Skip to main content

What are you looking for?

Enter keywords to search across resources, guides, training, tools, and more.

Create an account for suggestions personalised to you and your organisation

Tools or Toolkits
1 minute read

Volunteer Value and Cost Calculators

Meeting National Standards and Strategy What's this?

Introduction

Many organisations rely heavily on volunteers, but quantifying their impact can be challenging. These free online calculators, help bridge that gap.

Summary

The Volunteer Value and Cost Calculators estimate the financial cost of hiring paid staff to replace volunteer work. Simply enter the number of volunteer hours by age group, and the calculator provides a dollar value based on average local wages and employer costs.

Benefits for Volunteer Organisations

  • Calculators provide concrete evidence of the financial and societal impact of volunteers, strengthening funding applications and grant proposals.

  • Understanding the value of volunteers helps organisations make strategic decisions about volunteer recruitment, engagement, and resource allocation.

  • Quantifying volunteer contributions allows organisations to effectively show volunteers the true extent of their impact.

Applications

Volunteer management practitioners can promote these resources to volunteer involving organisations and integrate calculator results into reports to highlight the importance of volunteer contributions.

Calculators are available from State and Territory Volunteering Peak Bodies.

Please note: Different valuations and methodologies may be used in different States and Territories.


Downloads and sources

More about the authors

The Centre for Volunteering (The Centre) is a not-for-profit organisation with almost 50 years’ experience providing leadership on volunteering in NSW. This involves playing a key role in advocacy, support services and sector development.

Volunteering Queensland has for 41 years been the state’s peak body for advancing and promoting volunteering. It represents over 300 member volunteer involving organisations and support thousands more through a wider network, encompassing hundreds of thousands of volunteers, who contribute their time, money, and skills to the benefit of all Queenslanders.

Since 1982, Volunteering SA&NT has been the peak body for volunteering. We’re a not-for-profit that provides support to individual volunteers, volunteer involving organisations, businesses and communities who want to make a difference.

Volunteering Tasmania is the peak body for volunteering in Tasmania. Our vision is: an inclusive, thriving and celebrated culture of community participation.

Volunteering Victoria is the state peak body for volunteering, focusing on advocacy, sector development and the promotion of volunteering.

Volunteering WA is the peak body for volunteering in Western Australia, working across community, government, corporate and education organisations to build capacity of volunteer involving organisations, and support volunteering.

Contribute to the Gateway


More like this

Research and Reports

Developing Generation-Based Volunteer Management Practices

This study explores the experiences of volunteers across five generations in Atlanta, aiming to understand their preferences for volunteering.
1 minute read
Tonya Renee' Howard
Youth or Student, Older Volunteers +1 more
Research and Reports

The Social And Economic Sustainability Of WA’s Rural Volunteer Workforce

This report explores the crucial role volunteers play in sustaining rural communities across Western Australia (WA). It highlights the social and economic benefits volunteers bring, focusing particularly on the contributions of women and parents with young children.
1 minute read
Kirsten Holmes, Amanda Davies, Leonie Lockstone-Binney, Mary O’Halloran, Faith Ong
Youth or Student, Women +1 more
Guides

Navigating Background Checks

This guide and weblinks explain Working with Children Checks (WWCC) and Working with Vulnerable People Checks (WWVP) required for volunteers in Australia including jurisdictional variations and resources.
1 minute read
The Knowledge Base, Volunteering ACT, The Centre for Volunteering, Volunteering Queensland, Volunteering SA&NT, Volunteering Tasmania, Volunteering Victoria, Volunteering WA
General
Emergency Support Volunteering website
Tech

Emergency Support Volunteering website

The Emergency Support Volunteering website allows volunteers in Western Australia to register to help in emergencies, organisations needing support can also register to contact volunteers for assistance.
Volunteer database Recruitment Reporting
GoodCompany
Tech

GoodCompany

GoodCompany is a Workplace Giving Platform based in Australia and NZ. It's designed to enable companies and their people to come together to donate, volunteer, fundraise, and match donations for the charities closest to their hearts.
Volunteer database Recruitment Rostering / scheduling Onboarding / training Volunteer performance/recognition Communication / engagement Compliance Reporting Resource management Social media Event management Donations
VIKTOR
Tech

VIKTOR

VIKTOR is a volunteer recruitment system designed to run a referral service for volunteers. It allows you to create and advertise volunteer roles, enter volunteers and match them to roles offered by your members.
Volunteer database Recruitment Reporting
scheduled

Panel Discussion: Succession Planning

Join us for a panel discussion on achieving continuity within your volunteer base
The Centre for Volunteering
Free
on-demand

Digital Literacy

This Digital Literacy series helps you learn common, devices, tools and methods for undertaking a range of key volunteer management activities using modern technology. It was developed by the Centre for Volunteering in partnership with Digital Literacy Foundation.
Digital Literacy Foundation
Free
scheduled

NSW Youth Volunteering Guidelines

Join us for a deep dive into the NSW Youth Volunteering Guidelines with our Director: Sector Development and Enagagement, Clint Bertenshaw.
The Centre for Volunteering
Free