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Nonprofits · head to head

Donorbox vs Keela

Donorbox logo

Donorbox

Nonprofits

Online fundraising platform for nonprofits

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Keela logo

Keela

Nonprofits

Nonprofit CRM and fundraising platform with Canadian tax receipting built in

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Donorbox has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Donorbox standard plan charges 2.95-3.95% platform fee per donation on top of payment processor fees (2.2-2.49% + card processing); Keela pricing scales with contact count, so a charity that keeps twenty years of lapsed donors pays every month for records it never contacts, and the only fix is deleting history it may need for reporting.
  • They diverge on capability: Donorbox covers Custom donation forms, Keela covers Donor records and segmentation.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Donorbox and Keela actually diverge.

Attributes where Donorbox and Keela differ
AttributeDonorboxKeela
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelfreemiumPer month by contact count
Free tierYesNo
Founded2016Unknown

Identical on both: platforms (Web), 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 Donorbox

  • Custom donation forms
  • Peer-to-peer fundraising
  • Payment processing
  • Donor management
  • Stripe
  • PayPal
  • Mailchimp
  • Zapier

Only in Keela

  • Donor records and segmentation
  • CRA and IRS receipting
  • Donation forms and pages
  • Email and automation
  • Grant and pledge tracking
  • Reporting dashboards

What people use each for

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

Donorbox

  • Small to mid-sized nonprofits needing affordable donation processing in 96+ countriesnot Keela
  • Organisations seeking integrated event ticketing and peer-to-peer fundraisingnot Keela
  • Multi-channel giving strategies including text-to-give and membership programmesnot Keela

Keela

  • A Canadian registered charity that must issue CRA compliant receipts without building templates itselfnot Donorbox
  • A development team of two to five people replacing spreadsheets and a mailing toolnot Donorbox
  • An organisation already running Aplos fund accounting that wants gifts to post through automaticallynot Donorbox
  • A bilingual charity sending French and English donor communications from one contact listnot Donorbox

Where each one falls short

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

Donorbox

  • Standard plan charges 2.95-3.95% platform fee per donation on top of payment processor fees (2.2-2.49% + card processing)
  • Premium plan pricing requires contacting sales, not displayed publicly
  • Pro plan limited to growing organisations; larger nonprofits must upgrade to Premium with custom pricing

Keela

  • Pricing scales with contact count, so a charity that keeps twenty years of lapsed donors pays every month for records it never contacts, and the only fix is deleting history it may need for reporting.
  • The email marketing tools are adequate for donor appeals but weaker than a dedicated platform, so organisations with heavy newsletter programmes end up paying for a second tool and syncing lists.
  • Custom reporting is limited to the fields and filters Keela exposes, so questions the product did not anticipate require exporting to a spreadsheet.
  • The integration list is short next to Salesforce or Blackbaud, so a charity running an unusual event, membership or advocacy tool will be moving data by CSV.
  • Since the 2023 Aplos acquisition the roadmap serves a combined accounting and fundraising suite, so investment favours the accounting join rather than standalone CRM depth.

Pricing, plan by plan

Donorbox

Free
  • StandardFree
    • Unlimited donation forms and pages
    • Basic reporting
    • 2.95-3.95% transaction fees
  • Pro$150/month
    • Advanced customizations
    • Crypto and stock donations
    • AI assistant included

Keela

On request
  • Keela$undefined/month
    • Published tiers priced by number of contacts held, not by user seat
    • Higher tiers unlock automation, custom fields and additional reporting
    • Card processing is charged separately by the payment processor

Which should you pick?

Choose Donorbox if

  • You need custom donation forms.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want peer-to-peer fundraising.
Donorbox review

Choose Keela if

  • You need donor records and segmentation.
  • You also want cra and irs receipting.
Keela review

Questions people ask

Is Donorbox or Keela better?
Neither clearly leads. Donorbox starts at Free and Keela at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Donorbox or Keela?
Donorbox has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Donorbox and On request for Keela.
Does Donorbox or Keela run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Donorbox for free?
Yes. Donorbox has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Keela starts at On request.
What is Donorbox best used for?
Donorbox is most often used for small to mid-sized nonprofits needing affordable donation processing in 96+ countries, organisations seeking integrated event ticketing and peer-to-peer fundraising, multi-channel giving strategies including text-to-give and membership programmes. Of those, small to mid-sized nonprofits needing affordable donation processing in 96+ countries and organisations seeking integrated event ticketing and peer-to-peer fundraising are not what Keela is typically brought in for.
What can Donorbox do that Keela cannot?
Donorbox covers Custom donation forms, Peer-to-peer fundraising, Payment processing, Donor management. Keela covers Donor records and segmentation, CRA and IRS receipting, Donation forms and pages, Email and automation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Donorbox: How much does Donorbox cost?

Donorbox Standard is free with 2.95-3.95% transaction fees. Pro is $150/month with 1.75-2% transaction fees, advanced customizations, and AI assistance. Premium requires a custom quote.

Source
Keela: Does Keela issue CRA compliant tax receipts?

Yes, receipt numbering, required wording and batch issuance are built in, which is the main reason Canadian charities choose it over US products.

Donorbox: Is Donorbox free?

Yes, Donorbox Standard is free with unlimited donation forms and basic reporting, though transaction fees of 2.95-3.95% apply.

Source
Keela: Who owns Keela?

Aplos Software, a US fund accounting vendor, acquired it in 2023. Keela is still sold as its own product but shares a roadmap with Aplos.

Donorbox: What are Donorbox's transaction fees by plan?

Standard plan charges 2.95-3.95% per transaction. Pro charges 1.75-2%. Premium charges 1.6-2%. All plans allow donors to cover processing fees.

Source
Keela: Is pricing per user?

No, it is by contact count. Adding staff does not raise the bill, growing the mailing list does.

Keela: Can it replace a fund accounting system?

No. It records income and pledges but does not do fund accounting, so you still need Aplos, QuickBooks or an equivalent.

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