Common Questions

GoFundMe makes it incredibly easy to raise money online for the things that matter to you most. In less than a minute, you'll be able to personalize your fundraising campaign and share it with the people in your life. In fact, over $2 Billion has been raised by GoFundMe users just like you.

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With GoFundMe, the money you collect goes directly to you. There are no deadlines or limits - each donation you receive is yours to keep. Raising money for yourself or a loved one has never been easier. Plus, we're here to help. GoFundMe will respond to your emails within 5 minutes during the day.

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Most people use GoFundMe to raise money for themselves, a friend or loved one during life's important moments. This includes things like medical expenses, education costs, volunteer programs, youth sports, funerals & memorials - even animals & pets.

That said, we're always amazed at all the unique ways people use GoFundMe to raise money online. The possibilities are endless! Watch some Recent Success Stories or Take the Tour >>.

Your GoFundMe campaign features the very best in secure payment encryption technology. Not only are your donors' online payments safe, your money is stored securely until you're ready to request a withdrawal via electronic bank transfer. US accounts may also request a check.

Once your fundraising campaign begins receiving online donations, you can easily request a withdrawal at any time. Don't worry, withdrawing money does not affect the progress meter that's displayed on your GoFundMe campaign. Simply click the 'Withdraw' button inside your GoFundMe account and follow the on-screen instructions. You can withdraw your balance directly to your bank account. US users may also request a check.

Most withdrawals take between 5 and 7 business days. You can choose between an electronic bank transfer or paper check delivery during the withdrawal process.

Of course! GoFundMe has created an easy way for your beneficiary to securely access the funds you have raised. Through GoFundMe they will be given direct access to the money you have raised for them. Please note, you will not be able to enter their check or bank information during the withdrawal process, they will need to do this themselves. Contact us to set up withdrawals for your beneficiary.

While it's free to create and share your online fundraising campaign, GoFundMe will deduct a 5% fee from each donation that you receive. Since our fee is deducted automatically, you'll never need to worry about being billed or owing us any money. A small processing fee of about 3% will also be deducted from each donation. Please see Pricing & Fees for more info.

Beware of other services that claim to be 100% Free - they'll actually charge your donors instead.

No, never. Other sites might charge your donors without you knowing it, but we would never do that. Donors are charged only the amount they choose to donate to you and that's it.

Nope. With GoFundMe there are no deadlines or time-limits. Your campaign will remain live until you choose to stop donations or remove the campaign altogether. Most users leave their campaigns live indefinitely as a lasting memory of all the wonderful comments and support they received.

No problem. With GoFundMe, you keep each and every donation you receive. Reaching your goal is not required.

You'll receive an email notification each time a donation is made to your GoFundMe campaign.

Yes. GoFundMe is a site that rewards authenticity and transparency. However, you may choose to hide your campaign from being listed on GoFundMe during the Sign-Up process.

While you can choose to hide your campaign from appearing in GoFundMe's Public Search Directory, anyone who has your GoFundMe campaign link will be able to access your campaign. There's no way to keep your campaign 100% private.

Your campaign will be supported by the people in your life. This includes friends, family members, loved ones, coworkers, classmates and teammates. Only after your campaign receives the support of the people you personally know can it begin to attract the support of others.

Sharing your campaign with friends and family is a part of what makes GoFundMe work so well. Not only will the people in your life support your campaign, but they will also help spread the word to their friends as well. GoFundMe users should not expect to receive support from strangers.

Although optional, connecting your account to Facebook is highly recommended and makes sharing your campaign with others incredibly easy. A valid Facebook account is required for all campaigns that wish to appear within GoFundMe's Public Search Directory. Don't worry, we'll never post anything to your Facebook account unless you say so.

Supported countries and currencies include: United States of America ($USD), United Kingdom (£GBP), Canada ($CAD), Australia ($AUD), and some European Union countries that use the Euro as their official currency (€EUR).

Yes, your GoFundMe campaign is able to accept donations from around the world.

No, never. Other sites might charge your donors without you knowing it, but we would never do that. Donors are charged only the amount they choose to donate to you and that's it.

You bet. The mobile version of your GoFundMe campaign will load for those visiting your campaign from their phones. Your campaign still looks great and it's very easy for donors to complete their donations from their mobile device. Take the Tour >>

Yes, for Personal campaigns only. Simply select 'Add Offline Donation' inside of your GoFundMe Dashboard to add money you received offline to your campaign total. No payment is actually made, and the donation will be marked as an 'Offline Donation' on your campaign.

Of course. Donors can simply check a box to keep their donations hidden from public view. However, the Campaign Organizer will always know who the donor is.

Once your fundraising campaign begins receiving online donations, you can easily request a withdrawal at any time. Don't worry, withdrawing money does not affect the progress meter that's displayed on your GoFundMe campaign. Simply click the 'Withdraw' button inside your GoFundMe Dashboard and follow the on-screen instructions. You can choose to withdraw your balance directly to your bank account. Campaigns in the US may also request a check.

Absolutely. The option to give on a monthly basis is available for all US-based campaigns. Monthly donations are also available for those donating to GoFundMe's Certified Charity campaigns.

Unfortunately, we're unable to provide specific tax advice since everyone's situation is different. While this is by no means a guarantee, most donations on GoFundMe are simply considered to be 'personal gifts' which are not taxed as income in the US. Additionally, only donations made to a legally registered non-profit or charity may be considered eligible for donors to claim as a tax deduction. Again, every situation is different so please consult with a tax professional in your area.

If you're raising money for something that you strongly believe in, chances are that the people in your life will be eager to support you. GoFundMe gives you the easy-to-use features to share your story with your family, friends, loved ones and community. Every Campaign Organizer should connect their Facebook account, use a high-quality campaign photo or video and clearly explain why they're raising money. Sharing your campaign on Facebook is the single most important thing you can do. For more tips, along with how-to videos, please visit: 5 Steps to a Successful Campaign

Almost. As always, common sense goes a long way here. DO raise money for personal causes that are purposeful, exciting and inspiring to others. DON'T break any local laws, expect strangers to buy you stuff or promote inappropriate content. When in doubt, browse our categories of thousands of successful campaigns to see how others use GoFundMe.

Every GoFundMe campaign is given a unique link that's easy to share with others (you can even customize this link). Sharing your fundraising campaign is easy using GoFundMe's built-in features like email invitations and Facebook posting.

The best way to get into the spotlight is to pursue your own local media first. The good news is that your local newspaper and TV news stations are starving for interesting stories like yours. Once your campaign begins to really pick up steam, our team may contact you.

GoFundMe's 'Update' feature is a great way to add fresh information to your campaign. In doing so, you can choose to share the post with your current supporters and donors - you can even share the Update on Facebook to attract more support. Update messages can also include up to 3 photos or videos.

While signed in to your GoFundMe account, simply select a recent donation and click the 'Say Thanks' button. You'll be able to personalize the message and send it to the donor's email address.

Yes. All donation activity can easily be exported to a spreadsheet. Simply click the 'More' tab within your Dashboard, then visit the 'Donations' section of your GoFundMe account and click the 'Export' button.

If you'd like, you can choose to capture the mailing addresses of your donors. This is useful in the event you're shipping an actual item like a thank-you card or t-shirt.

While your GoFundMe campaign will be live and ready to accept donations immediately, your campaign must be manually approved by the GoFundMe Team prior to appearing in our Public Search Directory.

To help protect donors and to prevent any misuse, GoFundMe requires that you meet the following criteria before being listed in the Public Search Directory. NOTE: Campaigns that don't meet these criteria WILL remain live & fully functioning, but will not be publicly listed on gofundme.com

a) A valid and authentic Facebook account must be connected to your GoFundMe campaign. Facebook accounts that seem to be purposely anonymous will not be accepted (e.g., no photo or unusually low amount of friends). TIP: You can 'refresh' your Facebook info at any time by visiting the Facebook tab within your 'Account Settings' and clicking 'Refresh my info.'

b) Your campaign must include a photo or video. Clip art, graphics and logos won't be approved.

c) Your campaign must have raised at least $500 in online donations. Offline donations are not counted toward this requirement.

d) Ensure your campaign is eligible to be listed in the Public Search Directory. To ensure your campaign is set to display publicly on GoFundMe, please follow the steps below:

1. Sign in to GoFundMe: //www.gofundme.com/sign-in/
2. From your GoFundMe Dashboard, click the 'Edit' tab
3. From there, click the 'Campaign Settings' tab on the left
4. Under 'Display on GoFundMe?', toggle the 'Off' button to 'Yes'
5. Hit 'Save Settings'

Your campaign will be manually reviewed by a member of the GoFundMe Team. Since your campaign is not made available for review until the above criteria is met, it may take up to 12 hours for your campaign to get approved.

The GoFundMe Team manually reviews each and every campaign that is created. Those campaigns that qualify to appear in our Public Search Directory will be categorized by a member of our team.

With hundreds of thousands of campaigns, it's not feasible for GoFundMe to investigate the claims stated by each Campaign Organizer. Rather, we provide visitors with the tools to make an informed decision as to who they choose to support. While GoFundMe and its payment partners do provide a number of safeguards to deter fraud, we must insist that visitors follow the advice stated on each and every campaign. "Only donate to people you personally know & trust." For more information, please visit: //www.gofundme.com/safety

The GoFundMe mobile app is here! Learn More

GoFundMe has major operating expenses like any popular internet service including technology, infrastructure, payroll & benefits for our dedicated team of employees. We have purposely created a business model that allows users to sign-up and launch their campaign for free. Visitors to our users' campaigns are greeted with a frustration-free giving experience, void of advertisements and other distractions - helping our users raise even more money.

GoFundMe operates on only a 5% fee deducted from each donation received. Very few organizations can claim they help as many people on such a small percentage of gross payment volume.

In short, GoFundMe is an incredibly efficient and effective way to provide financial support to those you care about most. Not only can donors give in an extremely targeted way, but more money goes directly to the intended recipients than other organizations can claim.

Not at all! Anyone can raise money online using GoFundMe's personalized fundraising campaigns. Our users often raise money for themselves or for friends they want to help out. GoFundMe was designed to allow everyday people to do wonderful things with the money they raise online. That said, many non-profits do use GoFundMe because it's such a great way to raise money online. GoFundMe users can also raise money for their favorite charity.