It depends. A volunteer is someone who volunteers their time for “civic, charitable, or humanitarian reasons” without the promise or expectation of compensation. Volunteers may, however, be reimbursed for reasonable expenses.  An unpaid intern, according to the Department of Labor (DOL), is someone who satisfies the Fair Labor Standard Act’s (FLSA) seven factor “primary beneficiary” test. The factors include:  The extent to which the intern and the employer clearly understand that there is no expectation of compensation. Any promise of compensation, express or implied, suggests that the intern is an employee—and vice versa. The extent to which the internship provides training that would be similar to that which would be given in an educational environment, including the clinical and other hands-on training provided by educational institutions.  The extent to which the internship is tied to the intern’s formal education program by integrated coursework or the receipt of academic credit.  The extent to which the internship accommodates the intern’s academic commitments by corresponding to the academic calendar.  The extent to which the internship’s duration is limited to the period in which the internship provides the intern with beneficial learning.  The extent to which the intern’s work complements, rather than displaces, the work of paid employees while providing significant educational benefits to the intern.  The extent to which the intern and the employer understand that the internship is conducted without entitlement to a paid job at the conclusion of the internship. As you can see, an intern receives more than just the satisfaction of helping others. An intern also likely sought the opportunity for the purpose of learning and gaining experience, rather than to solely provide charity.