8 free fundraising platforms for nonprofits, compared

If you're ready to launch a fundraising campaign for a good cause, you want to ensure you actually keep the majority of the funds you raise. Unfortunately, many popular fundraising platforms charge hefty fees, keeping 8% (or more!) of what you earn.

After costs to add on additional features or more contact records—plus platform and processing fees—many "free fundraising sites" aren't really that free. We’ve searched high and low to find the free-est fundraising platforms for nonprofits so you can make an informed decision as you choose the right fit for your organization. 

Are there any free fundraising sites?‍

Each platform is a little bit different, including how they define “free.” We’ve boiled our list down to eight fundraising sites that do not charge platform fees or any monthly or annual subscription fees. And while most free platforms still require transaction fees for secure payment processing, you’ll see how they’ve come up with ways to offset these costs and put more money toward your mission. 

Let’s see what’s free!

1. Givebutter

Givebutter is an all-in-one fundraising platform that brings together everything nonprofits need to fund their missions. All of Givebutter’s fundraising features—donation forms, donate buttons, fundraising pages, peer-to-peer campaigns, event ticketing, auctions, and more—are free for nonprofits. And thanks to optional donor tips, Givebutter’s transparent pricing model results in zero platform fees. 

💸 How free is it? All of Givebutter's core fundraising features are 100% free thanks to optional donor tips. Just the standard 2.9% + $0.30 payment processor fee, which donors cover 95% of the time.

🫰 Can donors cover fees? Yes.

🤝 Optional donor tipping? Yes.

🔥 Our take: Givebutter's donor-friendly platform also saves you the cost and hassle of juggling multiple fundraising websites and 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.

2. GoFundMe

GoFundMe is one of the go-to free online donation platforms for anyone that needs to get a quick crowdfunding campaign up and running, whether for individual needs like medical emergencies or emergency costs in response to natural disasters. Nonprofits now have more options for fundraising on GoFundMe, and individuals and teams can create pages that fundraise directly on behalf of charities.

💸 How free is it? GoFundMe is also 100% free—no monthly costs or platform fees. But 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 earn.

🫰 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. 

3. Give Lively

Give Lively pricing 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, although the platform has also recently introduced donor tipping, called “pay free forward.”

💸 How free is it? Give Lively is 100% free fundraising website—no subscriptions or platform fees. Payment processing fees vary but are pretty 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 and peer-to-peer campaigns, and enjoy engaging event features like live display. But without features like auction management or CRM, you’ll still have to seek out additional platforms to have a fully operational fundraising and donor engagement plan in place. 

4. Zeffy

New to the scene, Canadian fundraising platform Zeffy takes “free” even further, covering even the fees from its payment processor so that nonprofits always take home every cent they raise.

💸 How free is it? Zeffy is 100% free with a 0% platform fee and no payment processing fees.

🫰 Can donors cover fees? There are no fees to cover!

🤝 Optional donor tipping? Yes.

🔥 Our take: Thanks to optional donor tips, Zeffy is able to run on this free model, providing fundraising tools like donation forms, event ticketing, eCommerce, in-person payments, and donor management features. But though Zeffy is a free fundraising software, it’s limited in terms of accepted payment methods and doesn’t provide email and SMS marketing features, auction software, or the level of integrations you can find on other free platforms. 

5. Fundly

Fundly is a basic fundraising platform that offers simple donation processing and crowdfunding features—including a Facebook integration!

💸 How free is it? Fundly allows donors to tip, which covers 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 fundraising tools, including donation forms and peer-to-peer campaigns. But, it doesn’t offer as many tools for nonprofits compared to competitors like auction management, livestreaming, and more.

6. FundRazr

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, which is a great way to raise money for a cause. Though customizable and user-friendly, it lacks other important nonprofit fundraising tools like auction management and CRM capabilities. 

7. Facebook

Anyone can create a fundraiser on Facebook, and in recent years, Facebook has stepped up its nonprofit fundraising offerings. Organizations can add a donate button to their Facebook page and even encourage individual supporters to set up their own Facebook fundraiser to raise funds for the cause.

💸 How free is it? Facebook is 100% free—verified nonprofits that raise money on Facebook pay no fees at all.

🫰 Can donors cover fees? There are no fees to cover!

🤝 Optional donor tipping? No.

🔥 Our take: While Facebook fundraising is completely free and 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!

8. PayPal 

Like Facebook, PayPal for nonprofits provides online fundraising pages and donate buttons for small organizations, as well as 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 accept 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 come close to offering the range of features you’ll get with other free fundraising platforms. A good workaround? On most free 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. 

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 do everything from running seamless silent auctions and livestreaming virtual events to tracking donor relationships in Givebutter’s built-in CRM system—and so much more.

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

Methodology

Our editorial team sources comparison metrics directly from sites like G2, Capterra, Trustpilot, Software Advice, GetApp, and more. Data gathered in June 2024.