Give Lively
US 501(c)(3) nonprofits seeking a fully underwritten, no-cost fundraising toolkit - campaign pages, text-to-donate, peer-to-peer, and events - backed by philanthropist founders rather than platform charges.
A philanthropist-funded US fundraising platform for 501(c)(3) nonprofits, founded in 2015, offering campaign pages, donation widgets, text-to-donate, peer-to-peer, and events at no cost to members.
- Headquartered in
- US
- Funding model
- Optional tip
- Platform fee
- 0% + tip
- Payment processing fee
- 2.2% + $0.30
- Recipient gets
- $97.50 / $100
- Data residency
- US
- Countries
- 1
- Languages
- 0
- Trustpilot
- 3.3 / 5
- Last updated
- 2026-06-03
Our overall editorial assessment. Full weights are published in the methodology.
The review
Give Lively is a US fundraising platform founded in 2015 with an unusual model: it is built and run by philanthropists who cover the company's operating costs so that member nonprofits are never charged for the software. It serves only US 501(c)(3) organizations, reviewing each membership application, and reports thousands of active member nonprofits.
Because its founders underwrite operations, Give Lively does not levy platform charges on nonprofits; it is sustained instead by voluntary donor tips. Payment processing is handled through partners including Stripe, Shift4, PayPal, and DAFpay by Chariot, and donors can opt to cover processing costs so organizations retain the full value of each gift, with rapid disbursement and no holding period.
Give Lively's strength is cost: a genuinely underwritten toolkit lets nonprofits keep more of what they raise, and its feature set - campaign pages, donation widgets, text-to-donate, events, peer-to-peer, and team fundraising - covers the essentials well. The trade-off is strict eligibility: membership is limited to US 501(c)(3) nonprofits aligned with the founders' values, so individuals, non-US organizations, and for-profits cannot use it. For qualifying US nonprofits this is compelling; for everyone else it is simply unavailable.
The platform has helped members raise well over a billion dollars and emphasizes the savings members realize versus paid fundraising software. Operations are US-based, including support on US time and US-oriented payment processing, so it offers no European local payment rails and is not designed for cross-border fundraising.
What’s good, what’s not.
- ✓Underwritten by philanthropist founders, so member nonprofits are not charged for the software.
- ✓Full toolkit: campaign pages, donation widgets, text-to-donate, peer-to-peer, team fundraising, and events.
- ✓Donors can opt to cover processing, helping organizations keep the full gift.
- ✓Rapid disbursement with no holding period.
- ✓Multiple processing partners (Stripe, Shift4, PayPal, DAFpay by Chariot).
- −Eligibility is restricted to US 501(c)(3) nonprofits that pass a values-aligned review.
- −Not available to individuals, for-profits, or organizations outside the US.
- −US-based operations and processing, with no European local payment rails.
- −Sustainability depends on continued philanthropic funding rather than earned revenue.
Where each $100 actually goes.
Fees vary by payment method. We default to Credit card because that’s the dominant method in the United Kingdom.
Give Lively doesn’t process payments in GBP. Pricing is shown in USD, its native currency.
1 countries · 0 languages · 6 payment methods.
Better-fit alternatives to Give Lively.
Our curated shortlist — the platforms we’d actively recommend instead of Give Lively for fundraising in the United Kingdom, with the figures behind the call. For the full, neutral index of every side-by-side, see Compare with below.
Give Lively keeps donor data in US; WhyDonate is EEA-resident and GDPR-native, so personal data never leaves the region.
Zeffy lets more of each donation through than Give Lively — £100.00 reaches the recipient per 100, against £97.50.
JustGiving lets more of each donation through than Give Lively — £97.80 reaches the recipient per 100, against £97.50.
See how Give Lively stacks up head-to-head.
Frequently asked questions
What does Give Lively charge?
Give Lively charges a 0% platform fee with an optional voluntary donor tip on top, plus 2.2% + $0.30 in payment processing per donation.
Where is Give Lively based?
Give Lively was founded in — and is headquartered in US. Data residency is US.
Which countries does Give Lively operate in?
Give Lively operates in 1 countries including major European markets and English-speaking markets.
Is Give Lively suitable for nonprofits?
Give Lively’s primary audience is individual fundraisers and groups; nonprofits can use the platform but may find specialized alternatives better suited.
Rankings are produced by a public editorial methodology — open to peer review. We disclose ownership, scoring weights, and every change.