Ultimate Guide to the Best Fundraising App for Nonprofits in 2025

Mobile technology has changed the face of nonprofit fundraising. With more people connecting to the world through their smart phones and mobile devices, digital platforms like fundraising apps have become the preferred way for people to donate to and engage with nonprofits. These apps allow supporters to give at any time with just a few taps, making the giving process faster and easy to fit in a busy schedule.

According to current mobile giving statistics, 25% of donors fund charities and nonprofits through mobile devices -- while 1 in 4 donors use their mobile devices to discover new NPOs. Average mobile donation pledges are now $167 while the average text-to-give donation is $107, but many donations can go significantly higher, with the highest fulfilled mobile pledge reaching $20,000.

These statistics emphasize the need for nonprofits to invest in better mobile fundraising solutions, including more user-friendly fundraising apps. By offering supporters a simple, streamlined way to donate through a mobile app, nonprofits can significantly raise their fundraising revenue. What's more, fundraising apps can keep donors engaged with nonprofit activities, by providing real-time updates on campaign progress and access to social sharing and online discussions. As donors experience a sense of community online, they're more likely to continue supporting and promoting your NPO, granting you regular revenue and a better online presence.  

Let's examine the types of features you should be looking for in an app to enjoy all the benefits of mobile fundraising solutions. We'll also check out current trends in app usage that will help you boost engagement in 2025 and highlight NPOs that are enjoying success with their mobile apps. At the end of this article, you'll have a better idea of how fundraising platforms and apps can improve revenue generation for your nonprofit.

What is a Fundraising App?

A fundraising app is a digital platform that helps nonprofits collect donations, manage campaigns, and track donor data. Usually offered in the form of a mobile app that you can install on your phone or smart device, these apps make your NPO more accessible to online communities. This is particularly important for small nonprofits seeking to improve their brand awareness.

While most people think of apps as a type of software found on your phone, fundraising apps can exist in many different forms. A web-based application, for instance, can be accessed via a web browser and doesn't need to be downloaded. Meanwhile, a hybrid app is built on a single cost-effective codebase and can be packaged to run on multiple platforms, like Android or iOS, giving it a wider reach.

Unlike customer relationship management (CRM) software, which manages relationships with a nonprofit's donors and supporters, fundraising apps handle more direct fundraising activities, like processing donations or managing campaigns. While this means fundraising apps lack the relationship management capabilities of a CRM, most CRM systems can integrate with fundraising apps (or have fundraising features of their own), giving you access to the best of both systems.

Although virtually all nonprofits and charities use fundraising apps these days, fundraising apps are particularly valuable for smaller nonprofits. While small NPOs don't necessarily have the resources or funding of their larger counterparts, fundraising apps offer access to a larger online pool of potential donors and supporters. Letting supporters donate through an app also simplifies the donation process, making it easier to engage with and retain a valuable network of donors. 

Beyond that, the fundraising app's ability to collect and analyze data on user activities provide nonprofit organizations with useful insights on how to improve their fundraising activities and secure more stable forms of financial support. As apps become more prevalent and cost-effective, fundraising apps will become a more integral part of successful fundraising online. 

Benefits of Using Fundraising Apps for Nonprofits

Let's take a closer look at how fundraising apps improve the way NPOs engage with donors.

Simplified donation process

More and more donors give online today, making it important to provide a simple way to process digital donations. Apps offer a way for donors to give via their mobile phones, tablets, or laptops, often with a single click. You can also support multiple payment options with an app (such as credit cards, ACH transfers, PayPal, and more), allowing donors to select their preferred option.

One increasingly popular donation option today is the ability to access QR codes that you can post on your website or around your fundraising event, allowing guests to scan the code with their phone cameras and make online contributions. This direct giving feature doesn't require a website to process donations, giving both your NPO and your supporters greater flexibility. 

More personalized campaigns

If there's one thing donors have come to expect from modern fundraising or marketing campaigns, it's more personalized outreach. Digital tools and AI can now process donor information faster than ever, allowing your human staff members to reach out to specific segments of the donor population and personalize their communication.

This might mean separating local donors from out-of-state supporters so you know which guests can attend your in-person events. This might also mean identifying donors who give more frequently or generously, so you know which ones are capable of responding to large donation requests. 

Real-time fundraising analytics

Apps can now collect data on user activities and campaign performance, giving you the ability to monitor your fundraising and adjust your strategies. Some of this data can even be shown on fundraising dashboards in real-time, allowing you to see how many donations you've collected or how many gifts you have received, giving you a clearer picture of how close you are to reaching your fundraising goals.

In some cases, the data from your app allows you to make fundraising decisions "on the fly" and adjust the direction of your current campaign. For instance, if your data indicates your online fundraiser is falling short of its revenue goals, you can instruct your staff to send out follow-up emails to supporters and collect more donations before your deadline. 

In other cases, AI software can suggest which donors to focus on based on an analysis of their past behavior. This helps you know how to allocate your resources more effectively. If you'd like to find additional tools that can help you collect useful analytics, explore Google for Nonprofits tools for free tools that can complement your app. 

Reduced administrative workload

Turning over repetitive tasks to apps instead of your staff helps prevent workplace burnout while also improving efficiency. For example, you can get your system to send automated thank you notes to donors as they make contributions, saving your human workers the trouble of doing this manually. 

Other important fundraising tasks, like ticketing and registration, can also be handled in part or completely by fundraising apps. Apps can also be programmed to send out automated reminders to staff, keeping everyone aware of their responsibilities without assigning a lot of busywork. 

When it comes to finance and reporting, apps can process payments and even analyze performance metrics and data. This offers your staff data-driven insights for improving campaign effectiveness and taking advantage of donor trends.

Key benefits of fundraising apps

• Donor convenience
• Cost efficiency
• Improved decision making
• Reduced workload

Key App Features to Improve Online Giving

While fundraising apps can come with a lot of fancy features, the best apps provide essential features for making fundraising simpler and less time consuming. At minimum, your app should provide:

Access to a secure payment gateway

Payment gateways like Stripe need to be PCI DSS compliant, provide good data encryption, and protect donor information with advanced fraud prevention tools. This ensures that any personal information that gets shared through your app -- such as credit card information -- are secured against unauthorized access and the risk of any fraudulent transactions is kept to a minimum.

When donors know you're taking the correct steps to keep their data safe, they have more reasons to trust your NPO. This encourages them to engage with your nonprofit through your app, and ideally make recurring donations.

Ways to integrate with your email and social media platforms

With the internet providing new avenues to reach out to new donor pools, nonprofits are seeking to widen their support network. Fundraising apps can help by integrating with your email and social media platforms and providing your staff and donors with new ways to engage with each other.

For instance, your app can share donor data with your email platform, allowing your staff to target different segments of your donor population and offer more personalized content. This could be an appeal to donate to a new initiative based on the donor's enthusiasm for it at a previous fundraiser. It might also be a reminder email to re-connect with lapsed donors and reinvigorate their support and involvement.

On the flip side, integrating your social media platforms with your app allows supporters to set up their own peer-to-peer fundraising pages and share them with their support networks. This integration can also provide a real-time feed of donations and social media comments to users, providing social proof of your campaign's validity and popularity. Seeing this can get a lot of people on social media to back your campaigns.

Mobile friendly interfaces

Both your staff and your donors are constantly handling tasks on the go, causing them to regularly turn to their mobile phones for support. You can help provide additional aid and take advantage of these interactions by using an app with a mobile friendly interface. 

These interfaces can be used intuitively and provide easy-to-read text that can be scanned quickly on a mobile device. They showcase high quality visuals that don't take too long to load and a simple, multi-payment checkout system that can be completed in just a few clicks.

Staff who get their instructions through these mobile interfaces can comprehend their responsibilities easier and complete tasks quicker. Supporters who donate via an easy-to-use mobile interface will find the process simple and be encouraged to give more and engage further with your nonprofit thanks to the positive experience.

Customizable campaign tools for branding

Regardless of what app you decide to invest in, your app needs to reflect your personal branding to promote your nonprofit. Make sure that the app comes with tools that let you add your NPO's logo to your pages, along with any photos or videos that help illustrate your mission. Apps should also let you select your color scheme and font to make your app's overall look convey the image and feel you want.

Must-have application features

Feature                                              Description                                       Benefit

Secure payment gateway             Encrypts donor data                      Users feel protected when using app

Email/social media integrations  Shares app data with platforms  Improves donor communication

Mobile-friendly interface              Helps app function on phone      Encourages more mobile app use

Customizable campaign tools      Customizes look of app                 Promotes your NPO’s brand

Top Fundraising Apps for Nonprofits in 2025

From Givebutter to GoFundMe Pro, nonprofits have plenty of choices when selecting a fundraising app for their nonprofit. Let's examine the features and benefits of each, and what types of NPOs will find them most advantageous.

Givebutter

Givebutter is considered a good choice for small to mid-size nonprofits with a limited budget. The core platform is free for nonprofits (with an option for donors to leave tips) and the app is considered easy to use. Donors can contribute using a variety of payment options, including credit cards, Apple Pay, Venmo, and more, making donating easier and more convenient. The platform can even be customized to allow donors to cover processing fees, allowing your NPO to retain more of the donations.

At the same time, the customization options for campaigns and emails are limited, making it difficult for nonprofits to brand their campaign content to fully meet their specifications. The mobile app also has fewer features than the main platform and you cannot manually enter credit card information, credit team members for donations, or leave tips via the app yet (you can access these features on the mobile browser). This hinders certain donor activities and could reduce engagement for users accustomed to donating via mobile apps. 

PayBee

The PayBee app is considered an easy-to-use application with features that assist in virtual and hybrid fundraising. The mobile app is particularly well suited for managing online auctions and provides several features, from setting up automatic bids to receiving notifications when a desired item receives a bid, that make it easy for people to participate using their mobile devices.

The app also lets staff accept payments from anywhere, using mobile credit card readers, and can help speed up the check-in and check-out process. Since all transactions are recorded in the system, this eliminates the need for manual entry, making post-event work faster and simpler. NPOs that host a lot of virtual and hybrid events, particularly those with auctions, will find PayBee a good choice.

While the PayBee App regularly rates high on customer satisfaction, other platforms, like Givebutter, do offer more free features. Large or growing nonprofits that need more advanced analytics or AI tools for long-term donor retention and donor stewardship may need to invest in a pricier option with more robust tools. 

GoFundMe Pro

The GoFundMe Pro platform supports multiple payment options (credit cards, ACH, Venmo) and connects NPOs with a user base of almost 200 million people, offering opportunities to expand your donor base. This platform is particularly well suited to managing peer-to-peer fundraisers and also has tools for recurring donation options and crowdfunding. You can manage both virtual and in-person fundraising events with GoFundMe Pro.

Small and mid-size nonprofits seeking a comprehensive suite of fundraising tools can benefit from GoFundMe Pro. While the platform is more expensive than other options and some NPOs find the campaign page customization options limited, both donors and support staff find the platform easy and intuitive to use, with features that make running your campaign easier.

Bonfire

The Bonfire platform is designed to help nonprofits raise money by selling branded merchandise, like T-shirts, hats, and water bottles. This is a great option for nonprofits seeking to build brand awareness while also earning revenue by selling custom-designed apparel.

The platform provides design tools and templates for creating your apparel and can handle many production and fulfillment tasks, like printing and shipping products. Bonfire also processes the orders, letting you focus on running your nonprofit while they handle merchandising responsibilities.

You can even manage and track peer-to-peer fundraising campaigns created by your supporters via Bonfire. These can also be T-shirt fundraisers, giving donors incentive to contribute by offering a custom-made T-shirt with your brand. 

Like many online apparel fundraisers, Bonfire's pricing structure makes ordering smaller orders more expensive than larger orders. This can make the profits per item lower to smaller or individual orders compared to large bulk orders. You'll also have to deal with processing fees and a smaller product range compared to other print-on-demand services. If you're fine limiting yourself to T-shirts and basic apparel, you should be okay, but if you want to offer more unusual branded products, like embroidered patches, this can be an issue.  

Comparison of Top Apps

Name                          Key Features                                                   Best for

Givebutter                  User-friendly donation options                  Small/mid-size NPOs with limited budgets   

PayBee                        Online auction management tools             NPOs holding virtual/hybrid galas and auctions

GoFundMe Pro           Peer-to-peer campaign management       Small/mid-size NPOs needing a comprehensive suite of tools

Bonfire                        Merchandise campaign support                 NPOs hosting merchandising campaigns

How to Implement Your Apps Effectively

Let's go over each step to select and implement your fundraising app effectively:

Assess your nonprofit's needs

Before investing in an app, be sure to identify all the tools you'll need to help with your fundraising. Naturally, you'll need a secure payment portal, mobile-friendly interfaces, email/social media integrations, and customizable campaign tools, but do you want to raise money through merchandising?  Hold online auctions? Learn about crowdfunding strategies? Different needs affect the type of fundraising app you'll require.

Consider your budget limitations. If you're a small nonprofit just starting out, perhaps an app like Givebutter, which offers a free option would work. On the other hand, if you can afford more sophisticated tools (and have need of them), signing up with GoFundMe Pro could be your go-to move. Keep in mind that you can invest in new software if your needs and funding changes, and if you decide to scale up.  

Set up your application

Reference any user manuals or content, including how-to videos, supplied by your provider when setting up your fundraising app and platform. Many good software providers offer tech support services that can help talk you through the set up process.

Keep in mind that you'll have to integrate your new system with any existing digital tools you're already using. Making sure everything is compatible before you invest any money into any software is a smart move.

Once your basic set-up is complete, you'll likely want to customize your app and other fundraising content. Remember to keep your branding simple but visually appealing. Graphics and text should be mobile friendly and fast loading. Keep your donation forms easy to fill out, encourage recurring gifts, and offer options to cover processing costs (if your app offers this feature). The more you consider your donor's user experience, the more your conversion rates will improve.

Train staff for effective usage

Your app will likely be used to help manage your fundraisers, so make sure your event staff and volunteers are well versed on how to use your digital tools. Explain to your staff why you're adopting a new platform and how this will benefit them. Provide a comprehensive overview of the app's tools and make hands-on practice sessions mandatory.

Let staff participate in simulations of common scenarios like tracking donations or managing profiles to get them comfortable with the app. Build scenarios that show the benefits of the app, such as segmenting donor populations and personalizing communication to improve marketing campaigns. 

Make the roll out gradual, providing your teams with sufficient time to acclimate to your new software. Once your staff becomes comfortable with the new tools, you can make them a regular part of your workflows. You can also provide refresher courses and short-term coaching sessions to keep staff familiar with the app. This will come in particularly handy if you bring on new staff and/or volunteers.  

Monitor campaign performance and analytics

Use your app's analytics tools to monitor your campaign performances. Establish key performance indicators (KPIs) like the number of new or regular donors your events attract, average donation size, donor retention rate etc. Then track these metrics by checking to see how many guests attended your events, how many donated, how much each guest donated on average etc. This will help you measure how well you reached your campaign goals.

It can also be helpful to integrate your app with your CRM software and set up dashboards or custom reports to better share your findings with others. These might reveal where you need to improve your campaigns or if you need to invest in a new software to better scale up your operations.

Implementation steps

• Assess NPO needs
• Set up application and integrate with existing systems
• Train staff on app use
• Monitor campaigns with analytics tools

Trends in Online Fundraising Software Apps for 2025

Digital technology is constantly evolving, and modern software apps now provide features users now expect from their mobile applications. Here are four nonprofit tech trends for 2025 you need to watch out for:

The rise of AI 

AI tools can process tremendous amounts of information and analyze it quickly, providing you with useful insights about your fundraising progress. These tools also come in very handy when you need to analyze your current donor population and segment donors by their giving history, type of donations, and interests, providing suggestions for which donors to focus most of your attention on when running a campaign.

This allows for better allocation of your resources and improved overall revenue generation for your fundraisers.

Gamification

Engaged donors give more, not just in monetary donations but also in social support and promotion of your fundraisers. Making your fundraising activities more fun helps provide the positive experience that makes your galas memorable and worth talking about.

Your fundraising app can offer game-type features like leaderboards, badges, challenges, and progress bars that keep users involved in your fundraiser. For instance, when you can offer donors digital badges for completing set challenges, or when your fundraiser reaches a certain goal, those users are more likely to share their experience online and encourage others to participate.

You can also offer quizzes, trivia challenges, contests, and more through your app, giving donors incentive to return and engage with your NPO activities.

Digital wallet support

Gone are the days when most of your donations came in the form of large checks or cash. While some donors still give this way, most of the new generation prefers giving online through digital options like Apple Pay or Google Pay. 

Making sure your app can accept donations from digital wallets (and can accept from a wide variety of options) helps improve your donor conversion rate. Accepting digital donations also makes it easier to track the funds raised by your campaign and measure its success.

Peer-to-peer fundraising features

Having a good social network helps attract donors from a much wider online pool. Peer-to-peer fundraising takes this to the next level by allowing your staff and volunteers to add their personal social networks into the mix.

By providing a platform and app that allows supporters to build their own fundraising websites and share them with their family, friends, and other social contacts, you can collect donations and garner support from an audience you never knew (and who likely never knew of your NPO before their online contacts started fundraising for you). Platforms that support these campaigns not only improve revenue generation, they help connect you with more supporters and improve your brand awareness.

Top trends for 2025

• AI tools
• Gamification options
• Digital wallet support
• Peer-to-peer campaign management tools

Challenges of Using Apps for your Fundraisers

Incorporating new technology into your fundraisers is always challenging. Although fundraising apps can help simplify your workflows, you will need to anticipate a few new issues. Here's what you need to watch out for -- and how to deal with them.

High transaction fees

Some apps charge high transaction fees that can eat into your donated revenue. These fees cover required payment processing fees that include credit/debit card charges, security/fraud protection, digital wallet charges, ACH transfer fees etc. In addition, your app might charge additional platform fees that cover maintenance, customer support, and branding/marketing.

It's important to know just how high your transaction fees are before you invest in an app. Check if your app provides an option for the donors to cover fees. Most donors will do this if asked. You can also favor apps with payment methods like ACH that come with lower-cost fees. You may even be able to secure a nonprofit discount if you're using Stripe or PayPal. Make sure you can show your 501(c)(3) status if you decide to use this method.

Limited features and support in free application tiers

Using a free version of an app might sound cost-effective, but these "freemium models" usually come with only a basic version of the app, keeping you from accessing more advanced features like customization, automation, or donor management tools. In addition, free users are often directed to self-service support channels, like a forum or posted content, when they need support for their apps. This can make setting up your apps and managing them more complicated.

To work around these limitations, shop around for a free app model that offers more of the features you need. Givebutter and Zeffy provide a variety of tools for donation forms, auctions, and donor management that can prove invaluable for an NPO hosting these campaigns. 

You can also integrate your free app with other software, like your Customer Relationship Management or email platform, providing you with a more comprehensive digital ecosystem. Since your staff is already accustomed to using this software, the learning curve will be much smoother. Just remember to make sure your app is compatible with your software.

Finally, you can upgrade to a paid plan with the features you need. This can be done gradually as you scale up your NPO operations and need more app features, making the financial strain easier on your budget.

Ensuring donor trust in payment security

Just because you use an app with a secure payment portal doesn't mean that your donors will automatically trust you and feel free to offer their credit card numbers. Computer fraud is on the rise, and people are justifiably apprehensive about sharing personal information online.

To reassure donors, be transparent about your security measures. Post messages and signs near credit card fields that indicate their information is protected via encryption. Display security badges that show your system is PCI compliant. Your security measures should also be described in detail in your privacy policy which can be accessed from your website or linked from the app itself.

Challenges vs. solutions

Challenge                                                                    Solution(s)

High transaction fees                                                 Low-fee apps, donor payment options

Limited free app features                                          Integrate with other software

Lack of donor trust in payment security                 Communicate security measures in privacy policy and signage

From Givebutter to GoFundMe: Nonprofits That Thrive by Using Apps

Can fundraising apps significantly increase the revenue you generate from your campaigns? The following nonprofits certainly think so. Let's examine some of their best campaigns and how using apps helped them.

Grand Canyon Conservatory Raised Over $300K in One Month With GoFundMe Pro 

The official nonprofit partner of Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Canyon Conservatory is committed to providing guided educational programs about the natural and cultural history of the region. Using GoFundMe Pro's new platform tool Campaign Studio, the nonprofit was able to quickly build an online campaign to accept donations during the Dragon Bravo fire in July 2025 which burned over 145,000 acres and led to the destruction of Grand Canyon Lodge.

To enhance the campaign, Grand Canyon Conservatory carefully branded their campaign page with content blocks and images of the park's efforts to deal with the disaster. The app also made it easy for supporters to donate via their mobile devices by placing a donation widget above the fold. All this paid off when the campaign raised over $300,000 in just one month.  

The Summit Center Simplified Their Campaign Workflows with Givebutter

The Summit Center is a nonprofit that serves the autistic community and individuals with developmental disorders in Buffalo, New York. While they host large-scale fundraisers, their tendency to rely on multiple platforms made communication between systems difficult. 

Givebutter provided a way for Summit to integrate with their CRM, saving hours of manual work and making sure their teams had access to accurate donor information. Givebutter also provided a way for participants to register, donate, or join teams all at once, leave real-time messages on supporter feeds, and provide campaign updates on the fundraising page.

This improvement in communication impacted Summit's fundraising success, and the nonprofit was able to raise nearly $300K in a recent walkathon fundraiser. 

The Meridian Library Foundation Raised Over $60,000 in One Week Thanks to Social Media 

The Meridian Library Foundation raises funds to support the financial needs of their local library in Meridian, Idaho. In 2022, the foundation started a "Read Banned Books" T-shirt campaign with the help of Bonfire. While the initial goal was to raise anywhere from $1000-$1300 from the fundraiser, in December a Booktok Influencer mentioned the new T-shirt design in a social media post which went viral. 

The Foundation was able to leverage this social media attention by putting up their own social media information with Bonfire links to their T-shirt campaign. In just a few days, the nonprofit was able to raise over $60K in T-shirt sales and donations thanks to the increased interest and Bonfire support.

Case Study Highlights

Nonprofit                                   App Used                    Strategy                                   Outcome

Grand Canyon Conservatory  GoFundMe Pro          Mobile friendly donations    $300K

The Summit Center                 Givebutter                   Improved integrations          Nearly $300K

Meridian Library Foundation Bonfire                        Viral campaign                        $60K

Frequently Asked Questions

Let's tackle some of the key questions people often ask about fundraising apps .

What are the best apps for small nonprofits?

GoFundMe Pro and Givebutter are ideal for small nonprofits due to their ease of use and low cost. Small nonprofits can get an online presence on one of the most recognized fundraising platforms with GoFundMe Pro, granting access to a much larger pool of online donors and supporters. Meanwhile, Givebutter offers a selection of free fundraising tools, making it ideal for NPOs with tight budgets.

Can apps handle peer-to-peer campaigns?

Yes, apps like GoFundMe Pro excel in peer-to-peer fundraising. The software not only provides ready-to-use templates for your campaigns but also coaching tools and tips for holding more successful peer-to-peer campaigns.

Are apps secure for donations?

Top fundraising apps use secure payment gateways like Stripe for safe transactions. To make sure your app is safe, check to see if it encrypts all data, particularly sensitive information like credit card numbers. Use secure, PCI-compliant third-party payment gateways and multi-factor authentication (MFA) for staff and volunteers to further protect donor data. Periodically scan your app for vulnerabilities and any security flaws that need to be addressed.

How do apps integrate with other fundraising platforms?

Many apps integrate with email platforms and CRMs for seamless operations. By syncing donor data to your email platform, you can develop more segmented email campaigns and target donors more likely to contribute to your campaigns. Meanwhile, integrating your app with your CRM platform improves reporting and helps automate workflows.

What are the costs of using a fundraising app?

App pricing vary. Some apps offer free tiers while others require you to pay a subscription fee. Payment processor fees (often anywhere from 1.9% to 3.5% with a small transaction fee) are common. Certain platforms require NPOs to pay a percentage of the donations, which can eat into your revenue. However, some apps, including the PayBee App, allow you to provide an option where the donors can cover the transaction fees on their donations, allowing you to keep more of your profits.

Can apps support event ticketing?

Apps like Givebutter do include event ticketing and registration features. The PayBee mobile event app also allows you to access ticketing and event management via the app, allowing you to offer faster check-ins and payment processing.

How do apps improve donor engagement?

Fundraising apps can provide donors with notifications and personalized content, creating a better sense of community. Online giving options make donating easier, encouraging donors to participate in your fundraisers. Some apps even offer access to online forums and social sharing, which encourage even more interaction and engagement with your NPO.

Are apps mobile-friendly?

Yes. Most top apps are optimized for mobile use, enhancing donor access. This allows guests to donate, check-in, bid on auction items, and receive notifications via their mobile devices. Such convenience encourages donors to participate in your fundraisers, whether or not they can attend in person or virtually.

How long does it take to set up apps?

Setup typically takes a few hours to a day, depending on customization. Integrating a new app with your CRM system or setting up rules to automatically segment your donors into different populations based on demographics can be time consuming. If you need to set up a complex payment processing system, this can also take some time (although the results can greatly convenience your donors).

On the other hand, branding your app design with your nonprofit logo or setting up custom landing pages are fairly simple processes and can be done within a short span of time.

Can apps track campaign performance?

Yes, apps provide real-time analytics to monitor campaign success. You can check on donations, view donor activities, and see how close you are to reaching your campaign goals. If necessary, you can adjust your campaign strategies in real time to create a better outcome for your fundraiser.

Quick notes

• GoFundMe Pro and Givebutter are good app choices for small nonprofits
• GoFundMe Pro excels at peer-to-peer campaigns
• Use secure, PCI-compliant third-party payment gateways to protect donor data
• Sync your donor data to your email platform to develop more segmented email campaigns
• Be aware of subscription fees, payment processor fees, and transaction fees associated with apps, and see if your app allows donors to cover transaction fees.
• Givebutter and the PayBee mobile event app let you access ticketing and management features for faster check-ins and payment processing.
• Fundraising apps offer personalized campaigns and analytics to boost donor retention.
• Most apps are mobile-friendly, allowing users to donate, bid on auction items, check-in, and perform other tasks from their mobile devices.
• App set-up can take anywhere from a few hours to a few days depending on the complexity of your task.
• Apps provide real-time analytics to let you monitor donor activities, donations, and overall campaign success.

Conclusion: Choosing the Best Apps for Your Nonprofit Platform

Fundraising today isn't just going online, it's going mobile. Modern donors need ways to contribute and interact with your fundraisers on-the-go. Investing in fundraising apps provides your nonprofit with a new way of engaging with your supporters and enhancing your fundraising tactics.

When choosing an app for your nonprofit organization, make sure it fulfills all your fundraising needs. Select an app with a secure payment portal donors will feel confident sharing their personal information with. Research apps that integrate smoothly with your existing CRM system so you can share donor information on your social media and email platforms, enabling you to target key segments of your donor population and personalize your content to connect better with your supporters. Most of your interactions will take place on mobile devices, so spend time modifying your donation pages to look good on a smartphone screen.

Leveraging fundraising apps requires your event team to become familiar with new tools and meet new challenges, so be prepared to spend time training your event staff on the best way to use your app. Use all training resources provided by your app provider and be ready to integrate AI tools into your system to better automate your workflows and analyze your fundraising data analytics. While there will be a learning curve, the benefits of incorporating mobile apps into your fundraising efforts can increase your nonprofit revenue significantly -- as many NPOs are discovering.

If you're ready to start looking at different fundraising mobile apps, give PayBee a try. Our event mobile app has already helped many nonprofits plan, organize, and manage their virtual and hybrid fundraisers. Along with Givebutter, GoFundMe Pro, and Bonfire, every app benefits nonprofits in different ways, and it pays to do your research and see which one can help with your specific pain points.

Start by scheduling a free demo of the PayBee online fundraising software to test out our digital tools and see first hand how PayBee's many features can help your fundraising galas. You can see how we help NPOs run successful virtual auctions and you can ask our support team how our mobile app helps manage your events. Demos are some of the best ways to learn what makes each fundraising platform unique, so schedule yours today!

Tips for choosing a fundraising app

• Test app usability through provider demos
• Check fees and see which ones can be passed on to donors
• Find an app that integrates well with your existing fundraising system
• Focus on apps with secure payment portals
• Learn what type of training content, videos, and other resources your provider offers
• Examine case studies and success stories of other NPOs that benefited from the app