Choosing between text-to-give and text-to-donate can feel confusing because both begin with an SMS keyword and promise fast mobile giving. While text-to-give and text-to-donate are not the same.
In a traditional text-to-give model, a supporter texts a keyword to a short code and confirms a fixed gift which is carrier billed which is added to the phone bill and remitted later.
While in a modern text-to-donate flow, the donor receives a donation link that opens a secure, mobile-optimized page with cards and digital wallets.
By transforming from carrier billing to a link-based checkout upgrades the donor experience, unlocks full data capture, and increases average gift, recurring conversion, and overall Return of investment(ROI).
Text-to-give is ideal for broad, high-velocity campaigns where speed matters more than personalization, while Text-to-donate is ideal when you want flexible amounts, recurring giving, and full donor data for receipts, CRM, segmentation, and stewardship.
Though both approaches are SMS fundraising, they differ in operations, costs, and compliance rules. With link-based mobile giving, prioritize PCI scope, fast page loads, and strong digital wallet support.
Through this blog we will walk you through text-to-give versus text-to-donate and set up the deeper comparison into donor experience, average gift, recurring rates, costs, and settlement, analytics, and real-world instances for nonprofits, churches, and campaigns.
You will receive ready-to-use message templates, step-by-step setup checklists, and essential KPIs that tap-through, completion rate, donor LTV to help you choose the model that best fits your audience, budget, and goals.We will explain key terms like text-to-give vs text-to-donate, short codes vs long codes, donation links, wallet placement, SMS opt-ins and how to report results in your CRM, finance, and analytics tools
What is Text-To-Give?
It is the traditional carrier-billed SMS donation model. A supporter texts a keyword to a short code, confirms the prompt, and the preset gift is added to their mobile phone bill.
Gift amounts are fixed per campaign and defined in advance with the mobile-giving program and carriers, for instance, $5, $10, $25 so donors cannot choose another amount after launch.
Because this is carrier billed, your organization must first qualify for the program, secure an approved keyword and short code, and meet messaging rules including STOP and HELP responses.
Once live, you promote the call-to-action everywhere whether broadcast, social, print, stage screens to maximize participation. Funds are remitted to your nonprofit through the carrier settlement process; timing and fees depending on the program, and in many initiatives the full amount is passed through.
As donor data is limited by default, so plan a follow-up path for opt-in updates and stewardship.
Text-To-Give: oldie but goodie.
It is one of the most famous large-scale uses that arrived during the 2010 Haiti earthquake response when SMS appeals helped raise tens of millions of dollars.
The model is powerful for moments of mass attention where donors text a keyword, confirm, and a fixed amount(often $10) is billed to their carrier while there are also limitations.
Gifts were mostly impulsive, capped at small denominations, and many donors didn’t seek updates or give again. That means great surge volume, but weak long-term value and minimal supporter data.
At $10 per text, you need 100 donors to reach $1,000 and only a small share will become monthly givers. Use text-to-give for urgent, mass appeals but not as a long-term donor relationship channel.
Evaluate setup effort, promotional spend, and settlement delays against your goals—and consider pairing text-to-give with text-to-donate for reach and retention.
Advantages of Text-to-Give
1. Frictionless, phone-bill checkout:
Donors give by sending a keyword to a short code and confirming by SMS. While there is no card entry, account creation, or app install while the charge appears on the mobile phone bill. This near-zero friction is ideal for first-time and casual supporters.
2. Impulse-friendly micro-gifts:
With small, fixed amounts (often $5, $10, $20) then the decision feels low-risk and fast. That’s why text-to-give shines for impulse gifts like during the Haiti response, most donors gave on the spot rather than after research.
3. Immediate response at scale:
SMS campaigns convert attention into action in real time which is perfect for live broadcasts, stadium shout-outs, and disaster coverage. For instance, in the Haiti campaign, about half donated immediately after the appeal, and many others contributed later that same day.
4. Broad reach and accessibility:
Because it works on basic phones and low bandwidth, text-to-give meets donors where there are no smartphone wallets or fast data required. Such inclusivity expands reach across age groups, device types, and connectivity levels.
5. Simple creative and amplification:
A short, memorable call-to-action is easy to print on signage, add to TV lower-thirds, and stage announcements. One keyword, one short code, and clear confirmation copy make it straightforward for staff and volunteers to promote everywhere.
Disadvantages of Text-to-Give
1. No conversational engagement:
SMS is powerful when it feels two-way, but text-to-give is mostly a one-side interaction. After the donor texts the keyword and confirms, the flow usually ends with a generic, auto-reply “thank you”. There is a little scope for dynamic prompts, questions, or customized follow-ups that deepen connection or guide a next step.
2. Fixed, inflexible donation amounts:
Gift sizes are pre-set per campaign for instance $5, $10, $25 and can’t be changed mid-stream. If someone wants to give more, then they must send multiple texts or find another channel creating friction and leaving larger gifts on the table. You also can’t test suggested amounts or anchor higher giving like you can on a web form.
3. Limited donor data and weak retention:
Carrier-billed gifts hardly capture full profiles like name, email, consent, due to which receipt, stewardship, and upgrades are harder. And without meaningful data, converting first-time donors into repeat or monthly givers is difficult, which suppresses lifetime value(LTV).
4. Lower list quality and poor targeting:
Because the CTA is broadcast widely whether TV, stadiums, social, so responses lean toward impulse givers rather than mission-aligned supporters. You can’t easily pre-qualify audiences or segment by interest, so follow-up campaigns suffer and staff may waste time filtering for truly engaged contacts.
5. Operational and financial constraints:
Such programs come with carrier rules, short-code approvals, and compliance overhead like STOP or HELP, disclosures. Settlement can be slower and fee structures less transparent than standard processors, making cash-flow planning and reconciliation more complicated.
Refunds, dispute handling, and reporting are also less flexible than link-based, processor-settled donations.
When will Text-To-Give work for you?
Text-to-give works better in short, high-visibility bursts like telethons, disaster relief, stadium shout-outs where speed matters more than personalization.
The fixed, carrier-billed amounts make it effortless for supporters to act in seconds, but they also cap gift size and limit data capture. Because many carrier programs impose qualification challenges and sometimes significant revenue thresholds, smaller to newer nonprofits may find onboarding difficult.
If your goal is sustained giving, rich donor data, or recurring programs, text-to-give is rarely the most efficient.
Text-To-Donate: a better way to raise funds via text
Text-to-donate keeps the SMS entry point but sends donors a secure link to a mobile-optimized donation page. From there, you can offer flexible amounts, digital wallets like Apple Pay, Google Pay, UPI and a clear recurring toggle lifting average gift and donor lifetime value.
You can also capture essential information like name, email, consent for receipts, CRM syncing, segmentation, and stewardship.
Funds settle on your processor’s standard schedule, with clear fees and cleaner reporting. Operationally you still consider SMS best practices like STOP or HELP and clear disclosures but most of the compliance shifts to standard payment security(PCI tokenization) and privacy controls.
Use text-to-donate for events, services, and campaigns where you want speed and relationship building. While when you pair text-to-donate with QR codes, short branded links, and A/B-tested amounts to maximize conversions without sacrificing long-term growth.
What is Text-To-Donate?
Text-to-donate begins just text-to-give where a supporter sends a keyword to your short code or long code. Instead of billing the mobile carrier, the donor instantly receives a secure link to a mobile optimized checkout page.
There, they choose any amount without any preset cap, select a payment method like card, Apple Pay or Google Pay, PayPal, UPI where available and complete the gift in seconds.
Because the form is processor-based, donor details like name, email, consent are captured securely via tokenization, enabling receipts, CRM syncing, segmentation, and future stewardship.
Many text-to-donate platforms streamline repeat giving by securely storing a payment token. On a future appeal, the same donor can reply with an amount or tap a personalized link to complete in one step without any retyping.
Recurring gifts are easy too where the checkout can include a “make it monthly” toggle suggested monthly amounts, and clear impact messaging.
When compared with carrier-billed text-to-give, text-to-donate offers flexible gift sizing, faster settlement on your payment processor’s normal schedule, transparent fees, and richer reporting.
It preserves the speed of SMS while upgrading donor experience and data quality making it ideal for events, services, digital campaigns, and any program focused on long-term donor value.
Advantages of Text-to-Donate
1. Easy, mobile-first checkout:
Supporters text a keyword, receive a secure link, and complete a fast, mobile optimized form with cards or digital wallets like Apple Pay or Google Pay or UPI where available. With no apps to install, and autofill makes first-time gifts quick.
2. Flexible amounts + recurring by design:
Unlike carrier-billed text-to-give, donors select any amount and can enable monthly giving with a simple toggle. You can pre-set smart presets, anchor higher gifts, and prompt one-tap upgrades after a successful donation.
3. Rich data for CRM and stewardship:
The checkout captures name, email, phone, and consent through tokenized, PCI-aware fields. It means instant receipts, clean CRM sync, better segmentation, attribution by keyword or campaign, and A/B testing of amounts, copy, and wallet order.
4. Faster settlement, clearer costs, safer processing:
Funds settle on your processor’s usual schedule, with clear fees and detailed reporting. Tokenization, 3D secure or SCA where applicable and fraud controls reduce risk while keeping the donor experience smooth.
5. Higher engagement and repeat giving flows:
SMS consistently outperforms email for open and response rates so thank yous impact updates, volunteer asks, and second gift nudges land reliably. Returning donors can use stored payment tokens or personalized links to give again in seconds, improving retention and lifetime value.
Disadvantages of Text-to-Donate
1. Thin storytelling and weaker urgency:
Because the SMS reply links straight to a checkout page, donors may see little context with no mission narrative, impact math, or social proof. Without a quick “why now” many will hesitate or choose smaller amounts. Fixes like pre-landing pages, impact snippets, progress bars add work and require careful testing.
2. Branding constraints and trust gaps:
Hosted checkout pages are not always fully customizable. If the URL, colors, or copy don’t match your brand, donors can feel uncertain at the moment of payment. Such mismatch can suppress completion rates. White label domains, brand fonts, and consistent tone help, but they are often premium features.
3. Drop-off risk from speed and UX:
In link-based giving, mobile speed is crucial. Slow loads, heavy scripts, captchas, or poorly ordered wallets create abandonment. Accessibility issues like tiny tap targets, weak contrast increase the problem. Maintaining sub-2-second load times, prioritizing wallet buttons, and reducing form fields requires continuous engineering investment.
4. Total cost and vendor lock-in:
Beyond standard card fees, many platforms charge per message SMS fees, monthly subscriptions, and add-ons like short codes, white labeling, advanced analytics.
At scale, layered fees add up, and data-export limits or proprietary tokens can make switching expensive—so assess total cost of ownership, not just the sticker price.
5. Compliance, data security, and deliverability overhead:
You assume PCI implications even with tokenization, maintain privacy notices, and consent logs like GDPR or CCPA equivalents, and must honor STOP or HELP.
Bad opt-ins can cause fines and blocks, short links can trip spam filters and cut clicks, and staying compliant with audits, list cleaning, and fraud checks takes significant effort.
Which option fits most nonprofits?
When a supporter texts a keyword to your short code, auto-reply with a short, branded link to a secure donation page on your own domain. The donor picks any amount, pays via card or digital wallets, and funds settle directly to your account.
Add a simple “Make it monthly” checkbox at checkout, and include clear controls in receipt and an SMS flow like “reply STOP” where supported so donors can pause or cancel easily.
This approach preserves everything people like about texting, whether speed and simplicity while fixing the big drawbacks of carrier-billed text-to-give. Donors see your story, impact copy, and trust cues on your site that encourages higher gifts and repeat support.
Keeping donors on your domain keeps your brand front and center, improving trust and recall while bypassing carrier programs and platform markups so you pay only standard processing fees.
Many nonprofits offset those fees with a “Cover fees” (tips) checkbox so donors can add a small amount to their gift. Because the form is yours, you also capture clean data like name, email, consent for receipt, CRM sync, segmentation, and stewardship. By link-based text-to-donate to your own page delivers better storytelling, lower costs, richer data, and stronger long-term value.
Text-To-Give vs Text-To-Donate
1. Use-case fit & campaign goals:
If you are an established nonprofit with broad name recognition and need fast, one-time gifts then text-to-give excels where donors text a keyword, confirm, and a fixed amount is carrier-billed.
If you are newer or focused on growing a loyal base, text-to-donate is stronger where donors receive a link, choose any amount, and you can nurture them with data-driven follow-ups. Text-to-donate(send a link to your own site)keeps all the benefits while maximizing brand control.
2. Donor experience & storytelling:
Text-to-give is ultra-simple but offers almost no context which is great for speed, weak for persuasion. Text-to-donate sends supporters to a mobile optimized page where you can add impact copy, image, preset amounts and a “make it monthly” toggle.
Sending the link to your own donation form which further improves trust with familiar branding and a recognizable domain.
3. Data capture, recurring, and stewardship:
Carrier-billed flows usually yield minimal donor data, limiting receipts, segmentation, and upgrades. Link-based text-to-donate captures name, email, phone, and consent via PCI-aware fields, enabling instant receipt, CRM sync, remarketing, and recurring gifts by default. It translates to higher lifetime value and better retention.
4. Money movement, costs, and reliability:
Text-to-give depends on carrier settlement, which is often slower and can carry program fees. Text-to-donate settles on your payment processor’s normal cadence with transparent fees and rich reporting. Driving donors to your own form avoids platform markups and you can add a “cover fees” checkbox so many donors balance processing costs.
5. Operations, compliance, and scale:
Text-to-give requires carrier approvals, short-code logistics, and fixed amounts. Text-to-donate still needs SMS basics like opt-in, STOP or HELP, disclosures but shifts most complexity to standard payments or privacy.
It also supports bulk sends, keyword replies, and peer-to-peer texting. Use text-to-give for rapid, fixed micro-gifts while use text-to-donate preferably linking to your own site when you want flexibility, data, recurring, and long-term growth.
Text-to-donate via Opt-in SMS campaigns
In an opt-in SMS campaign, supporters text a keyword for instance “RELIEF” to your short code or number to signal intent. Your autoresponder instantly returns a short, branded link to your mobile donation form.
Donors pick any amount, pay by card or digital wallet, and you receive funds on your processor’s normal schedule. This model is ideal during urgency and scale matter, and when you are comfortable with lighter data capture at the first touch.
When to use it:
During disaster relief, seasonal drives, or higher-attention moments when impulse giving is strong. Plan promotion first and then your results depend on awareness across radio, stage announcements, social, email, and signage.
Now Let us us Know How to Setup It:
Steps to Setup Text-to-donate Via Opt-in SMS Campaigns
1. Create an Opt-in Campaign:
Name it clearly so reporting stays clean. Set goals like gifts, average gift, recurring rate), add UTM parameters for the donation link, and choose send windows or time zone.
2. Choose a Sender & Keyword:
Select a short code or 10DLC number registered for A2P. Use a memorable short keyword like RELIEF or WATER. Add typo or fallback handling and test delivery across major carriers before launch.
3. Data Routing:
Auto-save texters to a dedicated list, tagging sources like RADIO, STAGE, SOCIAL via unique keywords or links. Map custom fields like campaign or consent. Enable a webhook or Zap to your CRM for real-time syncing and set dedupe rules.
4. Message Flow:
Write a tight prompt like impact line + short, branded donation link + HELP or STOP. After a successful gift, send a sincere Thank-you with receipt link and a one-tap “Make it monthly” prompt. Consider one gentle reminder for abandons within 24 hours.
5. Compliance & Safeguards:
Include HELP or STOP, frequency, and Msg&Data rates may apply. Log consent, link to privacy or terms, honor quiet hours, and maintain opt-out hygiene. Keep pages fast, wallets first, and add basic fraud controls like rate limiting.
Text-to-donate using Bulk SMS
Bulk SMS uses your existing, consented donors by sending a short, targeted message with a branded donation link to your own mobile-optimized page. It is ideal for event drives, year-end pushes, match challenges, and “last-mile” reminders to supporters who already know your mission.
How it works :
- Select “Broadcast SMS.” Name the campaign clearly (e.g., “Gala 2025 – Matching Hour”).
- Choose a sender. Use a registered 10DLC or short code; keep a recognizable label.
- Import & segment. Sync your CRM list, include only opted-in contacts, and segment by recency/frequency/amount (RFM), geography, or event attendance.
- Compose the message. One impact line + short, branded link + “HELP/STOP” compliance. Personalize with first name or last gift.
- Schedule & send. Respect quiet hours, throttle if needed, and track delivery/clicks in real time.
Refinements:
- Add UTM tags and a unique keyword per channel for attribution.
- A/B test copy (impact vs. match), suggested amounts, and send times.
- Show wallets first on the page and include a “Make it monthly” toggle.
- Send a gentle reminder to non-clickers 24–48 hours later; send instant thank-you + receipt to converters.
Costs & cautions:
You will pay per-SMS and a small monthly number fee; budget based on list size. Maintain deliverability with clear opt-ins, clear opt-outs, and clear messages. If done well, bulk SMS turns known interest into fast, measurable donations.
Text-to-donate using Peer-to-Peer (P2P) campaigns
P2P texting pairs a live volunteer with each donor for a short, personal conversation that ends with a donation link. Because the donor opts in during the chat, completion rates and average gifts are typically higher than one-way blasts, and volunteers can share quick impact context that lifts urgency.
When to use:
As a high-touch follow-up after a Bulk SMS push, to close year-end gaps, or for match hours and urgent drives. Target lapsed-but-likely donors and recent engagers.
How to run it:
- Create a Peer-to-Peer campaign, name it clearly, and assign a registered 10DLC/short code.
- Import a segmented list (e.g., gave last year, not this campaign).
- Build a short script: opener → impact line → link → thanks. Add saved replies for common responses (questions, objections, “make it monthly”).
- Enable merge fields (first name, last gift, city) and tracked links (UTMs per agent or segment).
- Train volunteers on tone, timing, HELP/STOP compliance, and handling “no/opt-out.
Refine with data: pull CRM fields like last gift amount, campaign, and frequency to personalize tasks. Use unique tags/keywords to attribute results by source. A/B test the first line and suggested amounts; keep replies brief and human.
Operational tips: schedule during high-response windows, cap concurrent chats per agent, prioritize fast handoffs, and send a warm thank-you after payment. Monitor click-through, completion, average gift, and recurring opt-ins; recycle non-responders once with a softer nudge.
Measure the ROI of text-to-donate
Measure text-to-donate ROI beyond dollars raised.
Track costs (SMS spend, platform fees, processing, staff/volunteer hours × hourly rate) and revenue (one-time + recurring).
Compute ROI = (Revenue − Cost)/ Cost.
Add channel efficiency through hours saved versus alternatives. Monitor engagement funnel through delivery rate, click-through, form starts, completion rate, abandonment, average gift, recurring opt-in, and opt-out rate.
Evaluate data quality by tracking the percentage of records with name, email, and consent, along with your CRM match rate..
Include speed: time-to-first-gift, time-to-goal, settlement delay. Estimate LTV from recurring gifts (monthly amount * expected retention).
Compare these KPIs to email, social, or P2P to judge true performance, not just headline revenue.
Conclusion
Both text-to-give and text-to-donate start with the same SMS spark, but they power very different fundraising engines.
If you need rapid, fixed-amount, broadcast giving—telethons, stadium moments, disaster relief—text-to-give delivers frictionless micro-gifts at scale.
If you want flexible amounts, recurring conversion, clean donor data, faster settlement, and stronger stewardship, text-to-donate is the smarter default—especially when the link points to a secure donation page on your own domain.
In practice, many nonprofits combine the two and use text-to-give for reach in high-attention windows, and text-to-donate to capture larger gifts and cultivate long-term value.
Whatever you choose, it is essential to understand the fundamentals of SMS compliance (explicit consent, STOP/HELP, disclosures), PCI-aware processing, sub-2-second mobile pages with wallets first, clear branding, short branded links, and accessible design.
Measure what matters—delivery, click-through, form starts, completion, average gift, recurring %, opt-outs, time-to-cash, and donor lifetime value—and route data to your CRM with UTM tagging for real attribution.
Finally, A/B test amounts and copy, pair SMS with QR codes and social, and follow every gift with sincere thanks and an easy monthly upgrade. Do this well, and your text channel becomes a reliable revenue line not just a momentary increase.