Top Website CMS and Fundraising Platforms for Charities

Comparing Hosted, Open-Source, and SaaS Options for Charities.

Introduction

Charities today have a wide array of digital tools to raise funds and manage their web presence. In this guide, we review the best options in four categories:

(1) Complete hosted charity website platforms

(2) Custom-built or open-source CMS solutions

(3) SaaS-based fundraising platforms

(4) Independent fundraising platforms

For each, we outline what type of solution it is, which non-profits use it, pricing (setup, monthly, and transaction fees), core features (donation forms, CRM, peer fundraising, events, Gift Aid, etc.), mobile apps or crypto donation support, and the technical skills required. We then highlight common features across all platforms and present a comparison table.

Our goal is to keep the language accessible for charities new to tech, so we’ll explain any jargon (for example, CMS means a Content Management System for websites, and CRM means a donor database). Let’s dive in!

1 – Full Hosted Charity Website Platforms

These platforms provide an all-in-one hosted solution – essentially your charity’s entire website, donation processing, and often donor management, handled on a platform tailored for non-profits. They are often delivered by agencies or companies that specialise in charity websites. This means you don’t need to assemble a site and separate tools yourself; everything (design, hosting, donation forms, database) comes integrated. It’s like getting a ready-made charity website with fundraising built in. Below are some leading full-service platforms.

Pillar Platform (Full Custom Hosted Solution)

Pillar Platform – An all-in-one hosted platform specifically for charities, created by the UK agency i3MEDIA. It provides a fully managed WordPress-powered website with integrated fundraising tools.

Notable Charity Users

Mid-sized charities such as Orphans in Need and Global Ehsan Relief have migrated to Pillar to boost online donations. Pillar is also behind campaigns like Barnardo’s Kidsmas and has 15+ years in the charity sector via its parent agency.

Pricing

Pillar offers tiered plans based on charity size.

For smaller charities (<£250k income), the Essentials Plan starts at £299/month (plus a one-time design & CRM setup fee).

The mid-tier Growth Plan is £499/month for incomes under £1M.

Larger organisations can get bespoke Enterprise plans (custom pricing). Notably, Pillar does not take any commission on donations – charities get 100% of donations (minus payment processor fees) when fundraising on their own site. Payment processing (e.g. card fees) is separate; Pillar integrates with providers like Stripe/PayPal. All plans include secure hosting, and Gift Aid processing is included even at the basic level. (VAT is additional; all prices exclude VAT.)

Core Features

Pillar is truly feature-packed for fundraising:

Optimised Donation Pages: Custom, mobile-responsive donation pages designed to maximise conversions. Supports one-off and recurring donations (monthly, quarterly, etc.) out of the box. The checkout process is fast and donor-friendly with minimal steps, and it supports credit/debit cards, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, bank transfers, and more. Donors can even create an account to save their info and track giving.
Integrated CRM & Donor Management: Pillar automatically captures donor data into a built-in CRM system. You can segment donors by history, amount, frequency, etc., and track all donations in one place. This means better insight into who your supporters are (e.g. identifying “VIP” high-value donors). Thank-you emails are automated for each donation, helping you nurture relationships. Up to 10k contacts are included on the basic plan (25k on Growth).
Fundraising Campaigns & Peer-to-Peer: Pillar supports creating multiple fundraising appeals or projects on your own site, including crowdfunding-style pages with progress bars to rally support. Donors can fundraise on your behalf via Pillar’s peer-to-peer modules, so you could run a campaign where supporters create their own pages (e.g. for a marathon) – keeping traffic on your website rather than a third-party platform.
Analytics and Reporting: Robust data analytics dashboards give insights into donation trends, averages, and donor behaviour. You can generate reports on campaign performance and donor retention, helping your team make data-driven decisions. Live dashboards (in Growth plan) show real-time donation stats.
Gift Aid Automation: Designed for UK charities, Pillar has built-in Gift Aid support. Donors can declare Gift Aid in the form, and Pillar will handle automated Gift Aid claim exports/submissions for you (the Enterprise plan even offers fully automated HMRC claims). This ensures you get that extra 25% on eligible UK donations without hassle.
Other Features: Pillar sites are cloud-hosted with robust security (including Cloudflare protection) for reliability during high-traffic periods. The platform is GDPR-compliant to protect donor data. It also includes extras like a Zakat Calculator (for Islamic charity giving) and a payroll giving (salary sacrifice) calculator – showing it’s tuned to various fundraising needs.

Mobile App & Crypto

Pillar websites are fully mobile-responsive, ensuring donation pages work great on phones and tablets. For large clients, Pillar even offers an option for a dedicated mobile app interface as part of its Enterprise package – useful if you want a custom mobile experience for supporters. Cryptocurrency donations are not natively supported by Pillar (no direct crypto integration is advertised), so charities would need to use a separate service for crypto gifts if needed.

Technical Requirements

Little to no for day-to-day use. Even though the website runs on WordPress under the hood, Pillar is fully managed by the provider. They handle hosting, security, backups, and updates, and they help design and set up your site initially. After launch, non-technical staff can update content, create new campaign pages, and manage data via the user-friendly CMS and dashboards (Pillar’s ethos is that you “are in control of your appeals and content” without needing a developer). And if you do need help, Pillar’s team (backed by an experienced digital agency) provides support. This makes it ideal for charities without IT teams, albeit at a higher price point than DIY solutions.

White Fuse (Charity Website & Membership Platform)

White Fuse is a UK-based hosted website platform built specifically for small charities. It combines a website CMS with built-in fundraising and membership tools. Essentially, White Fuse’s team helps set up a tailor-made charity website for you, and then you manage it going forward. It’s a full-service platform but aimed at smaller organisations that need simplicity.

Notable Users

White Fuse is popular with small charities, clubs, and associations in the UK – especially those with membership or supporter groups. (For example, local community charities or associations use it to manage member sign-ups and donations.) It’s designed with UK charities in mind, so it aligns well with their needs and compliance.

Pricing

White Fuse is relatively affordable: plans start at £65 per month (plus VAT). There is also a one-time setup fee starting ~£500 for a new website (this covers initial design and configuration by White Fuse’s team).

That monthly fee includes hosting, support, and access to the full suite of tools – there are no separate add-on costs for features. However, transaction fees do apply to donations processed: White Fuse charges a 1% platform fee on donations in addition to the payment processor fee. (Stripe or similar will charge ~1.4% + 20p for UK cards, and White Fuse adds 1% on top.) This 1% is how they sustain the platform, given the low monthly cost. There are no long contracts (you can cancel if needed), and a free trial is available to test it out.

Core Features

As a charity-specific platform, White Fuse provides all the essentials to run a charity website and engage supporters:

Website Builder and Templates: You get a modern, mobile-friendly website tailored to your charity. White Fuse will work with you on the site structure and design during setup, often using one of their non-profit-focused templates, which they then customise with your branding. After launch, you can easily edit content, create pages, publish blogs, etc., without needing to code.
Online Donations: White Fuse has built-in donation functionality. You can accept one-off donations and recurring donations (e.g., monthly giving) directly on your site with a secure payment form. It supports Gift Aid declarations (important for UK donors) – donors can tick a box to add Gift Aid, and you can export the data needed for HMRC claims. Payments are processed via Stripe, so donors can use credit/debit cards (and Apple/Google Pay if enabled). All donation data is stored in the system.
Membership & Contact Management: A standout feature is membership management – great for charities that have members or subscribers. People can join or renew membership on the site, pay fees, and you can manage members in the backend. The platform essentially provides a light CRM: storing up to a certain number of contacts (e.g. 250 contacts on the basic £52/mo plan), tracking their donations, memberships, event sign-ups, etc. This helps you keep an organised supporter database without needing an external CRM on a smaller scale.
Event Booking & Ticketing: White Fuse lets you create events (like fundraisers, workshops, etc.) and take event registrations or ticket payments online. Supporters can book themselves onto an event through your site. This is handy for running charity events or even free volunteer sign-ups. It handles collecting attendee info and payments as needed.
Other Modules: Additional tools include campaign pages for specific appeals, basic email newsletter list building (people can subscribe on your site), and content management features. Everything is designed to be user-friendly for non-technical staff. White Fuse also emphasises UK compliance (GDPR privacy, Cookie notices, etc., are built in).

Mobile App & Crypto

White Fuse does not have a mobile app, but all websites on the platform are mobile-responsive (so donors and members can easily use your site on their phones). Admins can manage the site via a web browser. Cryptocurrency donations are not supported on White Fuse – it focuses on traditional currency giving (GBP via cards). A small charity could always manually accept crypto via a third-party service, but there’s no direct integration in White Fuse.

Technical Requirements

Very minimal. White Fuse’s team actually builds the initial site for you and then trains you on how to use it. They handle the technical heavy lifting (hosting, security, updates). Once it’s up, managing content or creating a new event is as easy as filling in forms – no coding needed.

Their support is UK-based and highly rated, which is comforting for volunteers or staff who are not tech experts. The trade-off of keeping it simple is that extremely complex custom functionality might not be possible (some users note the platform’s functionality can be limited if you try to go beyond what it was designed for. But for many small charities, it covers everything without requiring an IT person.

Wired Impact (Non-profit Website Platform by an Agency)

Wired Impact is a US-based provider offering a hosted website platform specifically for non-profits. Think of it as a hybrid of a website builder and a suite of non-profit tools, all created by a team that works only with non-profits. Wired Impact’s platform is great for medium-sized charities, foundations, and NGOs that want a professionally designed site with built-in fundraising capabilities.

Notable Users

It’s used by a variety of non-profits, such as the Swifty Foundation (pediatric cancer charity) and Proteus (a farmworker support non-profit) – these organisations built new sites with Wired Impact and saw fundraising growth. Many community foundations and local United Way chapters in the US have also used Wired Impact. It’s geared towards those who need more than a basic site, but maybe can’t afford a huge custom web development project.

Pricing

Wired Impact is offered as a subscription service with different tiers. It starts at \$69 per month and ranges up to \$329 per month for the fully featured package. The lower end includes the core website and essential features, while higher plans add more advanced functions (like perhaps additional integrations or higher supporter limits).

They offer a free trial as well. Importantly, Wired Impact does not charge a percentage fee on donations – the subscription covers the platform, and you only pay your payment processor fees (e.g. Stripe/PayPal) for transactions. This makes costs predictable as you grow donations. There’s no long-term contract required; you can adjust your plan as needed.

Core Features

As a charity-specific platform, White Fuse provides all the essentials to run a charity website and engage supporters:

Non-profit Focused CMS: You get a full website with design themes optimised for charities. They ensure your site has sections for your mission, programs, and impact. Editing pages is straightforward, and the platform is known for ease of use, even if you’re not techy. The designs are responsive for mobile and accessible. Unlimited pages are allowed, so you won’t run out of space.
Online Donation System: A built-in donation form lets you take one-time and recurring donations on your site. Donors can give without being redirected elsewhere. You can set suggested giving amounts, and the system records gifts and donor info in a database. It’s secure and can integrate with payment processors like Stripe. There are no platform fees taken out by Wired Impact – you keep what you raise (minus the standard card processing fee).
Volunteer Management System: A unique feature is the volunteer management module. You can post volunteer opportunities on your site (date, time, slots available, etc.), and supporters can sign up to volunteer through the site. The system then helps you track and manage who signed up for what. This is incredibly useful if your charity relies on volunteers – it basically gives you a volunteer sign-up portal built in.
Event Management System: Wired Impact provides an events calendar and event registration/ticketing functionality. You can create event pages (for a gala, webinar, fun run, etc.) and accept event registrations or paid tickets online. It handles collecting attendee info and processing any event fees or donations associated with the event. This saves you from needing an external event tool for basic events.
Other Features: The platform supports blogging for news updates, has integrations with popular non-profit tools (they mention working well with email marketing and CRMs), and even offers an AI content helper (to draft page content) as a newer addition. They emphasise good support – you can request small tasks or ask for help as part of the service, which is great if you have questions about, say, formatting a page.

Mobile App & Crypto

Wired Impact’s sites are all mobile-friendly by design, but there isn’t a separate mobile app for administration – you manage via the web. Donors, however, will have a smooth experience on mobile when visiting your site. Cryptocurrency donations are not a focus of this platform – it’s primarily for traditional online donations. If a non-profit wanted to accept crypto, they’d need a separate solution (none of the standard Wired Impact features cover crypto, as the typical user hasn’t needed that historically).

Technical Requirements

Low. Wired Impact is a fully hosted service – they take care of maintenance, security, and updates. Their team also helps with the initial site build and ensures everything is configured for you. After that, regular staff or volunteers can update content and manage forms via a user-friendly admin interface.

They also provide guidance and support to clients (even marketing advice and SEO tips in their resources). The platform is proprietary, so you don’t need to worry about plugin updates or coding; the trade-off is that you are using their system and designs. For most mid-size charities, that’s fine and far easier than maintaining an open-source site. Just note that very complex or custom integrations might require checking if the platform supports it (they do integrate with many popular services like Mailchimp, Google Analytics, and even Salesforce in some cases).

2 – Custom-Built or Open-Source CMS Solutions

In this type, charities either build their website using open-source tools or hire a developer/agency for a completely custom solution. The idea is to have full control and flexibility. The most common approach here is using a popular open-source CMS like WordPress or Drupal and adding fundraising plugins. Alternatively, a charity might pay an agency to build a bespoke website or web app tailored exactly to their needs.

These solutions can be very powerful and cost-effective (no per-transaction platform fees), but they usually require more in-house technical capacity or ongoing developer support. Let’s explore the main option – WordPress – and considerations around custom builds and other open-source tools.

WordPress with Fundraising Plugins

WordPress is an open-source website CMS – a free platform that powers your website content, to which you can add various donation/fundraising plugins. Using WordPress for a charity site means you host your own site (or via a hosting service) and can install plugins to handle donations, events, etc. It’s highly flexible: you mix and match themes and plugins to get the features you need. This is a DIY approach (or you can hire an agency to set it up), as opposed to an all-in-one subscription service.

Notable Users

Thousands of non-profits use WordPress for their main websites – from small local charities up to some large NGOs. For example, the main informational website of many charities (for news, blogs, static content) is often WordPress, with a donation plugin embedded. An advantage: you fully own your website and data. Big names like USA for UNHCR and The Rotary Foundation have used WordPress for certain campaign sites, and countless small charities love its ease for blogging. Essentially, WordPress is good for any size if you have the right setup.

Pricing

The WordPress software itself is free and open-source. This drastically lowers cost – you just pay for a domain and web hosting, which can be as cheap as £50–£100 per year for basic hosting (higher for very high-traffic sites). Many non-profits even get discounts on hosting. Plugins can be free or paid: for fundraising, basic versions are often free, with pro add-ons costing anywhere from £50 to £300 per year. For instance, the popular GiveWP donation plugin offers a free core plugin, and their Plus plan (including all add-ons like recurring donations, fee recovery, etc.) is about $360/year (~£290).

Another plugin, Charitable, charges ~$199/year for their top plan with peer-to-peer fundraising – but they also have a free tier for simple needs. These are flat costs, not percentages. Crucially, there are no platform fees on donations – if you use WordPress + a plugin, the only per-transaction cost is the payment gateway (Stripe/PayPal fees, typically ~2.9% + 30¢). Unlike SaaS platforms,

WordPress doesn’t skim anything off donations; you keep more of each gift. However, budget for initial development if you need help customising the site (could be a one-time project cost) and possibly a maintenance budget for updates or troubleshooting. Even with occasional developer help, many charities find this approach cheaper long-term than ongoing subscriptions + fees.

Core Features via Plugins

WordPress by itself is just a content platform, but with the right plugins, it can do everything a charity needs:

Donation Forms: Several well-regarded plugins let you add donation forms to your site. GiveWP and Charitable are two top choices. These plugins enable customizable donation forms that you can embed on any page. They support one-time and recurring donations, multiple preset amounts, donor comments, and even “in honour/memory of” tribute donations. You can design a donation page that matches your branding. All transactions are recorded in WordPress. These plugins integrate with common payment gateways: e.g. Stripe, PayPal, Apple/Google Pay, bank transfer, etc. Some support region-specific methods (Mollie for the EU, PayFast for South Africa, etc.), so you can cater to local and international donors.
Fundraising Campaigns & P2P: WordPress plugins also handle campaign-specific fundraising. For example, Charitable’s pro add-on allows peer-to-peer fundraising – meaning supporters can create their own fundraising pages on your site for a campaign. There are also crowdfunding plugins (like WP Crowdfunding by Themeum) if you want to host Kickstarter-style projects on your site. You can display multiple campaigns with their progress bars in a grid, run thermometer goals, and more. While not as plug-and-play as some SaaS platforms, with some configuration, WordPress can mirror those functionalities.
Donor Management: By default, donation plugins include a basic donor database (storing name, email, amount, and date for each gift). You can export this data anytime. For more advanced CRM needs, WordPress can integrate with external CRMs or even host one – e.g. CiviCRM is a free open-source CRM that can plug into WordPress or Drupal, providing non-profit donor management, Gift Aid tracking, and email marketing. Many small charities successfully use CiviCRM with WordPress as a low-cost alternative to paid CRMs. Even without that, plugins like GiveWP provide reports and donor analytics in the dashboard. Also, WordPress contact form plugins (e.g. WPForms) can help build donor contact lists and integrate with tools like Mailchimp.
Events and Ticketing: Need event registrations? WordPress has you covered with plugins like The Events Calendar (for listing events) and add-ons for selling tickets (e.g. Event Tickets plugin). There are also Charity-focused ones like “Events Manager” or WooCommerce for selling event tickets. These can handle free RSVP or paid ticket checkout. While not in one bundle, you can piece together robust event functionality.
Other Modules: WordPress excels at content (blog posts for news updates, pages for projects). You can install a membership plugin if you have members, volunteer signup plugins if you recruit volunteers, or even an e-commerce plugin if you sell merchandise or raffle tickets. Virtually any feature can be added via the 50,000+ plugins available. For example, want a petition tool? There are plugins for that, too. Flexibility is the key benefit. And modern WordPress themes ensure your site is mobile-responsive automatically, so everything (donation forms included) works on phones and tablets.

Gift Aid Support

For UK charities, WordPress can handle Gift Aid, but you may need a little configuration. Many donation plugins have a Gift Aid option for donors to declare (e.g., Donorbox’s WP plugin and Charitable have Gift Aid checkboxes, and GiveWP has tutorials for adding one). You might use a simple plugin snippet to add a Gift Aid consent checkbox to your forms. The data can then be exported and claimed via HMRC. Some integrations (like connecting to Donorbox or using CiviCRM) can even generate the Gift Aid claim forms for you. It’s not “automatic” by default, but absolutely feasible – and you won’t pay extra for it beyond a bit of setup.

Mobile App & Crypto

WordPress itself doesn’t have a specific mobile app for donors (the donors just use your mobile-friendly site). Admins can use the WordPress mobile app to publish posts, but for managing donations, you’d typically use a web dashboard. Cryptocurrency donations can be accepted on a WordPress site by using specialised plugins or integrations. For example, some plugins embed a The Giving Block widget or directly accept Bitcoin/Ethereum by generating wallet addresses.

Some charities use WordPress together with a service like Coinbase Commerce or BitPay to handle crypto. This requires more work (and perhaps a tech consultant to set up securely), but it illustrates the freedom of open-source – you can support nearly any payment method if you find or build a plugin. (By contrast, many SaaS platforms are only just starting to offer crypto, usually via integration.)

Technical Requirements

Here’s the trade-off – while WordPress is easy to use (adding a new page or blog is as simple as using Word), it can be tricky to set up and maintain unless you have some tech support. You’ll need to arrange hosting and install WordPress, then configure themes and plugins. Non-technical users often hire a freelance developer or agency for the initial setup. The cost can vary: some agencies might do a full charity website and set it up for a few thousand pounds (depending on complexity). After that, many non-profits manage day-to-day updates themselves.

Security and maintenance are ongoing considerations – you must keep WordPress and plugins updated (usually a one-click process, but you need to remember to do it or use a managed host). If something breaks after an update, you’d need someone to troubleshoot. Additionally, without careful setup, you could have conflicts between plugins or performance issues. Using well-supported plugins and a good host mitigates this.

In summary, WordPress gives you control and saves platform fees, but requires a bit of tech responsibility – either an internal “web-savvy” person or a budget for occasional developer assistance. Many charities find this worthwhile as it also means ownership of your data (no third-party platform controlling your donor info or taking a cut). If you’re comfortable with basic website admin tasks (or willing to learn), WordPress is a powerful, budget-friendly option that can grow with your organisation.

3 – SaaS-Based Fundraising Platforms

SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) fundraising platforms are online tools focused on donations and fundraising campaigns, usually provided on a subscription or with transaction fees. Unlike full website platforms, many of these assume you already have a main website – and they provide embeddable donation forms or standalone campaign pages that complement your site. They often come with donor management features, analytics, and various fundraising modules (events, peer-to-peer, etc.).

The key advantage is ease: you sign up and start creating donation campaigns without installing software. The trade-off is ongoing costs (usually a platform fee per donation or a monthly plan) and sometimes less control over branding or data (your donations might go through their domain or forms).

Let’s look at some of the best SaaS fundraising platforms that charities in the UK, US, and Europe are using.

Donorbox (Donation Form & Fundraising Suite SaaS)

Donorbox is a popular SaaS platform offering embeddable donation forms and a full fundraising suite. It’s known for being extremely easy to set up – you can create a donation form and paste it into your website or use a Donorbox-hosted donation page. Over time, Donorbox has evolved into an all-in-one fundraising solution with a built-in donor database (CRM), event ticketing, peer-to-peer campaigns, crowdfunding pages, and more. It’s used by 100,000+ organisations worldwide and is especially loved by small to medium non-profits for its affordability and rich features.

Notable Users

Donorbox is used by charities across 96+ countries (as of recent counts). For example, UNICEF Kenya and Mothers Without Borders have used Donorbox forms. Many UK charities (churches, schools, community orgs) use it to leverage Gift Aid easily. In the US, organisations like Liberty in North Korea (LiNK) have raised funds with Donorbox. Its user base ranges from tiny volunteer-run groups to multi-million dollar non-profits that want a quick fundraising solution.

Pricing

Donorbox’s pricing is frustration-free and low-cost for the value. There are no monthly subscription fees for the Standard plan – you can start for free. They sustain via a platform fee of 1.75% per donation (i.e., for each donation, 1.75% goes to Donorbox). This is on top of payment processing fees charged by Stripe/PayPal (which are ~2.9% + 30p for cards, less for bank transfers).

Donorbox actually encourages donors to cover that 1.75% fee; there’s a checkbox in the form, and many donors do opt in, meaning the non-profit pays even less in fees. In fact, non-profits can often ask donors to cover all fees (including the Stripe fee) – Donorbox reports that it often results in 0% net platform fees for the org when donors cover them.

If your volume grows, Donorbox offers a Pro plan at $139/month that lowers the platform fee to 1.5% and unlocks advanced features like priority support, text-to-give, and deeper integrations. But joining Pro is optional; plenty of organisations run on the free standard plan indefinitely. Importantly, no setup fees, no contracts – you can plug it in and start fundraising without upfront cost. This transparency (1.75% platform fee) is much simpler than some competitors that have 5% or complicated tiers, which is why Donorbox is considered very cost-effective.

Core Features

Donorbox has grown into a full-featured fundraising toolkit.

Embeddable Donation Forms & Buttons: The core is a highly optimised donation form. You can generate a snippet to embed this form on your own website seamlessly (it looks like part of your site), or use a hosted Donorbox page if you prefer not to embed. The form supports one-time and recurring donations (with various frequencies), and donors can choose amounts or enter custom amounts. It’s secure and mobile-friendly by default. You can customise colours, text, and add your own questions (e.g., “Is this donation in honour of someone?” or “How did you hear about us?”). It also supports multiple currencies and languages – crucial for international donors. Payment options include all major credit/debit cards, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, bank transfers (ACH/SEPA), and even newer options like Venmo. This wide range makes donating convenient.
Fundraising Pages & Thermometers: If you don’t have a good website, Donorbox lets you create a campaign page on their platform, complete with a fundraising goal thermometer, storytelling, and a donation form. It’s a quick way to launch an appeal (you can share the Donorbox page link). These pages are customizable with images and content about the campaign.
Donor Management (CRM): Every donor and donation is tracked in a simple CRM built into Donorbox. You can view donor profiles, their giving history, and notes. It also has a manual donation entry for offline gifts, so you keep all records in one place. You can segment donors (e.g., filter who gave above £100, or who gave last month) and export data at any time. For communications, Donorbox offers thank-you email automation – donors get immediate receipts and thank-you messages, which you can customise (this saves time and ensures every donor is acknowledged instantly). Additionally, there’s integration with email tools and a native email marketing beta, so you might email donors directly from Donorbox.
Peer-to-Peer Fundraising: Donorbox includes a peer-to-peer feature where supporters can create their own fundraising pages under your campaign. For example, if you’re running a charity run event, participants can sign up and share their personal fundraising page with friends. All those pages roll up into your main campaign progress. This was introduced to allow social fundraising without needing a separate platform.
Events & Ticketing: With the Donorbox Events module, you can sell tickets or registrations for events (dinners, concerts, etc.). You create an event page with multiple ticket types (including free tickets or tables, etc.), and supporters can purchase through a form similar to the donation form. The system will collect attendee info and payment. It can even handle discount codes or early bird pricing. This is great for charities that hold fundraising events because it links the attendee data to your donor records.
Other Modules: Donorbox has a Text-to-Give feature (on paid plans) allowing donors to give via SMS keywords, a Memberships module for collecting member dues or subscriptions, and a newer Donorbox Peer-to-Peer and Crowdfunding set of features that let you host full crowdfunding-style campaigns with updates and donor walls. They also launched an AI-powered helper (“Jay”) to assist with writing campaign content. For US users, there’s an integration to easily sync with Salesforce Non-profit Success Pack and other CRMs like Blackbaud. It’s truly an evolving one-stop shop. And for UK users, Gift Aid is supported – you can enable a Gift Aid checkbox on your forms and even use their automated Gift Aid claim feature (available on Pro) to submit to HMRC. This is a huge time-saver, turning every £1 into £1.25 without manual work.

Mobile App & Crypto

Donorbox does not have a separate mobile admin app, but the website is responsive, so you can check donations on your phone’s browser. The donation forms themselves are optimised for mobile, ensuring an easy donor experience on any device. On the cryptocurrency front, Donorbox has embraced it by integrating with The Giving Block. This means a US-based charity can accept crypto donations via Donorbox – donors can give Bitcoin, Ethereum, and many other cryptocurrencies through a widget, and it gets processed and converted, with records in Donorbox.

They also added a feature for stock donations, similarly. There are processing fees for those (The Giving Block has its fee), but Donorbox doesn’t add extra beyond its platform fee. So, yes, crypto donations are supported (particularly for US non-profits) through this integration. UK/EU charities could also potentially accept crypto by signing up with The Giving Block and connecting it to Donorbox.

Technical Requirements

Extremely low =>> Donorbox is meant for non-technical users. Setting up a donation form is as easy as filling out an online template (no coding). To embed it on a website, you paste a few lines of code they provide – if you have a webmaster or use WordPress, this is straightforward (they even have a WordPress plugin to make it plug-and-play). If you don’t want to embed, just use their hosted campaign page. Updates and new features come automatically; you don’t worry about maintenance or security – Donorbox handles the backend.

In terms of integrating with your workflows, it’s quite user-friendly. However, you will want to reconcile funds with your Stripe/PayPal accounts (since those process the money), but Donorbox gives a clear dashboard for all transactions. Essentially, anyone comfortable with basic internet tasks can manage Donorbox. No in-house developer needed. This makes it a very attractive option for small charities and even as an “add-on” for larger ones that need a quick campaign launched.

Givebutter (All-in-One Fundraising Platform with Donor Tipping)

Givebutter is a fast-rising fundraising platform that brands itself as the #1 rated non-profit software for ease of use. It’s a comprehensive fundraising and donor management platform that’s cloud-based (SaaS). Givebutter provides donation forms, fundraising pages, event ticketing, auctions, a CRM, and more – all under one roof. One of its most distinctive features is its pricing model: Givebutter is free to use; instead of charging non-profits, it uses an optional donor tipping system to sustain itself. This has made it incredibly popular, especially among smaller organisations and grassroots fundraisers, as you get powerful tools without a big price tag.

Notable Users

Givebutter started around 2016, targeting student organisations and grassroots campaigns, but now it’s used by over 50,000 non-profits of all sizes (as of 2025). Some examples include The Parkinson’s Foundation, Girls Who Code, and many local charities, schools, and healthcare fundraisers in the US. It’s very popular for peer-to-peer fundraising (walkathons, charity runs, etc.) because of its social media-style campaign pages. Community-driven non-profits love it for the interactive elements (supporter feeds, team fundraising). UK and international charities can use it too, though note that all transactions are currently processed in USD (multi-currency support is limited). Still, many global donors have given through Givebutter’s pages thanks to PayPal/credit card acceptance.

Pricing

Givebutter’s core platform is completely free for non-profits – no monthly fees, no contracts, and technically no required platform fee. Instead, when a donor gives, Givebutter asks if they’d like to add a tip (suggested 10-15%) to support the platform. About 95% of donors do tip, which covers Givebutter’s costs. If a donor chooses not to tip, the non-profit still gets the full donation amount; Givebutter doesn’t subtract anything. In practice, Givebutter reports that the average campaign keeps 99.5% of funds raised because most donors cover the fees.

The only mandatory fees are the payment processing fees: 2.9% + 30¢ for cards (or 1.9% + 30¢ for ACH bank payments). Those can also be covered by donors (and most do cover those, too). If a non-profit would rather not show the tipping option, they can turn it off – in that case, Givebutter charges a small platform fee: 1% for embedded donation forms, 3% for peer-to-peer fundraising pages, 5% for events/auctions. But that’s only if you disable tips. Keeping tips means effectively 0% platform fee. There’s also an optional paid tier called Givebutter Plus (a monthly subscription), which unlocks advanced features like more automation and removes a cap on contacts, but all core fundraising features remain free in the standard offering.

In summary, Givebutter’s pricing is extremely non-profit-friendly – you get a top-tier platform and will likely pay next to nothing out of pocket, with donors essentially subsidising the platform costs.

Core Features

Givebutter truly offers an “all-in-one” suite – combining what you’d otherwise need multiple tools for:

Donation Forms and Pages: You can create donation forms to embed in your site (or use as standalone links). These support one-time and recurring gifts, custom amounts, and let you capture donor info and custom questions. They’re sleek and highly optimised (Givebutter boasts a 47% conversion rate on their forms, which is industry-leading). For more elaborate storytelling, you can create full fundraising campaign pages on Givebutter. These pages can include a story, photos/video, a goal thermometer, and a real-time donor feed showing recent donations and messages (which really adds social proof and encouragement). Supporters can even leave a message or emoji reaction when they donate, which appears on the page – creating an engaging experience like a social feed. This is great for rallying community support and sharing on social media.
Team and Peer-to-Peer Fundraising: Givebutter excels at peer-to-peer. You can invite people to join your campaign as fundraisers. They each get their own personalised fundraising page (under your campaign) and can set sub-goals. The main campaign page shows a leaderboard of teams or individuals. This is perfect for charity runs, volunteer fundraisers, Giving Tuesday ambassador programs, etc. All funds roll up to the main goal, and you can track who raised what.
Events and Ticketing (and Auctions): You can use Givebutter for events by creating event pages that sell tickets or accept RSVPs. It handles multiple ticket tiers, promo codes, and collects attendee details. For virtual or hybrid events, Givebutter supports livestream integration right on the event page and a live chat for engagement. They’ve also added auction capability – you can run charity auctions with mobile bidding through Givebutter, which is a huge plus for gala events and silent auctions. Attendees can bid from their phones, and you manage items in the dashboard. At events, there’s a check-in feature in their mobile app to scan tickets and record attendance.
Donor Management (CRM): Givebutter includes a free built-in CRM that tracks all your contacts (donors, fundraisers, event attendees). You can see timelines of their interactions (donations, event tickets, messages), segment contacts, and even send emails or texts. There’s a generous free contact limit (they don’t force you to upgrade as your contacts grow, unlike some CRMs). For those who need advanced marketing, the optional Plus plan offers more automation, but even the free tier gives a functional CRM for donor follow-up.
Communications: Givebutter has email and text messaging integrated. You can send receipts and thank-yous automatically, and also do outbound email campaigns or text blasts to supporters from the dashboard (with reasonable limits on the free tier). They also support personalised video thank-you messages: after someone donates, you can send a quick video note – a nice touch to boost donor retention.
Integrations: It connects with 1,000+ apps via Zapier, and natively with things like Salesforce and Mailchimp, so you can sync data if needed. It also has a robust API for tech teams that want to extend it.
Other features: A few more: It supports volunteer fundraising teams, tribute donations (donating in honour/memory of someone), and even allows donors to cover processing fees with a single click. It provides tons of real-time analytics and custom reports so you can measure campaign performance and donor engagement. For organisations that require it, you can embed a donation widget on websites like WordPress, Squarespace, etc., easily. They also recently launched a mobile app which admins can use for event check-in, accepting in-person donations (as if a virtual terminal), and on-the-go access to data.

Mobile App & Crypto

The Givebutter mobile app (for iOS/Android) is geared towards campaign management on the fly. You can check-in event attendees, accept swiped or tapped card donations at events, and monitor your fundraising progress from your phone. For donors, all Givebutter pages and forms are mobile-responsive and even allow donations via Venmo and CashApp (popular mobile payment methods in the US) – that’s a unique edge, letting especially younger donors give with familiar apps.

Regarding cryptocurrency, Givebutter currently does not support crypto or stock donations natively. Their focus has been on traditional and mobile payments (cards, digital wallets, bank, etc.). Non-profits that want to accept crypto might integrate a separate solution or use The Giving Block link alongside Givebutter. But as of now, no built-in crypto donation mechanism on Givebutter.

Technical Requirements

Very low. You don’t need any technical knowledge to use Givebutter. Creating a campaign is done through a simple editor (fill in your title, goal, etc.). Embedding forms is a copy-paste if you want to put a form on your site. If you don’t have a website, you can solely use Givebutter’s hosted pages. It’s designed for quick, self-service use by fundraisers and non-profit staff.

Customising branding and settings is straightforward. And since it’s web-based, no installation or maintenance is needed – all updates (they release new features frequently) just appear for users. They offer 24/7 support via chat/email, which is free, so help is always at hand. Even advanced features like setting up an auction or integration can be done with guidance from their help centre. So, Givebutter empowers even one-person development offices to run sophisticated campaigns without any coding or IT infrastructure.

Classy / GoFundmePro (Enterprise-Grade Fundraising Platform)

Classy, acquired by GoFundmePro is one of the leading SaaS fundraising platforms, particularly in North America, geared towards larger non-profits and high-growth organisations. It provides a powerful suite for online fundraising: donation forms, peer-to-peer campaigns, event fundraising (including registration and crowdfunding), all tightly integrated. Classy is now part of the GoFundMe family of products, and it’s known for its polished donor experience and robust integrations with CRMs like Salesforce. If Donorbox and Givebutter are the scrappy newcomers, Classy is more of an established, enterprise-level tool with a track record of big campaigns (think multi-million dollar drives).

Notable Users

Classy is used by big names such as Shriners Hospitals for Children, Heifer International, Team Rubicon, Charity: Water, and Stand Up To Cancer. Many large US charities and international NGOs have run campaigns on Classy. It’s also popular for peer-to-peer events like charity runs (e.g., National MS Society uses it for their walks) and emergency appeals (Classy saw widespread use for COVID-19 and Ukraine crisis relief fundraising). In the UK/EU, Classy is less common, but some globally oriented non-profits have adopted it. It’s positioned for organisations that need scale and advanced functionality (and have the budget for it).

Pricing

Classy does not publicise simple pricing on their website – you usually speak to their sales for a quote, which implies it’s on the higher side. From available info, Classy typically has tiered plans: Essentials, Professional, and Enterprise. In one analysis, the Professional plan was around \$299 per month plus transaction fees. Classy’s transaction fee structure can be a bit complex: historically, they charged around 5% platform fee on donations if you were on the basic plan.

The current model (especially after GoFundMe’s involvement) might have a 2.2% platform fee plus payment processing around 2.2–3%. One source indicated a Professional at $299/mo includes a 4% transaction fee (this likely is the platform fee). In addition, the payment processor (often Stripe via Classy Pay) is ~2.2% + $0.30 for cards. So total fees per donation could be ~6–7% on the standard setup (unless donors cover them). Unlike some platforms, donor tipping is not a core part of Classy’s model (though they introduced an option for donors to cover fees if they choose).

Classy also often requires an annual contract and possibly a setup fee for higher tiers. It’s an investment – likely worthwhile for those raising hundreds of thousands to millions, where the sophisticated tools pay off. They do occasionally have a “Community” free tier for very small orgs (with higher per-donation fees), but medium orgs will be on paid plans. For reference, some charities consider Classy when they are ready to invest at least a few thousand dollars a year into their fundraising tech. On the positive side, Classy doesn’t charge extra for different modules – you get donation pages, campaigns, events, etc., included in your plan. And since being acquired by GoFundMe, there were indications they might reduce or simplify fees to be more competitive.

Core Features

Classy is feature-rich and built for scaling:

Custom Donation Pages: With Classy, you can create branded donation landing pages that are highly optimised. You have a lot of design control (within templates) to match your branding. They support one-time and recurring giving, with options for donors to create accounts to manage their giving. You can run A/B tests on your pages (e.g., test different suggested amounts or layouts) to see what yields more donations – a powerful feature for data-driven teams. Classy donation pages also easily embed videos and impact stats to inspire donors. They are mobile-optimised and have features like upsells (asking donors to increase their gift or share) post-donation.
Peer-to-Peer and Crowdfunding Campaigns: Classy shines for peer fundraising. You can launch a peer-to-peer campaign where supporters create their own fundraising pages under your cause (similar to Givebutter). Classy’s interface for fundraisers is intuitive, letting them add photos and share their pages. It handles team fundraising as well. On the crowdfunding side, you can set up a campaign page for a specific project, complete with a progress bar and social sharing, and even allow individuals or teams to join. They also have a newer model called “Flex” pages, which allow personalised donor journeys – essentially more flexibility in campaign design vs. standard templates.
Event Management: Classy offers a module for ticketed events (Classy Events). You can sell tickets or registrations for events, manage sponsorship packages, and check in attendees. It integrates with the fundraising side – e.g., you can have a fundraising goal associated with an event and track donations made towards it. They also support virtual events and livestream fundraising (embedding video and showing live donation tallies). While not as specialised in auctions as some tools, they integrate with partners for auction functionality if needed.
Donor Management & CRM Integration: Classy has a basic CRM built in to track donors and transactions, but it truly excels in integration with big CRMs like Salesforce. Many mid-to-large non-profits use Classy + Salesforce; Classy will sync all donation and fundraiser data to Salesforce Non-profit Success Pack (NPSP) in near real-time with their native integration. It also connects to other CRMs and analytics tools. For those without a separate CRM, Classy’s dashboard itself provides robust donor and campaign analytics, retention reports, and lifetime value tracking. They even introduced a machine learning tool to predict which donors are likely to lapse or upgrade.
Global & Recurring Features: Classy supports international currencies and multilingual checkout (though primarily tailored to North America with English). It also has excellent recurring giving management – donors can log in to update their credit card or change a recurring gift themselves via a donor portal, and your team can see metrics like retention and churn of recurring donors. They’ve built in smart retry logic for failed payments, etc., to maximise sustained donations.
Security and Compliance: Being enterprise-grade, Classy is top-notch on security (PCI Level 1 compliant, etc.) and can handle huge traffic spikes (for example, viral fundraising challenges). They also allow advanced settings like setting up a donation page, domain masking (so it appears entirely on your domain), which bigger orgs prefer. Gift Aid: Classy doesn’t natively handle Gift Aid in forms as it’s US-centric, but UK orgs using it would likely collect Gift Aid via custom fields and then process manually or via integration.

Unique Offering – Crypto

In 2022, Classy launched Crypto Giving – an integrated feature allowing non-profits to accept cryptocurrency donations directly on Classy donation pages. This was done through a partnership with Coinbase Commerce, and it’s notable because it’s built in: donors on a Classy page can choose “Donate with Crypto” and give Bitcoin, Ethereum, and others seamlessly. The crypto is converted and delivered to the non-profit. Classy highlighted that no other major non-profit platform had this natively at the time.

For non-profits looking to attract crypto donors (a growing trend, especially with large gifts being made in crypto), this integration is a big plus – it keeps crypto donors in the same workflow as any donor. There’s also an option for crypto donors to opt into an environmental offset for their donation’s carbon footprint, which is an interesting, innovative touch.

Mobile App

Classy doesn’t have a donor-facing app, but its pages are mobile responsive. For admins, Classy had an app for event check-in (Classy Events app) and for seeing donation alerts, but much is managed via the web dashboard. They invest in mobile-friendly donation flows. Also, since GoFundMe acquired Classy, there might be a crossover where donors can discover Classy campaigns via GoFundMe’s site/app in the future, but the experiences are still separate.

Technical Requirements

Using Classy day-to-day doesn’t require coding – creating campaigns is via their interface. However, due to its vast capabilities, it has a learning curve. Organisations often have a digital fundraising manager or team who become Classy experts. Implementation can be involved; Classy provides onboarding for new customers and support.

If you integrate with Salesforce or another system, you’ll need either a tech-savvy staffer or consultant to ensure smooth data flow. Classy’s support and account managers are there to assist (especially on higher plans). You might also involve web developers if you want to embed Classy forms on your own site in a custom way, or to fully brand domains.

In summary, Classy is best for organisations ready to handle a pro-level tool – it unlocks a lot of power, but you’ll want staff dedicated to maximising it. It’s arguably overkill for a very small charity, but fantastic when you have thousands of donors and multiple campaigns a year.

Enthuse (Branded Fundraising for UK Charities)

Enthuse is a UK-based fundraising SaaS platform that provides branded donation pages and event fundraising solutions for charities. It was formerly known as CharityCheckout. Enthuse focuses on giving charities more control over their branding and data than some traditional fundraising sites. They offer online donation processing, campaign pages, fundraising event support, and even integration with things like the London Marathon. Enthuse sits somewhat between a pure donation platform and a crowdfunding site, but with an emphasis on white-label (it puts your branding first, not its own).

Notable Users

Over 4,000 charities use Enthuse, from local charities to big names. It became well-known when Virgin Money Giving closed in 2021 – many charities migrated to Enthuse as an alternative for event fundraising (e.g., charities in the London Marathon now use Enthuse to collect sponsorship). Examples include Macmillan Cancer Support (for specific events), Parkinson’s UK, and numerous hospice charities. Enthuse also powers campaigns like BBC Children in Need’s fundraising portal. Its appeal is strong in the UK due to Gift Aid and GDPR compliance baked in.

Pricing

Enthuse offers a few pricing options, giving charities flexibility: you can choose a subscription model or a per-donation fee model. According to their site and third-party info, one option is no platform fee, but donors are asked for an optional contribution (tip) – similar to the donor-cover model. Alternatively, charities can pay a fixed annual subscription starting from £240/year + VAT (which is about £20/month), and then have 0% platform fee on donations. In both cases, standard payment processing fees (~1.9% + 20p) apply to donations (these go to Stripe/PayPal, etc.).

Enthuse actually made headlines for removing all platform and card fees during the peak of COVID-19 to help charities, and since then, has kept a very transparent fee policy. Essentially, if you go the subscription route, you pay a predictable low cost and know exactly how much of each donation goes to you (they pride themselves on charities knowing “how much of each donation lands in the bank, including Gift Aid” from the start).

If you go the free route, Enthuse will ask donors to leave a tip to cover costs (which many do, but not as universally as on Givebutter). They also have event-specific fees (for example, a 5% fee on Gift Aid amounts processed for you, and small per-ticket fees for events). There are no setup fees reported, and you can cancel anytime. Overall, the cost is quite low compared to legacy platforms like JustGiving that had subscriptions plus higher fees.

Core Features

Enthuse is designed to put your charity’s brand front and centre and make online fundraising easy:

Branded Donation Pages: Enthuse gives you customizable donation pages that live either on their platform or embedded in yours. Unlike generic portals that divert donors to someone else’s site, Enthuse pages carry your logo, your imagery, and your campaign story. These pages include Gift Aid capture by default (UK donors can tick Gift Aid, and it automatically handles the 25% boost and record-keeping). They also allow donor cover options for fees and let donors opt to set up recurring gifts. The checkout process is streamlined and works on all devices. For trust, each page can have your charity’s registration details clearly shown (important for donor confidence).
Fundraising Campaigns & Events: Enthuse supports peer-to-peer fundraising for events. If you have, say, a charity run or a “virtual challenge,” you can use Enthuse to let supporters create fundraising pages under your event. They join the event, get their own page (with your branding still prominent), and share it with friends. As an admin, you can track all these fundraisers and their progress. Enthuse was the engine behind the London Marathon’s official fundraising platform in recent years – that’s a testament to its capability to handle large-scale events and thousands of fundraising pages. For events with tickets (like a gala or a fun day), Enthuse offers event registration and ticketing features as well, although their main strength is in sponsorship-style fundraising events rather than selling gala tickets (they do have a simple ticketing component, as indicated by subscription packages, but it may not be as elaborate as dedicated event systems).
Donation Management and CRM: Enthuse provides a dashboard where you see all donations, donor details, and payouts. You can export donor data easily (it’s your data, not locked – a big plus). They take care of sending donors automated thank-you emails and Gift Aid confirmations in your charity’s voice. Enthuse also automates the Gift Aid claim process for you: it will capture Gift Aid declarations, and if you opt in, it can submit claims to HMRC on your behalf, depositing the Gift Aid reclaims to your account (this saves admin time). Integrations: Enthuse can integrate with CRM systems like Beacon or Raiser’s Edge via API, though this might need some technical setup. They also integrate with JustGiving, interestingly, to import past fundraising data if you migrated.
Personalised Experiences: A noteworthy feature is Enthuse’s focus on personalising the supporter journey. For example, when someone donates, the thank-you page can suggest next steps (like “Create your own fundraising page” or “Share this with friends”). They even provide a donor login area if donors want to track their giving. For charity admins, you can segment and tailor communications through Enthuse (like sending updates to all fundraisers of a campaign).
Compliance & Security: Enthuse is UK-oriented, so GDPR compliance is a given (opt-in checkboxes, privacy controls), and it’s PCI compliant. They also explicitly highlight that charities get full ownership of supporter data – meaning you can communicate with donors directly, something some third-party platforms restricted in the past. Gift Aid processing is built in and very much a selling point (some platforms make Gift Aid a manual process; Enthuse automates it to an impressive degree).

Mobile App & Crypto

Enthuse offers a mobile app for charities (and donors) to manage fundraising on the go. The app allows charity admins to view campaign progress, manage events, and for fundraisers to track their sponsorships and update their pages. It’s relatively new but speaks to modern expectations.

Cryptocurrency donations

Enthuse currently does not support crypto donations. Their focus has been on regular currencies and maximising Gift Aid (which doesn’t apply to crypto easily). UK crypto philanthropy is still emerging, and Enthuse hasn’t integrated that yet. If a charity on Enthuse wanted to accept crypto, they would have to use a separate service (like The Giving Block) in parallel.

Technical Requirements

Enthuse is designed so that any charity can use it without technical skills. Setup is guided by their team for branded pages (they often help you get your branding right). Embedding a form or linking to an Enthuse page is straightforward. For more advanced use, like integrating into your website’s buttons or linking with your CRM, you might involve an IT person, but it’s optional. They offer customer support and even “professional support” for some tiers (some plans include a dedicated account manager, depending on size).

Overall, it’s user-friendly. Many charities switched to Enthuse precisely because they didn’t want to maintain complicated systems – Enthuse provided a plug-and-play solution that they could largely manage through a web dashboard.

iRaiser (European Online Fundraising Platform)

iRaiser is a leading fundraising SaaS platform in Europe, providing a full suite of digital fundraising tools to non-profits. It’s akin to a European counterpart of Classy or Enthuse, with solutions for donation forms, peer-to-peer, crowdfunding, event fundraising, and ticketing – all under one platform. iRaiser emphasises delivering high-conversion donation experiences and has strong support for multi-language, multi-currency needs (crucial in Europe). It’s used by some of the biggest charities in the EU.

Notable Users

Over 900 charities worldwide use iRaiser. Its client list includes major organisations like UNICEF (multiple country offices), IFRC (Red Cross), Greenpeace, Save the Children, Doctors Without Borders (MSF), and many national charities across France, Italy, Scandinavia, and now the UK (they expanded into the UK market a few years ago). For example, the UK for UNHCR and Diabetes UK have worked with iRaiser. These are generally large or mid-sized non-profits requiring enterprise-level capabilities, although iRaiser also caters to smaller charities seeking to grow their digital fundraising.

Pricing

iRaiser typically operates on a subscription model with no percentage fee – meaning you pay a flat license fee and keep 100% of donations (minus bank fees). Pricing starts around €175 per month (about £150/month) for their basic package.

Larger organisations with more modules/users would pay more (they likely have tiered pricing or custom quotes for enterprise). The key is that iRaiser does not take a cut of donations as a platform fee. This is attractive for high-volume fundraisers, as your costs don’t scale with donations. There might be setup fees or training fees for more complex implementations.

Payment processing fees depend on your chosen gateways (they integrate with many, like Stripe, PayPal, and local EU processors). iRaiser’s philosophy is that a fixed fee means you’re “not penalised for the success of your campaigns”. Each tool (forms, p2p, etc.) might be bundled or sold separately in the pricing structure, but overall, their pricing is transparent and regularly updated.

Core Features

iRaiser is quite comprehensive, basically covering all online fundraising scenarios:

Online Donation Forms: With iRaiser, charities can embed secure donation forms on their websites that are optimised for conversion. These forms are customizable, support multiple languages and currencies in one form (useful for international donors), and allow various payment methods (cards, direct debits, PayPal, Apple/Google Pay, etc.). They also support suggested amounts, recurring donation options, tribute donations, and the ability for donors to cover fees. iRaiser forms emphasise a smooth user experience – for example, they often appear as overlay modals on a charity’s site, keeping donors on the page. They can be integrated directly (via an API) or used as hosted pages.
Peer-to-Peer & Crowdfunding: iRaiser offers dedicated peer-to-peer fundraising modules. Charities can launch campaigns where supporters create personal fundraising pages, similar to JustGiving but fully under the charity’s brand. They also have crowdfunding pages for specific projects or appeals, where you can tell a story, set a goal, and visibly track progress. These pages can include lists of donors (with permission) and comments, engaging the community.
Event Fundraising & Ticketing: For events like charity runs or galas, iRaiser has an Event fundraising tool. For something like a marathon, it ties into the peer-to-peer module, letting participants sign up and fundraise. For gala events or lotteries, their Ticketing module handles selling tickets or entries online. It manages registration info, different ticket categories, and can generate e-tickets. While not an all-out event management software, it covers the essentials to register participants and collect fees or donations tied to events.
Multi-Channel Giving: iRaiser is built for modern fundraising – they even support things like mobile giving via QR codes or SMS, and importantly in Europe, SEPA Direct Debit donations (through integration with payment partners). This allows recurring donors in the Eurozone to give via bank debit easily (very important in countries like France, Germany, etc., where direct debits are popular for recurring gifts). They also allow methods like PayPal, Amazon Pay, and local methods (iDeal in the Netherlands, Bancontact in Belgium, etc.) via integrations. Essentially, you can cater to donors in each country with their preferred method.
Data and Integrations: iRaiser provides a unified dashboard to track all fundraising activities. Data on donors and donations flows into the platform’s database. They offer integrations with CRMs and email tools – e.g., Mailchimp, Salesforce, and others – so that donor info can sync to where you need it. There’s also an API for custom integrations. Reporting tools let you analyse performance across campaigns, donor demographics, etc. For instance, you can see which campaign brought in more recurring donors or compare year-over-year metrics. They highlight “synchronised data services”, which implies that if a donor donates through different channels (event vs form), they unify that record.
Flex Editor: This is a feature mentioned on their site which likely allows charities to design and edit donation pages with flexibility, possibly without coding. This suggests you’re not stuck with one template – you can tailor the layout and content of your donation or campaign pages.
Security & Compliance: Being in Europe, iRaiser is fully GDPR compliant. Donor data is stored in Europe. They support SSL encryption, 3D Secure for card payments, and meet high security standards. For Gift Aid (UK), iRaiser forms can collect Gift Aid declarations for UK donors (and presumably export reports for HMRC). Given that their UK clients like Diabetes UK, this is likely handled. Also, iRaiser is well-equipped for French “Tax receipt” rules and others – basically attuned to non-profit regulations in various countries.

Mobile & Crypto

iRaiser’s forms and pages are mobile-responsive, ensuring donors on smartphones have a seamless experience (critical since many donors will click through emails or social media on their phones). They’ve optimised for quick mobile donations (like offering Apple Pay, which on iPhone lets a donor give with a thumbprint).

Cryptocurrency donations: iRaiser does not currently list crypto support. European charities have started dabbling in crypto, but it’s not mainstream yet. If needed, charities could use an external crypto donation service alongside iRaiser, but as of now, iRaiser itself focuses on traditional currencies.

Technical Requirements

iRaiser is delivered as a service; its team often works closely with clients for onboarding. Setting up might require integrating some code snippet on your site for embedded forms or configuring your payment accounts. Typically, you don’t need in-house developers, but having an IT point person is useful to coordinate integrations (especially if linking to your CRM or website). iRaiser provides training and support (documentation, live online training, etc.).

They even do in-person training for larger clients. Once set up, a fundraising team can create new campaigns and pages through the interface. Non-tech staff can manage content, but for advanced adjustments (like tweaking form CSS deeply or API use), a web developer’s help might be needed. Since it’s a professional tool, many clients will have a digital officer administering it. But the benefit is that the heavy technical lifting (security, hosting, updates) is all handled by iRaiser.

Charities can rely on their continuous improvements (they regularly update features and even have “exclusive algorithms” to boost results, per their materials). In essence, iRaiser is designed to be highly efficient for fundraisers – you spend time strategising campaigns, not maintaining software.

Give Lively (Free All-in-One Fundraising Platform)

Give Lively is a unique player: a completely free fundraising platform for non-profits, funded by philanthropy. It provides donation pages, peer-to-peer campaigns, event ticketing, and donor management at no cost – no setup fee, no monthly fee, no platform fee. They operate on a mission to empower charities with tech without adding financial burden. It’s US-based (non-profits must be US 501(c)(3) organisations to join). For those eligible, it’s an incredibly cost-effective solution with solid functionality.

Notable Users

Give Lively has attracted thousands of non-profits, including notable ones like Malala Fund, The Innocence Project, and Born This Way Foundation. Typically, mid-size organisations that want to save on fees and still have modern fundraising tools choose Give Lively. It’s also popular with smaller non-profits that are tech-savvy enough to integrate it on their websites. As of late, it’s reported that non-profits have raised over $1 billion collectively through Give Lively, saving an estimated $100+ million in fees (which would have gone to other platforms). However, since it’s US-only for organisational sign-up, UK/EU charities can’t use it (international donors can give, but the charity must be US-based).

Pricing: Free

Truly – Give Lively doesn’t charge non-profits anything to use the platform. They don’t even solicit optional tips from donors. How do they sustain? They were founded by a group of philanthropists who cover the costs, believing that freeing charities from software expenses helps the sector.

The only fees involved are the standard payment processing fees from Stripe or PayPal (2.2% + $0.30 for most US non-profits with Stripe’s non-profit rate). Donors can be given an option to cover the processing fee, but that’s up to the non-profit to enable. Give Lively itself takes no cut of donations. There are also no tiers – every feature is included for every member non-profit. It’s arguably the best value out there if you meet the eligibility criteria.

Core Features

Despite being free, Give Lively’s features cover most fundraising needs:

Donation Pages & Widgets: You can create branded donation pages that live on Give Lively’s site (but with your branding). These pages allow one-time and recurring donations, let you set suggested amounts, and share impact statements (“$50 will do X”). They are quite modern, including support for digital wallets like Apple/Google Pay. If you prefer, you can embed a Donate Widget on your own website – a little button that pops up the Give Lively donation form as a modal overlay. This way, donors can give without leaving your site. The widget integration is just a few lines of script.
Peer-to-Peer & Team Fundraising: Give Lively has a feature called “Peer-to-Peer Fundraising” where you (the non-profit) set up a main campaign, and then supporters can create their own fundraising pages tied to it. It’s very straightforward for supporters to join and share their pages. All donations through those pages go to your account, and the supporters’ pages show progress toward their personal goal as well as the campaign’s goal. This is great for things like birthday fundraisers or community-led drives.
Event Ticketing: With Give Lively’s event feature, you can sell tickets or accept registrations for events. You create an event page, set ticket types (including free or donation-based tickets), and collect attendee info. It will handle issuing e-tickets and receipts. For virtual or hybrid events, they also provide a “Live Display” tool – a kind of real-time donation feed or thermometer that can be shown during an event to encourage giving. This is especially useful for virtual galas or livestream fundraisers to show progress as people donate.
Text-to-Donate: They offer a text-to-donate tool where you get a unique keyword and number. Donors can text that keyword to initiate a donation. The system replies with your donation link, making it easy for mobile giving (not an SMS charge donation, but a quick way to get a donor on the mobile form).
Donor Management: Give Lively has a basic donor management area – you can log in to their non-profit portal and see all donations, donor info, and export data. It’s not a full CRM, but you can download CSVs to import into your main CRM. They focus on making data accessible: you can get lists of donors for each campaign, see recurring donation statuses, etc. If you use Salesforce NPSP, they have a direct integration to sync donations into Salesforce.
Other features: You can customise thank-you messages and even set up a post-donation redirect (maybe to a thank-you page on your own site). They recently added a “Live Display” feature, which is like an on-screen ticker or thermometer updating with donations in real time – great for events or live streams to excite donors seeing their name or contribution pop up. They also support campaigns for specific purposes (like you can have multiple campaigns running, each with its own page and goal, under your account). All pages are shareable on social media easily.

Mobile & Crypto

All Give Lively donation pages are mobile-optimised, and they particularly highlight that donors can give via digital wallets (Apple Pay, etc.), which is very mobile-friendly. They do not have a separate mobile admin app – management is via web browser.

On cryptocurrency: Give Lively does not natively accept crypto (and since it’s free, they haven’t partnered with any paid crypto service). Their stance is likely to focus on what most of their member non-profits need (crypto is still niche). If a Give Lively non-profit wanted crypto donations, they’d use a separate solution (and possibly just link to it from their site).

Technical Requirements

Give Lively is quite easy to use. To join, non-profits must register and verify their 501(c)(3) status (and connect a Stripe account for payouts). After that, creating a campaign or embedding a widget is straightforward – no coding beyond copy-pasting their snippet if you go the embed route. They have guides and customer support available.

No fees means support isn’t a 24/7 concierge, but they do have a support team and good documentation. Because it’s free, there’s a “catch” that they require using Stripe or PayPal via their system – but Stripe’s non-profit rate is good, and many are fine with that. Non-profits don’t need an IT department to use Give Lively; maybe just a web person to insert a widget script on the site. The system is built to be self-service after onboarding. For security, they ensure everything’s encrypted and safe (they don’t handle money – it goes directly to your Stripe/PayPal, which is nice).

In sum, Give Lively is an excellent choice for US non-profits on a tight budget or those who would rather every penny go to the mission. It’s not as extensive as Classy or some paid suites (for instance, no built-in analytics dashboards or extremely customizable pages), but it covers the core needs at a price (zero) that’s unbeatable.

Now that we’ve gone through the major platforms in each type, let’s step back and look at the common core features they offer and how they compare. Despite different approaches, there are key functionalities that most fundraising solutions provide because they are essential for successful online fundraising. Recognising these can help you evaluate any platform we didn’t explicitly cover as well.

Common Core Features Across Platforms

Reviewing all these options – hosted solutions, open-source, and SaaS – we see a lot of overlap in core capabilities. Virtually all modern fundraising platforms (and plugins) strive to offer:

A – Online Donation Processing

At heart, every platform enables you to accept donations on your website or via a campaign page. All of them provide secure donation forms for one-time gifts, and most support recurring donations (monthly giving), which is crucial for building sustainable income. Payment method variety is common – at least cards and PayPal everywhere, with many also allowing Apple/Google Pay and bank debits.

B – Fundraising Campaign Pages

Whether it’s Pillar’s “appeals”, WordPress plugin campaign forms, or Donorbox/Givebutter’s campaign pages, you can create dedicated pages for specific appeals or projects. These often include fundraising thermometers/goals, imagery, and stories to inspire donors, rather than just a generic donate form.

C – Peer-to-Peer Fundraising

This has become standard in many tools. The ability for supporters to fundraise on your behalf using personal pages (as seen in Givebutter, Donorbox P2P, Classy, Enthuse, iRaiser, etc.) is a core feature. It taps into new networks of donors and engages your community. Platforms differ in how slick this is, but most have it either built in or available as an add-on.

D – Donor Management (CRM) and Data

All solutions allow you to capture donor information and access a list of donors and donations. Many have an integrated light CRM to track donor history and contact info (Pillar’s CRM, Donorbox CRM, Givebutter’s contact manager, etc.). At a minimum, you can export your donor data for use elsewhere. Data analysis tools (reports, dashboards) are common, though more advanced in higher-end platforms. The core idea: you should own your donor data and be able to use it to build relationships.

E – Events & Ticketing

A lot of charitable fundraising involves events, so numerous platforms have some event capability. This ranges from simple event pages (Enthuse, Give Lively) to full ticketing and registration (Wired Impact, Donorbox Events, Classy, iRaiser, etc.). If events are big in your strategy, most platforms have a solution to avoid needing a separate Eventbrite subscription.

F – Gift Aid Support (for UK)

UK-based solutions almost all mention Gift Aid (Pillar automates it, White Fuse collects it, Enthuse automates it, Donorbox and iRaiser support it, etc.). If a platform serves UK charities, Gift Aid collection is a core feature, as it boosts donations by 25%. Non-UK-centric tools (Givebutter, Classy in the US) don’t have it built in, but UK users can often manage with custom fields if needed. Always check how a platform handles Gift Aid if you fundraise in the UK – but the top ones in the UK have you covered.

G – Mobile Optimisation

Every platform recognises that donors use phones, so donation forms and pages are responsive and mobile-friendly by default. Many go further – offering one-click mobile payment options or even having admin mobile apps for on-the-go monitoring. If a tool lacked mobile optimisation, it’d be a non-starter today, but all the ones we discussed ensure a smooth mobile experience for donors.

H – Security & Compliance

Common to all is serious attention to security (SSL encryption, PCI compliance for payments). They also handle GDPR or relevant privacy laws (especially those operating in Europe). Platforms often also include compliance features like donor consent checkboxes, email opt-outs, etc., so that you stay legally compliant while fundraising online.

I – Minimal Technical Overhead

A core theme is that these platforms are designed so that non-technical charity staff can manage them. While open-source WordPress might require a bit more tech, its plugins still put a user-friendly interface on donation management. The SaaS and hosted solutions pride themselves on ease of use – drag-and-drop editors, templates, and support available. None of the recommended solutions requires you to code a payment form from scratch – they’ve done that work for you.

Beyond these basics, each platform has its special strengths – some excel in donor experience (like Givebutter’s social engagement features), others in enterprise integrations (Classy, iRaiser), and others in affordability (Give Lively, WordPress). But when deciding, it’s good to ensure the tool you choose ticks the core boxes above.

Finally, to summarise the comparison, here’s a table outlining how the reviewed platforms stack up on key features and considerations:

Comparison Table of Platforms and Features

The table below provides a side-by-side look at the platforms we’ve discussed, highlighting their solution type, example users, pricing structure, and whether they support certain features like peer-to-peer fundraising, events, Gift Aid, mobile apps, and crypto donations:

Platform	Type of Solution	Example Users	Pricing (Platform fees)	Peer-to-Peer Fundraising	Event Ticketing	Integrated CRM/Donor DB	Gift Aid Support	Mobile App	Crypto Donations
Pillar Platform	Fully hosted website & CRM	Orphans in Need, Muslim Aid (UK)	£299–£499/mo + setup; 0% platform fee	Yes (campaign & crowdfunding modules)	Basic (no full ticketing module out-of-the-box)	Yes (built-in CRM for donors)	Yes (automated Gift Aid)	No (responsive only)	No
White Fuse	Hosted charity website builder	Small UK charities, clubs	~£65/mo + £500 setup; 1% transaction fee	No (focused on direct giving & membership)	Yes (event booking built-in)	Light CRM (contacts & members)	Yes (captures Gift Aid declarations)	No (web only)	No
Wired Impact	Hosted non-profit CMS	Swifty Foundation, Proteus (USA)	$69–$329/mo; 0% platform fee	No built-in P2P (volunteer mgmt instead)	Yes (event reg. & tickets)	Basic (donations & volunteers tracked)	N/A (primarily US, no Gift Aid module)	No (web only)	No
WordPress (+Plugins)	Open-source CMS + plugins	Many (all sizes, globally)	Software free; hosting ~$100/yr; 0% platform fee	Yes (with plugins like Charitable)	Yes (with plugins, e.g. Events Manager)	Varies by plugin (GiveWP has donor mgmt)	Possible (via plugin or CiviCRM integration)	N/A (admin via browser/app)	Yes (via plugins or integrations)
Donorbox	SaaS fundraising suite	Mothers Without Borders, churches	1.75% platform fee (0% if donors cover); no monthly fee	Yes (supporter pages for campaigns)	Yes (events & ticketing module)	Yes (built-in donor CRM + receipts)	Yes (Gift Aid option + auto-claim on Pro)	No dedicated app (mobile web OK)	Yes (via The Giving Block integration)
Givebutter	SaaS all-in-one fundraising	Girls Who Code, Parkinson’s Fdn (USA)	Free (tips model; ~0.5% avg cost); 0% if donors tip	Yes (teams & individual fundraisers)	Yes (ticketed events + auctions)	Yes (free donor CRM & comms)	No (primarily US; no Gift Aid handling)	Yes (admin app for events)	No (no native crypto support)
Classy	SaaS enterprise fundraising	Shriners Hospitals, Charity: Water	~$299/mo (Pro) + ~5-6% fees; volume-based for larger	Yes (robust P2P & team fundraising)	Yes (event reg., fundraising events)	Yes (dashboard + Salesforce integration)	No native (US-oriented; Gift Aid via custom fields)	No separate app (mobile forms)	Yes (native crypto donations via Coinbase)
Enthuse	SaaS branded fundraising (UK)	Parkinson’s UK, local hospices	£240/yr+ or donor pays; 0% platf. (1.9% proc.)	Yes (branded supporter fundraising pages)	Limited (no complex ticketing; focus on sponsorship)	Yes (supporter data dashboard)	Yes (Gift Aid fully handled)	Yes (Enthuse mobile app)	No (no crypto feature yet)
iRaiser	SaaS fundraising suite (EU)	UNICEF, Red Cross, Diabetes UK	from €175/mo; 0% platform fee	Yes (multi-lingual P2P campaigns)	Yes (ticketing and event pages)	Yes (unified data, CRM integrations)	Yes (handles Gift Aid for UK; EU tax receipts)	No app (mobile-friendly forms)	No (focus on traditional giving)
Give Lively	SaaS free fundraising (USA)	Malala Fund, Innocence Project	Free (no fees at all); 2.2%+ proc. only	Yes (supporters create pages)	Yes (ticketed events & live display)	Basic (donation tracking, exports)	N/A (US only membership; no Gift Aid)	No (mobile web donor exp.)	No (no crypto support)

Table Key

“0% platform fee” means the provider doesn’t take a cut (though payment processor fees still apply). “Yes” in features means the functionality is available natively. “No” indicates it’s not offered. N/A means not applicable or not a focus (e.g., Gift Aid for US-only platforms).

As you can see, all these tools cover the fundamentals of online fundraising – the differences lie in cost model, complexity, and additional perks. The best choice depends on your charity’s size, budget, technical capacity, and specific needs:

If you want an all-in-one website + fundraising and have the budget, a hosted platform like Pillar or Wired Impact can be great, especially for UK charities needing Gift Aid and support.
If you prefer maximum control and no ongoing fees, an open-source route like WordPress with the right plugins (and maybe agency help) is powerful, but ensure you can handle the maintenance.
For simple, quick adoption with minimal cost, Donorbox or Givebutter are excellent – they let you start fundraising in minutes and offer a wide feature set with either tiny fees or donor-covered fees.
For large-scale campaigns and integrations, Classy or iRaiser provide enterprise robustness, albeit at a higher cost – they shine if you require advanced peer campaigns, multi-currency, or CRM integration at scale.
If you’re a US charity on a shoestring, Give Lively’s free platform is a gift – it has everything you need without eating into donations (just note it’s not open to non-US orgs).

In all cases, ensure the platform aligns with your donor base (e.g., UK donors – pick something with Gift Aid and GBP support; younger donors – something mobile and social-friendly; international donors – multi-language/currency support).

We’ve covered a lot of ground, but the key takeaway is that charities have more choice than ever in raising funds online. The “best” platform is the one that fits your mission’s needs and resources. The good news: whether you’re a small local charity or a global NGO, there’s a solution out there that can help you raise more money, engage supporters, and do so efficiently and securely. Hopefully, this review helps you navigate those choices with confidence and find the right tool to amplify your fundraising efforts!

4 – Independent Fundraising Platforms

Apart from hosting donations on their own websites, charities can leverage independent online fundraising platforms. These services allow organisations (and supporters) to set up campaign pages on an external site to collect donations, often with minimal or no platform fees. Below are some notable crowdfunding and fundraising platforms in the USA, UK, and Europe:

LaunchGood

A faith-based crowdfunding platform focused on the global Muslim community. Founded in 2013 in the U.S., LaunchGood has facilitated over $680 million in donations from more than 2.1 million donors across 155 countries.

It advertises 0% platform fees (sustained via voluntary tips) to fundraisers, making it an attractive choice for charities and individuals raising funds for charitable causes, especially in Muslim communities.

MyTenNights

An online Ramadan donation platform that automates giving across the last ten nights of Ramadan. Donors make one payment, which is then split and scheduled nightly (ensuring they donate on Laylatul Qadr, the holiest night).

This UK-based platform has seen rapid adoption – for example, in 2020, over 100,000 Muslim donors gave £10.9 million to various charities through MyTenNights. It partners with many charities (e.g. Islamic Relief, Oxfam, Penny Appeal, Muslim Aid) to engage younger Muslim donors online.

MuslimGiving

A dedicated Muslim-focused fundraising platform in the UK that connects donors with charitable causes. MuslimGiving allows both charity campaigns and personal causes (via its “CrowdGiving” feature) and charges no platform fee – only standard card processing fees are deducted from donations.

Launched in 2017, it provides a trusted space for Muslim charities and donors, emphasising faith-aligned causes and a 100% donation policy (zero platform cut) to maximise funds going to the cause.

GiveBrite

A UK-based online fundraising & donation platform known for its use by many charities (especially within the Muslim community). GiveBrite offers fundraising pages, peer-to-peer campaigns, and even seasonal giving tools (e.g. for Ramadan, Qurbani, etc.).

It boasts 0% platform fees and has facilitated over £100 million in donations via more than 90,000 campaigns, involving about 500,000 donors to date. GiveBrite’s global functionality (multi-currency support) and free features have made it a popular choice for charities seeking cost-effective online fundraising.

JustGiving

One of the world’s largest and most established fundraising sites, launched in the UK in 2000. JustGiving is widely used by charities, individuals running marathons or events, and donors worldwide. It has over 17 million donors using the platform each year.

JustGiving now operates with 0% platform fee on donations (the platform instead asks donors for an optional tip), and only the standard payment processing fee (~2.9% + £0.35 per transaction) is deducted. The platform is trusted and regulated (JustGiving is an FCA-regulated payment institution), offering features for charity campaigns, crowdfunders, and peer-to-peer fundraising initiatives.

GoFundMe

The #1 crowdfunding platform globally, famous for personal causes and charitable fundraising. Founded in 2010 (USA), GoFundMe has grown into a massive giving community – as of 2025, it has enabled over $40 billion raised worldwide in 15 years, with nearly 200 million people having donated or fundraised on the site.

GoFundMe charges no platform fee for standard fundraisers (relying on optional tips) and only applies the payment processing fee (around 2.9% + $0.30 per donation). Charities can register on GoFundMe so that supporters can fundraise on their behalf, and the platform’s vast user base and social sharing features help campaigns go viral for causes ranging from medical bills to disaster relief.

WhyDonate

A European crowdfunding platform (based in the Netherlands) known for its 0% platform fees and user-friendly approach. WhyDonate caters to individuals, non-profits and companies raising money for various causes.

It has gained positive feedback for effectively connecting donors to campaigns, notably seeing increased usage during challenging times like the COVID-19 pandemic. With multi-language and multi-currency support, WhyDonate has emerged as a popular choice across Europe for cost-effective charitable fundraising.

GivenGain

A global charity fundraising platform founded in 2001 (now headquartered in Switzerland). GivenGain enables anyone to fundraise for any registered charity worldwide, often used for peer-to-peer charity events (it’s an official platform for marathons and campaigns across continents).

With over 22 years of experience, more than 100 countries represented, and a mission to “break down barriers” in giving, GivenGain has helped thousands of fundraisers support causes internationally. The platform is non-profit-friendly and has a presence in the USA, UK, Europe and beyond, making it easy for charities to receive funds in different currencies.

GlobalGiving

A US-based non-profit crowdfunding platform for vetted charitable projects around the world. Founded in 2002, GlobalGiving operates as a non-profit itself (501(c)(3)) and connects donors to grassroots projects and NGOs in developing countries and communities in need.

Since its launch, over 1.9 million donors have contributed more than $1 billion through GlobalGiving to support 40,000+ projects in 175 countries. Charities join GlobalGiving to access this international donor network, and donors often appreciate the extra due diligence and storytelling on project pages. (GlobalGiving sustains operations by deducting a small non-profit support fee from donations, rather than a profit-based platform fee.)

Each of these independent fundraising platforms allows charities to set up fundraising campaigns externally without needing to host the donation infrastructure on their own site. They provide secure payment processing, donor outreach tools, and often social-media integration to help campaigns gain visibility.

By using such independent fundraising platforms – whether broad-based like GoFundMe/JustGiving or niche-focused like LaunchGood and MyTenNights – non-profits in the USA, UK, and Europe can tap into larger audiences and raise funds online with relative ease.

Choosing the Right Fundraising Technology

Charities often face different needs depending on their size, technical skills, and fundraising strategy. Each type of platform has strengths — and in many cases, using a combination can deliver the best results.

1. Complete Hosted Charity Website Platforms

Best for: Charities that want an all-in-one solution with minimal technical management.

Why choose: Platforms like Pillar or White Fuse provide a ready-made website, donation forms, CRM, Gift Aid, and compliance tools in one subscription. This reduces reliance on IT staff.
Requirements: A moderate-to-high budget (monthly subscription + setup fees), but little to no technical expertise. Staff can manage day-to-day content and campaigns.
When it fits: Mid-to-large charities that want a professional, integrated platform, or smaller UK charities that need Gift Aid and GDPR support without juggling multiple tools.

2. Custom-Built or Open-Source CMS Solutions

Best for: Charities that want full control and data ownership with low long-term costs.

Why choose: WordPress (with plugins like GiveWP or Charitable) or Drupal + CiviCRM allow charities to fully own their site and donor data. There are no platform fees on donations, just processing fees.
Requirements: In-house tech expertise or an agency partner to handle setup, hosting, and ongoing updates. More staff time may be needed for maintenance.
When it fits: Organisations with specific requirements (custom workflows, integrations) or those raising large volumes where avoiding platform fees saves significant money.

3. SaaS-Based Fundraising Platforms

Best for: Charities that want plug-and-play fundraising tools without building infrastructure.

Why choose: Platforms like Donorbox, Givebutter, Classy, or Enthuse let you create donation pages, events, peer-to-peer campaigns, and recurring giving quickly. They are low-cost (tips or small platform fees) and scale easily.
Requirements: Budget for platform/processing fees, and willingness to rely on an external service for donor data management. Usually, no tech team is needed.
When it fits: Small-to-mid charities launching quickly, or larger ones supplementing existing sites with campaign-specific tools. Excellent for recurring giving programs, events, or social peer-to-peer drives.

4. Independent Fundraising Platforms

Best for: Charities that want to tap into large donor communities or run specific seasonal/emergency campaigns.

Why choose: Platforms like LaunchGood, MyTenNights, JustGiving, GoFundMe, GlobalGiving, or WhyDonate give instant reach to millions of donors. They are trusted, quick to launch, and often allow donors to cover fees.
Requirements: Accept that donor data may be limited (you don’t always get full donor contact info). Also, campaigns live on the platform’s domain, not your own site.
When it fits: Great for emergency appeals, Ramadan/Zakat giving, marathons, or global campaigns where visibility and reach matter more than branding or full data control.

Why Charities Might Combine Them

A small local charity might use White Fuse for its website, but also launch a JustGiving campaign for a marathon fundraiser.
A large international NGO might build a custom WordPress + CiviCRM site to manage donors long-term, while also using Classy for events and LaunchGood to reach Muslim donors during Ramadan.
A mid-sized UK charity could run its website and Gift Aid on Pillar but integrate Donorbox forms for specific appeals.

Conclusions

The landscape of digital fundraising platforms for charities is rich and varied, offering different routes depending on an organisation’s size, budget, and technical capacity.

Hosted CMS solutions like Pillar, White Fuse, and Wired Impact are ideal for charities that want an integrated website, CRM, and donation tools without having to manage technology in-house. These solutions are particularly strong for UK organisations needing Gift Aid support and GDPR compliance. The trade-off is higher subscription fees.
Open-source or custom solutions such as WordPress (with plugins like GiveWP or Charitable) or Drupal with CiviCRM provide maximum control, ownership of donor data, and lower long-term costs since there are no platform fees. However, they do require some level of technical resources—either internal staff or agency partners—for setup, updates, and maintenance.
SaaS fundraising platforms like Donorbox, Givebutter, Classy, Enthuse, iRaiser, and Give Lively offer charities fast, low-barrier ways to fundraise online with minimal setup. They provide features such as peer-to-peer fundraising, recurring giving, events, and in some cases, mobile apps or crypto donation support. Most operate with either a small platform fee, a donor-tipping model, or a low subscription tier, making them accessible to small and mid-sized organisations while still scalable for global charities.
Independent campaign platforms such as LaunchGood, MyTenNights, MuslimGiving, GiveBrite, JustGiving, GoFundMe, WhyDonate, GivenGain, and GlobalGiving give charities an instant way to connect with donors on trusted third-party sites. They don’t provide website hosting or CRM, but they excel at public-facing campaigns, seasonal giving (like Ramadan on MyTenNights), or rapid response appeals. They also provide visibility to huge donor communities, sometimes outweighing the fees involved.

What’s Next for Charities

The best approach for charities is often hybrid:

Use a core CMS/CRM platform (hosted, open-source, or SaaS) to manage your donor base, recurring giving, and long-term supporter relationships.
Supplement with campaign-only platforms (e.g. LaunchGood, JustGiving, GoFundMe) to reach new audiences during peak seasons or emergencies.
Always factor in hidden costs like payment processing fees, donor data access, and the tech resources required to run the system smoothly.

At AMCM Agency, we believe charities can raise 20% more donations through carefully planned affiliate and digital fundraising campaigns layered on top of these platforms. Our expertise lies in guiding organisations through the complexity, selecting the right technology stack, avoiding common pitfalls, and managing affiliate fundraising programs that generate predictable, incremental growth.

If your charity is considering upgrading its fundraising technology or launching new digital campaigns, contact us at AMCM. Together, we can identify the platform mix that maximises your donations, protects your budget, and engages supporters worldwide.

👉 Download AMCM Agency media pack for Charities or contact us below.

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AMCM Agency FAQ's

Affiliate marketing is a performance-based fundraising model where your charity offers a set commission to publishers, such as affiliates, influencers, and content websites for promoting your cause and directing potential donors to your website. When these visitors make a donation, the publisher earns a commission based on the donation amount.

Unlike traditional advertising, there are no upfront costs. Your charity only pays when a donation is successfully made, making it a low-risk, scalable way to raise additional funds.

Affiliate networks serve as the tech platform that connects your charity with publishers. They help us manage tracking, campaign reporting, and commission payments ensuring transparency, accuracy, and efficiency throughout the campaign.

AMCM Agency is a UK-based affiliate marketing company dedicated exclusively to helping charities and non-profits raise funds through performance-based affiliate campaigns.

Our team has over 20 years of experience managing affiliate programs for major brands and we now apply that expertise to support mission-driven organisations around the world.

We offer end-to-end affiliate campaign management tailored for the non-profit sector, helping charities launch, grow, and optimise affiliate programs that drive measurable fundraising results.

AMCM (Affiliate Marketing Campaign Management Ltd) is a UK-registered company.

AMCM Agency helps charities launch, manage, and grow successful affiliate marketing campaigns that drive donations and supporter engagement.

Our role includes auditing your existing fundraising efforts, launching new affiliate campaigns, recruiting mission-aligned publishers and influencers, and managing every aspect of the campaign from strategy and tracking to optimisation and reporting.

We work closely with your team to ensure your affiliate program supports your fundraising goals and delivers consistent, measurable results.

AMCM offers a clear and transparent pricing structure designed specifically for charities running affiliate fundraising campaigns. Our fee includes a fixed £999 monthly campaign management charge plus a 4% commission on the total donations raised.

For example, if your charity provides a 5% commission to affiliates and raises £100,000 in donations monthly through affiliate marketing, you would pay £5,000 directly to your affiliates via your affiliate network.

On top of that, AMCM charges the fixed £999 management fee plus a 4% commission on the £100,000 donations (£4,000). This means your total cost for AMCM's campaign management would be £4,999, which is under 5% of the total donations raised through this campaign.

The total cost of the affiliate marketing campaign will be less than 10% for your charity, typically lower than other digital channels making it one of the most cost-effective fundraising options available.

This straightforward pricing helps your charity maximise fundraising results while keeping management fees clear and affordable.

We specialise exclusively in supporting non-profits and charitable organisations.

- No upfront costs, our onboarding is completely risk-free.
- A dedicated affiliate manager is assigned to each charity for personalised support.
- Access to a trusted, vetted network of global fundraising partners and affiliates.
- Management fees up to 70% lower than other agencies.
- Proven impact: £3.3 million raised for a UK charity within 12 months.

Simply fill out our contact form with your charity's details and contact information. We'll reach out to schedule a one-on-one Zoom meeting to discuss your needs.

After this initial meeting, we'll prepare a detailed proposal for managing your affiliate fundraising campaign and review it with you during a second Zoom session.

Once you're happy with the proposal, we'll finalise the contract and coordinate the campaign launch or takeover with the AMCM campaign management team.