While finding the right fundraising platform is a must for all businesses looking to make online transactions, figuring out the best option as a nonprofit organization takes a great deal of research and preparation.
For nonprofits, fundraising platforms are likely going to be used for raising funds, including taking digital donations, running online auctions, managing fundraiser sign-ups, virtual and in-person event ticketing, and even the sale of merchandise.
In reality, many nonprofits are working with limited budgets and bootstrapped resources. The right e-fundraising platform for a nonprofit organization will incur low overhead costs, be easy to run and maintain, seamlessly collect a variety of payment methods, prioritize user experience, and include customer data for easy reporting later on.
With these factors in mind, which fundraising platforms are the best for nonprofits? Read on to discover the platforms that make it a breeze to raise funds for a cause.
1. GiveLively
GiveLively is a free platform for nonprofits designed to drastically improve the online giving experience, and help nonprofits raise more money for their specific causes.
Why it’s great: The most appealing feature of the GiveLively platform is that it’s free. Why? Because it was created to enable nonprofits to fulfill their missions without sacrificing their means.
Thousands of nonprofits utilize the platform in order to streamline their online fundraising processes. Through GiveLively, these organizations are able to utilize three unique fundraising solutions: Digital Fundraising, including campaign pages, donation widgets, and text-to-donate capabilities; Event Fundraising, including event ticketing, live displays, and text-to-donate features at events; and Peer-Based Fundraising, including peer-to-peer fundraisers, team fundraising options, and leaderboards.
GiveLively is easy to use and customize, is optimized for donation conversions, and offers digital wallet payment integrations, making it a top choice for nonprofits looking to expand their virtual fundraising footprints.
How much does it cost? GiveLively is free for all members, who must apply to be admitted as an organization on the platform.
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2. JustGiving
JustGiving is a platform designed to streamline online fundraising, supporting more than 25,000 charities, organizations, and schools in their fundraising efforts.
Why it’s great: JustGiving is an fundraising platform that enables nonprofits and others raising money for a cause to set up virtual crowdfunding and donation pages for a multitude of reasons.
From helping an individual or a family in need, to raising funds in response to an emergency or natural disaster, to taking part in a charity event like a 5k, to commemorating a special occasion by asking for donations to a worthy cause, JustGiving offers the tools to easily fundraise – whatever the reason.
JustGiving’s peer-to-peer fundraising tool allows individuals to set up their own fundraising pages in connection to the charity of their choice, and solicit friends, family members, or the public for donations easily. For nonprofits, setting up a charity page is easy with a user-friendly interface, and pages can be customized with logos, photos, and other signifiers that let donors know they’re in the right place.
How much does it cost? Setting up a page on the JustGiving platform is free, and a small fee is charged for each transaction.
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3. GiveSmart
GiveSmart is a leading fundraising software platform that allows nonprofits to increase their organization’s ROI and streamline the donor experience. To date, GiveSmart has helped nonprofits to raise billions of dollars successfully.
Why it’s great: GiveSmart is an intuitive fundraising platform designed with nonprofits in mind. With mobile-responsive web design, organizations can design and fully customize their pages to look and feel like their brand, both on mobile and on desktop with a user-friendly interface.
In such a digital age, nonprofits are leaning into virtual fundraisers more and more, and GiveSmart is able to effectively run these smoothly and professionally. GiveSmart’s one screen experience for virtual events means participants and donors can tune in to the presentation, bid on auction items, send in donations, and participate in fundraising activities, all without leaving the presentation module.
GiveSmart also shines when it comes to online auctions, with intuitive reporting and dashboards to track trends and report on event successes. From silent auctions to mobile bidding, organizations can manage all aspects of their auctions easily from the platform.
How much does it cost? Pricing is available through a consultation with the GiveSmart sales team.
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4. MobileCause
MobileCause is an online fundraising software platform built specifically for nonprofits to help create more meaningful connections with their donors.
Why it’s great: MobileCause was designed exclusively for nonprofits, meaning it keeps the goals of these types of organizations in mind and offers the features that matter most, all under one roof.
MobileCause touts its next-level service when it comes to popular digital fundraising tools, such as virtual giving, text-to-donate, virtual events, event fundraising, peer-to-peer campaigns, engagement, mobile messaging, and reporting analytics.
Other highlights of MobileCause that make it stand out for nonprofits looking to fundraise through fundraising include one-to-one strategy support, 24/7 assistance from a support team, end-to-end fundraising software, zero transaction fees, and PCI Level 1 Certification – the industry’s highest standard for security and privacy to protect donor information.
How much does it cost? Pricing varies based on organization size and other fundraising needs.
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5. Bonfire
Bonfire is a free online platform where individuals and organizations can design, sell, and buy custom products. Bonfire offers a comprehensive suite of online fundraising tools and features that allow nonprofits to successfully fundraise through the sale of t-shirts on the platform.
Why it’s great: Bonfire offers nonprofits an easy way to raise funds with little initial setup effort, through the sale of t-shirts to directly benefit their cause. How does it work? Nonprofits simply upload artwork, or create artwork using Bonfire’s digital design tool. Next, they’ll launch their campaign and notify their community about the fundraiser. Once the fundraiser is completed, Bonfire will print and ship donors their orders directly – no work needed on behalf of the nonprofit. 100 percent of proceeds from the shirts will go back to the nonprofit directly.
Organizations also have the opportunity to design their own storefront on the platform, making the fundraising experience feel customized and poised to maximize success. The experience is totally hands-off, making it easy for even small, resource-strapped organizations to participate and benefit from online giving fundraising.
Bonfire handles all payment processing, order fulfillment, and customer service, leaving nonprofits more time to focus on connecting with their communities.
How much does it cost? While the platform is free to build out a site and launch a fundraiser, Bonfire charges a small transaction fee and an order processing fee.
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6. Shopify
While Shopify is already highly regarded as one of the world’s top fundraising platforms, did you know that it’s actually a great option for nonprofit organizations as well?
With a nonprofit discount and many features and add-ons that benefit charities raising funds, Shopify has not only mastered the world of regular fundraising but has successfully built out a platform that caters to the nonprofit sector just as well.
Why it’s great: Shopify recognizes just what it takes to successfully run a charity, and understands the features and benefits that will make the biggest impact in the online fundraising world. As a registered charity on Shopify, nonprofits can take advantage of a number of helpful features and add-ons, including taking direct donations, a round up for charity feature, a crowdfunding manager, pay what you want feature, and more.
Through Shopify’s NPO (nonprofit organization) plans, charities can add products to their online stores, and begin selling and accepting donations right away thanks to built-in payment processors that accept a wide range of different currencies. Shopify Shipping also takes the legwork out of getting purchases to donors, and global marketing features make it easier than ever to reach a wider audience on the platform.
How much does it cost? Shopify’s usual pricing begins at $29 per month; special nonprofit discounted rates are also available.
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7. Classy
Coined as the online fundraising platform for the modern nonprofit, Classy fundraising software enables organizations to create beautifully branded fundraising pages in just minutes.
Why it’s great: Trusted by more than 4,000 of the world’s top nonprofits, Classy provides everything a nonprofit needs in the fundraising arena to successfully solicit donors digitally. From peer-to-peer fundraising, to virtual events, direct donation appeals, crowdfunding, international fundraising, and more, Classy’s platform manages every aspect of the digital fundraising lifecycle on one clean, modern platform.
Classy’s integration functionality makes it a great choice for nonprofits that are already digital-forward. Classy fundraisers can be easily shared across marketing platforms like HubSpot, MailChimp, Constant Contact, and Mitten. Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics, and Facebook Analytics make for easy data reporting to track conversions and glean insight into marketing reach and campaign effectiveness.
How much does it cost? Pricing begins at $499 per month.
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8. GoFundMe
GoFundMe is a wildly popular fundraising site, often used by individuals looking to crowdfund. But the platform is also an excellent tool for nonprofits to raise funds and reach a wide audience. To date, GoFundMe has helped causes of all sizes raise more than $9 billion dollars.
Why it’s great: GoFundMe fundraising pages can be set up in a matter of minutes, meaning there’s no application period or highly involved setup process. Instead, the platform makes it easy for causes of all sizes to launch a campaign to collect online donations.
For nonprofits without an in-house designer or IT team, GoFundMe makes it easy to build a fundraising page without any design know-how or coding skills. All it takes to put together a page is a few clicks and a well-written campaign ask.
Donation management is hands-off as well, and when a fundraiser is set up to benefit a charity organization directly, GoFundMe ensures an automatic delivery of funds, so donations will be sent to the charity directly, no withdrawals or money management necessary.
Social media sharing is made easy as well, thanks to GoFundMe’s easy social media integration. Campaigns can easily be shared across major social platforms like Facebook and Twitter, enabling organizations to reach a wider audience with shareable content.
GoFundMe wants its nonprofit partners to succeed, and even provides fundraising tips and valuable resources directly on its blog to set charities up for financial success.
How much does it cost? GoFundMe charges a small transaction fee per donation.
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9. EveryAction
EveryAction is trusted by some of the biggest nonprofits, like the NAACP, Green Power, and Planned Parenthood, to raise money across virtual channels and enhance their missions.
Why it’s great: EveryAction is a powerful multi-channel fundraising solution that empowers even the biggest nonprofits to easily optimize and and personalize supporter engagement.
Touting the ability to increase response rates and engage major donors, EveryAction provides nonprofits with the tools to optimize fundraising campaigns and track analytics all in one place.
Designed by nonprofit practitioners for nonprofits of all sizes, EveryAction allows its clients to create, manage, run, and report on virtual events and other virtual fundraisers all in one place, as well as track pledges, grants, and donor interactions right from the platform.
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How much does it cost? Pricing starts at $109 per month.
Whether you’re a young nonprofit starting out, looking for an easy way to manage online donations and virtual fundraising events, or if you’re a large nonprofit organization seeking a place to streamline online donation activity and further engage with major donors, there are several top fundraising platforms that are designed to help nonprofits to expand and succeed.
With thorough research and exploration, it’s possible to find the right platform to host your fundraising activities, track campaign successes, and expand your donor base, without zapping finances or other valuable resources.