The hidden fees in your 'free' fundraising platform

Let's say Debbie gives $50 to your organisation through Raisely.

At checkout there's a little box asking her to cover platform costs. It's ticked by default and it's only $2.75, so (like most donors) she leaves it and clicks "Donate $52.75".

Debbie reckons she just gave your organisation $52.75. Your donation report probably says $50. And the $2.75 in between might not show up anywhere your board looks.

(Debbie's actually Raisely's own example, not mine.)

I'm Isaac, and I run Transform Creative, an Adelaide creative agency that helps not-for-profit organisations save money by building custom platforms that allow you to keep more of what donors give. So yes, I've got a horse in this race. But I think it's worth knowing about whatever platform you're on.

Where Debbie's $52.75 actually goes

Raisely's help docs break it down like this.

The whole lot runs through your Stripe account first, then the tip gets passed to Raisely before your payout lands. GoFundraise runs a similar "optional contribution" model, and some Funraisin sites do it too.

So why might it not show up?

Honestly, it depends on how your books get done. (I'm not an accountant, so treat this as "worth checking" rather than gospel.)

If your bookkeeper works off the platform's donation report, Debbie gave $50 and the tip just… doesn't exist. If they work off Stripe, it might turn up as a fee. And if they work off the bank payout, it's probably buried in bank charges somewhere.

Nobody's fudging anything. The tip's designed to feel free, so it's easy to never count it. But it does mean your cost-to-raise could look a little healthier than it really is.

Now multiply Debbie by a year

$2.75 is nothing. But as I'm sure you know, it adds up.

Say your organisation raises around $800K a year online, and donors are tipping about 4.5%. That's roughly $36K a year of supporter money heading to your platform, or $108K over three years.

Every one of those dollars came from someone who believes in what your organisation does. And in this example, none of it lands in a board report.

Finding your organisation's number

The good news is you can probably work this out in an afternoon, with stuff you already have.

Grab last year's online donations from your platform (just what went through it, not your whole revenue) and check what tip percentage your donation form is set to. Then go looking for what was actually tipped, either in your platform's reports or as platform fees in Stripe.

If you can't track it down, Raisely says most donors leave the box ticked, so 4–5% of your online giving is a fair rough guess.

Once you've got it, I'd pop it in your next fundraising report, right next to the total. That way your board sees the whole picture of where supporters' money went.

When we moved Ping Pong-a-thon onto their own custom platform, their donation income went up by about 4%. That's the number I'd plan around.

And if you're raising less than about $600K a year online, I'd probably stay put. For smaller organisations the tip model's a pretty good deal, and our build vs rent guide goes into why.

So what's your number?

Hear me out… what would change for your organisation if Debbie's $2.75 (and every one like it) went towards your cause, instead of your platform?

If you'd rather skip the spreadsheet, pop your numbers into the savings calculator on our site. It'll show roughly what's heading to your platform each year.

And if it's bigger than you expected, I'd love to have a (no-pressure) chat. We're in Adelaide, we pick up the phone, and if custom isn't right for your organisation yet, we'll tell you.

Work out your number →