Two ways to run a platform that does not charge you
FreeFunder
GoFundMe
What happens if nobody tips
This is the question the tip-based model always raises, and the answer is reassuring in one direction and not the other.
For you: nothing changes. A tip is paid by the contributor on top of their donation. If every single person types zero, you still receive the same amount — their donation minus card processing. The tip is not a fee on you and never comes out of your total.
The card processing does not go away. Whatever happens with tips, Stripe's 2.9% + $0.30 comes out of each donation on FreeFunder, and GoFundMe's identical 2.9% + $0.30 comes out on theirs. Nobody is absorbing that for you.
So on a $100 gift you receive $96.80 on either platform, tips or no tips. The models differ in how the company survives, not in what you get.
Getting paid before you hit the goal
FreeFunder credits the beneficiary's Stripe account as donations arrive rather than holding them against a target, so money is usable while the need is live rather than after it has passed. If you are raising for something with a date on it — a repair, a deposit, a bill — that is worth more than a small fee difference.
Where they are identical
- What you receive. $96.80 from a $100 donation on both.
- Neither charges you a platform fee.
- Both publish a public page that search engines can index.
- Both are funded by asking contributors, not by charging you.
If a public page is the problem
Both of these work by publishing. If the thing you are trying to avoid is a searchable page about your situation, neither of them solves it and neither does any other crowdfunding platform.
A Better Gift is a private request instead: one link, sent to people you choose, never listed and never indexed. It costs your contributors more — 6.9% added on top, so a $100 gift costs them $106.90 — and you receive the full $100.00 in 2-3 business days. If you do not mind the page being public, FreeFunder is cheaper for the giver and you should use it.
All four 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 |
Frequently asked questions
Is FreeFunder really free?
There is no platform fee for campaign owners or beneficiaries, which is genuinely unusual. But card processing still applies: Stripe takes 2.9% + $0.30 from each donation. FreeFunder itself is funded by voluntary contributions that donors can decline by entering zero.
If contributors do not tip FreeFunder, do I get less?
No. The contribution to FreeFunder is separate from your donation and paid on top by the contributor. If everyone enters zero you still receive each donation minus Stripe's 2.9% + $0.30. Declining to tip costs the platform, not you.
Do I have to reach my goal to get the money on FreeFunder?
No. Donations are added to the beneficiary's Stripe account as they come in, so you keep whatever you raise whether or not you hit the target. That is worth checking on any platform, because all-or-nothing models do exist elsewhere.
Which is cheaper, FreeFunder or GoFundMe?
They are the same for you. Both charge no platform fee on a personal fundraiser and both carry 2.9% + $0.30 in card processing, so a $100 donation leaves you with $96.80 on either. Choose on reach, payout behaviour or checkout experience instead — not price.
Can I raise money without the page being public?
Not on FreeFunder or GoFundMe — both work by publishing a page that can be indexed. A private request is a separate category: a single link shared only with people you pick, with nothing listed publicly. It is more expensive for contributors at 6.9% added on top.