How to accept donations on WordPress for free
You can accept donations on a WordPress site for free by installing the Nonprofit Manager plugin and connecting PayPal, Venmo, or Stripe. The plugin charges no monthly fee and takes no cut of your donations. You pay only the normal processing fee your payment provider charges. Here is how to set it up.
What you need
- A WordPress site.
- A free PayPal, Venmo, or Stripe account, whichever you want to accept.
- The free Nonprofit Manager plugin.
Set it up
- Install and activate Nonprofit Manager from the WordPress plugin directory.
- In the setup wizard, turn on donations.
- Connect your payment gateway. For PayPal you can use a simple email link or the Smart Button. For Stripe and Venmo, follow the on-screen connection steps.
- Add a donation form to any page or post with the donation block, or the [npmp_donation_form] shortcode.
That is it. Visitors can give without leaving your site.
What “free” does and does not mean
Free means the plugin does not charge you. The catch worth naming: your payment processor still takes its standard cut. Stripe and PayPal each charge roughly 2.9% plus 30 cents per transaction, and registered nonprofits can often apply for lower rates. That is the same fee you would pay with any donation tool. What you avoid is the second layer, the monthly or yearly fee most donation plugins and platforms add on top.
One-time and recurring
The free version handles one-time donations. If you want supporters to give monthly, Nonprofit Manager Pro adds recurring donations through Stripe, with automatic retries if a card fails. Many donation tools charge extra for recurring giving as a separate add-on, so it is worth checking the cost breakdown before you commit to one.
Already using GiveWP or another donation plugin?
If donations are the only reason you added a plugin, it is worth knowing Nonprofit Manager also keeps your members, newsletter, and events in the same place. Here is how it compares to GiveWP, and our best WordPress donation plugins guide compares the full field.
Get started
Install Nonprofit Manager free and turn on donations in a few minutes. It is part of the all-in-one plugin for small nonprofits.