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Nonprofits · head to head

Aplos vs Cause IQ

Aplos logo

Aplos

Nonprofits

Fund accounting for nonprofits and churches, with donor management and online giving attached

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Cause IQ logo

Cause IQ

Nonprofits

Integrated fundraising and CRM platform

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Aplos the donor management side is record keeping rather than fundraising software, so any organisation running segmented appeals or automation will still buy a CRM and pay twice.; Cause IQ pricing is not published
  • They diverge on capability: Aplos covers Fund accounting ledger, Cause IQ covers Event management.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Aplos and Cause IQ actually diverge.

Attributes where Aplos and Cause IQ differ
AttributeAplosCause IQ
Pricing modelPer month by feature tiersubscription
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb
FoundedUnknown2013

Identical on both: starting price (On request), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Nonprofits).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Aplos

  • Fund accounting ledger
  • Nonprofit financial statements
  • Online giving pages
  • Budgeting by fund
  • Church tools

Only in Cause IQ

  • Event management
  • Online giving
  • Volunteer tracking
  • Stripe
  • PayPal
  • Salesforce
  • Google Analytics
  • Web support

Both cover

  • Donor management

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Aplos

  • A nonprofit whose auditor has raised restricted fund reporting as a findingnot Cause IQ
  • A church tracking contributions, designated funds and giving statements in one systemnot Cause IQ
  • A small organisation replacing QuickBooks plus a spreadsheet of fund balancesnot Cause IQ
  • An Aplos and Keela buyer wanting gifts to post from the CRM into the ledger without exportnot Cause IQ

Cause IQ

  • Prospect research across nonprofit organisationsnot Aplos
  • Benchmarking a nonprofit client against peersnot Aplos
  • Building target lists for firms serving the sectornot Aplos
  • Enriching existing records with nonprofit financial datanot Aplos

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Aplos

  • The donor management side is record keeping rather than fundraising software, so any organisation running segmented appeals or automation will still buy a CRM and pay twice.
  • It is not a general ledger for complex structures, so multi entity groups, consolidations and intercompany transactions push organisations back to a mainstream accounting package.
  • Higher tiers are needed for the budgeting and custom reporting many buyers assume are standard, so the entry price is rarely the real price.
  • Payroll is handled through a partner rather than natively, which adds a vendor and a reconciliation step for organisations with staff.
  • The bookkeeper ecosystem is far smaller than QuickBooks, so finding an accountant already fluent in the product is harder and handover after staff turnover takes longer.

Cause IQ

  • Pricing is not published
  • Sold to firms selling into the nonprofit sector rather than to nonprofits running their own operations

Pricing, plan by plan

Aplos

On request
  • Aplos$undefined/month
    • Published monthly tiers separating core accounting from the full suite
    • Advanced accounting, budgeting by fund and custom reporting sit in higher tiers
    • Card and bank processing on donations charged separately

Cause IQ

On request
  • Standard$95/month
    • Donor management
    • Event management
  • Advanced$200/month
    • Prospect research
    • Fundraising reports
    • Advanced analytics

Which should you pick?

Choose Aplos if

  • You need fund accounting ledger.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want nonprofit financial statements.
Aplos review

Choose Cause IQ if

  • You need event management.
  • You also want online giving.
Cause IQ review

Questions people ask

Is Aplos or Cause IQ better?
Neither clearly leads. Aplos starts at On request and Cause IQ at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Aplos or Cause IQ?
Aplos starts at On request and Cause IQ at On request.
Does Aplos or Cause IQ run on more platforms?
Aplos runs on Web, iOS, Android. Cause IQ runs on Web.
What is Aplos best used for?
Aplos is most often used for a nonprofit whose auditor has raised restricted fund reporting as a finding, a church tracking contributions, designated funds and giving statements in one system, a small organisation replacing quickbooks plus a spreadsheet of fund balances, an aplos and keela buyer wanting gifts to post from the crm into the ledger without export. Of those, a nonprofit whose auditor has raised restricted fund reporting as a finding and a church tracking contributions, designated funds and giving statements in one system are not what Cause IQ is typically brought in for.
What can Aplos do that Cause IQ cannot?
Aplos covers Fund accounting ledger, Nonprofit financial statements, Online giving pages, Budgeting by fund. Cause IQ covers Event management, Online giving, Volunteer tracking, Stripe. Both handle Donor management.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Aplos: Is Aplos an accounting system or a CRM?

Primarily fund accounting. The donor management is included but shallow compared with a dedicated nonprofit CRM.

Cause IQ: Does Cause IQ offer a free plan?

Yes. Cause IQ offers a free plan with basic nonprofit searches using 8 filters and limited profile access. Core and Pro plans are paid subscriptions.

Source
Aplos: What is the relationship with Keela?

Aplos acquired Keela in 2023. The two are being integrated, so a buyer comparing them is comparing products from one company.

Cause IQ: What is included in Cause IQ's pricing?

Core Plan costs $349/month (or $199/month for 501(c)(3) nonprofits) with access to 400+ filters. Pro Plan costs $5,988/year with three user licenses and unlimited exports. Annual discounts available.

Source
Aplos: Can it replace QuickBooks?

For a single entity nonprofit, usually yes, and it handles restricted funds far better. For multi entity consolidation, no.

Cause IQ: Does Cause IQ integrate with Salesforce?

Yes. Cause IQ provides direct Salesforce integration to create, update, and enrich Leads, Contacts, and Accounts with nonprofit data. Bulk operations and field mapping are supported.

Source
Aplos: Does it handle payroll?

Through a partner integration rather than natively, so payroll is an extra subscription and an extra reconciliation.

Cause IQ: Does Cause IQ have an API?

Yes. Cause IQ provides a REST API that returns JSON responses. The API allows programmatic searches for nonprofits, EIN lookups, and access to over 400 organization fields.

Source
Cause IQ: How much nonprofit data does Cause IQ contain?

Cause IQ aggregates data from over a dozen sources covering 1.73 million organizations, 9.86 million people (board members and key personnel), and 52,143 vendor profiles.

Source
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