Growing an audience
Running the business
Both cover monetization & payments. Here is what separates them on price, billing, what you can take with you, and coverage.
| GoFundMe | Ko-fi | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | From $12 |
| Pricing model | Free | Free plan, paid tiers |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Billing | Usage-based | Monthly or annual |
| Free trial | Not stated | Not stated |
| API | Not stated | Not stated |
| Data export | Not stated | Not stated |
| Their cut | Not stated | Not stated |
| Runs on | Not stated | Not stated |
| Covers | Crowdfunding, Monetization & Payments | Monetization & Payments, Memberships & Subscriptions, Tips & Donations |
| Works with | Nothing in particular | YouTube, Twitch |
| Founded | Not listed | Not listed |
| Reader rating | No reviews yet | No reviews yet |
| Live deals | None right now | None right now |
Raise money from a page anyone can share
GoFundMe is where a one-off ask goes when it needs to travel further than an audience already reaches. There is no platform fee on a personal fundraiser in the countries listed on its pricing page, and the company is funded by an optional tip donors choose at checkout. Card processing still comes off the top.
Only on this side
Tips, memberships and a shop with no platform cut
Ko-fi takes nothing from tips on the free plan, which no other platform of its size does. Memberships, commissions and digital downloads all work from the same page. It is lighter than Patreon in every direction, which is often the point.
Our note
The best free option for somebody who mostly gets tipped, and worth weighing against Patreon the moment memberships become the larger half of the income. Do the Gold arithmetic yourself rather than taking the upgrade prompt's word for it.
Only on this side
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.