The best charities to give to in the wake of Hurricane Irma

Last week and over the weekend, tropical storm Irma struck the Florida Keys and several Caribbean islands. As a Category 5 hurricane at its peak, Irma brought flooding and wind gusts of over 215 mph.

Officials ordered more than 6.5 million Floridians to evacuate, and more than 70,000 took refuge in more than 385 shelters. The storm devastated many islands in the Caribbean - like St. Martin and St. Barts - and they now face severe food and water shortages. At least 34 Irma-related deaths have been reported.

This all happened less than a week after Hurricane Harvey slammed into the Texas Gulf Coast.

Charities - both big and small - will step in. But not all charities are created equal.

Charity Navigator, a nonprofit that has independently rated over 8,000 charities, compiled a list of some of the best organizations to donate to in the wake of Irma. Its team considers several factors when giving a charity a score out of 100. These include program expenses (e.g. how much of the donated money goes straight to victims) and transparency (e.g. audited financials prepared by an independent accountant).

The charities that Charity Navigator recommends for Irma, along with their scores out of 100, are below.

Note: Right now, it is not clear whether all these organizations will spend 100% of donations received on Hurricane Irma relief and associated expenses. But in past large-scale disasters, high percentages of donations have directly gone to victims. For Harvey charities, click here.