The right fundraising platform should help your organization raise more while streamlining the giving experience for your donors. I’ll share seven of the best online fundraising platforms to help you decide. I’ll also highlight 10 key aspects to look out for.
Join the fundraising movement! Join the fundraising movement!Online fundraising platforms offer a convenient way to collect gifts and support meaningful projects. With so many options on the market, it can feel impossible to know which one will provide the best functionality and an optimal giving experience for your donors.
In this article, I’ll share the seven best online fundraising platforms, plus 10 key aspects to consider when choosing one for your organization.
| Platform | Best For | Pricing |
|---|---|---|
| Donorbox | Organizations of all sizes seeking an all-in-one fundraising and donor management platform | $0/month; 2.95% + payment processing fees; paid plans available |
| GoFundMe | Organizations focused on crowdfunding and supporter-based fundraising | 0% platform fee; 2.9% + $0.30 per donation + optional tipping |
| Zeffy | Budget-conscious nonprofits who don't mind asking donors to tip their fundraising platform | Free to use; no platform or processing fees; funded by optional donor tips (default at 17%) |
| Funraise | Nonprofits looking for a fundraising platform with strong recurring giving and peer-to-peer fundraising | Plans start at $0/month; Premium plans priced from $99/month; platform fees of 0-5% + payment processing fees |
| Givebutter | Nonprofits who use gamification and high-engagement campaigns | Optional donor tips of up to 15%; if tips are disabled, platform fees of up to 5% plus payment processing fees |
| RallyUp | Organizations focused on raffles, auctions, sweepstakes, events, and crowdfunding | Free Plan: Operates on donor tipping model. Flex Plan: Up to 6.9% platform fees. Enterprise Plan: Custom pricing. Standard processing fees apply. |
| OneCause | Nonprofits focused on events and gamified peer-to-peer campaigns | Custom pricing; must contact sales for more information. |
Below, I’ll go over each option in more detail.
Donorbox is an all-in-one fundraising platform with a quick setup process and plenty of user-friendly features. It makes online giving convenient, with features fit for fundraisers of all sizes. Donorbox’s customizable donation pages contain industry-leading security features that ensure donor protection and build trust.
Donorbox Pro and Premium users also enjoy a flat 2% platform fee for Events, Peer-to-Peer, and Memberships.
Pricing excludes standard Stripe and PayPal processing fees. However, you can always ask donors to cover the fees so more of their donation goes toward your cause. Learn more about Donorbox’s pricing here.
GoFundMe is a well-known online fundraising platform focusing on crowdfunding. It’s mostly used to raise money for personal projects, medical expenses, and unforeseen disasters. This tool is perfect if you rely heavily on peer-to-peer and crowdfunding campaigns.
There are no applicable fees to create a fundraiser, but a transaction fee of 2.9% + 30¢ applies. GoFundMe also requests optional tips from donors, with the default tip amount set to 16.5%. Visit their website to view their pricing details.
Another well-known contender, Zeffy is best known for its zero-fee fundraising capabilities – though it does employ a donor tipping model. The platform offers core fundraising tools like donation forms, peer-to-peer campaigns, event ticketing, and donor management.
As I mentioned earlier, Zeffy is free for nonprofits to use, with no platform or processing fees. The platform is funded through optional donor tips that default at 17% during checkout.
Funraise is a popular fundraising platform for organizations looking to run multiple campaign types without stitching together separate tools. Create branded donation pages, manage recurring giving, run peer-to-peer and event campaigns, and track donor activity in one system.
Funraise offers plan-based pricing. The entry-level option starts at $0/month, while Premium Plans start at $99/month.
Platform fees range from 0-5% based on your plan. Stripe payment processing fees of 2.9% + 60¢ also apply. Learn more via their website.
Givebutter enables you to create custom fundraising pages featuring an interactive supporter feed and share quick updates to ramp up engagement. It also offers additional fundraising tools that can be combined with other campaigns or used on their own.
Givebutter operates on an optional donor tipping model. When a donor gives to your campaign, Givebutter requests a tip of up to 15% that’s allocated to its platform. If you disable optional tipping, you’ll be charged a platform fee of up to 5% for every donation, in addition to standard Stripe processing fees of 2.9% + $0.30.
RallyUp is a fundraising platform best known for its fundraising suite, which includes raffles, auctions, peer-to-peer, crowdfunding, and sweepstakes.
RallyUp offers three pricing plans. The Free Plan comes with zero platform fees, but relies on optional donor tipping to fund the RallyUp platform. The Flex Plan lets you waive asking donors to tip the platform, but comes with platform fees of up to 6.9%. Their Enterprise Plan allows you to customize your package based on your fundraising needs.
Standard Stripe processing fees also apply.
OneCause makes online fundraising easy for nonprofits. Set up online campaigns, launch challenges, and grow your reach with this solution. This is a great platform if your organization relies strongly on events and peer-to-peer fundraising with rewards and gamification.
Their pricing varies according to the plan chosen. Request a consultation to know how much it would cost to afford the software for your nonprofit.
Below, I’ll highlight 10 of the most important features of a solid online fundraising platform that supports long-term growth.
Choose a fundraising platform with an intuitive user interface that lets you create branded donation forms and pages with simple copy-paste codes, toggling of switches, and clicking of buttons.
A customized, branded donation form with your organization’s colors and logo ensures your cause looks reputable and instills trust among donors.
For example, take a look at how City Parks instills trust with a fully branded OmniGive donation form:
Create a Branded Donation Form with Donorbox
Recurring giving accounted for 27% of all online revenue in 2025 alone, highlighting how crucial it is for sustainable fundraising.
Look for a fundraising platform that offers plenty of flexible recurring options to appeal to donors and encourage long-term support.
According to Donorbox data, donation forms with three to four recurring interval options tend to yield the highest average donation amount per campaign, with the combination of “one-time, daily, monthly, and annually” topping the chart.
63% of donors prefer to give online, clearly underscoring a rise in cashless giving.
Many supporters prefer the convenience of donating using cards, bank transfers, and digital wallets like Apple Pay, Google Pay, Stripe Link, and Cash App Pay.
Make it easy for donors to support your cause by choosing a platform that allows you to offer as many secure payment methods as possible. For example, Donorbox OmniGive donation forms support 22+ payment options.
Crowdfunding is a great way to raise money for a specific project or fund within a limited time period.
Look for a platform that supports crowdfunding and includes features like a goal meter, virtual donor wall, social sharing buttons, and a dedicated space for sharing campaign updates. This builds excitement and can result in multiple gifts.
Peer-to-peer fundraising is crucial for enabling your most passionate supporters to help you fundraise, maximizing your reach and donation potential.
Opt for a fundraising platform that lets supporters create their own customizable fundraising pages and easily share them with their networks to raise funds on your behalf.
Events are ideal for fundraising, spreading awareness, and showing your appreciation for your volunteers. Your fundraising platform should enable you to create customizable event pages for selling tickets online.
Look for a platform that lets you automatically include tax-deductible amounts for each ticket type by inputting the fair market values. Supporters should be be able to buy tickets online and make additional donations during the ticketing purchasing process.
A text-to-give campaign is a convenient way to raise funds and is ideal for on-the-spot donation drives, conferences, and events.
Some online donation processors have built-in text-to-give functionality. Look for a repeat donation feature when choosing a platform with text-to-give functionality.
Membership campaigns help you establish a loyal supporter base. Your fundraising platform should allow you to access and store member data and payment information securely. Make sure it lets you create membership campaigns, add unlimited customizable tiers, and maintain data securely at the backend.
Many donors’ employers will match their qualifying donations to a nonprofit organization. If your organization doesn’t have an easy way to collect matching gifts, you could be leaving money on the table.
Opt for a donation platform that can remind supporters about gift matching, or that integrates with a gift matching service.
Building lasting relationships with supporters is crucial for your organization’s long-term stability.
Look for a giving platform that provides access to advanced donor management tools to segment supporters for personalized outreach while also storing crucial donor and donation data.
Donors should be able to easily create their own accounts to easily manage donation plans, repeat gifts in one click, and download donation receipts on demand.
Choosing the right online giving platform can feel daunting. Ensure that the software you settle on enables you to easily collect one-time and recurring donations, manage donor relationships, and fundraise in creative ways.
Interested in trying Donorbox? Sign up for free and start fundraising in minutes.
For more fundraising ideas and tips, visit the Nonprofit Blog.
An online fundraising platform is a tool that allows nonprofit organizations to collect and process donations digitally while managing fundraising campaigns. Platforms like Donorbox offer a simple and secure way for donors to give online using credit cards, bank transfers, and digital wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay.
Look for comprehensive features that adapt to your fundraising and donor management needs. These include recurring giving options on donation forms, text-giving functionality, event ticketing software, peer-to-peer and crowdfunding functionality, and donor management tools that facilitate retention.
Heather is a writer, business owner, and nonprofit professional. She is a Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) with more than a decade of experience leading fundraising efforts and creating communication materials for arts, education, and social services nonprofits.
Join the fundraising movement! Join the fundraising movement!
