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Zeffy vs PayPal for Nonprofits: Fees and Features Compared
PayPal collects donations for a fee on each one, even at its charity rate. Zeffy is free, with ticketing, auctions, a store and a donor CRM built in.
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Zeffy VS PayPal
Pricing
Zeffy:
$
0.
PayPal: 
No subscription, but a fee on every donation, even at the charity rate.
On a $100 donation
Zeffy:
$
100.
Your nonprofit keeps all $100.
PayPal:
$97.52.
at the charity rate. $96.62 at the standard rate.
Processing fees
PayPal:
1.99% + $0.49.
per donation for approved charities. 2.89% + $0.49 otherwise.
Platform fees
Zeffy:
$
0.
Zeffy never takes a cut. You keep 100% of every donation.
PayPal:
$0.
No platform or setup fee.
Monthly fees
Zeffy:
$
0/month.
No subscriptions, no paywalls. Every org, big or small, gets full access for free.
PayPal:
$0.
No monthly fee for the Donate button.
Other fees
Zeffy:
$
0.
We've never charged a single cent to nonprofits and we never will.
PayPal:
+1.50% on international donations, 1.50% for instant transfers, dispute fees.
Value for money
PayPal:
What it means
Zeffy:
Zeffy keeps nothing from your donations, with no charity rate to apply for: a $100 gift reaches your nonprofit as $100.
PayPal:
PayPal has no subscription, but keeps 1.99% + $0.49 of every donation at its charity rate, or 2.89% + $0.49 without approval.
Sources
Zeffy:
PayPal:
Payment Methods
Zeffy: 
Cards, wallets, ACH, DAFs and Tap to Pay. No fees, no processor to set up.
PayPal:
PayPal, Venmo, cards and wallets, with a fee on every donation.
Credit Card Payments
Zeffy:
Accept all major credit cards with zero processing fees. Zeffy covers the cost, so you keep 100% of every donation.
PayPal:
Cards through PayPal checkout, at the donation rate.
Apple Pay & Google Pay
Zeffy:
One-tap donations and tickets with Apple Pay & Google Pay. No fees, just smooth mobile checkouts.
PayPal:
Digital wallets such as Apple Pay, at the donation rate.
ACH / Bank Transfers
Zeffy:
Accept bank transfers with zero fees. Full donation amounts go straight to your mission.
PayPal:
Bank-funded payments from the donor's PayPal account.
Donor-Advised Funds (DAF)
Zeffy:
Accept donor-advised fund gifts of $1,000 or more, for US charities, with no fees.
PayPal:
Grants from DAF sponsors to confirmed charities, with no fee.
Countries & currencies
Zeffy:
For nonprofits in the US, Canada, the UK, Ireland, Australia and Germany, paid in their local currency.
PayPal:
Donors in 200+ markets. International donations cost 1.50% more.
Tap to Pay App
Zeffy:
Anyone on your team can take payments from their phone. No card reader, no fees, no friction.
PayPal:
Tap to Pay in the PayPal app, no hardware needed. Card-present fees apply.
Payouts
Zeffy:
Paid out to your bank automatically every Monday, or monthly. Next-day payouts available.
PayPal:
Gifts land in your PayPal balance. Transfer them to your bank for free, or instantly for 1.50%. PayPal can hold a payment for up to 21 days.
What it means
Zeffy:
Zeffy makes cards, wallets, ACH, DAF gifts and Tap to Pay free, and pays out to your bank automatically.
PayPal:
PayPal brings the PayPal and Venmo wallets donors know, with a fee on every donation and payouts you transfer yourself.
Sources
Zeffy:
All-in-one fundraising
Zeffy:
4.8/5.
Ease of use on Capterra. Every way to raise money in one place, all free.
PayPal:
4.6/5.
Ease of use on Capterra. A way to collect donations, not a fundraising platform.
Donations
Zeffy:
Donation forms and pages with recurring giving, pledges, fund choice and automatic tax receipts. No fees.
PayPal:
Donate button and donation link, one-time or monthly.
Ticketing
Zeffy:
Sell tickets and run registrations. Every buyer lands in your donor CRM. No fees.
PayPal:
Event ticketing is not publicly mentioned.
Peer-to-Peer Fundraising
Zeffy:
Personal and team pages with live leaderboards. Every donor they bring in becomes your contact.
PayPal:
Not offered. PayPal Fundraisers was discontinued in 2024.
Auctions
Zeffy:
Silent auctions with outbid alerts for bidders. No platform fee, no per-item fee.
PayPal:
Auctions are not publicly mentioned.
Raffles
Zeffy:
Numbered digital tickets sent automatically, bundles and 50/50 thermometers. No fee on any ticket.
PayPal:
Raffles are not publicly mentioned.
Online Store
Zeffy:
Sell merch with sizes and stock counts, with pick-up or shipping. Keep every dollar.
PayPal:
No store builder. PayPal checkout works on a store you build elsewhere.
Memberships
Zeffy:
Sign-up forms, automatic renewals and reminders, and digital cards in Apple and Google Wallet. No fees on dues.
PayPal:
Recurring payments only, with no membership management.
What it means
Zeffy:
Zeffy turns a donate button into a full fundraising platform: tickets, peer-to-peer, auctions, raffles, a store and memberships, free.
PayPal:
PayPal collects donations. Tickets, peer-to-peer, auctions, raffles, a store and memberships need other tools.
Sources
Zeffy:
Donations · Ticketing · Peer-to-peer · Auctions · Raffles · Store · Memberships
PayPal:
Donor CRM
Zeffy:
A free CRM built into your fundraising. Every gift lands on the donor record.
PayPal:
No donor CRM. Transaction reports only.
Donor database
Zeffy:
Donations, tickets, memberships and shop orders build your donor database on their own. Unlimited contacts.
PayPal:
Transaction history, not donor records.
Notes & reminders
Zeffy:
A timeline of gifts, emails and notes per contact, with reminders and a daily email of follow-ups due.
PayPal:
Notes and reminders are not publicly mentioned.
Segments & lists
Zeffy:
Filter by giving, campaign or any custom property, and save it as an auto-updating list.
PayPal:
Filters on transaction reports.
Newsletters
Zeffy:
Drag-and-drop builder and AI drafts, with open, click and donation reporting. Unlimited sends, no fees.
PayPal:
Newsletters are not publicly mentioned.
Automations
Zeffy:
A welcome series for new subscribers that stops once they give or go monthly. Campaign reminders and receipts send on their own.
PayPal:
Donor automations are not publicly mentioned.
Reporting
Zeffy:
Live dashboards for recurring donors, plus the AI Data Assistant: ask in plain words, get charts back.
PayPal:
Reports on individual and recurring donations, with filters.
Tax receipts
Zeffy:
Auto-generated, resendable, and attributed to the right fund.
PayPal:
Not publicly mentioned for direct gifts. PayPal Giving Fund receipts the gifts made through it.
Integrations
Zeffy:
QuickBooks sync, Zapier, and a public API with webhooks, all free. Import contacts straight from Mailchimp.
PayPal:
PayPal works as a payment option inside fundraising platforms.
Price
Zeffy:
$0. No per-contact or per-user fees, ever.
PayPal:
No CRM. A separate CRM is another subscription.
What it means
Zeffy:
Zeffy records donors, not just transactions: each gift lands on a donor record with history, receipts and emails, for free.
PayPal:
PayPal records transactions, not donors: giving history, segments, receipts and emails need a separate CRM.
Support
Zeffy:
4.9/5.
Customer service on Capterra, from 464 reviews. Email, chat and calls on request, free for every nonprofit.
PayPal:
4.2/5.
Customer service on Capterra. Help center, Message Center and phone lines.
Help Center
Zeffy:
500+ help articles and step-by-step guides, all free, all the time.
PayPal:
PayPal Help Center.
Email Support
Zeffy:
Email us anytime. Answers within 2 to 6 business hours.
PayPal:
Message Center in your PayPal account.
Phone Support
Zeffy:
Calls on request. Reach out by email or chat first and we'll set one up.
PayPal:
Phone lines for sales and for Giving Fund enrollment.
Onboarding
Zeffy:
No training required, and we're here by email or chat if you need us.
PayPal:
Self-serve. Charity confirmation usually within 2 business days.
Community
Zeffy:
Join thousands of nonprofits sharing tips, templates, and best practices.
PayPal:
Not publicly mentioned on its nonprofit pages.
What it means
Zeffy:
Zeffy support is built for nonprofits: email and chat within 2 to 6 business hours, and calls on request.
PayPal:
PayPal offers general business support through its help center, Message Center and phone lines.
Zeffy is 100% free, always.
Keep every dollar, with every tool in one place
💯
Keep every dollar donors give you
PayPal keeps 1.99% + $0.49 of every donation at its charity rate. With Zeffy, your nonprofit receives 100% of every gift, whether donors leave a voluntary contribution or not.
🧰
More than a donate button
PayPal collects donations. Zeffy adds ticketing, peer-to-peer, auctions, raffles, a store and memberships, all free, in one platform.
🤝
A free CRM that fills itself
Every Zeffy payment lands on the donor's record, ready to segment, email and receipt. With PayPal, donor records live in another tool.
What is the difference between Zeffy and PayPal?
Zeffy is a fundraising platform, not just a way to pay: donations, tickets, peer-to-peer, auctions, raffles, a store, memberships and a donor CRM, with no fee on any payment. PayPal is a payment processor. It collects donations through a Donate button for a fee on each one, 1.99% + $0.49 at its charity rate, and leaves events, donor records and emails to other tools.
Can donors pay with PayPal or Venmo on Zeffy?
No. PayPal and Venmo are not payment methods on Zeffy. Donors can pay by credit or debit card, Apple Pay or Google Pay, by ACH bank transfer in the US and Canada, or from a donor-advised fund in the US. Every one of these is free for your nonprofit.
How much does PayPal charge nonprofits?
PayPal has no monthly or setup fee for its Donate button. It charges on every donation:
- 2.89% + $0.49 per donation at the standard rate.
- 1.99% + $0.49 at the charity rate, for confirmed 501(c)(3) organizations after application and approval.
- An extra 1.50% on international donations.
- 1.50% to transfer funds to your bank instantly. Standard transfers are free.
On a $100 donation, your nonprofit keeps $97.52 at the charity rate, or $96.62 at the standard rate. With Zeffy, your nonprofit keeps $100, whether or not the donor leaves a contribution: see how Zeffy is free. Source: paypal.com, October 2026.
How do we get PayPal's charity rate?
Apply to confirm your charity in your PayPal Business account. PayPal requires a valid US 501(c)(3) or equivalent and proof that the account holder can act for the organization. Most charities are confirmed within 2 business days. The rate is 1.99% + $0.49, and not every payment type qualifies. With Zeffy, there is no rate to apply for: every payment is free for your nonprofit.
Is PayPal Giving Fund free?
Yes. PayPal Giving Fund is a separate charity run by PayPal. It doesn't charge donors or charities, and when donors give in the PayPal app or on paypal.com, PayPal covers the transaction fees. It collects gifts made on PayPal, Facebook, Instagram, GoFundMe and eBay, then grants them to your nonprofit once a month, for gifts made from the 16th to the 15th. Charities that aren't enrolled typically wait up to 75 days for a check.
Does PayPal offer donor management, receipts or event tools?
No. PayPal reports on transactions, but has no donor records, newsletters or event ticketing, and tax receipts for direct gifts are not publicly mentioned. Zeffy includes all of them, free. Every gift, ticket and membership lands on the donor's record, with full giving history, ready to segment, email and receipt.
How fast do Zeffy and PayPal pay out?
With PayPal, donations land in your PayPal balance. You transfer them to your bank for free, or instantly for 1.50%, and PayPal can hold a payment for up to 21 days. Giving Fund gifts are paid monthly.
Zeffy pays out to your bank automatically every Monday, or monthly if you prefer, with no fee. New payments first clear a fraud review, usually 1 to 3 business days, and next-day payouts can be granted once you have a payout history.
Is Zeffy really free?
Yes. Unlike PayPal's fee on every donation, Zeffy charges no platform fee, no processing fee and no subscription. Donors can leave an optional contribution to Zeffy at checkout, and it never comes out of your donation. See how Zeffy is free.
Still undecided?
Keep comparing — and see why nonprofits choose Zeffy
100,000+ nonprofits trust Zeffy — and keep their fees at $0.
For 7+ years, Zeffy has supported nonprofits with free, user-friendly fundraising tools.
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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.”
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Amy R
Rebuilding Together Metro Chicago
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!
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Debra B
Glory to Glory Women's Mentoring Ministry
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!!
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Carmen M
DIVINA World Foundation
Zeffy is very easy to use and ensures that every dollar quickly gets into our account.. A huge help to our work!
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Nathan C
Jiwa International
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.
Ryan S
Jesters Theatre: Youth Unlimited
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.
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Jennifer H
GSCB Troop 144
We were ready to sell tickets in less than 30 minutes. The reporting capabilities were better than some other paid-for sites.
Mark B
Theta Mu Lambda Charitable Foundation
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!
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Stevie C
We Are HER
SUCCESS STORIES
Zero-fee fundraising in action — nonprofit stories worth sharing.
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