Choosing the right platform for collecting donations can make a huge difference to your fundraising success. Each platform has its own strengths and costs, so it’s worth understanding your options before you start asking people for money.
The most popular choices
JustGiving
This is probably the platform most of your donors will recognise, which is a big advantage.
What’s good about it:
- Everyone knows and trusts it
- Automatically handles Gift Aid (adds 25% for UK taxpayers)
- Easy to set up and share
- Good social media integration
- Detailed reporting on who’s donated
What’s not so good:
- Takes 2.9% + 25p from each donation
- Monthly fee of £15 for charities (but not for individual fundraisers)
- Can feel quite corporate rather than personal
Best for: Established charities and fundraisers who want maximum trust and recognition.
GoFundMe
Very user-friendly and increasingly popular, especially for personal causes.
What’s good about it:
- No platform fees for charity fundraising in the UK
- Very easy to set up and customise
- Great for sharing stories and updates
- Works well on mobile devices
- Good customer support
What’s not so good:
- Payment processing fees still apply (2.9% + 25p per donation)
- Doesn’t automatically collect Gift Aid, so you need to handle this separately
- Less familiar to older donors
Best for: Small community groups who want a straightforward, cost-effective option.
Wonderful.org
The newcomer that promises no fees at all.
What’s good about it:
- Completely free, with no fees taken from donations
- Modern, attractive interface
- Growing reputation for transparency
What’s not so good:
- Much less well-known than other platforms
- Smaller user base means less social proof
- Newer platform so less track record
Best for: Groups who want to maximise the amount reaching charity and don’t mind using a less familiar platform.
Muslim-focused platforms
LaunchGood
A crowdfunding platform specifically designed for the Muslim community.
What’s good about it:
- Built for Muslim causes and understood by Muslim donors
- Includes Islamic terms and concepts naturally
- Platform fees can be covered by donors (optional add-on)
- Supports campaigns in multiple currencies
- Community of Muslim fundraisers to learn from
What’s not so good:
- Platform fee of 4.5% + payment processing (2.9% + 30p)
- Less well-known outside Muslim communities
- Smaller overall user base than mainstream platforms
- Doesn’t handle UK Gift Aid automatically
Best for: Muslim community groups wanting to fundraise within the Muslim community, particularly for Islamic causes.
Sadaqah.io
A platform focused on Islamic charitable giving.
What’s good about it:
- Zero platform fees—100% goes to your cause
- Designed specifically for Muslim charities
- Handles Zakat, Sadaqah, and general donations separately
- Islamic compliance built in
- Regular donors can set up recurring contributions
What’s not so good:
- Only works with registered charities (not individual fundraisers)
- Smaller platform with limited brand recognition
- Payment processing fees still apply
- Primarily focused on established Islamic charities
Best for: Registered Islamic charities looking for a fee-free platform that understands Islamic giving.
Muslim Giving
A UK-based platform for Muslim charitable causes.
What’s good about it:
- No platform fees
- Specifically understands UK Muslim giving culture
- Simple, straightforward interface
- Supports multiple UK Islamic charities
- Handles Gift Aid for UK taxpayers
What’s not so good:
- Works primarily with established charities rather than individual fundraisers
- Smaller platform means fewer donors browsing
- Limited customisation options
- Less suitable for grassroots community events
Best for: UK-based Muslim organisations working with established charities that are already on the platform.
General low-cost platforms
Zeffy
A newer platform promising completely free fundraising.
What’s good about it:
- Zero fees for organisations; donors can optionally contribute to platform costs
- Clean, modern interface
- Good reporting and donor management tools
- Supports recurring donations
- Email receipts handled automatically
What’s not so good:
- Much less well-known than established platforms
- Relies on donor tips to cover platform costs
- No automatic Gift Aid handling
- Smaller user base
Best for: Community groups who want to avoid fees entirely and are comfortable using a less familiar platform.
Donorbox
A professional fundraising platform with reasonable fees.
What’s good about it:
- Low platform fee (1.75% for standard plan)
- Excellent donor management features
- Embeds nicely into websites
- Recurring donation options
- Good reporting tools
What’s not so good:
- Payment processing fees on top of platform fee
- More complex to set up than simpler platforms
- Better suited to organisations with websites
- Assumes more technical knowledge
Best for: More established groups with websites who want good donor management tools.
FundraiseUp
A modern platform with sophisticated features.
What’s good about it:
- No platform fees, only payment processing (2.9% + 25p)
- Very smooth donation experience
- Apple Pay and Google Pay support
- Excellent mobile experience
- AI-powered donation recommendations
What’s not so good:
- More complex setup than basic platforms
- Requires some technical knowledge to implement fully
- Better suited to larger campaigns
- Overkill for simple community fundraising
Best for: Larger organisations or campaigns expecting significant online donations.
Making your choice
For most Trials & Tribulations organisers, we’d suggest:
- For small community groups (10-20 participants): GoFundMe or Zeffy offer the best balance of ease and cost.
- For larger community events (20-40 participants): JustGiving gives you the trust factor and Gift Aid handling that makes it worth the fees.
- For charity-organised events (40+ participants): Work with your chosen charity as they’ll likely have a preferred platform and existing account.
- For Muslim community groups specifically: Consider LaunchGood if you’re primarily fundraising within the Muslim community, or use GoFundMe for broader appeal.
What about charity-specific pages?
Many charities have their own donation systems on their websites. These can work well because:
- 100% of donations go directly to the charity
- Donors feel confident they’re giving to the right place
- Often well-integrated with Gift Aid systems
However, they’re harder to personalise and share, and you miss out on the social aspects of fundraising platforms where people can see others’ donations and comments.
Setting up your fundraising approach
For small friendship groups (under 10 people)
Consider having just one main fundraising page that everyone promotes, rather than individual pages. This:
- Creates a sense of team effort
- Avoids confusion about which page to donate to
- Shows momentum building more clearly
- Reduces administrative burden
For larger community groups
You might want both individual pages and a main group page:
- Each participant has their own page for personal networks
- A main group page for community and shared contacts
- Link all individual pages to the main cause
For established organisations
Work with your chosen charity to set up official fundraising pages that clearly show your organisation’s involvement.
Practical setup tips
Choose your URL carefully
Most platforms let you customise your page address. Make it memorable and easy to share:
- www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/our-mosque-refugees
- www.gofundme.com/trials-tribulations-2024
Write a compelling page description
Your page needs to quickly explain:
- Who you are and why you’re doing this challenge
- What the challenge involves (briefly)
- Which charity you’re supporting and why
- What the money will achieve
- How people can help
Set a realistic initial target
Start with a goal you’re confident of reaching, then increase it if you exceed expectations. Nothing looks worse than a page stuck at 15% of target.
Add photos and updates
- Photos of your group training or preparing
- Regular updates on fundraising progress
- Pictures from the challenge itself
- Thank you messages and impact updates
Managing multiple fundraisers
Keep everyone coordinated
If participants are running individual pages:
- Agree on consistent messaging about the charity and cause
- Share successful approaches between team members
- Avoid competing for the same donors
- Celebrate individual and collective milestones
Provide templates and guidance
Create simple templates for:
- Page descriptions
- Social media posts
- Email messages to potential sponsors
- Thank you messages
Track total progress
Keep a running total of all fundraising across all platforms so you can share collective progress and celebrate milestones together.
Costs and fees breakdown
Most platforms charge similar fees, typically:
- 2.9% + 25p per donation for payment processing
- Additional platform fees ranging from 0% to 5%
- Gift Aid handling may be included or cost extra
For a £1000 fundraising total, you’re looking at roughly:
- JustGiving: Around £35-40 in fees
- GoFundMe: Around £30-35 in fees
- Wonderful.org: £0 in platform fees, but still payment processing
Gift Aid considerations
Gift Aid adds 25% to donations from UK taxpayers at no cost to the donor. Make sure your platform:
- Handles Gift Aid collection automatically
- Passes the additional 25% to your charity
- Doesn’t charge extra fees for this service
If your platform doesn’t handle Gift Aid, you can still claim it manually, but this involves more paperwork.
Payment and transfer times
Check how quickly funds reach your charity:
- Some platforms transfer weekly
- Others wait until the campaign ends
- Emergency transfers may be possible for urgent causes
- Bank holidays and weekends can delay transfers
Getting help and support
All major platforms offer:
- Setup guides and video tutorials
- Customer support (quality varies)
- Best practice advice for fundraising
- Template messages and social media posts
Don’t hesitate to contact platform support if you’re stuck—they want your fundraising to succeed.
Important reminders
- Set it up early Give yourself at least two weeks before your event to set up your fundraising page and start promoting it.
- Tell your story well Whatever platform you choose, spend time crafting your story. Explain why you’re doing this challenge and what the money will achieve.
- Keep it updated Post regular updates, photos from training, and countdown posts. Active pages raise more money.
- Thank your donors Use the platform’s tools to thank people publicly (where appropriate) and privately. Gratitude encourages further donations.
- Gift Aid matters If you’re using a platform that handles Gift Aid automatically, make sure your donors know to tick that box. It’s free money for your cause.
Final thoughts
The platform choice matters less than having engaged participants and a compelling story. A passionate fundraiser on a basic platform will always outperform a half-hearted effort on the fanciest system.
Choose based on:
- What your participants and their networks are comfortable using
- The fees you’re happy to pay
- How much administrative work you want to take on
- Whether automatic Gift Aid handling is important to you
Once you’ve chosen, focus your energy on supporting your participants, sharing your story, and celebrating every donation that comes in. The platform is just the tool, but your passion and purpose are what will drive your fundraising success.