How Donation Platform Fees Actually Compare in 2026

Comparing donation platforms by their marketing headline  “free,” “low-cost,” “transparent”  doesn't actually tell you what a nonprofit keeps at the end of a transaction. The only way to compare fairly is the same way you'd compare any other vendor: real numbers, side by side, sourced from what each platform actually publishes. Here's where Donorbox, Zeffy, and Raisely stand today, and where Givelayer fits in. 

The comparison, side by side

A note on how to read this table: “platform fee” and “processing fee” are genuinely different costs, covered in more detail in our companion explainer on what zero platform fee actually means. A platform can legitimately advertise a $0 platform fee while processing costs still apply somewhere in the transaction, the table above separates the two deliberately, because collapsing them into one number is exactly how these comparisons get misleading. 

Donorbox, in plain terms

Donorbox's Standard plan costs nothing to start, but carries a platform fee beginning at 2.95% per donation. That fee can be reduced to as low as 1.6% for most features by upgrading to the $150/month Premium plan — meaning the “cheaper” fee rate itself has a monthly cost attached to unlock. On top of whatever platform fee applies, standard payment processing (roughly 2.2% + $0.30 through Stripe, or about 1.99% + $0.49 through PayPal at the nonprofit rate) applies as well. For a nonprofit raising $80,000 a year, the Standard plan's platform fee alone works out to roughly $2,360 annually, before processing costs are added on top. 

Zeffy, in plain terms

Zeffy charges nonprofits nothing , no platform fee, no processing fee, regardless of plan or volume. The full donation amount reaches the organization. The platform's operating and processing costs are instead funded by an optional tip prompt shown to donors at checkout, adjustable or removable by the donor, and not deducted from what the nonprofit receives either way. The tradeoff, covered in more depth in our full Zeffy breakdown, tends to show up in areas like page customization and CRM depth rather than in fees. 

Raisely, in plain terms

Raisely's Core plan is free, using a donor-tip model broadly similar to Zeffy's , unlimited fundraising sites, peer-to-peer campaigns, ticketing, and custom donation forms included at no cost to the nonprofit. The catch shows up at scale: once an organization's contact list passes roughly 2,000 supporters, segmentation and tagging features lock behind the paid Pro plan, priced around $119 a month, which also adds automated email journeys and deeper supporter management. For a smaller or newer nonprofit, Core alone may cover everything needed. For an organization with a larger, more actively segmented donor list, the effective cost shifts from $0 to roughly $1,400 a year once Pro becomes necessary. 

Where Givelayer fits

Givelayer takes a different approach from both the traditional percentage-fee model and the completely donor-tip-funded model.

When a donor chooses to leave an optional, clearly labelled tip, Givelayer charges the nonprofit a 0% platform fee. When the donor chooses not to tip, the platform fee is 2%. In both cases, standard card processing of 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction applies separately.

There is no monthly subscription, setup fee, minimum commitment, or paid tier required to access the platform's core features. Nonprofits get their giving profile, automated IRS receipts, analytics, donor records, short link, and QR code without having to upgrade to unlock them.

That places Givelayer in a middle ground.

Zeffy remains the lower-cost option for nonprofits whose priority is ensuring that neither platform nor processing fees come out of the donation. Raisely's Core plan can also be attractive for organisations looking for a donor-tip-funded platform, although some advanced supporter-management features require a paid plan as an organisation grows.

Givelayer is designed for nonprofits that want a low and predictable cost structure without relying entirely on donor tips to make the platform work. If donors choose to support Givelayer through an optional tip, the nonprofit pays no platform fee. If they do not, the organisation knows exactly what happens instead: a 2% platform fee, with no subscription added on top.

Compared with a traditional percentage-fee model, that can make a meaningful difference over time. The question is not simply which platform can advertise the word “free,” but what the nonprofit pays when the donor declines an optional tip, what features require an upgrade, and how the cost changes as the organisation grows.

That is where Givelayer fits: a transparent two-outcome pricing model, no subscription or feature tiers, and a platform fee that is either 0% or 2%, depending on a clearly disclosed donor choice.

The real question this table doesn't answer by itself

Cheapest isn't always the right frame. A nonprofit choosing purely on lowest fees might land on Zeffy or Raisely's Core plan and stop there  reasonably, in a lot of cases. But total cost of ownership includes more than the fee line: page customization, compliance defaults, CRM depth, and how a platform behaves once a donor base grows past whatever threshold triggers a paid tier. Worth reading this table alongside our guides on Donorbox and Zeffy specifically, which go deeper into those non-fee tradeoffs for each platform. 

FAQ 

Which donation platform has the lowest fees for nonprofits?
Zeffy and Raisely's Core plan both charge $0 in platform and processing fees, funded instead by optional donor tips. Donorbox charges a platform fee starting at 2.95%, reducible to 1.6% on its $150/month Premium plan, plus standard payment processing on top. 

Is Raisely actually free for nonprofits?
The Core plan is free, using a donor-tip model, and includes fundraising sites, peer-to-peer campaigns, and ticketing. Organizations with more than roughly 2,000 contacts lose access to segmentation and tagging unless they upgrade to the paid Pro plan, priced around $119/month. 

Does a $0 platform fee mean a donation platform is completely free?
Not necessarily , platform fee and payment processing fee are separate costs. Some $0-platform-fee platforms (like Zeffy) also cover processing costs via donor tips, while others may still pass standard processing rates through to the nonprofit or donor. Always check both numbers, not just the platform fee.