When you donate online, not every penny goes straight to the charity. Different platforms apply tips, card fees, or Gift Aid handling charges, and some also have subscription costs. We've compared eight major UK fundraising platforms to show how much of your gift really reaches the charity.
To keep things fair, we looked at four common donation amounts (£5, £10, £30 and £100). We assume Gift Aid is always claimed, adding an extra 25% from HMRC. If a platform uses tipping and doesn't publish a default donor tip, we applied 10% as a conservative benchmark. This figure is not arbitrary – it is informed by evidence such as JustGiving's published defaults, where donors are regularly prompted with suggested tips of 17.5% or more (see JustGiving articles 1, 2, 3 and 4). Since donors are nudged towards these levels, 10% is a realistic and cautious estimate of average behaviour. We treat tips as equivalent to a platform fee because (a) they are strongly influenced by platform defaults and messaging, and (b) research shows that tipping can discourage repeat giving, meaning it effectively acts like a hidden fee on current donations. Subscription or hosting fees have been spread across 500 donations, so you can see the "real" per-donation effect.
Charity take-home per donation
This is the number most donors care about: how much the charity actually receives from your gift after all fees and Gift Aid have been applied. It's the quickest way to see the difference between platforms.
Notes & calculation methodology
- Gift Aid: modelled as 25% of donation (e.g., £10 → Gift Aid £2.50). If a platform publishes a Gift Aid processing fee (e.g., 5% of claimed Gift Aid), that fee was subtracted from the Gift Aid before passing the remainder to the charity.
- Donor tips / platform fees: where the platform publishes a default or suggested tip this was used. Where no default is published the modelling follows your instruction and uses a conservative 10% tip (treated as paid on top of the donation). Where default tip = 0% (platform explicitly shows no default tip) we used 0%.
- Processing fees: applied to the full card transaction amount = donation + tip (unless the platform publishes a combined fee applied differently, e.g., CAF Donate). Processor fee formula used: processor_pct x (donation+tip) + fixed_pence. Processor fees were apportioned between donation and tip pro rata (so the portion applied to the donation reduces the charity net; the portion on the tip reduces platform net).
- Platform % on donation: where a platform charges a % of the donation (e.g., People's Fundraising 1.75%) that was subtracted from the donation portion and recorded as platform take.
- CAF Donate: CAF publicly presents a 4% charge on donation + GiftAid; for CAF we modelled that as a single combined platform+processor take (no separate processor fee applied).
- Subscription fees: monthly subscriptions were annualised (x12), VAT included where platform pages explicitly referenced VAT, and then divided by 500 donations to create a per-donation subscription allocation. Subscription totals shown are that per-donation allocation x500.
- Rounding: all monetary values rounded to the nearest penny; totals are the rounded per-donation numbers x 500 (so minor rounding artifacts are possible).
- Sources: each platform row in the Fees table includes the official platform page used for the fee, tip, subscription, and Gift Aid information. Those official pages were used as the inputs for the calculations.
- What is not modelled: negotiated/discounted merchant rates for specific charities, promotional waivers, donor choices to "cover fees"" independently of tips, timing of Gift Aid receipts, refunds, or chargebacks. The tables show a like-for-like snapshot using publicly published fees only.
| Charity take-home per donation | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Platform | £5 donation (+£1.25 Gift Aid) | £10 donation (+£2.50 Gift Aid) | £30 donation (+£7.50 Gift Aid) | £100 donation (+£25 Gift Aid) |
| People's Fundraising (standard) | £6.04 | £12.16 | £36.64 | £122.32 |
| CAF Donate | £6.00 | £12.00 | £36.00 | £120.00 |
| People's Fundraising (branded) | £5.83 | £11.90 | £36.18 | £121.16 |
| GoFundMe (UK) | £5.46 | £11.11 | £33.73 | £112.90 |
| Crowdfunder UK | £5.39 | £10.99 | £33.36 | £111.65 |
| LocalGiving | £5.10 | £10.75 | £33.37 | £112.54 |
| JustGiving | £4.86 | £10.46 | £32.83 | £111.12 |
| Enthuse | £4.33 | £9.93 | £32.30 | £110.59 |
| DonorBox (standard) | £4.60 | £9.29 | £29.93 | £99.78 |
Legend:
- Highest return — Charity receives the most
- High return — Charity receives the second most
- Low return — Charity receives the second least
- Lowest return — Charity receives the least
Key takeaways for donors
If you want your donation to have the greatest impact, People's Fundraising (standard) consistently delivers the highest net return to charities across all donation levels.
CAF Donate and People's Fundraising (branded) also perform well. By contrast, platforms that charge Gift Aid fees or require higher subscriptions reduce the charity's share, while donor tips can make a significant difference to how much a charity ultimately receives.
Fees & charges summary
This is the "ingredients list" that drives the calculations. It shows what each platform charges in terms of tips, payment-card rates, Gift Aid handling, and subscription or hosting costs.
| Platform | Platform fee | Payment processing fee (UK rate used) | Gift Aid handling / processing fee | Monthly / yearly subscription |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| People's Fundraising (standard) | Platform fee 1.75% on donations – no tipping | 0.85% + £0.08 | Gift Aid reclaim free | No subscription |
| CAF Donate | Combined charge: 4% of donation + Gift Aid | Covered by the 4% combined charge | Covered by the 4% combined charge | No subscription |
| People's Fundraising (branded) | Platform fee 2.75% on donations – no tipping | 0.85% + £0.08 | Gift Aid reclaim free | AWS hosting £80/yr (used) – subscription per donation = £0.16 |
| GoFundMe (UK) | Donor tip contribution – 10% tip used conservatively | 1.9% + £0.20 | Gift Aid reclaim free | No subscription |
| Crowdfunder UK | Donor tip contribution – 10% tip used conservatively | 1.9% + £0.20 | 5% of Gift Aid | No subscription |
| LocalGiving | Donor tip contribution – 10% tip used conservatively | 1.9% + £0.20 | Gift Aid reclaim free | Membership £150 + £30 VAT = £180/yr → subscription per donation = £0.36 |
| JustGiving | Donor tip contribution – 10% tip used conservatively | 1.9% + £0.30 | 5% of Gift Aid | Charity tier example: £15 + VAT → £18/month → annual £216 (used) → subscription per donation = £0.43 |
| Enthuse | Donor tip contribution – 10% tip used conservatively | 1.9% + £0.30 | 5% of Gift Aid | £39.99 / month → annual £479.88 → subscription per donation = £0.96 |
| DonorBox (standard) | 2.95% | 1.2% + £0.20 | Not claimed | No subscription |
Donation impact (per-donation figures and totals x500)
This table takes all the fees above and shows the real impact on donations. For each donation size and platform you can see:
- Charity net (what the charity keeps)
- Platform take
- Processor take
- Subscription costs (spread per donation)
- Totals across 500 donations
It's a side-by-side way to compare platforms and see how small fees add up over time.
| Platform | Donation | Gift Aid | Charity net (per) | Platform take (per) | Processor take (per) | Subscription (per) | Combined platform + processor (per) | Charity total x500 | Platform + Processor total x500 | Subscription total x500 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| People's Fundraising (standard) | £5.00 | £1.25 | £6.04 | £0.09 | £0.12 | £0.00 | £0.21 | £3020.00 | £105.00 | £0.00 |
| £10.00 | £2.50 | £12.16 | £0.18 | £0.17 | £0.00 | £0.35 | £6080.00 | £170.00 | £0.00 | |
| £30.00 | £7.50 | £36.64 | £0.53 | £0.34 | £0.00 | £0.87 | £18320.00 | £435.00 | £0.00 | |
| £100.00 | £25.00 | £122.32 | £1.75 | £0.93 | £0.00 | £2.68 | £61160.00 | £1340.00 | £0.00 | |
| CAF Donate | £5.00 | £1.25 | £6.00 | £0.25 | £0.00 | £0.00 | £0.25 | £3000.00 | £125.00 | £0.00 |
| £10.00 | £2.50 | £12.00 | £0.50 | £0.00 | £0.00 | £0.50 | £6000.00 | £250.00 | £0.00 | |
| £30.00 | £7.50 | £36.00 | £1.50 | £0.00 | £0.00 | £1.50 | £18000.00 | £750.00 | £0.00 | |
| £100.00 | £25.00 | £120.00 | £5.00 | £0.00 | £0.00 | £5.00 | £60000.00 | £2500.00 | £0.00 | |
| People's Fundraising (branded) | £5.00 | £1.25 | £5.83 | £0.14 | £0.12 | £0.16 | £0.26 | £2915.00 | £130.00 | £80.00 |
| £10.00 | £2.50 | £11.90 | £0.28 | £0.17 | £0.16 | £0.44 | £5950.00 | £220.00 | £80.00 | |
| £30.00 | £7.50 | £36.18 | £0.83 | £0.34 | £0.16 | £1.17 | £18090.00 | £580.00 | £80.00 | |
| £100.00 | £25.00 | £121.16 | £2.75 | £0.93 | £0.16 | £3.68 | £60580.00 | £1840.00 | £80.00 | |
| GoFundMe (UK) | £5.00 | £1.25 | £5.46 | £0.50 | £0.30 | £0.00 | £0.80 | £2730.00 | £400.00 | £0.00 |
| £10.00 | £2.50 | £11.11 | £1.00 | £0.39 | £0.00 | £1.39 | £5555.00 | £695.00 | £0.00 | |
| £30.00 | £7.50 | £33.73 | £3.00 | £0.77 | £0.00 | £3.77 | £16865.00 | £1885.00 | £0.00 | |
| £100.00 | £25.00 | £112.90 | £10.00 | £2.10 | £0.00 | £12.10 | £56450.00 | £6050.00 | £0.00 | |
| LocalGiving | £5.00 | £1.25 | £5.10 | £0.47 | £0.30 | £0.36 | £0.77 | £2550.00 | £385.00 | £180.00 |
| £10.00 | £2.50 | £10.75 | £0.96 | £0.41 | £0.36 | £1.37 | £5375.00 | £695.00 | £180.00 | |
| £30.00 | £7.50 | £33.69 | £2.64 | £0.83 | £0.36 | £3.47 | £16845.00 | £1735.00 | £180.00 | |
| £100.00 | £25.00 | £112.54 | £10.00 | £2.10 | £0.36 | £12.10 | £56270.00 | £6050.00 | £180.00 | |
| Crowdfunder UK | £5.00 | £1.25 | £5.39 | £0.50 | £0.30 | £0.00 | £0.80 | £2695.00 | £400.00 | £0.00 |
| £10.00 | £2.50 | £10.99 | £1.00 | £0.39 | £0.00 | £1.39 | £5495.00 | £695.00 | £0.00 | |
| £30.00 | £7.50 | £33.36 | £3.00 | £0.77 | £0.00 | £3.77 | £16680.00 | £1885.00 | £0.00 | |
| £100.00 | £25.00 | £111.65 | £10.00 | £2.10 | £0.00 | £12.10 | £55825.00 | £6050.00 | £0.00 | |
| JustGiving | £5.00 | £1.25 | £4.86 | £0.50 | £0.40 | £0.43 | £0.90 | £2430.00 | £450.00 | £215.00 |
| £10.00 | £2.50 | £10.46 | £1.00 | £0.49 | £0.43 | £1.49 | £5230.00 | £745.00 | £215.00 | |
| £30.00 | £7.50 | £32.83 | £3.00 | £0.87 | £0.43 | £3.87 | £16415.00 | £1935.00 | £215.00 | |
| £100.00 | £25.00 | £111.12 | £10.00 | £2.20 | £0.43 | £12.20 | £55560.00 | £6100.00 | £215.00 | |
| Enthuse | £5.00 | £1.25 | £4.33 | £0.50 | £0.40 | £0.96 | £0.90 | £2165.00 | £450.00 | £480.00 |
| £10.00 | £2.50 | £9.93 | £1.00 | £0.49 | £0.96 | £1.49 | £4965.00 | £745.00 | £480.00 | |
| £30.00 | £7.50 | £32.30 | £3.00 | £0.87 | £0.96 | £3.87 | £16150.00 | £1935.00 | £480.00 | |
| £100.00 | £25.00 | £110.59 | £10.00 | £2.20 | £0.96 | £12.20 | £55295.00 | £6100.00 | £480.00 | |
| DonorBox (standard) | £5.00 | £0.00 | £4.60 | £0.15 | £0.26 | £0.00 | £0.41 | £2300.00 | £205.00 | £0.00 |
| £10.00 | £0.00 | £9.29 | £0.29 | £0.32 | £0.00 | £0.61 | £4645.00 | £305.00 | £0.00 | |
| £30.00 | £0.00 | £29.93 | £0.88 | £0.59 | £0.00 | £1.47 | £14965.00 | £735.00 | £0.00 | |
| £100.00 | £0.00 | £99.78 | £2.95 | £2.22 | £0.00 | £5.17 | £49890.00 | £1475.00 | £0.00 |
Legend:
- Highest return — Charity receives the most
- High return — Charity receives the second most
- Low return — Charity receives the second least
- Lowest return — Charity receives the least