NO BAD NEWS
Over 85% Of The World's Blood Donations Now Come From Unpaid Volunteers
The bulk of 120 million yearly donations are given free, to strangers — one of the largest quiet acts of generosity on earth.
By the NoBadNews desk · Published 2026-07-08 · Updated 2026-07-08
How much of the world's blood supply is voluntary?
More than 85% of the world's roughly 120 million annual blood donations now come from voluntary, unpaid donors — and global collections grew nearly 19% between 2013 and 2023, per WHO's June 2026 global status report.
It isn't equal everywhere yet: high-income countries sit at 98.4% voluntary donations, low-income countries at 63.4%, and 24 countries still collect fewer than 5 donations per 1,000 people. But most of the world's blood supply now runs on plain generosity — the next fight is equal access to it.
Source: WHO — Global status report on blood safety and availability · Image: AI illustration of real verified news (our method).
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