PayPal VS Stripe

PayPal and Stripe both charge processing fees that reduce your donations by 2.9% or more. Zeffy is built specifically for nonprofits with zero fees on donations, event tickets, and memberships — so you keep 100% of every dollar raised for your mission.

Zeffy is trusted by 100,000+ nonprofits

Stripe

PayPal VS Stripe

PayPal VS Stripe: What nonprofits should know before choosing.

Payment processing Features

Payments processing

0% Processing / Transaction Fee

ACH / Bank Transfers

Credit / Debit Card Acceptance

Digital Wallets (Apple Pay, Google Pay)

International Payments

Fraud Detection

Built in Fundraising Tools (Tickets, Auctions, Forms. etc.)

PCI Compliance

Pricing

N/A.

Card fees add up per gift

N/A.

Card fees per gift add up fast

Processing fees

1.99% + $0.49.

fixed fee per transaction (for confirmed/eligible charities). International transactions add 1.50%. For charities using specific services: Payments Pro: 1.99% + fixed fee, Virtual Terminal: 2.69% + fixed fee, Advanced Credit/Debit Card Payments: 2.19% + fixed fee. Non-confirmed charity donations: 2.89% + $0.49 fixed fee.

2.2% + $0.30.

(cards), 3.5% (Amex), 0.8% + $5 cap (ACH). For tax-deductible donations.

Platform fees

$0.

No fee

$0.

No fee

Monthly fees

$5.00/month.

Starting price for Payments Advanced plan

$0.

No monthly fees

Value for money

4.5.

N/A.

Features

4.5/5.

Familiar but limited. Handles payments only; you'll need separate tools for ticketing, memberships, and donor tracking.

4.4/5.

Powerful but complex. Requires developer setup and third-party integrations for fundraising, ticketing, and donor management.

Donations

PayPal charges 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction for donations, eating into your fundraising budget with every gift received.

Stripe processes donations but charges 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction. You'll need to build your own donation forms or use third-party tools.

Ticketing

PayPal processes payments but doesn't offer event ticketing tools - you'll need separate software to create and manage tickets.

Stripe handles ticket payments but doesn't include event management features. You'll need ticketing software plus pay processing fees.

Peer-to-Peer Fundraising

PayPal offers basic peer-to-peer payments but no fundraising campaign tools, progress tracking, or supporter engagement features.

Stripe doesn't offer peer-to-peer fundraising tools. You'd need third-party software and pay Stripe's processing fees on top.

Auctions

PayPal processes auction payments but provides no bidding platform, item management, or auction-specific fundraising tools.

Stripe doesn't offer auction functionality. You'd need separate auction software and handle payment processing manually through Stripe's API.

Raffles

PayPal handles payments only - no raffle creation, ticket management, or winner selection tools for your fundraising events.

Stripe processes raffle payments but doesn't provide raffle management tools. You'll need separate software to run your raffle campaigns.

Online store

PayPal processes store payments but lacks inventory management, product pages, or nonprofit-specific features like tax receipts.

Stripe processes online store payments at 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction. You'll need separate e-commerce software to build your store.

Memberships

PayPal doesn't offer built-in membership management. You'll need separate software to track members and handle recurring payments.

Stripe doesn't offer built-in membership management. You'll need third-party tools and custom development to handle recurring member payments and communications.

Donor Management/CRM

Basic transaction records only. No donor profiles, giving history tracking, or relationship management features built-in.

Basic transaction data only. No donor profiles, giving history, or relationship management. Requires additional CRM software and manual data entry.

Emails & Newsletter

No email marketing tools included. You'll need to integrate with third-party services like Mailchimp for donor communications.

No email marketing features. You'll need separate tools like Mailchimp or Constant Contact, plus manual work to sync donor data between platforms.

Payment Processing

Processes donations but charges 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction. No special nonprofit rates or fee-free options available.

Payment methods

Cards and digital wallets only, no bank transfers

All payment types but requires separate hardware

Credit Card Payments

Supported - Accepts Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover cards

Yes - Stripe accepts all major credit cards including Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover

Apple Pay & Google Pay

Supported - Accepts Apple Pay, Google Pay, and other digital wallet payments

Yes - Stripe supports both Apple Pay and Google Pay for faster, secure mobile checkout experiences

ACH / Bank Transfers

Not supported - PayPal focuses on card payments and PayPal account transfers

Yes - Stripe supports ACH Direct Debit for US bank account payments with lower fees than credit cards

Tap to Pay App

Not supported - PayPal requires separate hardware or QR codes for in-person payments

Yes - Stripe Terminal offers tap-to-pay functionality through mobile apps and card readers for in-person donations

Customer Support

4.5/5.

4.4/5.

Unlimited Support

PayPal offers tiered support based on account type and transaction volume

Stripe offers tiered support based on account volume, with premium support for higher-tier accounts

Phone Support / Office Hours

PayPal provides phone support during standard business hours for eligible accounts

Stripe provides phone support for business accounts during standard business hours

Webinars

PayPal offers occasional educational webinars and training sessions

Stripe offers occasional educational webinars and developer sessions for payment integration

Help Center

PayPal maintains a comprehensive help center with articles and guides

Stripe maintains a comprehensive documentation center with guides and API references

PayPal provides live chat support during business hours

Stripe provides live chat support for account holders during business hours

Nonprofit-Focused Support Team

Support built for businesses, with access tied to account type and transaction volume

Developer-focused support designed for businesses, with premium help for high-volume accounts

Zeffy is 100% free, always.

Calculate savings

How is Zeffy free?

Why Zeffy over PayPal and Stripe?

Why choose Zeffy over PayPal and Stripe if you're a nonprofit

🎟️

Keep 100% of your raffle proceeds

PayPal and Stripe take 2.9% + 30¢ from every ticket sold. Zeffy charges zero fees, so your 50/50 draw or basket raffle actually raises money for your mission.

🧰

Get complete fundraising tools, not just payment processing

PayPal and Stripe only process payments. Zeffy includes raffle management, donor tracking, email templates, and tax receipts in one platform built for nonprofits.

🤝

Access real nonprofit support when you need it

PayPal and Stripe offer basic business hours support. Zeffy provides unlimited help from real people who understand nonprofit fundraising challenges.

Frequently asked questions

Why should nonprofits choose Zeffy over PayPal for donations?

PayPal charges 2.9% + $0.30 per donation, which means $30 in fees on every $1,000 raised. Zeffy is 100% free for nonprofits - no transaction fees, monthly costs, or hidden charges. More of your donations go directly to your cause.

How does Zeffy compare to Stripe for nonprofit fundraising?

Stripe charges 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction and requires technical setup for donation forms. Zeffy offers ready-to-use fundraising tools at zero cost, plus built-in features like donor management and tax receipts that Stripe doesn't provide.

What makes Zeffy different from other payment processors?

Unlike PayPal and Stripe, Zeffy is built specifically for nonprofits with zero fees. We include everything you need - donation forms, event ticketing, peer-to-peer campaigns, and donor management - without charging transaction fees that eat into your budget.

How much can nonprofits save by switching from PayPal to Zeffy?

PayPal's 2.9% + $0.30 fees mean you lose $290 on every $10,000 raised. Zeffy is completely free - no transaction fees, setup costs, or monthly charges. Keep 100% of your donations to fund your mission instead of payment processors.

Does Zeffy offer the same payment options as Stripe without the fees?

Yes, Zeffy accepts all major credit cards, Apple Pay, and Google Pay just like Stripe, but without any processing fees. Plus, donors have the option to leave a voluntary contribution to support our platform, keeping your fundraising completely free.

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!