If you are looking for aid rather than a platform, this is the wrong page and we would rather send you to the right one. See charities that help with funeral costs — FEMA, VA burial allowances, TEARS and county programs. That page is a directory of organisations that give money. This page compares tools for collecting it from people who knew the person.
The structural difference
This is the thing that actually separates them, and it is not the fee.
Ever Loved is built around the death
GoFundMe is a general platform that handles funerals among everything else
Paying the funeral home directly is the underrated feature
Funeral homes frequently want payment at or before the service, which is exactly when the money has not arrived yet. Ever Loved lets donations route straight to the home, which removes a step and a delay at a point in the week when neither is welcome.
With GoFundMe the money goes to your bank and you settle with the home yourself. That is more control and more admin, and which of those you want depends on whether you have the capacity to do admin that week.
Where the two are the same
- Both cost 2.9% + $0.30 per donation. On a $100 gift you receive $96.80 either way. Price is not a reason to pick one.
- Both publish a public page that can be found by search. For a funeral that is often wanted — it is how distant friends and colleagues find out. Sometimes it is not.
- Both are funded by contributors, not by you.
If you would rather it were not public
A Better Gift is a private request: one link, sent to the people you choose, never listed and never indexed.
What it does not do, plainly: there is no memorial site, no obituary, no photo gallery, and no way to pay the funeral home directly. If you want a place for people to leave stories about the person, Ever Loved does something this does not and you should use Ever Loved.
It is also more expensive for the giver. The 6.9% fee is added on top and paid by the contributor, so a $100 gift costs them $106.90 and you receive the full $100.00 in 2-3 business days.
The three options side by side
| Platform | Contributor pays | You receive | Page is public? |
|---|---|---|---|
| GoFundMe | $100.00 | $96.80 | Yes — indexed by Google |
| GiveSendGo | $100.00 (+10% tip prompt) | $97.00 | Yes — public |
| FreeFunder | $100.00 (+optional tip) | $96.80 | Yes — public |
| Ever Loved | $100.00 | $96.80 | Yes — public |
| A Better Gift | $106.90 | $100.00 | No — never indexed |
Which page do you actually want?
There are two funeral-cost pages on this site and they answer different questions. This is how to tell which is yours.
You want charities that help with funeral costs if…
You want this page if…
Most families end up needing both, in that order: apply to the programs first because that money does not come out of anyone's pocket, then use a platform for whatever gap is left. The directory page has a section on exactly that gap.
Frequently asked questions
Is Ever Loved cheaper than GoFundMe?
No — they are the same. Neither charges a platform fee on donations and both carry 2.9% + $0.30 in card processing, so a $100 donation leaves you with $96.80 on either. Ever Loved does sell an optional premium memorial website for a one-time $199.99, which GoFundMe has no equivalent of.
Can Ever Loved pay my funeral home directly?
Yes. Donations can be set to transfer automatically either to a bank account or to the funeral home. That matters because many funeral homes want payment at or before the service, and routing donations straight there removes a step at the point when it is hardest to deal with.
Does Ever Loved cost anything to set up?
Standard memorial websites are free and there is no service fee taken from donations. The only unavoidable cost is card processing at 2.9% + $0.30 per donation, which goes to Stripe. The premium website is a one-time $199.99 and is optional.
Should I use a platform or apply for funeral assistance first?
Apply first. Program money — FEMA funeral assistance, a VA burial allowance, county indigent burial — does not come out of anyone's pocket and does not need to be asked for from family. Use a platform for whatever gap is left afterwards. Our directory of charities that help with funeral costs covers the programs and who qualifies.
Can I raise money for a funeral without a public page?
Yes, but not through a crowdfunding platform, because publishing a page is how they work. A private request is a different product: a single link you send to chosen people, never listed and never indexed. It costs the contributor more — 6.9% on top — and it gives you no memorial page or obituary.