How SmartChange Helps You Keep More

By SmartChange Staff

April 25, 2025

These days, nonprofits are looking more closely at where every dollar goes—and rightly so. While donors are it’s more important than ever to understand what your fundraising platform really costs.

‍

At SmartChange, our effective rate averages just 1–2% per transaction. That’s hard—maybe even impossible—to beat.

How do we do it? Big-time transparency. And a lot of faith in your donors.

At SmartChange - it's free to sign up, and there are no monthly charges. Our only fee is a transaction fee, and our donors opt to cover this fee 70-90% of the time. But, we do have to operate! So we charge a flat 6.5% fee—and that’s it. No tipping prompts. No surprise add-ons. Just a simple model helps you raise more and keep more. And here’s why that matters now more than ever.

How Tips Hurt

Many platforms rely heavily on donor tips to fund their operations. These tips can be as high as 15–20% and are often suggested automatically at checkout. Studies show that 60–70% of donors choose to tip when prompted—meaning that generous donors who could offset your costs are instead funding platform operations. That means another platform can cost your campaign more than double what a flat-rate platform does.

‍While we haven’t found public tipping data in the political space, the fundraising world has taken note of how platforms like Givebutter and GoFundMe use tipping models to boost their own revenue. In practice, these tips are:

Not going to your campaign
Not tax-deductible
Creating donor confusion and fatigue

Donors are generous—when they give to a campaign, they want their money to make a difference. But when platforms leverage tips as a revenue stream, that money doesn't lower your costs. Instead, it reduces the impact of every dollar given.

We Let Donors Help You—Not Us

At SmartChange, we give donors the option to cover your 6.5% fee—and a large majority do. Why? Because donors want their full contribution to support the candidate they believe in, not the company that processes the payment.

We’ve built our platform with that in mind. No tip prompts. No “support the platform” messages. Just one clear option: “Would you like to cover the cost of processing so 100% of your donation goes to the campaign?”

When donors say yes, you keep 100% of their intended gift. That’s how it should be.

‍

Why This Saves You Money

It might sound counterintuitive, but our 6.5% fee—paired with donor fee coverage—can actually put more money into your campaign account than other platforms with processing fees, settlement fees, ACH fees, and while collecting tips.

Here’s what you get with SmartChange:

✅ No donor confusion
✅ No surprise platform costs
✅ High donor fee coverage rates
✅ Transparent, predictable budgeting
✅ A flat rate that ends up cheaper than tip-based platforms 70%-90% of the time.

‍

Plus, we get you up and running fast—same-day if needed—with simple tools built for modern campaigns.

In a Time of Change, Choose a Platform That Works for You

You’ve seen how quickly things can shift. Don't wait for another surprise, when you need stability.

‍

SmartChange was built by two women who spent years in the field running grassroots campaigns. We know what it’s like to need tools that are clear, fast, and actually helpful. That’s why we’re committed to delivering a platform that gives you everything you need—and nothing you don’t.

Check out our Donor Fee Cover case study here

Learn more or get started at smartchange.app

Let’s make every dollar count.

Think your donors won’t cover your fee? Talk to us. We offer custom pricing when needed.

Updated on: 29/07/2025

Was this article helpful?

Thank you!