Fundraising ideas for individuals on behalf of nonprofits

Throw a themed costume party to match the season or holiday and award prizes for the best costumes! Sell tickets to your fundraising event online and work with local sponsors to offset costs and spread the word.

Let donors "purchase" 2-5 hours of extra help from students or volunteers (think raking leaves or mowing the lawn).

In order to streamline the process and keep track of contributions, create custom labels for different donation amounts on a special fundraising page or donation form (e.g. $50 = 2 volunteer hours).

Come up with a creative fundraiser with a cathy name like “Pancakes for Parents” brunch or a “Chicken Wings for Cheerleaders.” To get supporters excited, create a custom fundraising page full of on-theme photos, videos, ands more!

Encourage families to run, walk, or jog for a cause by featuring kid-friendly activities, prizes, and course options.

Use peer-to-peer fundraising to encourage participants to set a donation goal and spread the word about the cause.

Ask participants to don their favorite PJs while tackling a walk, jog, roll, or run for the cause. Encourage everyone to set a donation goal and spread the word about the fundraiser with peer-to-peer fundraising. Don’t forget to award prizes to the coziest runners!

Invite a local restaurant to contribute or have volunteers create a menu for a tailgate. Sell entry tickets and offer some fun merch or special treats at an additional price to bring in extra dollars.

Invite community members to bring their furry friends along to walk in a charity 5k. Encourage participants to create individual fundraising pages that feature their pets, set a donation goal, and help spread the word about the cause.

Find out who can (safely) lift the most weight curling, deadlifting, or squatting. Charge entry fees for participants, sell tickets, and offer food and drink at an additional cost.

Ask community members to purge their wardrobes and donate sell-worthy items to your cause. Host a pop-up clothing shop at a local venue and sell tickets for entry!

Choose a theme and a hashtag, encourage supporters to post their video or picture, and then tag others to challenge them to do the same—and donate!

Learn more social media fundraising tips to take your efforts to the next level.

Challenge supporters to complete a course of obstacles like walls, mud pits, and rope climbs. To amplify your impact, and spark some friendly competition, encourage team fundraising: all supporters can join an existing team or create their own to compete!

Ask supporters to lace up their shoes and gather pledges or donations for every mile they walk.

Sell official charity gear, encourage supporters to share updates on their own personal donation pages, and award top fundraisers with exciting prizes.

Map out your fundraising run route and have supporters donate to participate. Then, use peer-to-peer fundraising tools that allow supporters to make their own donation pages, set their own goals, and ask friends and family to contribute!

Encourage supporters to submit their best t-shirt designs to enter them into a competition. Set up team fundraising pages for each design and have supporters donate in order to cast their vote for for their favorite design. Each donation will appear on a leaderboard so everyone can watch the votes (and donations!) come in.

Create and sell custom VIP event tickets that offer parking perks to donors who'd appreciate the convenience of getting dropped off right at the game entrance.

Using individual peer-to-peer fundraising pages connected to your central event page, participants gather donations and pledges based on how long they aim to dance—without taking a break!

Supporters can donate, leave messages of support for the dancers, and purchase tickets to join in the fun all in one place.

Invite community members to perform music, poetry, or comedy for a good cause. Ask audience members to make a small donation and offer snacks to raise more funds using easy in-person mobile payments like Tap to Pay and scan-to-donate.

Assemble teams, charge entry fees, and cheer everyone on as they compete for the best score. Encourage participants to make personal team fundraising pages and ask friends and family to support them and the cause.

Reach out to local businesses and ask them to donate a small number of products that you can bundle together and offer donors online.

To attract more partnerships from businesses, create a sponsorship proposal that emphasizes the benefits for them, like free publicity and marketing opportunities.

Set up a donation drive to collect valuable in-kind donations or financial gifts for your cause. This can be done by setting up a drop-off zone in person or collecting donations online through a fundraising page. No matter the format—make sure to share your fundraising goal far and wide to keep the momentum going!

Create a peer to peer fundraising campaign and invite participants to create their own pages and compete to raise the most funds. Watch the leaderboard for live updates on who’s in the lead. The person with the highest amount raised or the most individual donations will shave their head—or nominate someone else to shave their own!

Raise money while cheering on your favorite NCAA players with a bracket competition culminating in a ticketed March Madness watch party.

To take this fundraising idea online, take advantage of livestreaming tools, too!

At this crowd-favorite activity, you can come up with fun questions, charge entry fees for teams, and raise extra money by providing sweet and salty snacks.

Make the evening go even smoother with seamless attendee check-ins and easy payment options like Tap to pay, Venmo donations, and scan-to-donate.

Ask supporters to collect recyclable materials like cans, bottles, or even old tech, then use a service that helps you turn these items into cash. Recycling drives work as great long-term fundraising activities. Keep your supporters engaged and remind them where and when they can drop off materials with your email marketing software.