What ADRA International does

ADRA International (Adventist Development and Relief Agency), founded in 1984 and headquartered in Silver Spring, Maryland, is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt humanitarian nonprofit that operates as the official global humanitarian arm of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The organization delivers relief and long-term development programs across four functional pillars — Health, Education, Livelihoods, and Emergency response — serving vulnerable populations in 120+ countries via a network of country offices and nearly 6,000 implementing staff. In 2024 ADRA reported empowering 10.8M lives through 1,000+ active projects; it holds Charity Navigator 4-Star, CHS Alliance, Candid Platinum, and Best in America credentials, and is GDPR- and CCPA-compliant across its global footprint.

The organization's commercial model is a distributed donor-funded engine spanning multiple channels: a tiered online Gift Catalog with unit-priced symbolic gifts ($25 chickens, $100 goats, $100 clean water access, $180 child feeding, $250 women's micro-loan); recurring monthly giving via the ADRA Angels program; current appeals and rapid emergency-response donations; planned giving and gift-of-stock vehicles; and employer matching gifts. It monetizes engagement rather than goods, and all donations are U.S. tax-deductible. Distribution is direct-to-consumer through adra.org, the Supporter Portal, and the Community Hub, augmented by short-term volunteer engagement through ADRA Connections and policy advocacy via the inSchool platform. Strategic positioning is reinforced by integration into the 21.9-million-member Adventist community, providing a built-in donor, volunteer, and field-partner base that constitutes ADRA's principal structural advantage.

Name

ADRA International

Legal name

Adventist Development and Relief Agency

Website

https://adra.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

ADRA International is a 501(c)(3) humanitarian nonprofit and the global relief arm of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, delivering health, education, livelihoods, and emergency programs in 120+ countries. It funds operations through individual donations, a gift catalog, and monthly giving via nearly 6,000 field staff.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Humanitarian Aid Services

NAICS

Emergency and Other Relief Services (624230), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Civic and Social Organizations (813410)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Cash & Voucher Assistance (CVA) and Emergency Livelihood Support (BPAGAAAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Cash & Voucher Assistance (CVA) / Emergency Social Assistance (BPADADAI)

Keywords

• Humanitarian services
• Disaster relief programs
• International development aid
• Charitable fundraising programs
• Poverty alleviation programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Silver Spring

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Charitable Donations: Direct donations from individual supporters, corporations, and organizations. Accepts unrestricted gifts for maximum flexibility and restricted gifts for specific regions, programs, or project types.
2. Gift Catalog Sales: Sale of gift items (goats, chickens, clean water, emergency kits, etc.) that represent donations to specific humanitarian projects. One-time purchases with defined outcomes.
3. Monthly Giving (ADRA Angels): Recurring monthly donations from supporters providing sustained funding for ongoing programs and critical needs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

ADRA International is the official global humanitarian agency of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, delivering relief and sustainable development programs in 120+ countries. Its core work is organized around four impact areas — Health, Education, Livelihoods, and Emergency — funded primarily through charitable donations collected via a direct-to-consumer giving platform (one-time gifts, monthly giving, gift catalog, planned giving, gift of stock, employer matching) and supported by short-term volunteer deployment.

Product overview

ADRA International operates as a global humanitarian organization offering a comprehensive suite of charitable giving products centered around its digital donation platform. The core offering includes the ADRA Gift Catalog (featuring themed gift categories: Healthier Communities, Empowering Education, Ending Poverty, Emergency Response), the ADRA Angels monthly giving program, ADRA Connections volunteer opportunities, Community Hub engagement platform, and inSchool advocacy tools. Additional giving mechanisms encompass emergency response donations, planned giving, stock gifts, employer matching, and a supporter portal for account management. The organization focuses its humanitarian work across four impact areas: Health, Education, Livelihoods, and Emergency response, serving communities in more than 120 countries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• ADRA Gift Catalog Online catalog of symbolic charitable gifts (goats, chickens, clean water access, emergency kits, children's nutrition, women's business loans, etc.) where each priced item funds a specific humanitarian project with a defined outcome. Customers (donors) select themed categories — Healthier Communities, Empowering Education, Ending Poverty, Emergency Response — and purchase a defined gift on behalf of someone in need.
• ADRA Angels Monthly Giving Program Subscription-style monthly donation program through which individual supporters contribute recurring gifts to fund ADRA's ongoing humanitarian programs and critical ongoing needs.
• ADRA Connections Volunteer Program Short-term international volunteer placement service that connects individuals and groups with ADRA's humanitarian field projects, including scholarship-supported and group service trips.
• Planned Giving Program Long-term charitable giving service for major donors, including charitable bequests, trusts, and other planned gift arrangements administered via ADRA's dedicated legacy giving site.
• Gift of Stock Donation Program Donation program enabling supporters to contribute publicly traded securities directly to ADRA as charitable contributions.
• Employer Gift Matching Program Corporate matching gift program through which employers match their employees' donations to ADRA, amplifying the impact of individual contributions.

Quantifiable outcome

• 10.8M lives empowered through programs in 2024
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Stars on IcecoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 25 February 2026ADRA International serves as National Charity Partner for Stars on Ice national tours, connecting the figure skating event with humanitarian outreach and raising awareness for ADRA's mission among event attendees.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Mercy Corps: Global humanitarian and development organization operating in 40+ countries with similar programmatic pillars (health, food security, livelihoods, emergency response) and a comparable mix of institutional grants and private donations.
• Compassion International: Faith-based child sponsorship and humanitarian NGO operating in ~25 countries with a similar donor-funded model and overlapping programmatic areas in health, education, livelihoods, and child protection.
• Direct Relief: U.S.-headquartered humanitarian aid organization providing medical and emergency material assistance in 80+ countries; comparable in nonprofit donor-funded model and global humanitarian operations with overlapping emergency response focus.
• CARE International: International humanitarian confederation working in 100+ countries on poverty, women's empowerment, and emergency response; closely parallels ADRA's geographic breadth, donor-supported model, and thematic program areas.
• Catholic Relief Services: Official humanitarian agency of the U.S. Catholic Church operating in 100+ countries with a faith-based identity, large institutional grant portfolio, and parallel health, education, livelihoods, and emergency response programs.
• International Rescue Committee: Humanitarian organization operating in 40+ crisis-affected countries delivering emergency relief, health, education, and economic recovery — comparable in programmatic structure, geographic footprint in fragile states, and institutional donor mix.
• World Vision International: Largest faith-based humanitarian and child-focused development NGO; operates child sponsorship, emergency response, and long-term development across ~100 countries — directly comparable to ADRA across mission, geographic reach, and donor-funded operating model.
• Samaritan's Purse: Evangelical humanitarian organization delivering emergency relief and development programs globally with strong individual-donor fundraising — comparable to ADRA in faith identity, donor base, and disaster response focus.
• Doctors Without Borders / MSF-USA: Independent medical-humanitarian organization operating in conflict and disaster zones worldwide; comparable in global field presence, emergency response orientation, and donor-supported nonprofit operating model.

Broad incumbents

• UNICEF USA: U.S. fundraising arm of the UN children's agency; operates globally in child health, education, and emergency response — overlaps ADRA programmatically but at vastly greater scale and with a broader institutional funding base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ADRAIntl
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/ADRAInternational
• Facebookfacebook.com/joinADRA
• Instagraminstagram.com/adrainternational
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/adra_2

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ADRA International