Donately vs Donorbox Comparison 2026
Donately states its cut on the page: 2 percent on the free plan, with Stripe or PayPal processing charged on top at their usual 2.2 to 2.9 percent. Donorbox folds platform and processing into one number instead, between 2.95 and 3.95 percent on its free Standard plan. Add Donately's two figures together and the real total lands at 4.2 percent or more, above Donorbox's all-in range even at its worst. Donorbox is built specifically for registered nonprofits; Donately works for any organisation taking donations on its own site.
At a glance
- Donately starts cheaper, at $99.
- Both have a genuinely free tier.
Side by side
Donately | Donorbox | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price (they differ) | From $99 | From $150 |
| Pricing model | Free plan, paid tiers | Free plan, paid tiers |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Billing | Monthly or annual | Monthly or annual |
| Free trial | Not stated | None |
| API | Yes |
Donately
Donation forms with the fee written down
Donately puts donation forms and recurring giving on a site you already have, and states its own cut on the pricing page rather than after signup. Every plan carries every feature, so what the money buys is a lower fee rather than more product. It argues openly against the platforms that call themselves free and then take a fifth through donor-paid fees.
Our note
The arithmetic is straightforward: below about $60,000 raised a year the free plan is cheaper, and above it the monthly plan starts winning. Ask what the $99 plan's fee actually is before you sign, because the page never says.
Donorbox
Donation pages and recurring giving
Donorbox is built for nonprofits and reads that way, which is exactly right for a creator running a fundraiser or a cause and wrong for one collecting tips. Recurring donations, an embeddable form and donor records are the substance. Its free plan charges a higher percentage on each gift than the paid one.
Our note
Pro costs $150 a month and saves roughly 1.5 percent per donation, so it pays for itself somewhere around $10,000 a month in giving. Below that the free plan is the cheaper one, whatever the fee percentage looks like.
Why people weigh these two
- Donorbox instead of Donately
- Donorbox does the same donation pages and recurring giving with a free tier, and its paid plans start at $150 against Donately's $99.
- Donately instead of Donorbox
- Donately does the same donation forms and recurring giving and writes its fee on the pricing page, with plans from $99 against Donorbox's $150.
Which one should you pick
Buy Donorbox if the true, all-in cost on the free plan matters more than the headline percentage. Its 2.95 to 3.95 percent already includes processing, while Donately's 2 percent platform fee is only the start of what a donation actually costs once Stripe or PayPal take their cut on top. Donorbox is also built for nonprofit specifics: donor records, receipts and, on Pro at $150 a month, crypto and stock donations.
Buy Donately if every feature on every plan matters more than the lowest all-in fee, since nothing here is held back for a dearer tier. The free plan works for any organisation, registered nonprofit or not, and prepaying $5,000 removes the platform fee entirely for up to $1 million raised. The $99 monthly plan lowers the fee from 2 percent, though the page never states to what, so ask before assuming it beats Donorbox's Pro plan on total cost.
Common questions
- Which free plan actually costs less per donation?
- Donorbox, once processing is counted. Its 2.95 to 3.95 percent already includes payment processing. Donately's headline 2 percent is platform fee only, with Stripe or PayPal's usual 2.2 to 2.9 percent added on top, so the real total is 4.2 percent or higher, above Donorbox's range even at its worst.
- Is Donately's 2 percent fee the whole cost?
- No, that is the platform fee alone. Stripe and PayPal still charge their usual 2.2 to 2.9 percent plus 30 cents on every one of Donately's plans, including the free one, on top of whatever the platform charges.
- Which is built specifically for nonprofits?
- Donorbox reads that way throughout: donor records, receipts and, on the Pro plan, crypto and stock donations. Donately is built for any organisation raising money on its own site, nonprofit status not required.
- What does Donately's $99-a-month plan actually reduce the fee to?
- That number is not stated. The page confirms the 2 percent platform fee drops on the $99 plan but does not say by how much, which is the one figure worth asking for directly before assuming it beats a competitor's rate.
Ratings are the average of reviews readers left. The facts are stated by each tool’s own listing and are not verified by CloutStack. How we make money.