Who are the people funding the Kyiv Independent?
For more than four years, the Kyiv Independent’s community has been at the heart of our mission.
Contributions from our readers make up the majority of our funding, allowing us to remain an independent media organization, free from reliance on oligarch or government funding, and to provide accurate and reliable reporting to a global audience.
Beyond financial support, our members are also a daily source of encouragement and inspiration for our team, helping us in the most challenging times.
We want to give you a closer look at our community and share what motivates them to support us.
Who are our members?
Our members are the people who choose to support the Kyiv Independent with a recurring financial contribution and join our community. At the time of publication, we have just over 24,600 members — and it’s thanks to them that the Kyiv Independent has a stable source of revenue, despite all the instability that comes with war.
To put this in perspective, the average baseball stadium can hold about 40,000 people. Our community of paying members is a bit more than a half of that.
We know from surveying our community that we have at least two members who aren’t yet 18 — and at least five over the age of 90. Although most of our members have never been to Ukraine, we often hear they have a connection — through work, travel, friendship, family, or even their local Ukrainian diaspora.
The vast majority of our members contribute just a few dollars each month — about 65% of our members give $5 monthly, and another 30% give $10.
On average, our members contribute about $8 each.
This shows the power of collective action. Taken together, these contributions are the backbone of the Kyiv Independent’s funding. Just 24,600 people help the Kyiv Independent’s news reach millions of readers around the world each month.
Where are our members from?
Our members are from all over the world, but are mainly based in the U.S., the U.K., Canada, Australia, as well as western Europe. The U.S. has the largest number of members, but Denmark has the highest rate of Kyiv Independent members per capita.
According to our community map, we have members in 121 countries — affirming the Kyiv Independent’s mission of being a bridge from Ukraine to the world.
Why do they choose to support the Kyiv Independent?
Since 2022, we’ve been regularly conducting a survey among our members to find out more about our community and how we can improve. When asked why they choose to support the Kyiv Independent, the most popular answer has always been that they want to help Ukraine during the war.
The second most popular reason is that members view Russia’s aggression as a cause of global concern, followed by wanting to support independent journalism.
In response to members’ requests to get more involved to support Ukraine, we launched the “How to Help Ukraine” newsletter earlier this year. Each edition highlights a different organization, giving our members opportunities to donate and raising awareness of civic society in Ukraine. So far in 2025, our community has donated over $70,000 to the organizations featured in the “How to Help Ukraine” newsletter.
If I wanted to become a member, what should I do?
Anyone can join the Kyiv Independent community for as little as $5 a month. You can find all the details on our membership page here, or email us at community@kyivindependent.com if you have any questions.
The Kyiv Independent has a goal to grow its community to 25,000 by the end of 2025 — if you’re reading this and not yet a member, you can help us get one step closer to our goal. From breaking news coverage to reporting from the front line, the Kyiv Independent wants to do more in 2026, and you can be one of those who will make it possible.
