Red Nose Day

What Red Nose Day does

Red Nose Day is the flagship annual fundraising campaign of Comic Relief Inc., a US-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization (EIN: 01-0885377). The campaign originated in the United Kingdom in 1988 and launched in the United States in 2015. It raises donations to support children and families facing poverty through grantee partners and social impact programs operating in the US and globally, addressing both immediate needs (food, housing, healthcare) and root causes of intergenerational poverty.

Red Nose Day's core product is the annual campaign itself, supplemented by a growing portfolio of sub-products: Comic Relief Live (benefit events), Red Nose Day in School (educational fundraising), the Red Nose Day x LEGO Community Builders Challenge, Kids Relief, and Family Fest. The underlying technology stack is light — a website donation portal, the funraise.org peer-to-peer fundraising platform, social media AR filters across Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, and TikTok, and checkout integrations with eBay for Charity, PayPal Giving, and Humble Bundle. No proprietary AI/ML or core technology is described.

The business model is donation-based with four revenue streams: individual donations (one-time and monthly), corporate partnerships and sponsorships, tax-smart giving vehicles (stock, IRA, donor-advised funds), and peer-to-peer/community fundraising. Distribution runs through direct website giving, third-party merchant integrations, corporate partner activations, and limited physical retail (Raising Cane's restaurants in three US cities). Pricing is not applicable as the organization is a charity; there are no product tiers.

Name

Red Nose Day

Legal name

Comic Relief Inc.

Website

https://donate.rednoseday.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Red Nose Day is Comic Relief Inc.'s annual US fundraising campaign that collects donations from individuals, corporate partners, and merchant integrations to support children and families facing poverty through grants to nonprofit partners domestically and globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Charitable Fundraising

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132), Emergency and Other Relief Services (624230), Civic and Social Organizations (813410)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Fundraisers & Charity Events (Gala/Walks excluded) (MPAGAEAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

School Spirit & Events Programs (Pep Rally, Homecoming, Assemblies) (EDAJAJAL)

Keywords

• Charitable fundraising campaign
• Childhood poverty relief
• Nonprofit donations
• Peer-to-peer fundraising
• Corporate cause partnerships

Headquarters

HQ city

New City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Operations

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: General donations from individual supporters during the annual Red Nose Day campaign and year-round giving programs including monthly giving options. Donors contribute via website, mobile, and third-party payment platforms.
2. Corporate Partnerships and Sponsorships: Corporate partners support Red Nose Day through monetary donations, cause marketing (e.g., eBay for Charity checkout donations, Raising Cane's percentage of sales), and in-kind support. Partners include British Airways, Dotdash Meredith, eBay, Hikma Pharmaceuticals, Humble Bundle, Mattel, and NBC.
3. Tax-Smart Giving Programs: Donors can give through stock donations, IRA distributions, and donor-advised fund grants, expanding donation options beyond cash to maximize charitable impact.
4. Peer-to-Peer and Community Fundraising: Supporters create individual fundraisers and community events to raise money for Red Nose Day, amplifying grassroots donations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Red Nose Day is an annual mass-participation fundraising campaign that raises money through individual donations, limited-edition Red Nose merchandise sales, and corporate sponsorships to fund programs addressing child poverty and family hardship in the U.S. and internationally. The campaign centers on a single high-visibility day featuring a televised benefit special, retail product sales, and community fundraising activities that drive one-time and recurring donor contributions to Comic Relief Inc.'s grant-making portfolio.

Product overview

Red Nose Day is Comic Relief's annual fundraising campaign. The organization operates as a unified campaign platform with multiple interconnected fundraising products and programs: the core Red Nose Day campaign, supplemented by Comic Relief Live (benefit events), Red Nose Day in School (educational program), Red Nose Day x LEGO Community Builders Challenge (collaborative program), Kids Relief (children's initiative), and Family Fest (family events). These products work together to address both immediate impacts and root causes of childhood poverty through donations that support grantee partners and social impact programs in the U.S. and globally.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Red Nose Day: Comic Relief's annual fundraising campaign to help end childhood poverty. The campaign involves donations, corporate partnerships, and social media engagement.
• Comic Relief Live
• Red Nose Day in School
• Red Nose Day x LEGO
• Kids Relief
• Family Fest

Products and services

• Red Nose Day Campaign Annual U.S. mass-participation fundraising campaign centered on a televised benefit special, Red Nose merchandise sales, and individual donations supporting programs that address child poverty and family hardship.
• Red Nose Merchandise Limited-edition Red Nose products sold at retail partner locations and online, with proceeds directed to the campaign's charitable programs; positioned as a tangible participation symbol for supporters.
• Red Nose Day Televised Benefit Special One-off broadcast television special produced as the centerpiece of the annual campaign, combining entertainment with on-air donation appeals to drive mass consumer giving.

Quantifiable outcome

• 50 million children and young people helped

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• British AirwayscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerBritish Airways is a 2025 Corporate Partner for Red Nose Day, supporting the campaign's mission to end childhood poverty through charitable giving and employee engagement programs.
• Dotdash MeredithcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerDotdash Meredith is a 2025 Corporate Partner supporting Red Nose Day through media and marketing collaboration.
• eBaycoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributoreBay for Charity enables customers to donate to Comic Relief/Red Nose Day at checkout. Special campaign runs May 18-25. eBay also appears as a general corporate partner.
• Hikma PharmaceuticalscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerHikma Pharmaceuticals is a 2025 Corporate Partner supporting Red Nose Day's charitable initiatives.
• Humble BundlecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor5% of Humble Choice subscription purchases support Red Nose Day's work. Humble Bundle also appears as a general corporate partner.
• Mattel, Inc.coreGTM or Marketing PartnerMattel is a 2025 Corporate Partner for Red Nose Day, supporting childhood poverty alleviation through charitable contributions.
• NBC (NBCUniversal)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerNBC is a 2025 Corporate Partner for Red Nose Day, providing media and promotional support for the campaign.
• PayPalcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPayPal allows users to set Red Nose Day as their favorite charity, enabling easy add-on donations at checkout to support the campaign.
• Raising Cane's Chicken FingerscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRaising Cane's participates by donating 15% of customer purchases when 'Red Nose Day' is mentioned at locations in Los Angeles, New York, and Philadelphia on May 22.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• GoFundMe Charity: Peer-to-peer fundraising platform that powers individual and community fundraisers, including Red Nose Day's own FUNdraiser tool. Comparable in enabling grassroots community-led fundraising and digital donation flows, but operates as a platform for many causes rather than a single charity.

Broad incumbents

• St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (ALSAC): Larger and more established child-focused fundraising organization operating at multi-billion-dollar annual scale. Uses similar celebrity-driven, mass-market annual campaigns and corporate partnerships, but is anchored to a single hospital/research mission rather than poverty broadly.
• United Way Worldwide: Established mass-market community fundraising organization with corporate partnership infrastructure and annual workplace giving campaigns. Overlaps in mission (addressing community poverty and basic needs) and GTM (corporate giving programs, payroll deduction).

Direct peers

• UNICEF USA: Large-scale children's welfare organization with global reach focused on child survival, education, and poverty. Comparable in mission scope, annual campaign cadence, celebrity-driven fundraising, and corporate partner ecosystem targeting child beneficiaries.
• Children's Miracle Network Hospitals: Child-focused fundraising organization running large-scale annual campaigns with corporate partners (including retail and restaurant chains) and mass-market donor activation. Comparable in leveraging corporate point-of-sale donation channels and annual giving moments.
• March of Dimes: Long-running US nonprofit with an iconic annual fundraising campaign (March for Babies) targeting maternal and child health. Operates a similar annual campaign cadence, corporate sponsorship model, and grassroots community fundraising structure.
• Save the Children US: Direct peer in childhood poverty alleviation with both US domestic and international programs. Uses similar corporate partnerships, individual donor programs, and child-focused fundraising campaigns addressing basic needs, education, and healthcare.
• Toys for Tots (Marine Toys for Tots Foundation): Iconic US community fundraising campaign with annual giving moment, corporate partnerships, retail point-of-sale collections, and mass-market donor activation for children's benefit. Similar in seasonal campaign cadence and grassroots volunteer-driven model.
• Feeding America: Large US hunger-relief nonprofit addressing child and family food insecurity, one of the core pain points Red Nose Day addresses. Operates at similar national scale with corporate partnerships and individual donor fundraising campaigns.
• No Kid Hungry (Share Our Strength): Major US nonprofit focused on ending childhood hunger and poverty. Operates a similar large-scale annual campaign with corporate partnerships, celebrity engagement, and mass-market fundraising aimed at the same beneficiary population (children and families facing poverty).

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@comicreliefus
• Facebookfacebook.com/RedNoseDayUSA
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/comicreliefus
• Instagraminstagram.com/comicreliefus
• TikToktiktok.com/@comicreliefus

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Red Nose Day