Do you need payment processing? Or is always-on support your holy grail? Whatever fundraising software features your nonprofit needs, you can be pretty sure there's a system that offers at least most of what you need.
Here's a side-by-side look at three popular choices in fundraising software: CharityEngine, Salesforce (which offers a Nonprofit Success Pack), and Blackbaud. Use this as a checklist against the features that are most important to your nonprofit, and you'll be closer to finding the perfect solution.
As always, we present the most current information out there. When we learn of updates, we just update the article. You'll always know what we know!
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(Nonprofit Success Pack) |
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| Best CRM For | Small, Midsize, and Enterprise-Level Nonprofits that want a robust all-in-one CRM that also integrates seamlessly with third-party systems | Tech-savvy nonprofits or those with a large IT team | Enterprise-Level Nonprofits |
| Pricing | $$ to $$$ | $ to $$$$ | $$$ to $$$$ |
| Differentiators | All-in-one nonprofit CRM with native functionality enabling essential fundraising functions, including donor management, moves management, major gifts, membership, advocacy, event coordination, and volunteer management | Nonprofit technology built on the world's #1 CRM | The world's most robust fundraising software |
| Support for Nonprofit Products | Yes, dedicated | Community support only | Yes |
| Email Configuration Options | Shared Pool or Dedicated IPs | Shared Pool | Shared Pool |
| PCI and SOC II Status | PCI-certified and SOC-II-certified | PCI and SOC II Compliant | PCI and SOC II Compliant |
| In-House Payment Processing and Billing System | Yes | No | No |
| Key Features | |||
| Email Automation | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Payment Processing | Yes | No | Yes |
| Events | Yes | No | Yes |
| Auctions | Yes | No | Yes |
| Text-to-Give | Yes | No | Yes |
| Advocacy | Yes | No | No |
| Online Donation Forms | Yes | Limited | Yes |
| Reporting and Dashboards | Yes | Yes | Yes, but customized reporting is limited |
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Out-of-the-box Fundraising Reports |
Yes (90+ reports) | Limited (10 reports) | Yes |
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Sustainer/ |
Yes | No | Yes |
| Peer-to-Peer | Yes | No | Yes |
| CRM | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| CMS | Yes | No | Yes, built on WordPress |
| Grants Management | Yes | No | Yes |
| Volunteer Management | Yes | No | Yes |
| Customers Say* | |||
| Pros | “CharityEngine is user-friendly, comes with full support, and allows all your business needs to be maintained and tracked in one location. It is truly a one-stop shop and more than just a management program.” | "We manage all of our donors, event attendees, volunteers, and any other human that's connected with our organization through Salesforce. We spend a lot of time cleaning up the database, and we devote a lot of staff time to Salesforce management in general, but we consider it essential." | "Good for a non-profit organization with many donors." |
| Cons | “Customer support is great but can sometimes take a while to get a resolution. While they have extensive documentation in their help center, it’s a little cumbersome to navigate if you’re trying to find something very specific, and I’m sure it’s hard for them to keep it up-to-date due to new features.” | "It can do anything...if you can afford to pay someone a lot of money to set it up for you." | "Working with Blackbaud is a very unpleasant experience. Trying to get answers to anything is impossible." |
*Customer quotes from Capterra
Two notes from very reliable sources: With Salesforce, the entry point is affordable. However, as soon as you add necessary features, the costs escalate quickly. And it's important to note that Blackbaud outsources support to India. To become robust, they've acquired companies and cobbled them together, so support is needed.
What if the features you're looking for are in several systems? We recommend that you start with an agnostic guide - our Guide to Selecting a Nonprofit CRM is free and has downloadable workbooks you can use to help you shop - and discern what features are the most critical for your nonprofit's success. These tools will point you in the right direction!
We always like to remind software shoppers that the cost isn't the only consideration when buying new software. That's an eye-opening article for some nonprofits!
If you've read through these features and CharityEngine has piqued your curiosity, give us a call. Are we the right fit for you? Maybe not. But we'll never know unless we chat!