Volunteers are a critical part of most nonprofits. Whether you’re a volunteer-led organization or need volunteers to help run your programs, finding and using them can be a challenge. That’s where quality volunteer management software can help. We’ve created a list of free and affordable volunteer management software to help you get started.
Volunteers are incredibly valuable to nonprofits. In fact, one hour of volunteer work is valued at an average of $33.49 – meaning that one eight-hour volunteer shift is worth $268.
To grow your volunteer program, you’ll need tools to help you stay on top of all of the administrative tasks that come along with supporting volunteers. That’s where volunteer management software comes in! In this article, we’ll walk you through 10 free and affordable options to help you manage your robust volunteer program.
Volunteers are one of the best parts of a nonprofit. Even the largest organizations use volunteers to help run events and programs. Passionate and experienced volunteers can make a huge difference in the way a nonprofit functions. That is why it is really important that there’s a planned process in place for managing volunteers.
Volunteer management entails more than finding and using volunteers. Most volunteer management plans include –
Volunteer management software can help with all of these. When choosing a nonprofit volunteer management software, you’ll need to find one that fits your budget and includes a few must-haves, including –
The following 10 software options include a free trial or starting plan. Before you choose the best software for your organization, decide which needs are more important and which you can afford to lose.
POINT is a powerful volunteer management system that helps you better engage with volunteers – and even turn them into donors.
Features
And more!
Plus, POINT integrates with Donorbox’s powerful donation forms! Add your donation form to your POINT volunteer page to turn more volunteers into donors. Learn more in this blog.
The POINT Core plan is free and includes everything you need. POINT’s Pro plan is $99 a month, billed annually, and includes check-in stations plus upgraded features to streamline more of your volunteer onboarding process.
POINT offers features that are simple to use yet robust enough for even the largest volunteer program. With intuitive tools on the backend and easy-to-use features for your volunteers, it can help you with every step of the volunteer process, from cultivation to retention.
The ability to access your dynamic volunteer platform from an app or on the web makes it flexible for all! Plus easy website integration keeps you from losing would-be volunteers to too many clicks on your website.
You also can’t argue with free pricing for all the features you need – plus an easy way to upgrade when you’re ready to grow.
SignUpGenius makes recruiting volunteers, collecting information, delegating tasks, and managing volunteers easy for nonprofits.
There is a free entry-level package that’s best for individuals, families, and smaller events. SignUpGenius’ Premium Packages start at $8.99 a month.
We like SignUpGenius because of the various ways organizations can use this software. Their website explains how easy it is for everyone from booster clubs to teachers, companies, and churches to use this tool.
SignUpGenius can be used anywhere, and volunteer managers control who can see or edit many parts of each campaign. Their volunteer database helps nonprofits tally volunteer hours, create reports, and export data using third-party tools like Zapier and Salesforce.
We’d recommend this option to all nonprofits looking to take up volunteer management seriously and searching for an end-to-end solution. The pricing is also highly affordable compared to most others on this list.
WhenToHelp lets volunteers share their availability first, then nonprofits can choose how to use these volunteers.
WhenToHelp offers a free 30-day trial, and plans start at $16 a month and upwards depending on the number of “helpers” you have.
This volunteer management software stands out because of the access it gives to volunteers. Volunteers can sign up and enter their availability.
From there, nonprofits schedule manually or with auto-fill and publish the schedule for everyone to see. Volunteers can pick up open shifts with coordinator approval or at will, and both sides can easily make changes when needed.
The pricing is affordable for most nonprofits and can be a good option to try out.
Track it Forward is more of a time-tracking software option for nonprofits and volunteers. The idea is to streamline the process for busy organizations.
Track it Forward has a 30-day trial, and plans start at $12 a month.
This volunteer management software gives volunteers more access and control over their schedules than most. Volunteers create their own user accounts, can sign up for activities, and even provide details on their volunteer history.
This gives nonprofits a better idea of how to use volunteers. Once volunteers have participated in an event or program, they can review hours and check their progress. This option can be especially helpful to those with required volunteer hours.
VolunteerLocal is a user-friendly volunteer management system, primarily meant for volunteer coordinators.
VolunteerLocal has a 14-day free trial. Plans start at $600 a year for two admins and unlimited volunteers.
VolunteerLocal’s base plan is comparable to most others, but their Grow Plan stands out because of the ability to track volunteer hours, password-protect jobs and shifts, and register groups.
As corporate responsibility grows in importance, more groups of volunteers participate in nonprofit activities. Registering and managing groups with this volunteer management software can come in handy in these cases.
However, we feel that their annual plans can be costly for nonprofits just starting out. Plus, not every organization would require these advanced features. Other affordable options in this list can be more viable for them.
iVolunteer is a flexible, feature-rich volunteer management software for a wide range of organizations. It’s a great option if you’re looking for volunteer signup management.
iVolunteer offers a free plan for up to 15 participants and one administrator. This plan includes a 30-day subscription with unlimited manual renewals to continue the free option. Their paid plans start at $20 a month and can be used for multiple events and activities.
The primary thing that stands out with iVolunteer comes from real testimonials. They have received excellent reviews. Users agree that iVolunteer is easy to use, and one user mentioned how pleased they were that the company continually improves the site’s functionality.
We’d recommend this option to nonprofits thinking to try out volunteer management software at affordable rates or for free.
Mobilize is used by nonprofits, labor unions, political campaigns, and grassroots organizations for finding, recruiting, and engaging volunteers. It also helps manage events for organizations.
Mobilize has a free starter account for five team members and up to 50 signups or 500 petition signatures.
Mobilize helps nonprofits support in-person and peer-to-peer volunteer fundraisers. Its membership of 3,000+ organizations and 4.3 million supporters also helps organizers promote their events.
As it is highlighted on their website, Mobilize has 5 million+ volunteers in their network. We feel that a solution like this can be beneficial for nonprofits wanting to raise funds with peer-to-peer fundraising; as well as for those who run lots of events throughout the year.
SignUp is a simple idea. Nonprofits plan the activity, volunteers sign up, and SignUp.com reminds volunteers to make it easy for all.
This software has a free plan. Paid packages start at $9.99 a month.
SignUp makes it easy for nonprofits to reach and sign up more people. Since this volunteer management software provides a single location for all volunteer information, you don’t have to create timesheets or send emails or texts.
SignUp has also partnered with PayPal and Stripe to make volunteer fundraising easy.
This software works for all kinds of organizations including social groups and churches. With a free plan in place, this could be ideal for anyone looking to try out volunteer management.
HelperHelper provides hands-on support to develop a volunteer management plan with the help of a mobile app as well as a web portal.
Nonprofits can sign up for a free trial and receive customized prices based on their organization’s needs.
HelperHelper is much more hands-on than other software on this list. They provide custom training on how to use the software and give each organization a dedicated success representative.
Their focus on getting to know your organization’s needs and how to engage volunteers can help you build customized programs. If you’re looking for a customized experience and would want to pay for only what you’ll need, this is the best option for you.
ClickTime provides better time tracking through easy cloud-based timesheets to help nonprofits manage volunteers as well as employees
ClickTime offers are a 14-day free trial. Their paid Team plan is $11 a month.
Time tracking can help you improve planning and understand your staffing and volunteer needs. ClickTime makes it easy to track volunteer and staff time for individual programs.
This software is excellent for monitoring how much money your organization saves with volunteers. This information can be vital when applying for grants!
Overall, ClickTime is an affordable option for organizations that have plenty of staff members and volunteers to manage.
As you determine your organization’s volunteer management needs and research software options, remember to keep an eye out for tools that help with planning, recruitment, scheduling, training, management, and evaluation. The options on this list offer free as well as affordable monthly plans to make the decision easy for you.
We also have a webinar recording here that helps you find the next 20 volunteer superstars with FREE tools and smarter strategies. Give it a watch and find plenty of other resources regarding nonprofit volunteers, fundraising, and more on our Nonprofit Blog. Subscribe to our newsletter to receive a curated list of our best resources in your inbox every month.
Looking for free or affordable software options for your nonprofit? Donorbox is an excellent choice for online fundraising, event ticketing, membership campaigns, and donor management. Our features are free to start and simple to use. Check them out on the website.
Nonprofits can also get a customized success package including premium tools and expert coaching services to elevate their fundraising – learn more about Donorbox Premium!
Kristine Ensor is a freelance writer with over a decade of experience working with local and international nonprofits. As a nonprofit professional she has specialized in fundraising, marketing, event planning, volunteer management, and board development.
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Kristine Ensor