Givebutter vs Kindest Comparison 2026
Givebutter charges a 0 percent platform fee whenever donor tips are switched on, funded entirely by what donors optionally add at checkout, with Plus at $29 a month for marketing features most organisations never need. Kindest charges a mandatory 5 percent platform fee on its free plan, waived only on the first $50,000 raised in a first year, dropping to 3.75 percent on a $1,800-a-year paid plan. Givebutter's fee can genuinely reach zero. Kindest's fee is real and ongoing once the first-year waiver runs out, unless the annual plan is bought to lower it.
Fundraising that runs on optional tips
Donation pages that start without a subscription
At a glance
- Both have a genuinely free tier.
- Givebutter takes no share of what you earn. Kindest takes 5%.
Side by side
Givebutter | Kindest | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | From $29 | Not listed |
| Pricing model | Free plan, paid tiers | Free plan, paid tiers |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Billing | Monthly or annual | Not stated |
| Free trial | 30 days | Not stated |
| API | Not stated | Not stated |
Givebutter
Fundraising that runs on optional tips
Givebutter charges nothing for donation pages, events and its fundraising CRM, and funds itself from a tip donors can choose to add at checkout. Turning tips off swaps them for a platform fee, which is the honest version of free. The paid tier is a marketing add-on rather than the fundraising itself, and most organisations never need it.
Our note
The 0 percent platform fee holds only while donor tips are switched on, and a fee applies if they are turned off. The cost moves from the organisation to the donor rather than disappearing, which is the trade to weigh against Donorbox.
Only on this side
- Works with Twitch
Kindest
Donation pages that start without a subscription
Kindest gives a nonprofit donation forms, recurring giving and donor records on a free plan that takes a percentage instead of a monthly fee, and waives even that on the first fifty thousand dollars of a first year. The paid tier lowers the percentage and adds text campaigns and scheduled time with a person. Forms default to asking the donor to cover fees. Everything here assumes a registered charity rather than an individual.
Why people weigh these two
- Kindest instead of Givebutter
- Kindest starts donation pages without a subscription at all, free, the same no-monthly-fee shape without leaning on optional tips.
- Givebutter instead of Kindest
- Givebutter runs on optional tips from donors rather than a required percentage, with a free plan and a $29 paid tier for the extras.
Which one should you pick
Pick Givebutter to keep the platform fee at zero for as long as donor tips stay switched on, which shifts the cost to donors who choose to cover it rather than off the top of every gift. The core product, donation pages, events and an unlimited-contact CRM, is free regardless. Plus at $29 a month is a marketing add-on, not the fundraising itself, and most organisations never need it.
Pick Kindest as a US nonprofit starting from nothing, where the free plan's 5 percent fee is waived entirely on the first $50,000 raised in a first year. Once that waiver runs out, the fee is real on every gift, and the $1,800-a-year paid plan only lowers it to 3.75 percent, which its own guidance says only pays for itself around $144,000 of annual donations. Below that, staying on the free plan is the right call even after the waiver ends.
Common questions
- Is Givebutter cheaper than Kindest?
- Potentially, yes: Givebutter's platform fee can be zero if donor tips stay on, where Kindest charges a mandatory 5 percent on its free plan after the first-year waiver ends. The trade is that Givebutter's fee, if tips are turned off, is not stated as a specific percentage on the page.
- Does Kindest ever charge nothing, the way Givebutter can?
- Only temporarily: the platform fee is waived on the first $50,000 raised in a first year, then 5 percent applies on the free plan afterward. Givebutter's fee can stay at zero indefinitely as long as donor tips remain switched on.
- When does Kindest's paid plan actually save money over the free one?
- Its own guidance puts the crossover around $144,000 of annual donations, where the 1.25 percentage point fee reduction saves more than the $1,800 annual cost. Below that, the free plan remains the cheaper choice even without the first-year waiver.
- Does either platform charge card processing on top of its own fee?
- Kindest states 2.9 percent plus 30 cents in card processing on top of its platform fee, with forms defaulting to asking the donor to cover it. Givebutter states payment processing is separate from its own platform fee as well.
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.