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Nonprofits · head to head

Aplos vs OpenGrants

Aplos logo

Aplos

Nonprofits

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

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
OpenGrants logo

OpenGrants

Nonprofits

Low-cost grant search across federal, state and private funders, with a paid consultant marketplace alongside

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only OpenGrants has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • 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.; OpenGrants coverage of private foundations is thinner and less curated than Candid or Instrumentl, so a prospect list built solely from OpenGrants will miss foundations that never post public opportunity notices.
  • They diverge on capability: Aplos covers Fund accounting ledger, OpenGrants covers Grant search.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Aplos and OpenGrants actually diverge.

Attributes where Aplos and OpenGrants differ
AttributeAplosOpenGrants
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelPer month by feature tierPer user per month
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb

Identical on both: 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
  • Donor management
  • Online giving pages
  • Budgeting by fund
  • Church tools

Only in OpenGrants

  • Grant search
  • Saved searches and alerts
  • Funder profiles
  • Opportunity tracking
  • Consultant marketplace
  • Free tier

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 OpenGrants
  • A church tracking contributions, designated funds and giving statements in one systemnot OpenGrants
  • A small organisation replacing QuickBooks plus a spreadsheet of fund balancesnot OpenGrants
  • An Aplos and Keela buyer wanting gifts to post from the CRM into the ledger without exportnot OpenGrants

OpenGrants

  • A small nonprofit with no research budget that needs to know whether relevant grants exist before hiring anyonenot Aplos
  • A startup hunting SBIR, state innovation and economic development funding across multiple agenciesnot Aplos
  • A freelance grant writer covering several clients who cannot pass on a several-hundred-dollar monthly database costnot Aplos
  • An organisation wanting to hire a grant writer for one application without running a procurementnot 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.

OpenGrants

  • Coverage of private foundations is thinner and less curated than Candid or Instrumentl, so a prospect list built solely from OpenGrants will miss foundations that never post public opportunity notices.
  • The index leans on public opportunity feeds, which means it is strongest on government funding and weakest on the relationship-driven private philanthropy that most nonprofits actually rely on.
  • Matching is keyword driven rather than fit-scored, so users receive alerts for opportunities they are ineligible for and must qualify each one by hand.
  • The consultant marketplace is a directory with variable quality rather than a vetted panel, so buyers carry the risk of choosing a weak grant writer themselves.
  • It is a US-focused index, offering little to organisations seeking UK, EU or Canadian funding.

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

OpenGrants

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Core grant search
    • Limited results and saved searches
    • No card required
  • Subscription$9/month
    • Full search access
    • Saved searches and alerts
    • Funder profiles

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 OpenGrants if

  • You need grant search.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want saved searches and alerts.
OpenGrants review

Questions people ask

Is Aplos or OpenGrants better?
Neither clearly leads. Aplos starts at On request and OpenGrants at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Aplos or OpenGrants?
OpenGrants has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Aplos and Free for OpenGrants.
Does Aplos or OpenGrants run on more platforms?
Aplos runs on Web, iOS, Android. OpenGrants runs on Web.
Can I use OpenGrants for free?
Yes. OpenGrants has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Aplos starts at On request.
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 OpenGrants is typically brought in for.
What can Aplos do that OpenGrants cannot?
Aplos covers Fund accounting ledger, Nonprofit financial statements, Donor management, Online giving pages. OpenGrants covers Grant search, Saved searches and alerts, Funder profiles, Opportunity tracking.

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.

OpenGrants: How much does it cost?

$9 a month or $99 a year after a seven day trial, with a free tier of core search retained.

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.

OpenGrants: Why is it so much cheaper than Candid?

Because it indexes public and semi-public opportunity feeds with automation rather than employing researchers to code foundation records from tax filings. You trade depth of private foundation intelligence for price.

Aplos: Can it replace QuickBooks?

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

OpenGrants: Does it cover private foundations?

Partially. It is strongest on federal and state programmes. For systematic private foundation research, Candid remains the reference source.

Aplos: Does it handle payroll?

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

OpenGrants: Is the consultant marketplace vetted?

It is a directory, not a vetted panel. Check references and past awards yourself.

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