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Nonprofits · head to head

MobileCause vs OpenGrants

MobileCause logo

MobileCause

Nonprofits

Mobile and text fundraising platform

From
$250/month
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: MobileCause custom pricing model lacks transparency, making cost forecasting difficult for nonprofits; 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: MobileCause covers SMS fundraising, OpenGrants covers Grant search.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which MobileCause and OpenGrants actually diverge.

Attributes where MobileCause and OpenGrants differ
AttributeMobileCauseOpenGrants
Starting price$250/monthFree
Pricing modelUnknownPer user per month
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, MobileWeb
Founded2009Unknown

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 MobileCause

  • SMS fundraising
  • Mobile app creation
  • Event fundraising tools
  • Peer-to-peer campaigns
  • Twilio
  • Stripe
  • Salesforce
  • Slack

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.

MobileCause

  • Business operationsnot OpenGrants
  • Productivitynot OpenGrants
  • Automationnot OpenGrants

OpenGrants

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

Where each one falls short

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

MobileCause

  • Custom pricing model lacks transparency, making cost forecasting difficult for nonprofits
  • Limited customization options for organizations with unique branding needs
  • Integration with payment processors requires additional setup and fees

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

MobileCause

$250/month

No published plan breakdown. See the MobileCause review.

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 MobileCause if

  • You need sms fundraising.
  • You work on Web, Mobile.
  • You also want mobile app creation.
MobileCause 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 MobileCause or OpenGrants better?
Neither clearly leads. MobileCause starts at $250/month and OpenGrants at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, MobileCause or OpenGrants?
OpenGrants has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $250/month for MobileCause and Free for OpenGrants.
Does MobileCause or OpenGrants run on more platforms?
MobileCause runs on Web, Mobile. OpenGrants runs on Web.
Can I use OpenGrants for free?
Yes. OpenGrants has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. MobileCause starts at $250/month.
What is MobileCause best used for?
MobileCause is most often used for business operations, productivity, automation. Of those, business operations and productivity are not what OpenGrants is typically brought in for.
What can MobileCause do that OpenGrants cannot?
MobileCause covers SMS fundraising, Mobile app creation, Event fundraising tools, Peer-to-peer campaigns. OpenGrants covers Grant search, Saved searches and alerts, Funder profiles, Opportunity tracking.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

MobileCause: What is the pricing structure?

MobileCause does not publicly list per-user pricing. Custom pricing starts around $250/month for SMBs and scales based on organization size and feature requirements.

Source
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.

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.

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.

OpenGrants: Is the consultant marketplace vetted?

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

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