there give €781 each.
The authors say this indicates that although Irish people give frequently, "the scale of giving is lower than our international counterparts."
The '2into3' report estimates that the Irish charity sector saw a fundraising total of €852m in 2012, while the estimated total income of the sector stood at €10.4bn.
The breakdown of fundraised income across different subsectors | Source: 2into3
Irish GDP was €160bn in 2012, which the report says suggests that fundraised income is equal to 0.53% of this amount.
However it warns that there is a lack of clarity about the boundaries and composition of the sector in Ireland.
"Organisations can register with the Companies Registration Office, but are not obliged to do so," it says.
Charities have recently taken a big knock, arising from the scandal and fallout at both the Rehab Group and the CRC.
Úna Ní Dhubhghaill is the chief executive-designate of the soon to be established Charities Regulatory Authority.
She told Newstalk Breakfast she hopes her new role will give people more confidence in the sector.
