Your first 30 days
with free nonprofit tools

Before you set up anything else, you need an email address that ends in your domain — you@yourorg.org, not yourorg@gmail.com. Every other tool you sign up for will ask for your email address. Donors and grantors notice the difference.

G

Google Workspace for Nonprofits Free ~2 hrs to set up

Gmail, Docs, Drive, and Calendar under your own domain. Free for verified 501(c)(3)s. Approval takes 2–4 weeks, so apply on day 1.

Apply at google.com/nonprofits →

• Register your domain if you don't have one (Namecheap, ~$12/yr for .org)
• Apply to Google for Nonprofits — takes 10 min, approval in 2–4 weeks
• While waiting: set up a free Gmail as a placeholder (yourorg@gmail.com)
• Create shared folders in Drive for board docs, financials, and programs
• Share the folder structure with your board before the next board meeting

Most donation platforms charge 2–5% per transaction. For a nonprofit raising $50K/yr, that's $1,000–$2,500 going to the platform instead of your programs. Zeffy is 100% free — they earn from optional tips donors leave, not from you.

Z

Zeffy 100% free Under 1 hr to set up

Donation pages, event tickets, and peer-to-peer campaigns. Auto-generates tax receipts. No monthly fee, no per-transaction cut.

Get started at zeffy.com →

• Create your Zeffy account with your new org email address
• Set up a simple donation page (takes about 20 minutes)
• Add the donation link to your email signature and website
• Send a test donation to make sure tax receipts arrive correctly
• If you run events: create one event listing in Zeffy for your next program

Email still drives more nonprofit donations than social or paid ads — 28% of online giving, per Nonprofit Tech for Good. But your board and donors are not a mailing list. They deserve a proper newsletter that doesn't come from your personal Gmail.

M

Mailchimp Free to 500 contacts 1–2 hrs to set up

Email campaigns, automation, and basic audience management. The free tier covers most orgs in their first 1–2 years. 15% discount on paid plans for nonprofits.

Start free at mailchimp.com →

• Create your Mailchimp account with your org email
• Import your contact list (even if it's just 20 people from a spreadsheet)
• Set up your brand: logo, colors, and your org name in the footer
• Write a 3-paragraph "what we're up to" update and send to your list
• Add a Mailchimp signup form to your website or Zeffy donation page

By week 4, you're sending email and taking donations. But if your donor records still live in a spreadsheet, you'll lose track of who gave what, who should get a thank-you call, and who stopped giving. A CRM fixes that.

H

HubSpot CRM Free (unlimited contacts) 2–3 hrs to set up

Contact database, email tracking, and basic pipeline management. The free tier has no contact limit and no expiry date — it stays free as long as you need it.

Start free at hubspot.com →

• Create your HubSpot account and import donors from your spreadsheet
• Tag contacts by relationship: donor, volunteer, board member, grantee
• Log your last 3 major donors' giving history in their contact records
• Set a reminder to follow up with anyone who gave over $250 last year
• Export your Zeffy donors as a CSV and import them into HubSpot contacts