Despite the long tradition among civil society organizations (CSOs) of developing innovative solutions to societal and organizational challenges, these have rarely been acknowledged in traditional innovation studies. This study aims to further develop the scientific knowledge on innovation by developing new knowledge about idealistic incentives and perspectives in CSO innovation, referred to as 'idealistic innovation'. By a multiple case study of two national CSOs in Sweden - Sensus Study Association and The Church of Sweden - it is exposed that these manage a wide range of innovative processes that address various societal and organizational challenges. The idealistic traits of these processes mainly concern a basic view of human beings, where human dignity and solidarity are key pillars, which is translated into innovative ways of identifying insufficiently addressed societal/organizational challenges, initiating cross-organizational/sectorial cooperation, involving concerned groups, and aspiring for multi-level social change.