Bidding Owl VS Charity Auctions Today

BiddingOwl and CharityAuctionsToday help you run auctions, but they charge fees that reduce what you raise for your cause. Zeffy gives you auction tools plus donation forms, event ticketing, and donor management — all with zero fees so every dollar stays with your mission.

Zeffy is trusted by 100,000+ nonprofits

CharityAuctionsToday

Bidding Owl VS Charity Auctions Today

Bidding Owl VS Charity Auctions Today: What nonprofits should know before choosing.

Auctions Platforms Features

Easy Upload of Auction Items

Mobile & Online Bidding (Silent + Live)

Automatic Payment/Checkout for Winners

Real‑Time Outbid Notifications & Bid Tracking

Custom Branding & Auction Page Sharing

Reporting & Exportable Winner/Payment Data

In‑Person Event Support (QR codes, on‑site bidding, checkout)

Pricing

5%.

card fees on winning bids

5%.

platform cut plus card fees

Processing fees

2.9% + $0.30.

Approximate processing fee per transaction via Stripe or PayPal.

3% + $0.30.

Platform fees

5%.

performance fee on winning online/mobile auction bids only; traditional silent and live auctions have no platform fee

5%.

Platform fees vary by plan: Flex, Pre-Paid, or no fee with a one-time subscription payment.

Monthly fees

$0.

No monthly or subscription fees.

$0.

No monthly or subscription fees.

Value for money

4.9.

4.6.

Features

4.8/5.

Smooth auction setup with minimal learning curve. Fast to launch, focused tool.

4.0/5.

Solid auction platform with more features. Steeper learning curve, requires more setup time.

Donations

BiddingOwl does not provide standalone donation collection tools - their platform focuses exclusively on auction-based fundraising activities.

Limited donation capabilities - primarily focused on auction-related payments rather than standalone donation forms or recurring giving programs.

Ticketing

BiddingOwl does not provide event ticketing functionality - organizations need separate tools for selling event admission tickets.

Event ticketing available for auction events, but limited compared to full-service ticketing platforms. Focuses on auction attendance rather than general event management.

Peer-to-Peer Fundraising

BiddingOwl does not offer peer-to-peer fundraising capabilities, limiting organizations to centralized auction events only.

No peer-to-peer fundraising tools. Platform centers on organization-hosted auction events rather than supporter-led campaigns.

Auctions

BiddingOwl offers online auction hosting with bidding management, item cataloging, and payment processing specifically designed for fundraising events.

CharityAuctionsToday offers comprehensive auction management with online bidding, mobile bidding apps, and live auction support. Includes bid tracking, payment processing, and donor management features specifically designed for charity auctions.

Raffles

BiddingOwl does not include raffle management features, focusing solely on traditional auction-style bidding for fundraising.

Basic raffle support through auction platform, but not a dedicated raffle management system with ticket sales and drawing features.

Online store

BiddingOwl lacks dedicated online store functionality for selling merchandise or products outside of their auction format.

No built-in online store functionality. Platform is specialized for auction items rather than general merchandise sales.

Memberships

BiddingOwl doesn't offer membership management features. You'd need separate software to track member renewals and benefits.

CharityAuctionsToday focuses on auction events rather than ongoing membership management. Limited tools for tracking member engagement or renewal cycles.

Donor Management/CRM

Limited donor tracking focused only on auction activity. Missing comprehensive donor relationship management for year-round engagement.

Tracks bidder information and auction history but lacks comprehensive donor relationship management tools. Limited ability to segment donors beyond auction participation.

Emails & Newsletter

No built-in email marketing tools. You'll need third-party software to communicate with bidders and donors outside of auctions.

Basic email capabilities for auction announcements and winner notifications. Limited segmentation and automation features compared to dedicated email platforms.

Payment Processing

Charges 3% + $0.30 per transaction. Processing fees eat into your fundraising dollars with every bid and purchase.

Payment methods

Credit cards only for auction bids

Credit cards only, no mobile wallets

Credit Card Payments

Supported - Accepts credit card payments for auction bids and donations through their platform

Supported - Accepts major credit cards through integrated payment processing for auction bidding

Apple Pay & Google Pay

Not specified - Digital wallet support not clearly mentioned on their auction platform

Not supported - Limited to traditional credit card processing without mobile wallet integration

ACH / Bank Transfers

Not supported - BiddingOwl focuses on auction fundraising, not direct payment processing

Not supported - CharityAuctionsToday focuses on auction management without direct ACH payment processing

Tap to Pay App

Not supported - BiddingOwl is web-based auction software without mobile payment apps

Not supported - No mobile tap-to-pay functionality available for in-person auction events

Customer Support

4.8/5.

4.0/5.

Unlimited Support

BiddingOwl limits support based on plan tier, with premium support for higher-tier accounts

CharityAuctionsToday limits support to business hours only

Phone Support / Office Hours

BiddingOwl offers phone support during business hours for paid plan customers

CharityAuctionsToday offers phone support during standard business hours

Webinars

BiddingOwl offers occasional training webinars for auction setup and best practices

CharityAuctionsToday offers training webinars for auction setup and management

Help Center

BiddingOwl maintains a help center with guides for auction management and troubleshooting

CharityAuctionsToday has a knowledge base with auction platform guides

BiddingOwl provides email support for technical issues and account questions

CharityAuctionsToday provides email support during business hours

Nonprofit-Focused Support Team

Support access depends on plan — priority help for higher-tier users only

Business hours only support with limited availability outside standard times

Zeffy is 100% free, always.

Calculate savings

How is Zeffy free?

Why Zeffy over BiddingOwl and CharityAuctionsToday?

Why choose Zeffy over BiddingOwl and CharityAuctionsToday if you're a nonprofit

💯

Keep 100% of your auction proceeds

BiddingOwl and CharityAuctionsToday take 5% plus card fees from every winning bid. Zeffy charges zero fees, so your silent auction or gala actually raises money for your mission.

🧰

Get complete fundraising tools, not just auction software

BiddingOwl and CharityAuctionsToday only handle auctions. Zeffy includes donation forms, ticketing, raffles, and donor management in one platform for year-round fundraising.

🤝

Access unlimited support when you need it most

BiddingOwl and CharityAuctionsToday limit support to business hours and paid plans. Zeffy provides unlimited email support to help you succeed, not just survive.

Frequently asked questions

Why should we choose Zeffy over auction platforms like BiddingOwl or CharityAuctionsToday?

Zeffy offers 100% free fundraising tools with zero platform fees, while auction platforms charge 5% plus card fees on every bid. You keep every dollar raised instead of losing hundreds to fees.

Can Zeffy handle more than just auctions for our fundraising needs?

Yes! Unlike auction-only platforms, Zeffy provides donations, ticketing, raffles, peer-to-peer campaigns, and online stores all in one place. No need for multiple expensive tools.

What if we need support setting up our fundraising campaigns?

Zeffy provides unlimited email and phone support at no extra cost. Auction platforms limit support by plan tier and charge more for premium help when you need it most.

How much will we save by switching from auction platforms to Zeffy?

Auction platforms charge 5% plus card fees on every winning bid. On a $10,000 auction, that's $500+ in fees. With Zeffy, you keep that $500 for your mission instead.

What happens if we need help beyond auction setup?

Zeffy supports your entire fundraising strategy, not just auctions. Get donations, ticketing, peer-to-peer campaigns, and online stores with unlimited support included.

Looking for a better option?

Zeffy was built for nonprofits like yours

focus on what matters

Built for small teams with big missions.

Zeffy is the fundraising platform that cuts out the fees, clears up your tech mess, and puts your cause first — so your team, even if you're a small team wearing many hats or a one-person show, can focus on what really matters.

Start your nonprofit

ZERO-FEE

Keep 100% of every dollar.

No platform fees. No processing fees. No catch. We know it sounds too good to be true, but it's not. Every penny goes straight to your mission, while competitors take 2-3% off every donation.

Start your nonprofit

ALL-IN-ONE PLatform

Ditch the tech mess.

Stop bouncing between MailChimp, Eventbrite, and all those spreadsheets. Now you can handle donations, ticket sales, memberships, raffles, and all your donor info in one spot.

Start your nonprofit

plug-and-play

Get going, fast.

Built for teams like yours — whether you're volunteer-led or have limited staff. Set up donation forms, sell tickets, and launch campaigns without needing a tech wizard. It's super easy, and you'll be up and running in minutes.

Start your nonprofit

mobile-first

Fundraise from every device, anywhere.

From QR codes on flyers to Tap-to-Pay on a phone, Zeffy makes it easy to accept donations on the go. Mobile-optimized and offline-ready, so no donor slips through the cracks.

Start your nonprofit

No turnover

Never lose a donor to volunteer transition.

Centralize supporter relationships, automate thank-you messages, and preserve institutional knowledge when board members rotate out.

Start your nonprofit

100% free forever.

100,000+ nonprofits trust Zeffy — and keep their fees at $0.

For 7+ years, Zeffy has supported nonprofits with free, user-friendly fundraising tools.

As a startup nonprofit with only two members, and no funding (yet) we’d need something with low (or no) fees. Zeffy was a dream come true.

Masey, Loose Ends.

Read the full story

“We were incurring a ton of fees for our past fundraising platform and Zeffy has helped us receive so much more of our donations.”

Zeffy has been invaluable in helping me track our donors, sales, events, and revenue in one spot. The coolest thing about Zeffy is it really is free!

Everything about Zeffy suits us starting with (of course, NO fees) but also the ease of use and customer experience as well as their client support!!

Zeffy is very easy to use and ensures that every dollar quickly gets into our account.. A huge help to our work!

Zeffy is very simple, allows for a lot of customization and seamlessly integrates into our website. The fact that all of this is free is still wild to me.

We couldn't believe there was a free payment platform for our Girl Scout group. Zeffy took ZERO fees from us, which is huge when you run on very small amounts of money.

We were ready to sell tickets in less than 30 minutes. The reporting capabilities were better than some other paid-for sites.

Since using Zeffy, our conversion rate of donations has skyrocketed. It's an easy platform to use. Plus customer support has always been responsive and helpful!