I make $24,000 a year but would like to give to charity. How much would I need to give to affect my tax return?

Your itemized deductions (including the donations) would need to be more than your standard deduction.

Your itemized deductions (including the donations) would need to be more than your standard deduction.

Can I claim any charitable gift if I do give away a great amount than my standard deduction? Say it' $5,600 (est) if I gave that and more money can I deduct the money over that amount?

I know it's crazy because I really don't have enough money. But I would be relieved knowing a charity got my money instead of the IRS.

You may donate as much as you want, but you may not deduct charitable contributions from your taxes that exceed 1/2 your adjusted gross income. And if you donate stocks, works of art, or other property that you would have otherwise paid capital gains on if you sold it, the limit is 30% of AGI.

Just to be sure you understand how this works: if you donate $100 to a qualified charity and deduct that amount from your taxes you will reduce your tax bill by $100 times your tax rate. If your income is $24K then you are in the 15% tax bracket, so you save $15 on your taxes, and hence your net cost is $85. The point is that you should give money to charity because you think it's a good use of your funds, not to save on taxes.