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Nonprofits · head to head

Foundant Technologies vs Give Lively

Foundant Technologies logo

Foundant Technologies

Nonprofits

Grant lifecycle management for foundations, with public subscription bands and a two-year term

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Give Lively logo

Give Lively

Nonprofits

Fundraising software given free to nonprofits, funded by its founders rather than by fees

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Give Lively has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Foundant Technologies the Basic licence tier omits eligibility quizzes and advanced automation and caps file sizes, so foundations with conditional application logic must buy up rather than configure around it.; Give Lively eligibility is limited to US 501(c)(3) organisations, so charities registered in the UK, Canada, Australia or the EU cannot use it at all regardless of fit.
  • They diverge on capability: Foundant Technologies covers Grant Lifecycle Manager, Give Lively covers Branded donation pages.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Foundant Technologies and Give Lively actually diverge.

Attributes where Foundant Technologies and Give Lively differ
AttributeFoundant TechnologiesGive Lively
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelquoteFree to nonprofits, card processing charged by the processor
Free tierNoYes

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 Foundant Technologies

  • Grant Lifecycle Manager
  • CommunitySuite
  • Scholarship Lifecycle Manager
  • Candid integration
  • Evaluator portal
  • Grantee portal

Only in Give Lively

  • Branded donation pages
  • Peer-to-peer fundraising
  • Text-to-donate
  • Event ticketing
  • Donor database
  • DAFpay
  • Multiple processors

What people use each for

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

Foundant Technologies

  • A private foundation making 50 to 500 grants a year that wants a defined process rather than a configuration projectnot Give Lively
  • A community foundation needing donor-advised fund accounting and grantmaking from the same vendornot Give Lively
  • Running a scholarship programme with volunteer review committees who should not have full staff loginsnot Give Lively
  • A foundation that needs charity status verification against Candid data before every payment goes outnot Give Lively

Give Lively

  • A US nonprofit currently paying a percentage platform fee on every gift and wanting that money back in programme budgetnot Foundant Technologies
  • Running a peer-to-peer campaign where thin margins make a per-donation platform cut painfulnot Foundant Technologies
  • A small organisation with no software budget that still needs branded, mobile-ready donation pagesnot Foundant Technologies
  • Adding donor advised fund giving at checkout without paying for a separate DAF integrationnot Foundant Technologies

Where each one falls short

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

Foundant Technologies

  • The Basic licence tier omits eligibility quizzes and advanced automation and caps file sizes, so foundations with conditional application logic must buy up rather than configure around it.
  • The standard contract is two years, which removes the option of a one-year trial period and locks you in before you know whether the process fits.
  • The annual subscription excludes implementation, and the setup fee is a meaningful additional first-year cost that quotes do not always foreground.
  • It is deliberately less configurable than enterprise grants systems, so a funder with unusual multi-stage workflows will hit walls that require process change rather than software change.
  • Pricing above the standard bands switches to an assets under management basis, meaning a well-endowed foundation making few grants can be quoted far more than its grant volume would suggest.

Give Lively

  • Eligibility is limited to US 501(c)(3) organisations, so charities registered in the UK, Canada, Australia or the EU cannot use it at all regardless of fit.
  • The platform is funded by its founders' personal philanthropy rather than by revenue, so there is no contractual commitment to a roadmap or a service level and no paying customer base to keep it alive if that funding stops.
  • Support is email based with no paid escalation tier, so an organisation mid-campaign with a broken form has no way to buy faster attention.
  • The donor database is adequate for gift tracking but thin compared with a real CRM, so most organisations still pay for Bloomerang, DonorPerfect or Salesforce alongside it and maintain a sync.
  • Optional donor tips appear at checkout to fund the platform, which some boards object to because it puts a second ask in front of a donor who has already decided what to give.

Pricing, plan by plan

Foundant Technologies

On request
  • Grant Lifecycle Manager$undefined/year
    • Three licence tiers gating automation and eligibility quizzes
    • Two-year contract standard
    • Reported range of roughly 4,250 to 9,500 USD per year
  • CommunitySuite$undefined/year
    • Fund accounting and donor-advised funds
    • Priced for community foundations by fund count and complexity
  • Scholarship Lifecycle Manager$undefined/year
    • Scholarship application and review workflows
    • Sold alongside or independently of GLM

Give Lively

Free
  • Give LivelyFree
    • All fundraising products included
    • No platform fee on donations
    • No setup or subscription charge

Which should you pick?

Choose Foundant Technologies if

  • You need grant lifecycle manager.
  • You also want communitysuite.
Foundant Technologies review

Choose Give Lively if

  • You need branded donation pages.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want peer-to-peer fundraising.
Give Lively review

Questions people ask

Is Foundant Technologies or Give Lively better?
Neither clearly leads. Foundant Technologies starts at On request and Give Lively at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Foundant Technologies or Give Lively?
Give Lively has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Foundant Technologies and Free for Give Lively.
Does Foundant Technologies or Give Lively run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Give Lively for free?
Yes. Give Lively has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Foundant Technologies starts at On request.
What is Foundant Technologies best used for?
Foundant Technologies is most often used for a private foundation making 50 to 500 grants a year that wants a defined process rather than a configuration project, a community foundation needing donor-advised fund accounting and grantmaking from the same vendor, running a scholarship programme with volunteer review committees who should not have full staff logins, a foundation that needs charity status verification against candid data before every payment goes out. Of those, a private foundation making 50 to 500 grants a year that wants a defined process rather than a configuration project and a community foundation needing donor-advised fund accounting and grantmaking from the same vendor are not what Give Lively is typically brought in for.
What can Foundant Technologies do that Give Lively cannot?
Foundant Technologies covers Grant Lifecycle Manager, CommunitySuite, Scholarship Lifecycle Manager, Candid integration. Give Lively covers Branded donation pages, Peer-to-peer fundraising, Text-to-donate, Event ticketing.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Foundant Technologies: What does Grant Lifecycle Manager cost?

Sector guides report roughly 4,250 to 9,500 US dollars a year on a two-year contract, with larger foundations priced on assets under management. Foundant does not publish these figures itself.

Give Lively: Is it genuinely free, or free with a percentage taken?

Genuinely free. Give Lively takes no cut of donations and charges no subscription. You pay only the card processing fee, which goes to Stripe, Shift4 or PayPal, starting around 1.99% plus $0.25.

Foundant Technologies: Is implementation included?

No. Setup is billed separately from the annual subscription.

Give Lively: How does the company make money?

It does not, in the ordinary sense. Operating costs are covered by its founders as a philanthropic commitment, plus voluntary tips donors can add at checkout.

Foundant Technologies: Is the Candid integration extra?

It is included in the GLM subscription and free for up to 1,000 charity checks a year.

Give Lively: Can a UK or Canadian charity use it?

No. Give Lively requires US 501(c)(3) status.

Foundant Technologies: Is there a discount for small funders?

Some sector associations, including Exponent Philanthropy, negotiate a discount off the initial licence for members.

Give Lively: Does it replace a donor CRM?

Not for most organisations. It stores donors and gift history, but fundraisers running major gift or grant pipelines usually keep a dedicated CRM and sync to it.

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