Why It Matters That Better Giving Is a Nonprofit
Posted: October 22, 2025
When a nonprofit chooses where to receive donations online, it’s easy to assume that all donation platforms are created equal.
Most offer the same basic features – a donation form, payment processing, and reporting tools. But there’s one difference that matters more than anything else: who benefits when donations are made.
At Better Giving, we’re proud to be a 501(c)(3) nonprofit ourselves. That means we don’t exist to make a profit from donations, we exist to help other nonprofits receive more of them, and to help donors make their gifts go further.
Here’s why that matters for everyone involved.
1. Nonprofits working with nonprofits keeps money in the mission
When a donor gives through Better Giving, their full gift, including any donation to keep Better Giving’s services to nonprofits free, is tax-deductible because it’s made to a registered 501(c)(3) – unlike all the other for-profit companies that ask for ‘tips’ or donations. The Better Giving platform then passes that gift directly to the chosen nonprofit, without any commercial markup, hidden margin, or profit motive built into the process.
Because we’re a nonprofit, every dollar that isn’t needed to operate the platform goes back into strengthening the sector. Improving tools, lowering costs, and growing our own Sustainability Fund that supports nonprofits year-round.
The result: more of every donation stays in the nonprofit world, serving missions instead of shareholders.
2. Donors can give with confidence
Trust is everything in philanthropy. When donors use Better Giving, they know their gifts are being handled by a fellow nonprofit whose sole purpose is to maximize social impact.
That means:
- Transparent fees – Transparent accounting: we only cover the real costs of payment processing and infrastructure.And as a 501(c)(3), we have to do exactly the same reporting of our finances that every nonprofit has to do. Which is publicly available. Both nonprofits and donors can see where the money is going
- Tax-deductible giving: since Better Giving is a 501(c)(3), all gifts made through our platform qualify for charitable tax deductions.
- Mission alignment: donors know that every part of the system, from technology to finance, exists to support good causes, not corporate gain.
By keeping the entire process within the nonprofit ecosystem, donors can be confident that their generosity fuels impact, not margins.
3. Paying for for-profit services isn’t a problem, it’s about the purpose
Nonprofits rely on many for-profit partners: accountants, web developers, designers, software companies. That’s a healthy part of the economy and often the best way to get great tools and expertise.
The difference is about what happens to the surplus.
- For-profit companies exist to create value for their owners or investors.
- Nonprofits exist to create value for the public good.
When a nonprofit pays a company for a service, it’s a fair exchange, buying something that helps the mission run better.
But when donors give through a platform, the gift itself is a charitable act. That’s where a nonprofit-to-nonprofit model like Better Giving matters most:
- Donations and the act of donating shouldn’t generate private profit.
- Fees should reflect real costs, not investor returns.
- Platform improvements should benefit the whole nonprofit community.
So it’s not wrong to use for-profit providers. It’s about matching the model to the purpose.
- When you’re buying tools, for-profit partners can be excellent.
- When you’re receiving donations, a nonprofit partner keeps every dollar true to your mission.
4. Building a stronger charitable commons
When nonprofits work with nonprofits, something bigger happens: we build a shared infrastructure for generosity.
Better Giving exists not to compete with charities, but to empower them, to give every organization, large or small, access to the same transparent tools, the same low-cost processing, and the same opportunity to grow. That’s the Better Giving Alliance
Because our success is measured in impact, not income, we’re accountable to the same community we serve.
More than a platform
Better Giving is more than a platform. It’s a nonprofit partnership model for a better kind of philanthropy. One that ensures:
- Donations stay tax-deductible and mission-focused
- Fees remain transparent and fair
- Every improvement benefits the sector, not investors
When nonprofits work with nonprofits, everyone wins, the organizations, the donors, and the causes that unite us.