Are there fees when giving via the Giving Basket?
Yes, but they are not charged by Charity Navigator or by Give Lively, which powers the Giving Basket. Charity Navigator charges no administrative fees and Give Lively’s fundraising technology is free for nonprofits.
The fees are charged by the independent services used to process and disburse each donation. As of November 2021, those third-party fees are as follows:
- 0.8% (with a cap of $5, no matter how large the donation) for ACH/bank transfers
- 2.2% + $0.30 for major credit cards, including Visa, MasterCard, Discover, Diner Club and JCB
- 3.5% for American Express
- 1.99% + $0.49 for PayPal
- $0.93 per check processing fee when we use a check to disburse funds to nonprofits: this is subtracted from the lump-sum check, applied proportionally across all donations included in the check.
These figures are based on special nonprofit rates offered by Stripe and PayPal, the primary payment processors. All nonprofits receiving donations through the Giving Basket automatically benefit from these special rates through Give Lively. Standard rates are slightly different.
Again, these fees do not go to Charity Navigator or Give Lively. They are automatically deducted from each donation by the third-party payment processors. That said, depending on the payment method, you may have the option of covering the processing fees (as an additional tax-deductible gift) at checkout in the Giving Basket.