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Fundraising ideas

We’ve got the best fundraising ideas for good causes of all shapes and sizes! Check out our curated lists or browse all fundraising ideas below by cost, effort, and impact.

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Golf tournament

Golf tournaments are an incredible way to build relationships and raise funds for your cause. Charge teams an entry fee, secure sponsorships, and enjoy a day on the green with your community. 

Check out our guide to discover how to make your next golf tournament even more profitable.
Cost:
2
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Impact:
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Bar crawl

Organize a themed 21+ bar crawl to the local pubs! Create custom ticket types for various amounts of drink tickets and eats along the way. 
Cost:
2
Effort:
3
Impact:
2
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Events

Virtual concert

Ask local musicians or bands to perform for a livestreaming audience and invite viewers to make donations or purchase tickets to attend virtually right on your event page. 

Make sure to feature a donation thermometer on your page to encourage viewers to make extra donations and get you closer to your goal as they enjoy the music.
Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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24-hour marathon

Host a 24-hour livestream fundraiser for a high-energy day of fun and fundraising. 

Great livestream activity ideas include a poetry slam, gaming tournament, or virtual concert. 
Cost:
1
Effort:
3
Impact:
3
Inspiration
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Mystery art show

Invite local artists, students, and other enthusiastic community members to contribute small paintings or other works for an anonymous community art sale.

Charge an entrance fee and invite supporters to purchase pieces all at the same price—without knowing who their artist is until the end of the event!
Cost:
1
Effort:
3
Impact:
3
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Refer a friend

For successful referrals to your program, offer your current members discounted membership fees, merchandise, or entry into a raffle. Create custom fields (like “Who referred you?”) on your donation forms to keep track of eligible members.
Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Escape Room Challenge

Charge a participation fee and challenge teams to solve puzzles and clues to "escape” from various spaces in this exciting, community-building fundraising event.
Cost:
2
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Easter egg hunt

Set up an epic Easter egg hunt and create a fundraising event page for families in your community to register and make a sliding-scale donation to participate. 

Create an Easter Bunny photo booth and host a bake sale to bring in even more donations with scan-to-donate and Venmo donations on the day of the hunt! 

Cost:
2
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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50-yard-line movie night

Hang a projector screen (or large, white sheet) from the goalposts at the football field. Charge a small entrance fee, sell popcorn, and enjoy an outdoor movie night together—football-themed film or not! 
Cost:
2
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Bingo night

Sell bingo cards and offer exciting prizes to keep everyone engaged all night long, either virtually or in person! 

In the lead-up to your fundraising event, entice attendees with campaign updates featuring teasers of some of the prizes at stake. 
Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Events

Read-a-thon

Students pledge to read a certain number of minutes each day and collect donations for each minute read or a flat rate. To gamify your efforts, use peer-to-peer fundraising to encourage readers to compete to see who reads—and raises—the most. 
Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
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Peer-to-peer

Family photo day

Partner with a local photographer and charge a fee for photo packages with themed backdrops or props. Create custom tickets with time slots for families to sign up to keep the day moving smoothly. 
Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
Inspiration
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Donation forms

Beach Games

Plan an exciting beach competition including an Olympics-style championship for events like volleyball, surfing, and sandcastle making. 

Ask participants to pay a small fee to register and raise even more funds by selling cold drinks and ice cream.
Cost:
2
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
Inspiration
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Dodgeball tournament

Put teams together and face off to see who truly is the best when it comes to dodgeball. Charge teams an entry fee, sell tickets to watch the games, and sell refreshments to raise even more funds.

Invite participants to set up team fundraising pages so they can also compete to see who can raise the most funds for your cause.
Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
3
Inspiration
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https://givebutter.com/fundraising-idea/dodgeball-tournament
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Events
Fundraising page
Peer-to-peer

Postcard drive

Handwritten, personalized messages can have a huge impact on your fundraising efforts. During your next campaign, ask volunteers to write and address postcards to your contacts to ask for donations. 

Add a modern twist to this old-school tactic and have volunteers include an easy-to-read, short URL that goes right to your fundraising page. 
Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
3
Inspiration
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Fundraising page
Donation forms

Skate-a-thon

For a fun twist on a walk-a-thon, swap the walking shoes for a pair of rollerblades or quad skates and raise money for a good cause.

Leading up to your event, encourage your participants to create their own peer-to-peer fundraising pages, which they can personalize with their own stories and updates. 
Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
Inspiration
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Peer-to-peer

College movers for hire

Organize a service where volunteers help students move into their dorms in exchange for a set fee or a donation of their choice.

Set up a donation form with pre-set donation amounts and customized labels that show how much support they’re getting, like $50 = 2 hours of moving support.
Cost:
2
Effort:
2
Impact:
1
Inspiration
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Donation forms
Fundraising page

Tie-dye fundraiser

Invite students to bring t-shirts, tote bags, socks, and other light-colored items of clothing for a tie-dye party. Charge a small fee for entry and supplies, and have some extra clothing items on hand to sell, too. 

If you produce a large volume lot of tie-dyed items, create a donation form or buy-now auction to sell them to your community! 
Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
Inspiration
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https://givebutter.com/fundraising-idea/tie-dye-fundraiser
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Events
Donation forms
Fundraising page

Gala night

Plan a sophisticated gala night with music, food, and a silent auction.  

Get your supporters excited about your upcoming event with an eye-catching gala invitation template. Include details on how to buy tickets, or add a scan-to-donate QR code.
Cost:
3
Effort:
3
Impact:
3
Inspiration
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https://givebutter.com/fundraising-idea/gala-night
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Events
Auctions

Fitness class

Ask local instructors to donate a virtual or in-person class for your cause. Sell tickets and bring in some extra funds on the day of by selling snacks and branded merch.
Cost:
1
Effort:
1
Impact:
2
Inspiration
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Wine pull

Collect donated bottles of wine, disguise the labels, and invite attendees to buy them blindly to discover what they’ve won. For some extra fundraising, host a livestream wine-tasting class afterward for everyone to learn more about their picks. 
Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
Inspiration
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Donation forms
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Text-to-donate

With text-to-donate, raising funds is as easy as sending a text message. Post your shortcode on signs at fundraising events, share it on social media, and offer it as a payment option so your supporters can contribute using their mobile devices right on the spot, no matter where they are.

See for yourself how easy it is — text “DEMO” to 53-555.
Cost:
1
Effort:
1
Impact:
3
Inspiration
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Fundraising page

Basketball bonanza

Challenge contestants to score as many points as they can within the time limit. Charge an entry fee and check attendees in as they line up. 
Cost:
1
Effort:
1
Impact:
2
Inspiration
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Peer-to-peer
Events

Culture day

Introduce the wider community to your club or group by hosting a themed culture day. Offer workshops, food, and activities in exchange for small donations using easy fundraising event tools like ticketing and mobile payment options.  
Cost:
2
Effort:
2
Impact:
2
Inspiration
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