7 best free fundraising platforms for nonprofits compared

Imagine pouring your heart into a fundraising campaign, rallying supporters, and then watching a significant chunk of your hard-earned donations disappear into platform fees. It's every changemaker's nightmare. 

The harsh reality? Many fundraising platforms gobble up to 8% (or more!) of your donations—before you even factor in additional costs for features, contact management, and processing fees. Those "free" platforms? They're about as free as a "complimentary" hotel breakfast.

But here's the good news: Not all fundraising platforms for nonprofits are created equal. We've done the deep dive, sifting through the noise to uncover fundraising solutions that actually care about your mission—platforms that help you keep more of every single dollar you work so hard to raise.

By the end of this guide, you'll know exactly how to choose a fundraising platform that maximizes your impact, minimizes your costs, and lets your nonprofit's mission shine bright. 

Are there any free fundraising sites?‍

Each platform is a little bit different, including how they define “free.” 

We’ve narrowed down our list to the seven best nonprofit fundraising platforms that don’t charge fees or require any monthly or annual subscriptions. While most free platforms still charge transaction fees for payment processing, we’ll show you how they’ve come up with ways to offset these costs and put more money toward your mission. 

Let’s see what’s free!

The top 7 free fundraising platforms at a glance

1. Givebutter: Best free, all-in-one fundraising platform 
2. GoFundMe: For individual online crowdfunding
3. Give Lively: For the basics
4. Fundly: For Facebook integration
5. FundRazr: For cause-based crowdfunding 
6. Facebook: For community-driven fundraising 
7. PayPal: For payment processing 

1. Givebutter: Best free, all-in-one fundraising platform

Givebutter is the easiest-to-use, all-in-one fundraising solution that empowers changemakers to raise more, pay less, and give better. With a mission to power the next billion changemakers, Givebutter brings together powerful fundraising tools—donation forms, donate buttons, fundraising pages, peer-to-peer campaigns, event ticketing, auctions, and more—that nonprofits need to fuel their impact.

💸 How free is it? Givebutter's core fundraising features are free, thanks to optional donor tips. Just the standard 2.9% + $0.30 payment processor fee applies, which donors choose to cover 95% of the time.

🫰 Can donors cover fees? Yes.

🤝 Optional donor tipping? Yes.

🔥 Our take: Givebutter's donor-friendly platform eliminates the cost and hassle of juggling multiple fundraising websites and managing various logins. With Givebutter, there’s no need for an external email marketing platform, auction software, events management, or even a nonprofit CRM—it’s all included with Givebutter for free.

What users like about Givebutter

I really like the way Givebutter looks and the use of widgets and how they integrate. It’s an easy-to-use platform and is not too full of unnecessary items. In addition, I really like the way events and auctions work with this system. Finally, the fact that there is a free version is great!  — Givebutter review, Miranda T.

What users dislike about Givebutter

There is a community of most-requested items/features to add that Givebutter is actively working on. Our nonprofit would have happily paid for those options if they were available, considering how much was already free. — Givebutter review, Dani T.

Did you know?

Givebutter is rated #1 by nonprofits like you →

2. GoFundMe: For individual crowdfunding

GoFundMe is one of the go-to free online donation platforms for anyone needing to get a crowdfunding campaign up and running quickly, whether for personal needs like medical expenses or disaster relief. Nonprofits now have more options for fundraising on GoFundMe, allowing individuals and teams to create pages that directly support charities.

💸 How free is it? GoFundMe is 100% free—no monthly costs or platform fees. However, donors do not have the option of covering the standard 2.9% + $0.30 payment processor fee, so you’ll never take home 100% of what you raise.

🫰 Can donors cover fees? No.

🤝 Optional donor tipping? GoFundMe users are required to ask donors for tips.

🔥 Our take: Since GoFundMe doesn't accept Venmo, text-to-donate, or scan-to-donate, donating while on the go (i.e., while attending ticketed fundraising events) can be a hassle for volunteers and supporters alike. And with no event registration features, auction software, or built-in email marketing and donor management, nonprofits on GoFundMe are limited in the scope of fundraising strategies. 

What users like about GoFundMe

Easy to set up funding campaigns for small organizations. — GoFundMe review, Romeu P.

What users dislike about GoFundMe

Getting money out of the system is way too hard. — GoFundMe review, Steve K.

3. Give Lively: For the basics

Give Lively takes a different approach to being free. With philanthropic backing, Give Lively provides a suite of free fundraising tools for nonprofits with no monthly costs or platform fees. The platform has also recently introduced donor tipping, called “Pay Free Forward.”

💸 How free is it? Give Lively is a 100% free fundraising website—no subscriptions or platform fees. Payment processing fees vary but are fairly standard.

🫰 Can donors cover fees? Only for certain payment methods.

🤝 Optional donor tipping? Yes.

🔥 Our take: Organizations must complete an application process to access the platform, but those that are accepted can create fundraising pages, run peer-to-peer campaigns, and use engaging event features like live display. But without features like auction management or a nonprofit CRM, organizations may still need to seek out additional tools to have a fully operational fundraising and donor engagement plan.  

What users like about Give Lively

Give Lively has the best guidance for nonprofit development and strategy. They are the embodiment of the expression ‘go the extra mile.’ They not only offer a payment gateway, but also tools, mentorship, and planning. — Give Lively review, Joabe C.

What users dislike about Give Lively

One challenge we had with the peer fundraising was that many of the individuals who had fundraiser pages were frustrated that they could only see the total amount their page raised. Feedback we received is that it would be helpful if the fundraisers could see donor names and amounts. — Give Lively review, Maria C.

4. Fundly: For Facebook fundraising integration

Fundly is a simple fundraising platform that offers donation processing and crowdfunding platform features—including a built-in Facebook integration.

💸 How free is it? Fundly allows donors to tip to cover platform fees and charges the standard 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction for credit card processing.

🫰 Can donors cover fees? Yes.

🤝 Optional donor tipping? No.

🔥 Our take: Fundly offers a range of basic fundraising tools, including donation forms and peer-to-peer campaigns. But, it lacks some features offered by its competitors, such as auction management, livestreaming, and donor management tools.

What users like about Fundly

It’s very easy to set up a fundraiser and share it with a lot of people. A lot of useful tools are available on the website, and the customer support is really good. — Fundly review, Veronica F.

What users dislike about Fundly

There is quite a learning curve getting the software to do what you'd like it to do when it comes to running reports and creating communications. — Fundly review, Mindelei W.

5. FundRazr: For cause-based crowdfunding

FundRazr is a popular online fundraising platform that allows individuals, groups, and organizations to create and manage crowdfunding campaigns. Versatile and user-friendly, the platform is used for a wide range of purposes, from personal needs to charitable causes.

💸 How free is it? FundRazr has 0 platform fees, thanks to optional tips from donors. If nonprofits prefer to disable tips, a small platform fee applies instead (1%-5%), plus 2.9% + $0.30 processing fees.

🫰 Can donors cover fees? Yes.

🤝 Optional donor tipping? Yes.

🔥 Our take: FundRazr is primarily focused on crowdfunding campaigns, making it a great platform for raising money for specific causes. However, it lacks some important nonprofit fundraising tools like auction management and CRM capabilities. 

What users like about FundRazr

The platform is user-friendly, but the support team is SUPERB, guiding us through technical elements and helping us to be successful. FundRazr also saves a lot of time by sending out tax receipts automatically. — FundRazr review, David C.

What users dislike about FundRazr

Certain aspects of the campaign editor have been difficult to navigate. — FundRazr review, David C.

6. Facebook: For community-driven fundraising 

Anyone can create a fundraiser on Facebook, but significant changes have transformed the platform's nonprofit fundraising offerings. Effective October 31, 2023, Meta now partners exclusively with PayPal Giving Fund (PPGF), fundamentally changing how donations are processed and distributed.

💸 How free is it? Nonprofits will incur 1.99% + $0.49 per donation for US-based nonprofits transaction fees for donations received through Facebook's platform.

🫰 Can donors cover fees? Yes.

🤝 Optional donor tipping? No.

🔥 Our take: While Facebook fundraising is convenient for organizations and supporters who are active on the platform, nonprofits are quite limited in terms of the donor data they can access. Other free fundraising platforms offer more features, greater access to donor information, and flexibility in engagement options—not to mention easy integration with Facebook too!

What users like about Facebook

The intuitive interface and powerful advertising tools make it easy to connect with the right audience and manage campaigns effectively. — Facebook review, Alex H.

What users dislike about Facebook

It doesn't allow me to make direct integrations with other applications, so you need to hire third to expand its functions. — Facebook review, Meli C.

7. PayPal: For payment processing

Like Facebook, PayPal for nonprofits provides convenient ways for supporters to contribute when they use PayPal for their online shopping. But as with Facebook, you’ll have limited access to donor data when you collect donations on the platform, making it hard to steward new supporters and build relationships. 

💸 How free is it? PayPal’s donation features are 100% free. Payment processing fees for charitable donations are 1.99% + $0.49 per donation.

🫰 Can donors cover fees? No.

🤝 Optional donor tipping? No.

🔥 Our take: Beyond accepting donations, PayPal doesn’t offer the range of features you’ll get with other free fundraising platforms. A good workaround? On most digital fundraising sites, PayPal is offered as a payment option among several others—all on one universal fundraising form or donate button. Plus, your nonprofit doesn’t even need to set up a separate PayPal account to easily accept PayPal donations. 

What users like about PayPal 

I've been using PayPal for more than a year and it has been a good platform. I've been able to receive payments and send them to my local bank the same day. I'm always able to make international payments, which is safer for me to do through PayPal. — PayPal review, Alejandra F.

What users dislike about PayPal 

The percentage PayPal charges per transaction is high compared to other payment gateways, but its simplicity of integration and wide acceptance of the brand make up for that. — PayPal review, Jim N.

Free fundraising is better with Givebutter

To reach your fundraising goal, you need a free online fundraising platform that offers enough features to engage your audience without taking a huge cut of your earnings. That’s where Givebutter comes in.

With Givebutter, you can run seamless silent auctions, livestream virtual events, and track donor relationships in the built-in CRM—and so much more.

Ready to start fundraising for free on Givebutter? Sign up today and launch your first campaign in minutes.

FAQs: Top questions about the best fundraising platforms for nonprofits

What is the best fundraising platform for nonprofits?

Givebutter is the easiest-to-use, all-in-one nonprofit fundraising platform that empowers changemakers to raise more, pay less, and give better. Its core fundraising features are free, with 95% of donors choosing to cover transaction fees, allowing nonprofits to keep 99.5% of funds raised. 

Designed for nonprofits of all sizes—from small teams to faith-based organizations—Givebutter provides a comprehensive toolkit including donation forms, fundraising campaigns, events, and donor management. As the #1 rated nonprofit software company on G2, Givebutter is on a mission to power the next billion changemakers! 

What are people using instead of GoFundMe?

GoFundMe alternatives, like Givebutter, offer comprehensive fundraising solutions that go beyond basic crowdfunding. Givebutter provides customizable donation pages, event management, auctions, recurring donations, and robust donor tracking tools that GoFundMe lacks. 

It’s a great alternative for organizations looking to do more than simple donation collection.

What is the best free fundraising platform?

Givebutter is the top solution for free fundraising. Nonprofit organizations, schools, faith-based groups, sports teams, and individuals looking to raise money and scale their fundraising efforts can take advantage of Givebutter’s comprehensive functionality. 

Host fundraising events, create campaign pages, engage supporters in real time, and track progress with quality, user-friendly tools—all for free!