Many famous people use their fame to do good things in a world where fame often comes with money. These stars have given time and money to causes that are important to them, from starting groups to making huge donations.

Here are eight famous people who are known for their charitable work and the good things they have done for society.

1. Oprah Winfrey

Oprah Winfrey has been a major force in charity work for a long time, focusing on empowering and educating women and children. She started the Oprah Winfrey Foundation, which helps health care and education projects all over the world.

Winfrey pushed for the National Child Protection Act, also known as the "Oprah Bill," to set up a database of people who have been convicted of abusing children. She had given about $400 million to educational causes by 2012, with more than $40 million going directly to her foundation.

2. Angelina Jolie

Angelina Jolie has been a dedicated humanitarian since 2001, when she became a Special Envoy to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. She has been on almost 60 field missions.

She helped start the Jolie-Pitt Foundation to help people around the world, and she has fought for women's rights by building schools for girls in Kenya and Afghanistan. At the London School of Economics, Jolie also teaches about women's rights.

3. George Clooney

George Clooney, who often works with his wife Amal, supports refugees and other groups that are not well off through the Clooney Foundation for Justice.

After the violence in Charlottesville, the couple gave $1 million to the Southern Poverty Law Center in 2017 to help fight hate crimes. His work on a number of social issues also got him a spot on the list of top charitable celebrities.

4. Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift has done a lot of good work for health, education, and disaster relief. In 2016, she gave $1 million to people who had lost everything in the Louisiana floods. In 2023, she gave another $1 million to help people in Tennessee who had lost everything in a natural disaster.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Swift gave money to the World Health Organization and Feeding America. She also gave money from her "Wildest Dreams" video to the African Parks Foundation. She made news in 2025 when she gave $100,000 to a family that had been through a tragedy.

5. Leonardo DiCaprio

Leonardo DiCaprio is a well-known environmental activist. His foundation, the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, was set up in 1998 to work on climate change and protecting wildlife.

He has given millions to conservation groups and made documentaries like Before the Flood to get the word out. Because of his charitable work, DiCaprio is one of the most well-known celebrities for giving.

6. Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga is at the top of many lists for her work on mental health, LGBTQ+ rights, and anti-bullying campaigns.

To fight bullying and give young people more power, she started the Born This Way Foundation. Some lists call Gaga the most charitable celebrity because she speaks out about issues like poverty and AIDS.

7. Beyoncé

Beyoncé uses her fame to help with disaster relief and social justice. After Hurricane Katrina, she started the Survivor Foundation to help people find homes and rebuild.

She gave $1.5 million to civil rights groups like Black Lives Matter in 2016. Her Black-Owned Small Business Impact Fund with the NAACP raised more than $7.15 million during the pandemic in 2020.

8. Dolly Parton

People love Dolly Parton for her work in education and helping people after disasters. She started the Dollywood Foundation and the Imagination Library, which sends free books to kids every month.

Parton gave $1 million to COVID-19 research and raised money for hospitals and people who lost their homes in floods, including $700,000 for the Tennessee floods. She won the Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy in 2022.

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