While their profits surged in 2013, U.S. corporations took a steady-as-she goes approach to philanthropy. According to The Chronicle of Philanthropy’s latest annual survey of giving by America’s biggest companies, cash giving in 2013 rose by less than 3 percent, to $4.6 billion. Walmart led the pack, as it has for 10 of the past 11 years. (While there are no comparable studies of corporate philanthropy outside of the United States, other large companies—such as Japan’s Toyota—also play a significant role. For more information on giving by non-U.S.-based corporations, see "What is CSR?")

However, the list below provides only a partial portrait of philanthropy by American companies. The Chronicle also reported that corporate donations of products rose by nearly 23 percent in 2013. Overall corporate giving, when both cash and products are counted, rose by 17.2 percent in 2013, to $18.7 billion. The top five U.S. corporate donors in cash and products (at fair market value) were Halliburton ($4.1 billion), Pfizer ($3.1 billion), Merck & Co. ($1.9 billion) and Google and Walmart (tied at $1.1 billion). For Halliburton, Pfizer and Merck, product donations made up more than 90 percent of total giving. (Wondering what Halliburton gives away? We did, so we asked the company. It’s software to help engineering and geosciences students master skills “critical to the energy industry.”)

The top ten U.S. corporate donors in cash in 2013:

Rank	Company		Donations
1		Walmart Stores	$311.6 million
2		Wells Fargo & Company	$275.5 million
3		Chevron Corporation	$274.3 million
4		Goldman Sachs Group	$262.6 million
5		ExxonMobil Corporation	$227.5 million
6		JPMorgan Chase & Company	$210.9 million
7		Bank of America	$166.5 million
8		Johnson & Johnson	$157.2 million
9		General Electric	$154.8 million
10		Target Corporation	$148.6 million