Which charity website should you use?

The spotlight is on charity websites after it emerged that the site raising funds for the family of Keith Palmer, the police office killed in the Westminster attack, had pocketed a large slice of the donations.

Donors were shocked to discover that JustGiving.com earned tens of thousands of pounds from public contributions in the wake of the attack. But the practice is not unusual, with many of the fundraising websites that have popped up in recent years also charging fees.

Rhys Goode, a spokesman for JustGiving, says the website’s charges have been designed to cover the cost of running a large operation that employs 125 people. “Our staff work hard to help the site raise as much money for good causes as possible,” he says. “All the charities we work with are aware of what we charge, but believe we can help them raise the maximum possible money.”

At the time of writing the crowdfunding site had raised £736,093 to support PC Palmer’s family, which means that its fees will run towards £40,000. Although JustGiving has made a £10,000 donation to the campaign, it has refused to waive its fees in this case.

“If we do that, how could we then charge a fee, say, to a small child who needs urgent cancer treatment abroad?” says Goode.

JustGiving is a for-profit organisation but Goode says that all the funds the website generates are ploughed back into the global business, which has raised more than $4.2bn (£3.4bn) in 164 countries since it was launched in 2001. But its relatively high charges have prompted accusations that the company is raking in large profits, while paying its top staff up to £200,000 a year.

Every charity website has different charges. If you make a £10 donation, and the site claims Gift Aid worth £2.50 on top of the donation, your total contribution is £12.50. However, while some sites will automatically pass on that full amount, others do not. Here’s a rundown of what the biggest sites offer:

BT MyDonate

Number of charities signed up 11,500.

How much of a £10 donation goes to the charity? £12.35.

Site charges None.

Bank card processing fees 15p on debit cards, 1.3% on credit cards.

Fees charged to charity None.

What does the fee cover? BT covers the full cost of running the service.

Can donor pay fees on behalf of the charity? Not currently.

Why should donors choose your site?

“MyDonate is a not-for-profit, online fundraising service which charges no commission, no set-up fee and no monthly subscription charges.”

CharityChoice.co.uk

Number of charities signed up 1,800 sites have signed up, with 160,000 able to do so free of charge.

How much of a £10 donation goes to the charity? £12.25, or £12.50 if donor opts to pay card fees.

Site charges None.

Bank card processing fees 10p plus 15p on debit cards or 1.45% on credit cards.

Fees charged to charity The basic package is free, while an optional premium subscription costs £89 a year plus VAT.

What does the fee cover? No fee.

Can donor pay fees on behalf of the charity? Donors can opt to pay the card-processing fee so that the full donation goes to the charity.

Why should donors choose your site?

“We are transparent about our fees and charges and work hard to get the lowest possible card rates and help charities receive the maximum from each donation. We list more than 160,000 charities on our site and our aim is to give the general public as much information as possible about charities so that they can make informed choices.”

EveryClick.com

Number of charities signed upThe site’s fundraising products are available to every registered UK charity, so potentially more than 220,000.

How much of a £10 donation goes to the charity? £11.94.

Site charges Fee of 4.8% on credit and debit card donations, plus 3% on Gift Aid.

Bank card processing fees There is no card handling fee.

Fees charged to charity. None.

What does the fee cover? Fees are retained by payment partner Technology Trust. EveryClick is a profit-making organisation that generates revenues from its Give as you Live shopping and price comparison website, which allows users to raise money when shopping on the web. It retains half the retailer’s commission to develop the shopping platform and improve the user experience.

Can donor pay fees on behalf of the charity? Currently not offered.

Why should donors choose your site? “Give as you Live aims to provide charities with new revenue streams, with no charges to charity or supporter, by using retailer commission.”

Givey.com

Number of charities signed up 8,000.

How much of a £10 donation goes to the charity? £12.50.

Site charges Donor pays 5% fee on top, so a £10 donation will cost £10.50.

Bank card processing fees No transaction fees.

Fees charged to charity None.

What does the fee cover? Givey.com is a for-profit organisation that charges fees to cover the cost of processing transactions and running its platform.

Can donor pay fees on behalf of the charity? Charity always receives the full donation.

Why should donors choose your site? “We are the champions for small to medium-sized charities, we have an ethos of transparency and believe in using technology to help charities raise more money.”

JustGiving.com

Number of charities signed up 25,000.

How much of a £10 donation goes to the charity? The charity receives £11.74.

Site charges Site charges a fee of 5% on donation and Gift Aid contribution.

Bank card processing fees 1.25% on debit and credit card donations and 1.45% on PayPal UK donations.

Fees charged to charity Charities pay 2%-5% on each donation, plus a monthly membership fee of £15 or £39 depending on volume of donations.

What does the fee cover? Fees are reinvested in the company to build innovative new tools to make giving better for everyone.

Can donor pay fees on behalf of the charity? Unavailable at present.

Why should donors choose your site? “To raise more money, charities and their supporters deserve the best, not the cheapest, and we’re enormously proud that more people and charities trust JustGiving with their online fundraising than any other site.”

Localgiving.org

Number of charities signed up More than 2,500.

How much of a £10 donation goes to the charity? £11.67.

Site charges There is a 5% fee.

Bank card processing fees Debit card donations incur a 1% fee plus 10p.

Fees charged to charity Membership costs £80 a year plus VAT.

What does the fee cover? The fee covers the costs of running a secure online donations service, fundraising campaigns, match funding programmes, one-to-one support, mentoring, and training and support to charities. Localgiving is a non-profit social enterprise.

Can donor pay fees on behalf of the charity? Not offered at present.

Why should donors choose your site?

“We are more than a donation platform, we specialise in supporting small, locally focused organisations to raise essential funds in an efficient manner, with free-to-access webinars and training sessions.”

PayPal Giving Fund

Number of charities signed up More than 3,500.

How much of a £10 donation goes to the charity? £12.50.

Site charges None.

Bank card processing fees None.

Fees charged to charity None.

What does the fee cover? No fee.

Can donor pay fees on behalf of the charity? The entire donation is paid to the nominated charity.

Why should donors choose your site?

“PayPal Giving Fund provides a secure and easy way for people to find and support their favourite causes online, with no extra fees.”

TheBigGive.org.uk

Number of charities signed up 9,229.

How much of a £10 donation goes to the charity? £12.

Site charges 4% on donation and Gift Aid, plus 50p processing fee.

Bank card processing fees None.

Fees charged to charity There are no further charges.

What does the fee cover? Fee covers the operational costs of the payment processor.

Can donor pay fees on behalf of the charity? Option not currently available.

Why should donors choose your site?

“We run match funding campaigns where donations to participating charities are doubled. The Big Give is a charity and entirely not-for-profit.”

Virgin Money Giving

Number of charities signed up More than 12,500.

How much of a £10 donation goes to the charity? £12.15.

Site charges 2% of donation.

Bank card processing fees 1.45%.

Fees charged to charity The site charges a one-off set-up fee of £150 plus VAT, plus a transaction fee of 2% on donations and event fees.

What does the fee cover? “Virgin Money Giving is a not-for-profit service. We charge charities the minimum fees needed to cover running costs.”

Can donor pay fees on behalf of the charity? Option not available.

Why should donors choose your site? “Virgin Money Giving allows charities, corporates, teams and individuals to raise money online easily and efficiently to support a host of activities. We are also the official fundraising partner for many high-profile events, including the London Marathon.”

Wonderful.org

Number of charities signed up 100.

How much of a £10 donation goes to the charity? With Gift Aid, charities receive £12.50.

Site charges None.

Bank card processing fees None – site covers all the fees.

Fees charged to charity None.

What does the fee cover? Site makes no deductions for its operating costs.

Can donor pay fees on behalf of the charity? The full amount of the donation goes to charity.

Why should donors choose your site? “Wonderful is a non-profit organisation run by volunteers and funded entirely by corporate sponsorship from philanthropic businesses, which guarantees that charities, fundraisers and sponsors pay nothing whatsoever.”