You know what they say – nothing in life is truly free. When it comes to building better relationships with your donors, there are some key reasons why you should be skeptical of any fundraising platforms that claim to charge zero fees, like Zeffy. In this article, we’ll show you how “fee-free” platforms can damage donor trust and offer an alternative to Zeffy that will make your life – and your fundraising – easier.
These days, you can’t afford to miss out on online fundraising. 63% of donors prefer to give online, after all, and that number is only going up as more Gen Z donors step into the scene. As you try to reign in your overhead costs, you might be interested in a fundraising platform like Zeffy that claims to charge zero fees. But Zeffy’s lack of transparency and unclear interface could cost you way more when it comes to building donor trust and gaining repeat donors. Read on to discover some common Zeffy complaints and why looking for an alternative might be the best move for your organization.
Zeffy promises zero fees for nonprofits – always. However, the funds that fuel their platform ultimately have to come from somewhere.
Zeffy recoups fees through donor tipping, where donors are asked to “tip” the platform either a percentage of their total donation or a preset amount.
Donors will see the following prompt when making a contribution on the Zeffy platform. While Zeffy claims that 100% of the donation goes to your cause, that’s not entirely true because of the percentage or preset tip amount.
The requested tip is based on the donation amount. For donations over $25, the default percentage is 15% and donors can choose to increase their tip amount if they wish. For donations $25 and under, the tipping percentage starts at either 17% or $5.
This practice is problematic because Zeffy applies the tip to a donor’s total without being clear about the additional expense. This can lead to donors completing a transaction, thinking they paid $100 to support your mission – only to find out when they see their bank statement that they were charged $114.95.
Here’s how it looks on a Zeffy donation form:
However, when the donor reaches the final donate page, the actual total isn’t listed – which is best practice on all transaction forms.
This makes it easy for donors to miss the added fee. When your donor reviews their bank statements, they may have forgotten the tip amount, and seeing a donation higher than the amount they remember giving could lead to confusion, frustration, and negative feelings about the giving experience.
There are several reasons why going with a transparent fundraising platform like Donorbox will better serve you in the future.
It’s simple – hidden fees harm donor trust. A donor goes out of their way to support your organization only to feel duped when they see an additional charge on their bank account.
Without a solid foundation of trust, building an ongoing relationship with your donors will be difficult, if not impossible. Transparency is crucial for keeping donors in your court and ready to support your mission.
Donorbox is committed to empowering nonprofits – and their donors – with transparent pricing and straightforward fundraising tools. Plus, Donorbox allows you to give donors the freedom to add, remove, or change any recurring payment plans on their own through the Donor Portal. This builds stronger donor relationships.
Consumers are being asked to tip everywhere these days, and it’s wearing them out. 48% of Americans report feeling tired of being asked to tip.
“Tipping” a high percentage to a fundraising platform is bound to make your donors feel worn out. Plus, it can be unclear to donors how that tip helps support your organization.
Alternatively, Donorbox gives you the option of allowing your donors to cover your transaction fees – which are a much lower amount. Instead of a “tip” of an arbitrary amount, donors can choose to increase their donation slightly so their whole donation goes toward your cause.
For example, here’s what it looks like when you cover the transaction fees on a $10 donation with Donorbox:
Donorbox is transparent about fees every step of the way and charges the following:
Standard payment processing fees:
Platform fees:
The Standard Plan:
1.75% for donation forms and foundational features, including:
2.95% for advanced features, including:
The Pro Plan:
A subscription-based plan priced at $139/month with a 1.5% flat rate platform fee. Donorbox Pro features include everything in Standard, plus:
The Premium Plan:
A custom-designed, subscription-based plan priced based on your unique needs with a 1.5% flat rate platform fee. Donorbox Premium is our most advanced plan with features that include everything in Pro, plus choose from:
Learn more about our pricing here.
Let’s consider how platform fees work on Donorbox compared to the Zeffy example shared above. If a donor gives $100 to your Donorbox campaign and you use Stripe as your payment processor with a Standard account, donors can choose to cover the transaction fee of $4.25 – only 4% of their donation amount.
This transparent approach to fees helps donors understand exactly where their contribution is going while also minimizing tipping fatigue.
When that misguided donor sees the additional charge on their bank statement, they will associate the negative feelings of that surprise with your organization.
Your brand is an important asset both for getting more donations and for doing more good in your community. And once a donor has a negative association with your brand, it can be almost impossible to undo that damage.
Donorbox protects your brand with transparency and tons of customization options so you can create a donation form that reflects your values and brand identity. Add context for each donation amount to encourage more giving and showcase how donated funds will be used to make a difference. You can also add badges such as your Charity Navigator ranking to boost donor trust.
When it comes time to check out, donors will clearly see the option to cover fees and can do so at their discretion.
Plus, Donorbox’s industry-leading security standards keep your donors’ data safe and sound.
A smooth, transparent, and easy giving process is crucial for getting donors to give not just once, but again and again.
Donors who feel like they’ve been duped by paying more than they planned, are less willing to return to your donation form and give again.
Donorbox donation forms are optimized for easy, transparent giving – and donors can give again in just one click with QuickDonate™. This helps you build a better giving experience for your donors and ensures they keep coming back to support you!
If you’re ready to look for an alternative to Zeffy, you’ve come to the right place. In this section, we’ll detail the differences between Zeffy and Donorbox to see which comes out on top.
| Zeffy | Donorbox |
| No platform fee | No monthly cost. 1.75% platform fee. |
| High-percentage donor tips | Donors can choose to cover the low processing fees. |
| Limited customization donation forms | Highly customizable donation forms. |
| Event ticketing | A robust events platform that includes: Tax-deductible value on every ticket level. The opportunity for donors to add an additional donation during checkout. An unlimited number of ticket types/tiers for virtual, in-person, and hybrid events. Fundraising QR codes for each event. Launch events almost anywhere fundraising takes you with event ticketing in 43 popular currencies and 11 different languages. |
| Memberships | Memberships |
| Peer-to-Peer fundraising | Peer-to-Peer fundraising |
| Some donor management functionality | Built-in CRM with powerful segmentation features, an integrated email management system, and more! |
| Donor log-in | Donor Portal — a one-stop shop that empowers donors to manage all of their donations to organizations that use Donorbox. |
| Tap to pay | Donorbox Live™ Kiosk |
| Blog | Blog, newsletters, podcasts, webinars, and more! |
| X | DonationDriver AI |
| 1,000 integrations with Zapier | 5,000+ integrations with Zapier |
| X | Text-to-Give |
| X | Crowdfunding |
| X | 24/7 customer support |
| X | Industry-leading security features with advanced fraud protection, two-factor authentication, ReCaptcha, and more. |
With Donorbox, you get a powerful fundraising platform designed to empower your nonprofit with innovative tools, features, and transparent pricing! If your organization needs a fundraising platform that meets your evolving needs, Donorbox is the best choice. Our purpose-built features allow you to scale your campaigns and grow your mission while protecting your brand’s reputation.
Don’t just take our word for it. Take a look at these real customer complaints from G2 and Trustpilot:
“The only thing I dislike about Zeffy is the way they solicit donations from users. Any time anyone makes a donation or buys a ticket on Zeffy, the form automatically adds on a donation to Zeffy, and it is not immediately apparent that the user can choose to reduce or omit the donation. This seems sneaky and like a hidden fee. I would feel much more comfortable if it were an optional add-on, rather than something you need to figure out how to subract. I’m sure this generates a lot of revenue for Zeffy, which they obviously need to function, but I wonder if being more overt about their fundraising could also be effective, while not seeming so sleezy.”
“Heavily branded with Zeffy colors and text. High default ‘voluntary’ contributions by our purchasers and donors, which causes pushback against us.”
“They apparently have a default donation to Zeffy that gets added to your donation. We had made a $100 donation and were quite angered by the $12.95 “donation” it said we agreed to. You shouldn’t have to opt out. I will definitely think twice before donating through Zeffy again!”
“After we opened an account with Zeffy, within the first two months, Zeffy didn’t pay two out of 4 donations we had received. I followed up with customer service and was notified that our account had been canceled because our nonprofit (501 c3) religious charity, which has a spotless record and has been active since 2001, was considered high-risk. No other explanation was provided. Also, it will take up to 60 days to refund the donor who paid two donations. My understanding is this can happen to anybody and not worth it. ”
“Very poor experience so far. ~$300 missing for weeks, like others commented here. The company is very difficult to contact. I emailed them a couple of days ago and have yet to hear back at all.”
“I recently made two contributions to an NFP using Zeffy-$300 and $200. The site advertised that the NFP would get 100% of my contribution. When I received my credit card bill, the amount charged was $344.95 and $221.95. I was not asked to make a “voluntary” contribution to Zeffy to ensure that the NFP received my full donation. I would have done so had I been asked. But not asking and sneaking it onto my credit card bill is criminal.”
“They charge 17% to the consumer to run a credit card. That is against Visa/MC rules and regulations- since they are a Payfac they get away with it. I refuse to donate to my favorite charity because they use Zeffy. 17% of the donation goes to them. I am calling the non-profit to let them know they are missing out on donations. 3 or 4% is acceptable to charge the consumer—I’m all for that. Zeffy is a horrible company to do that to charities.”
Zeffy users receive pushback from their donors for the steep tipping and lack of transparency. Can you afford to damage relationships with your donors?
Now that we’ve looked at a Zeffy alternative, let’s look at Zeffy’s pros and cons to see which fundraising platform is the best choice for your organization.
Pros:
Cons:
Free isn’t always free. Investing in your organization and your donors’ trust will create lasting value for your cause. Fiscal health starts with responsible donor interactions – and you should partner with a fundraising platform that supports you with no hidden fees or donor confusion.
Over 80,000 organizations have trusted Donorbox to help them raise a collective $2 billion with responsive, donor-centric tools that protect you every step of the way. With transparent pricing (always!), powerful and user-friendly tools, and comprehensive resources, we’re here to help you help others.
Sign up today and start fundraising in less than fifteen minutes.
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Lindsey spent years wearing many hats in the nonprofit world. Whether she was helping arts nonprofits with their messaging and content, planning a fundraising gala, writing an NEA grant proposal, or running a membership program with over 400 members, she learned how to navigate – and appreciate! – the fast-paced world of fundraising. Now, she loves sharing those hard-earned lessons with the Donorbox community.
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Lindsey Baker Bower