Zeffy vs Localgiving: why pay £180 a year to fundraise?
Localgiving makes you pay £180 a year just to fundraise — then takes 1.9%+20p per donation, 5% on every gift over £200, 5% of your Gift Aid and 15% during match campaigns. Zeffy is completely free: no membership, no platform fee, no card fee, and you keep 100% of donations and 100% of Gift Aid.
Zeffy is trusted by 100,000+ nonprofits
Zeffy VS Localgiving
Zeffy is 100% free, always.
Stop paying to fundraise
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Stop paying £180 a year to fundraise
Localgiving charges UK charities a £180/year membership (£150 + £30 VAT) before you raise a single penny. Zeffy has no membership and no paywall — full access, completely free, for every charity.
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Keep 100% of donations and 100% of Gift Aid
Localgiving stacks 1.9%+20p per donation, 5% on every gift over £200, 15% during match campaigns and a 5% cut of your Gift Aid. With Zeffy there's no platform fee, no transaction fee, no card fee. Ever — and your full Gift Aid reaches your cause.
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Run your whole operation, not just donations
Localgiving covers donation pages and peer-to-peer only. Zeffy adds event ticketing, auctions, raffles, memberships, an online store, email and a donor CRM — all from the same free account.
Frequently asked questions
How much does Localgiving cost a UK charity?
Localgiving charges a £180/year membership (£150 + £30 VAT) just to fundraise, plus 1.9% + 20p on each UK card and PayPal donation, 5% on donations over £200, a 5% fee on Gift Aid claimed through the Localgiving Foundation, and 15% during match-fund campaigns. Zeffy charges charities nothing at all.
Is Zeffy really free for charities?
Yes. No platform fee, no transaction fee, no card fee. Ever. There's no membership and no subscription — every charity gets full access to donations, events, raffles, memberships, an online store, email and a donor CRM at no cost.
Does Zeffy support Gift Aid like Localgiving?
Yes — Zeffy supports Gift Aid on eligible donations so you can reclaim the extra from HMRC, and you keep 100% of it. Localgiving applies a 5% processing fee on Gift Aid claimed through its Foundation, so a slice of that HMRC money never reaches your cause.
How much could my charity save by switching to Zeffy?
Take a charity raising £20,000 a year, including £5,000 in single gifts over £200. On Localgiving that's roughly £180 membership, about £400 in 1.9%+20p card fees, around £250 in the 5% large-gift fee, plus 5% of any Gift Aid claimed — easily £800+ a year before match campaigns. On Zeffy the cost is £0, so that money stays with your mission. (Illustrative; your figures depend on donation mix and Gift Aid claimed.)
What does Localgiving offer that Zeffy doesn't?
Localgiving runs match-fund campaigns within its membership network, though donations during those campaigns carry a 15% fee. Zeffy focuses on giving charities a complete, genuinely free fundraising toolkit so you keep every penny you raise.
Is Zeffy available in the UK?
Yes. Zeffy is available to charities in the UK, alongside the US, Canada and Australia, with full Gift Aid support for UK organisations.
Keep comparing — and see why nonprofits choose Zeffy
Related content
Zeffy was built for nonprofits like yours
focus on what matters
Built for small teams with big missions.
Zeffy is the fundraising platform that cuts out the fees, clears up your tech mess, and puts your cause first — so your team, even if you're a small team wearing many hats or a one-person show, can focus on what really matters.
ZERO-FEE
Keep 100% of every dollar.
No platform fees. No processing fees. No catch. We know it sounds too good to be true, but it's not. Every penny goes straight to your mission, while competitors take 2-3% off every donation.
ALL-IN-ONE PLatform
Ditch the tech mess.
Stop bouncing between MailChimp, Eventbrite, and all those spreadsheets. Now you can handle donations, ticket sales, memberships, raffles, and all your donor info in one spot.
plug-and-play
Get going, fast.
Built for teams like yours — whether you're volunteer-led or have limited staff. Set up donation forms, sell tickets, and launch campaigns without needing a tech wizard. It's super easy, and you'll be up and running in minutes.
mobile-first
Fundraise from every device, anywhere.
From QR codes on flyers to Tap-to-Pay on a phone, Zeffy makes it easy to accept donations on the go. Mobile-optimized and offline-ready, so no donor slips through the cracks.
No turnover
Never lose a donor to volunteer transition.
Centralize supporter relationships, automate thank-you messages, and preserve institutional knowledge when board members rotate out.
100,000+ nonprofits trust Zeffy — and keep their fees at $0.
For 7+ years, Zeffy has supported nonprofits with free, user-friendly fundraising tools.
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As a startup nonprofit with only two members, and no funding (yet) we’d need something with low (or no) fees. Zeffy was a dream come true.
Masey, Loose Ends.
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SUCCESS STORIES
Zero-fee fundraising in action — nonprofit stories worth sharing.
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