Top 10 Online Donation Tools That Help Nonprofits Raise More

Online donations are a growing source of revenue for nonprofits, with 63% of donors saying they prefer to give online. From small grassroots organizations to large international charities, nonprofits are turning to online donation tools to make it easier for donors to give and to help raise more funds for their causes.

However, with so many donation tools available, each with its own unique features, pricing, and benefits, it can be difficult to decide which ones to invest in.

In this guide, we’ll highlight the top 10 online donation tools that help nonprofits streamline their donation process and raise more:

• Bloomerang
• Bonterra Guided Fundraising
• GoFundMe
• Classy
• 360MatchPro
• PayPal
• SoapBox Engage
• Funraise
• iDonate
• Snowball

Before we dive into the top online donation solutions on the market, let’s answer some frequently asked questions. Whether you’re just starting out with digital fundraising or you’re a seasoned pro, these insights will help you choose the right tool for your nonprofit and increase your fundraising success.

FAQs About Online Donation Tools

What are online donation tools?

An online donation tool is a software solution that helps nonprofits receive and maximize donations electronically. It provides a convenient and secure way for individuals to give using various payment methods, including credit/debit cards, electronic fund transfers, and mobile payment services, as well as matching gift automation.

What are the benefits of using online donation tools?

There are several benefits of using online donation tools. First, it makes donating more accessible, as donors can give at any time, from anywhere, without having to physically visit your facility or mail a check. This, in turn, can expand your pool of prospective donors.

Additionally, online donation tools allow nonprofits to collect valuable donor data, including contact information, giving history, and communication preferences, which you can use to optimize your fundraising strategies and build stronger relationships with supporters.

What should you look for in an online donation tool?

When choosing an online donation tool, it’s essential to keep your nonprofit’s unique needs and goals at the forefront of your decision-making. For instance, if you’re raising funds for disaster relief, you may want to look for a platform that offers social media integration and supports peer-to-peer fundraising to help you spread the word to as many people as possible. However, if your goal is to increase recurring donations, you may need a platform that includes automated billing and donor retention tools.

Some other important factors to consider include:

• Ease of use. The donation process should be simple and straightforward, with a user-friendly interface that guides donors through the process. Additionally, the tool should be easy for your nonprofit staff to set up and manage.
• Cost. Most tools charge a percentage of each donation and/or a monthly fee for your nonprofit to use them, so carefully consider the costs and choose a tool that fits within your budget.
• Security features. Ensure that the tool is secure and compliant with industry standards for data security. It should have features that protect donor data, such as encryption and secure payment processing, and be able to easily integrate with your nonprofit’s existing security protocols.
• Compatibility with your website. The tool should seamlessly integrate with your nonprofit website. This helps create a consistent and professional giving experience, increasing the likelihood of donations.

For the best results, read reviews, compare features, and request demos to find the best online donation tool for your organization.

How do you make the most of your online donation tool?

After investing in an online donation tool, use these tips to maximize its success:

• Customize the tool with your nonprofit’s brand. Tailor the tool’s design and content to align with your nonprofit’s branding. Include compelling visuals, impactful storytelling, and a clear call to action to reinforce brand recognition and inspire donors to give.
• Promote your online donation tool with Google Ad Grants. The Google Ad Grant program provides eligible nonprofits with $10,000 worth of advertising credits, allowing them to create targeted ad campaigns on the Google search results page. Consider using this free ad spend to promote key landing pages on your site that include the online donation tool. This will help you reach more donors and drive meaningful impact for your cause.
• Continuously test and optimize. Experiment with different elements of your online donation tool, such as the layout, content, and donation amounts, to find what resonates best with your audience. Regularly analyze results and make data-driven improvements to maximize the effectiveness of your fundraising efforts.

By implementing these practices, you can leverage the full potential of an online donation tool to drive donations, engage supporters, and advance your nonprofit’s mission.

10 Best Online Donation Tools for Nonprofits

Now that you know what to look for in an online donation tool, here are 10 top options for you to consider.

Bloomerang

Overview

Bloomerang is a donor management software designed specifically for nonprofits. Their online donation tool is a key component of their donor database platform, enabling organizations to streamline and optimize their online fundraising efforts.

Standout Features

Some standout features of Bloomerang’s online donation tool include:

• A donor-centric interface. Bloomerang’s online donation tool is designed with the donor in mind, providing a user-friendly interface that makes it easy for donors to make contributions, set up recurring donations, and manage their giving.
• Automatic receipting. Automatically send receipts to donors after they give. This will help you acknowledge and thank supporters while maintaining compliance with IRS regulations.
• Donor tracking. Bloomerang offers a comprehensive donor database that tracks donor information and giving history. Use this data to segment their donor base and create targeted fundraising campaigns.

Pricing

Bloomerang’s pricing varies according to the size of your organization. Use their pricing calculator to determine how much you will pay annually.

Bonterra Guided Fundraising

Overview

Bonterra is a comprehensive platform that helps nonprofits take their fundraising efforts to the next level. If you’re part of a small team with limited time and resources, their easy-to-use Guided Fundraising (formerly Network for Good) solution can help you reach your online fundraising goals.

Standout Features

Bonterra Guided Fundraising has several online donation tools to help you become a better online fundraiser, including:

• Personalized outreach. Send donors personalized donation appeals via email, text, or video, all from one platform.
• Donor management. Generate reports on donation activity, donor retention rates, campaign success, and other key metrics to gain valuable insights into your fundraising efforts and make data-driven decisions.
• Dedicated fundraising coaches. Whether your nonprofit is new to fundraising or a seasoned pro, you’ll be paired with a dedicated fundraising coach to help you build a strong digital fundraising strategy.

Pricing

Visit Bonterra’s site for more information on their solutions and pricing.

GoFundMe

Overview

GoFundMe is a prominent crowdfunding platform that specializes in soliciting small contributions from a large number of individuals. With built-in social fundraising technology, the platform makes it easy to raise awareness for your next crowdfunding campaign and collect donations.

Standout Features

Here’s how GoFundMe helps nonprofits raise donations online:

• Easy campaign creation. Nonprofits can set up a campaign in minutes by providing details about their cause, including the purpose of the campaign and the compelling story behind it.
• Broad reach. This tool has a vast user base and a wide reach, which helps increase the visibility of your fundraising campaigns.
• Social sharing. The platform provides built-in sharing buttons for popular social media platforms, making it easy to amplify campaign messaging and attract more supporters.

Pricing

GoFundMe offers a discounted transaction fee for nonprofits—2.2% + $0.30. This fee is automatically deducted from each donation, so you never have to worry about paying a bill.

Classy

Overview

Classy is an all-in-one fundraising solution that provides nonprofits with virtual events, peer-to-peer fundraising, and donor data management. Plus, their online donation tools enable you to easily create high-performing campaigns.

Standout Features

Among Classy’s online donation features, there are a few that stand out, including:

• Campaign activity walls. Use the activity wall feature to respond directly to a donor after they make a gift. The instant recognition can leave a lasting impression.
• International appeals. Classy accepts payments in over 130 currencies, allowing you to expand your fundraising campaigns overseas.
• Support and educational resources. Classy provides extensive support to nonprofit users through fundraising guides, webinars, and around-the-clock customer support.

Pricing

Request a personalized quote on their site.

360MatchPro

Overview

Matching gifts, also known as donation matching programs, are corporate social responsibility initiatives that enable an employer to match the charitable donations made by their employees, typically at a 1:1 ratio. For example, if an employee donates $100 to your cause and his/her employer then matches that with an additional $100, your nonprofit receives $200 total—double the fundraising revenue!

360MatchPro is a matching gift automation platform that streamlines the process of identifying, promoting, and claiming matching gifts from donors’ employers.

Watch this video for more information on matching gifts and 360MatchPro:

Standout Features

With 360MatchPro, you can leverage the following features to increase your fundraising revenue:

• Matching gift identification. This online donation tool utilizes powerful algorithms to automatically identify matching gift opportunities from donors, helping you maximize your digital fundraising revenue.
• Automated donor follow-up. 360MatchPro provides personalized and automated follow-up communication to donors, guiding them through the matching gift process and increasing the likelihood of successful matching gift submissions.
• Integration with other online donation tools. The platform seamlessly integrates with many popular fundraising platforms, CRMs, and donor management systems, enabling nonprofits to efficiently incorporate matching gift functionality into their existing workflows.

Pricing

360MatchPro has multiple pricing plans, starting at $999 per year.

PayPal

Overview

PayPal is an online payment platform that allows users to make and receive payments electronically. It’s especially popular among donors, with 75% of donors saying they would donate again if contributing via PayPal was an option.

Standout Features

Several standout features of PayPal for nonprofits that want to use it as an online donation tool include:

• Seamless online donations. PayPal makes giving easy. With just a few taps of their mobile device or computer, donors can make a contribution to your cause.
• Trusted and secure transactions. PayPal is a trusted and widely recognized online payment platform, offering secure transactions for both nonprofits and donors.
• Donation buttons. Meet donors where they are by adding PayPal donation buttons to your nonprofit website and social media platforms.

Pricing

PayPal offers a discounted transaction fee of 2.2% + $0.30 to eligible 501(c)(3) organizations.

Funraise

Overview

Founded by nonprofit staff members looking for an improved way to raise money online, Funraise is a powerful online donation tool aiming to do just that. This all-in-one fundraising platform encompasses online donation forms and pages, peer-to-peer and social fundraising, donor management and reporting, and more.

Standout Features

Funraise offers innovative features such as:

• Customizable and embeddable giving forms. Create personalized donation forms that match your branding and tailor them to specific fundraising campaigns. These forms can be embedded directly into your website or shared on social media, making it easy for supporters to give.
• AI fundraising. Use AI to generate personalized donation requests, predict fraudulent charges, and maximize the efficiency of your fundraising team.
• Visually appealing donation page templates. Choose from a wide range of customizable templates that are designed to be both aesthetically pleasing and functional, making it easy to create fundraising pages that engage supporters.

Pricing

Get started with Funraise for free or explore their paid plans for access to more features.

iDonate

Overview

iDonate aims to make digital fundraising easy and accessible for all kinds of organizations. Their fundraising platform offers traditional online donation tools, text-to-give functionality, peer-to-peer giving, event fundraising, and more.

Standout Features

This innovative solution incorporates fundraising features like:

• A/B split testing. Test different donation pages, campaign messaging, or design elements to identify the most effective approach for maximizing donor engagement and conversion rates.
• Seamless designated fund abilities. Donors can specify exactly where they want their money to go, whether that be to a certain program, cause, or campaign.
• Recurring donation management. Automate recurring donation processing, ensuring a steady and predictable stream of funding to support your mission and initiatives.

Pricing

iDonate has multiple pricing packages. Contact their team to decide which package is right for you.

Soapbox Engage

Overview

Soapbox Engage works to deliver easy-to-use fundraising apps and solutions to nonprofits of all shapes and sizes. It provides nonprofits with an easy and affordable way to build online engagement pages for online fundraising, event registration, and more.

Standout Features

A few of Soapbox Engage’s most integral features include:

• Real-time donation form integrations with Salesforce and Microsoft Dynamics.
• Flexible payment options from Authorize.net, Braintree, CyberSource, PayPal, Stripe, and TouchNet.
• Peer-to-peer campaign management, which helps you raise more by encouraging supporters to create individual fundraising pages on your behalf and share them with their networks.

Pricing

Soapbox Engage’s pricing plans start at $59 per month with a 1.9% transaction fee and a $500 activation fee.

Snowball

Overview

Snowball is a fundraising platform that specializes in mobile and online giving. It provides nonprofits with tools and features to create compelling online donation campaigns, engage with donors, and drive fundraising success.

Standout Features

Here are a few of Snowball’s top features for online donations:

• Text-to-give. Encourage donors to give via a quick text message. Nonprofits can assign unique keywords to their campaigns, and when supporters text the keyword to a designated number, they receive a link to complete their donation.
• Customizable donation forms. Create visually appealing online donation forms complete with your organization’s colors, logo, messaging, and other brand elements.
• Fundraising thermometers. Add a fundraising thermometer to donation pages to track and showcase your progress towards a set target, creating a sense of urgency for supporters to donate.

Pricing

Snowball offers multiple pricing plans starting at $0 a year with a 2.9% + 0.30 transaction fee. Review their plans to find the right fit for your organization.

Next Steps: Invest in the Right Online Donation Tool

After reviewing these options, your nonprofit can make a well-informed decision and invest in an online donation tool that will help you achieve fundraising success.

To make the most of this investment, remember to apply for the Google Ad Grant. $10,000 in ad spend can be a powerful tool for promoting your donation platform and driving meaningful support to your cause.

If you’re unsure where to start, partner with a dedicated Google Ad Grants agency like Getting Attention. Their teams of experts will help you apply, maintain eligibility, and increase traffic to your site.

Check out these resources for more information on Google Ad Grants and how they can support your online fundraising efforts:

• Google Grants Eligibility: Is Your Nonprofit Eligible? Are you looking to drive traffic to your nonprofit’s landing pages without breaking the bank? Check to see if your nonprofit is eligible for the Google Ad Grant!
• Google Grants Agency: Picking the Best Partner & 10 Firms. Ad campaigns require consistent upkeep and compliance with Google’s official account requirements. Learn how to simplify the process by partnering with a Google Grants agency.
• Google Grant Impact: Capturing Results and Measuring ROI. Once you get up and running with the Google Grant, measure how key landing pages, including the one containing your new online donation tool, are rising in the rankings.