130+ Awesome Fundraising Ideas: Contests, Raffles, Challenges & More!

All nonprofits, no matter their size, rely on donations to fund their operations. Whether you’re a national charity or a small neighborhood association, you need to raise money to keep your organization going. The trick? Creative fundraising ideas!

If you’re new to fundraising, you may find it a little overwhelming. And even if you’re a seasoned fundraiser, constantly coming up with fresh ideas for fundraising can be a challenge.

That’s why we’ve put together 136 creative ideas for fundraisers for nonprofits and membership organizations!

For each idea, you can expect to see:

• The cost, ranging from $ to $$$$
• The complexity, rated on a scale from 1 to 4 (1 for quick and easy fundraisers, and 4 for events that need a lot of coordination and stakeholders to get up and running!)
• The expected return, also ranging from $ to $$$$.
• Challenges to consider
• The best time to kick off the fundraiser
• Potential sponsors or partners

We’ve also included fundraising tips from a variety of experts throughout the post to inspire you along your fundraising journey.

Finally, if you’d like a downloadable version of all of these fundraising event ideas (and more!) to share with your board or volunteers, you can find them in both this eBook and this one.

Read More: How to Prepare a Nonprofit Fundraising Plan.

Want More Fundraising Ideas?

We’ve got a big list of ideas for fundraisers—but believe it or not, there are even MORE out there! Each fundraiser has a different purpose and goal, so it’s important to find the ones that are right for you.

In this article, our specialized ideas included:

• Ongoing ways to raise money
• Raffle fundraising ideas
• Contest fundraising ideas
• Fundraising challenges
• Online fundraisers
• Fundraising events
• Fundraising sales
• Ideas for kids

If you’re looking for the ideas that are the most profitable, check out this post. And if you just want some easy fundraising ideas? We’ve got you covered.

Finally, if you’re feeling like you want to review the basics of fundraising, here’s a special post on how to fundraise. With this info under your belt, all that’s left is to have fun planning!

The 7 Best Ongoing Fundraising Ideas

While there are a lot of good fundraising ideas out there, many only last for a few weeks, or even a single day! Planning an ongoing fundraiser takes the pressure off of such a brief period, and lets you really troubleshoot what parts of your strategy are working best.

Here are 7 of the best ongoing fundraising ideas to bring in revenue throughout the year:

1. Google Ad Grants

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 4

Expected Return: $$$-$$$$

Through the Google Ad Grants program, nonprofits are awarded up to $10,000 in ad credits, which can then be allocated to put their high-value pages at the top of search results pages. When you get strategic, you can effectively increase online conversions like donations, volunteer registrations and event signups.

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll need to spend time on keyword research that’ll reach your prospects, as well as on which pages will inspire them to support your mission. Then, you’ll have to manage your account to make sure you’re staying in compliance with the program’s rules.

Many organizations outsource this work to dedicated Google Ad Grant agencies so they don’t have to worry about maintaining their accounts. Either way, this is a great fundraiser idea for any nonprofit so long as you allocate your funds strategically!

The Best Time to Do This:

Google Ad Grants can be leveraged year-round to amplify your most important pages and connect with new supporters.

2. Corporate Matching Gifts

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$$

If you’re a little newer to the fundraising space, it might come as a surprise that you can multiply your donors’ contributions by simply filling out a form!

Through corporate matching gift programs, employers offer to match their employees’ donations to eligible nonprofits. Most commonly, they do this on a dollar-for-dollar basis, so if an employee donates $50 to a charity, the company will donate another $50 on top of that. That means the organization will receive a total of $100, instead of just the original $50.

Challenges to Consider:

Companies won’t match donations to just any organization. They often have requirements regarding nonprofit eligibility, employee eligibility, minimum/maximum donation amounts and submission deadlines. Consider using an employer search tool to help find relevant guidelines and forms to ease your workload.

The Best Time to Do This:

Look for these corporate giving opportunities year-round! Companies have different submission deadlines, but several require forms to be submitted by the end of the calendar year. Ramp up your matching gift promotion toward the end of the year as a final reminder.

3. Sponsorship Campaign

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 4

Expected Return: $$-$$$$

Although this isn’t strictly an event, building a sponsorship package is a great ongoing fundraising idea. Getting businesses interested in any of your events is a key step when organizing any event! For more information, check out this guide on creating a sponsorship package.

Challenges to Consider:

Running a sponsorship drive can be complicated, but it’s crucial to build support and recognition for all of your events, and to get recurring support.

The Best Time to Do This:

Prepare a sponsorship package before organizing your event.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Reach out to anyone that your organization thinks would be a good fit for a particular event or for your cause.

Chad Barger

Nonprofit Fundraising Consultant, Trainer & Coach

Productive Fundraising

“Too many nonprofits focus on finding event attendees, at the expense of finding more sponsors.  And their events suffer because of it.

Sponsors are more important than attendees. Sponsors allow you to generate more revenue than attendees.  And that’s why we’re holding this time consuming event in the first place. So often with events, we are focused on boosting and driving the number of attendees. “If we just sell 300 tickets, we’ll be fine.” “If we just can get these raffle tickets sold, we’ll be fine.”

But spending our time focusing on the sponsor side is really where we’re going to be able to drive revenue and create more profitable events.  This gives us events that are actually worth the time that they take to pull off.

Yes, we need to work on attendees. We don’t want it to be something that’s well sponsored and only 20 people show up. Then we’d have sponsors that aren’t thrilled, but it’s easy to fill a room with staff, volunteers and comps if needed.  So, let’s focus more on selling the $500 sponsorship than the $50 ticket. That’s how we drive revenue growth with events.”

4. Can by the Register

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $$

The can is another classic fundraising idea! All you’ll need is an engaging image that conveys a succinct message to catch customers’ eyes at the checkout counter. People are actually more generous with their loose change than you’d think.

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll need to find a way to make your message stand out from the crowd.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Local grocery stores and small businesses are great places to ask about placing a can.

5. Grocery Store Registering

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$-$$$

Some grocery stores will partner with you to give a percentage of sales back. It depends on the place whether or not your supporters have to register with them, or if they can simply give you a percentage, but it’s worth looking into.

Challenges to Consider:

This can be a great way to get a boost with donations in the short term, but it doesn’t offer any opportunities for following up with the people who give.

The Best Time to Do This:

Shoppers tend to spend more around holiday seasons, so try to negotiate a partnership around Christmas or Thanksgiving. That way, the percentage you receive is likely to be higher too.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

This fundraising idea might work better with larger grocery store chains who already have a giving program in place.

6. Junk Donations

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

Some items can’t be resold, but can still bring a little profit in if you bring them to recyclers. Have community members bring you their used ink cartridges, dead electronic devices, scrap metal, and more, and you can then drop it off to get a few extra dollars. It’s nice to find ways to raise money that are also good for the environment!

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll have to drop off the items yourself, and promote this ongoing fundraising idea well enough that your audience knows to bring stuff to you.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

7. Car Donation Program

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $$

Organizations such as Car Donation Wizard or v-Dac make it easy for your supporters or you to donate unwanted used cars in exchange for a donation. This could be run as an annual event, or could simply be a program that you publicize every so often to remind your donors that it’s a possibility.

Challenges to Consider:

Most of these websites handle the donation for you, so once you’ve signed up with them they will arrange everything directly with the donor. Just be aware that the websites do take a cut out of the donation value, sometimes up to 50%.

The Best Time to Do This:

This can be run year round, with regular reminders to members so it’s at the top of their minds when they’re looking to upgrade their car.

Sohini Baliga

Co-author of Steal Like a Fundraiser (PDF)

“To keep volunteers engaged in your fundraisers, remember that it’s all about relationships. Who are they? What do they get out of being part of the cause? What part of it speaks to them? Get to know your volunteers. (Which helps in the “make it easy” part – if your volunteer is out in the ‘burbs, doing something in the heart of the city may not be feasible at 5 pm on a weekday or 8 am on a weekend, and vice versa.)

Finally, show them how they’re part of the impact. People volunteer to give back, to be of service, to make a difference. Whether they spend an hour answering phones or weeks helping with demo and reconstruction, thank them for their service — tell them how their time served a mission that is larger than us all. Sometimes that, more than anything else, is what makes people come back.”

9 Raffle Fundraising Ideas

Running a raffle is a great way to add value to a larger event or to get donors excited. Check out these 9 cool fundraising ideas for raffles!

1. 50/50 Raffle

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $$

Host a raffle where a charity and the winner split the proceeds half and half. This fundraising idea is especially easy because you don’t have to get businesses to donate anything, you just have to collect money.

Challenges to Consider:

Dealing with a large amount of cash can be complicated. There may be rules against particular types of gaming involving money in your local area.

The Best Time to Do This:

During a sporting event or other large event where participants are looking for fun ways to win prizes!

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

You need permission from the event host to ensure you can sell your 50/50 tickets as part of the larger event.

2. Spa Day Raffle

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $$

Invite participants to enter a raffle (perhaps at another fundraising event) to win a relaxing day at the local spa. Often small businesses will donate these services for a good cause.

Challenges to Consider:

Getting free services is always a challenge, but work on selling your mission and vision in a compelling way to engage donors.

The Best Time to Do This:

Services like spa days are particularly popular around holidays like Valentine’s Day or Mother’s Day, so you might want to try this if you’re having another event around one of these occasions.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

You’ll need a spa (or other service provider) to agree to partner with you.

3. Limited Ticket Vehicle Raffle

Overhead Cost: $$$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Secure a vehicle at cost, and then sell a limited number of expensive raffle tickets so each buyer has fixed odds of winning!

Challenges to Consider:

To sell expensive $100+ raffle tickets, you need the right type of donor. This means going to many events and selling tickets over a full season or year to make sure the raffle is sold out and cover costs. It might also not work with every audience.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

4. Vacation Raffle

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $$

Ask your board to donate airline and hotel points to put together a free trip, or just buy an affordable cruise or driving-distance hotel stay on sale and raffle it off!

Challenges to Consider:

Be sure to think through the logistics of securing the donation and coordinating the travel with the winner.

The Best Time to Do This:

This fundraising idea might be best held in the winter, when people are dying for a tropical vacation away.

5. Willy Wonka Golden Ticket

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $$

Does your organization have a special connection to the Chocolate Factory? No need! Just find an incredible prize—a tour, a vacation, VIP seats at a concert—and sell chocolate bars or candies with a prizewinning “golden ticket” hidden inside one.

Challenges to Consider:

You need to sell and distribute the golden tickets strategically so people keep purchasing until all of the product is sold. Sell at a single event or pre-sell and do deliveries. You don’t want the first box of chocolate to be the winner!

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

6. Hidden Diamond

Overhead Cost: $$$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Partner with a local jeweler and either buy a precious jewel or have one donated. Then, purchase a bunch of cheap glass “jewels” in the same color and size, and pour them all into a bowl. For a bit of money, your guests can dip a pair of tweezers in the bowl and try to pull out the real gem (eyes closed, of course)!

Challenges to Consider:

If you get good fakes, it will be difficult to tell when the real gem has been selected. Be sure to communicate that people should take their choice to the sponsoring jeweler for verification. Try and kick off the event with pre-sales and a big “diamond picking” day so if the real gem is taken out early, you’ve still made good money.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Sell the jeweler on the idea by telling them you’ll send potential customers their way… and when the winner is found, be sure to make a big splash!

7. Treasure Cupcakes

Overhead Cost: $-$$$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Boost your bake sale by hiding a special token or ticket inside of one particular baked good that will trigger a “grand prize”. You can go from $1 cupcakes to $5 cupcakes if that “grand prize goody” is enticing enough. Good fundraising ideas are ones that built excitement, after all!

Challenges to Consider:

Choosing an appropriate “grand prize” might be a challenge. Try to keep it connected to your mission, or to something big happening locally that you know your audience will be interested in.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

8. Cowpie Bingo

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

This is a favorite for the county fair and the rural community, and it might be time to bring it to the city too. Find an open grassy area and paint numbered squares on it. Get your local farmer to bring in one or two cows and some corral fencing (so much easier than you’d think, really).

Sell the squares and whichever number lands a cowpie wins the 50/50 proceeds! Cows deliver pies 1-2 times per hour, so you can run this game all day with a well-fed bovine.

Challenges to Consider:

If you know cows and farmers, then you’ll understand the challenges and the simplicity of this fun game!

The Best Time to Do This:

When it’s cool and comfortable for the cows—spring and fall are ideal.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

The space you use might have to be rented from a local park if you want to get additional pedestrian traffic.

9. Drive a Luxury Car

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Give people the chance to win a taste of the high life with a ride in a luxury vehicle. Ask your Mercedes, BMW or Lamborghini type friends if they’d be willing to donate their precious baby for a few hours for a good cause. This could be a raffle or auction prize.

Challenges to Consider:

Make sure everything is in order for insurance and safety, since these very expensive vehicles will be on loan!

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime—but a drive in the warm weather feels nicest, doesn’t it?

Clay Boggess

Big Fundraising Ideas

“Most fundraising sponsors have goals, but very few have what we call “first day goals”. Having a first day sales goal is an effective way to jumpstart your fundraiser. It’s been proven that most sales are made within the first 3-4 days, so why not capitalize on it? The result is that sponsors end up leaving money on the table because not only are they missing out on more early sales, they’re also not creating critical momentum that will set a stronger tone throughout.

Many sponsors simply ask their students to go out and sell as much as they can. What does this mean anyway? This is a typical request but unfortunately, it’s ambiguous at best. Most students will tune out when they hear this because they’ve heard it so many times.

Rather, just before the end of your kickoff presentation, ask your students (or whoever is participating) to go home and sell at least 5 items by tomorrow. Incorporating this strategy helps you set clear expectations. To reinforce this, one idea is to incorporate prize drawings throughout your sale. To be eligible to win, students must sell a defined number of items by certain dates during the sale. Be sure to have your first drawing the very next day after your kickoff meeting.

Having a successful fundraiser is not just about what you hope will happen, but what proactive steps you take to strive towards a clearly laid out goal.”

8 Contest Fundraising Ideas

Who doesn’t love a good contest? A little friendly competition is sure to get your supporters’ hearts racing and get them riled up to support your cause.

Here are 8 creative ways to raise money with contests:

1. Cutest Pet Contest

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

Everyone always thinks their own pet is the cutest, so why not give them a chance to show them off? Charge an entry fee for those participating, and you could also charge for tickets for those who just want to come by and watch some adorable animals.

Challenges to Consider:

Finding an animal-friendly space and buying a prize or rosettes for the winning pets are the main considerations. If getting animals to come to a particular space is too difficult, hold it online and have participants submit images of their pets instead!

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

2. Pumpkin Carving Contest

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

Invite people to pay a small fee to come carve a pumpkin and enter it into the competition. You could give them a limited time to challenge their skills, or take entries all day to encourage as many people as possible to take part. Set a selection of categories or awards for people to win, from Best Pumpkin Carved by a Child, to Scariest Pumpkin, or Most Original Design.

Challenges to Consider:

Make sure you have enough pumpkins, and that children have adequate supervision.

The Best Time to Do This:

Before Halloween, of course!

3. Baby Photo Contest

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

Have team members at your workplace display their baby pictures on a bristol board and ask fellow employees (and perhaps even customers if you work in a store or restaurant) to pay $1 to vote for the cutest child. This is great for organizations who work with kids!

Challenges to Consider:

Remind everyone to bring in photos—it would be too bad if they forgot!

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

4. Photography Contest

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Invite both amateur and professional photographers in your networks to submit photos for a contest to take place during an event. Attendees can pay an entrance fee and then vote on their favorite piece. For a more low-impact version, hold it online and get users to submit using a hashtag!

Challenges to Consider:

Promote the contest well in advance so you get a lot of entries, and get permission from top entries to use them in your marketing materials.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Photography classes at a local college might be a good place to start promoting.

5. Diorama / Craft Contest

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $

There are bound to be some creative members in your community, so give them a chance to show off their skills by advertising a diorama (or other craft!) contest. Give participants a few weeks to prepare, and then have a day to show off their creations and judge the winner. You could charge for entries, and also a small entry fee for people wanting to come look at the finished results.

Challenges to Consider:

This is an activity that’s great for kids, too… and if you make the theme of the contest something that relates back to your organization, you can potentially use the crafts created in publicity later!

The Best Time to Do This:

This is a good one for fall or winter, when people are likely to spend more time at home doing crafts.

6. Beer Pong / Quarters Tournament

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Invite participants to unleash their inner frat bro with a friendly pong tournament. All you need is a large table, ping pong balls and plenty of those famous red solo cups.

For this fundraising idea, you can charge a small participation fee and offer a cash prize. Tossing those balls will naturally make people want to toss back a few cold ones, so make sure to have some beer and snacks for sale as well!

Challenges to Consider:

Depending on your location, you may need an alcohol permit.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

It would be worth connecting with local Greek organizations to see if they would support and volunteer at your event. Not only would their presence add some authenticity to the vibe, but you’d be helping them score those necessary community service credits for graduation!

7. Cornhole Tournament

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

Cornhole is the perfect game for the no frills, no sweat summertime athlete. Determine the MVPs in your community with a laid-back tournament. You could charge a small entrance fee to the event with a cash or donated prize for the champion. Cornhole also just wouldn’t make sense without a cold drink in your hand, so be sure to have lemonade and beers ready for sale!

Challenges to Consider:

Depending on your location and offerings, you may need an alcohol permit.

The Best Time to Do This:

Cornhole screams summer!

8. Sandcastle Building Competition

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

Do you live near a beach? Then one of the best fundraising ideas is a sandcastle competition! You can have different categories, such as a separate section for kids and one for adults, or ‘Most Creative’. You can also sell cheap refreshments like freezies and pop so your competitors don’t overheat.

Challenges to Consider:

If you live in a colder area, you could turn this into a snowman building contest instead! Or, for a winter twist, make it a gingerbread house contest, and sell the creations after for a sweet treat.

The Best Time to Do This:

Summer, of course!

13 Fundraising Challenge Ideas

Many great fundraiser ideas involve some sort of a challenge that people can participate in. 

How about one of the following:

1. Hockey Puck Shot

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $

You could run this as a competition to hit a target from a set distance, or to score a set number of goals within a limited time. It can also be run with any other kind of sport, such as most baskets in basketball or the highest score in darts.

Challenges to Consider:

As long as you have a venue, you’re good to go!

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime works, but consider doing it around the time of playoffs for your chosen sport so that people are extra riled up!

2. Free-Throw Challenge

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $

Put your skills to the test with a classic free-throw challenge. All you’ll need is some basketballs and hoops, but you may want to make it more interesting by having music, food and other games available. Winner could be awarded a prize or a trophy—or just pure, unadulterated community bragging rights.

Challenges to Consider:

Make sure to coordinate a referee to monitor the challenge and declare a winner.

The Best Time to Do This:

This event could work anytime, but might be nice to do at an outdoor court during a warm weather month.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

A local basketball team may let you host on their court in exchange for the support.

3. Balloon Dart Toss

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

Dart toss is a classic way to raise money at a carnival. Step it up as a fundraiser idea by charging a small participation fee and offering a cool prize to the winners.

Challenges to Consider:

Be sure to keep general dart safety in mind and ensure children are supervised.

The Best Time to Do This:

During a larger event, or something carnival-themed!

4. Milk Jug Ring Toss

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

The milk jug ring toss is another classic carnival game for a fundraising event. Paint your milk jugs with fancy colors to attract passers-by too!

Challenges to Consider:

Make sure you have enough rings in case a few get lost along the way.

The Best Time to Do This:

During a larger event.

5. Sharpshooter

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $

Run a shooting contest with prizes for the competitors who hit the most targets. 

Challenges to Consider:

Look into your areas’ laws about the use of airguns before organizing or work with a local shooting range.

The Best Time to Do This:

If you’re planning on hosting it outside, spring or summer would be best. If you’re partnering with a shooting range, any time of year works.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Partner with a shooting range or set up a large field.

 6. Pie in the Face Toss

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $

Charge students or office workers a fee to toss a pie at the face of their teacher or boss. Kids will get a real kick out of this one!

Plus, people are sure to build up an appetite watching all that delicious “pie” get thrown around. For extra donations, have some real pies ready for sale too.

Challenges to Consider:

Instead of wasting money and bakers’ time by tossing actual pies, just use aluminum pie tins filled with whipped cream.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime, or if you’re part of a school, as an end-of-year celebration.

7. Paper Airplane Toss

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

Section off part of your parking lot (or other open space) into squares. Put donated prizes into each area and sell registration forms that can be turned into paper airplanes. Participants can toss their paper airplanes to win the prizes. For those who want another go, they can keep buying more forms, and keep making more planes!

Challenges to Consider:

Just make sure you have a wide open space available and you’ve picked a day with great weather. No one wants a field full of soggy planes!

The Best Time to Do This:

This fundraising idea would work whenever the weather is nice.

8. Bedpan Water Race

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $

Have your employees or community members create teams and pay an admission fee. Each team will race around an obstacle course with a bedpan of water and the team with the most water still in the pan at the end wins a prize.

Challenges to Consider:

Just make sure you have a wide open space available and you’ve picked a day with great weather.

The Best Time to Do This:

Do this in the spring or fall when people are ready to run outside.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

This is a great fundraising idea you can use to raise money for a local hospital or nursing facility.

9. Penny Wars

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

Set up two teams with buckets, and challenge them to collect the most pennies. To sabotage the other team, they can encourage people to add other coins to their bucket, which will count against their score. The team with the highest score wins, and your organization gets to keep the buckets of coins.

Challenges to Consider:

Set up a clear scoring system for how much each denomination is worth, and have a referee on hand to settle disputes.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

10. Dance-a-thon

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Participants collect donations from sponsors to take part in your dance-a-thon, with the last dancer standing (or anyone who makes it through the whole 24 hours) winning a prize. You’ll need a large venue like a school hall, refreshments, a team of volunteers and maybe even a DJ!

Challenges to Consider:

Because this is a long event, it takes several volunteers to keep it running smoothly, particularly since you’ll need to ensure your dancers are sticking to the rules.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

11. Home Run Derby

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $

Players are given a time limit to hit as many homeruns as possible. The players with the most can then be put head-to-head for a grand final. You can charge people to enter the competition, and offer a prize for the winning hitter.

Challenges to Consider:

Just make sure you have a wide open space available and you’ve picked a day with great weather.

The Best Time to Do This:

Do this in the spring or fall when people are ready to relax outdoors.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Check with a baseball stadium near you, or even a local park, to see if you can book their space. This is also a cool fundraising idea for a little league team!

12. Rubber Ducky Toss

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

Find a wide open space and get hold of a vast amount of rubber ducks. You could either set up a target and award a prize to the person who manages to throw a duck to land the closest, or give an award for the duck that is thrown the furthest. Use sticky labels on the bottom of each duck to assign them a number, and note down each contestant’s name and contact details against the number of their duck.

The Best Time to Do This:

Spring or summer, when participants will be happy to stand outside and chat as they throw ducks.

13. Guess the Jellybeans

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

People can pay $1 to guess how many jelly beans are in a large jar, but this baby shower classic can be taken up a notch by offering a cash or donated prize to the most astute guesser.

The Best Time to Do This:
Keep this one running for a few weeks to get the most entries, or hold it during a larger event.

Chris Baylis
President and CEO

The Sponsorship Collective

“Nonprofits spend too much time building sponsorship packages before reaching out to sponsors. The problem with this is that it requires the organization to make assumptions on behalf of sponsors (and those assumptions are always wrong). A related mistake is focusing those sponsorship packages on the cause or mission of the organization, effectively turning the sponsorship package into a case for support…which simply does not work in the sponsorship space.

Instead, nonprofits should reach out to their sponsorship prospects, ask them for an advice visit (or discovery meeting) and use that information to build a sponsorship package. That’s right! The first time you meet your sponsor, you should NOT have a sponsorship package but you should be able to articulate clearly who your audience is and why a company might have interest in that audience.”

6 Online Fundraising Ideas

If you’re hoping to get more donations online, or want to set up a recurring campaign, here are a few virtual fundraising ideas you can use. For more online fundraising ideas, check out this post.

1. Text-to-Give

Overhead Cost: $-$$$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $-$$$

Websites like Txt2Give and Snowball arrange the text service for you, so you just need to decide on a memorable word or phrase for people to donate, and then encourage them to start texting in. Each text they send will trigger a donation, so it’s an easy fundraising idea way to give that doesn’t involve filling out forms.

Challenges to Consider:

Remember to factor in the cost of your text to give service. Some charge a monthly fee, others charge a small amount per donation, and with some you can pay a one-off fee for an event.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

2. Facebook Ads

Overhead Cost: $-$$$

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $-$$$

You can use Facebook Ads to encourage people to donate, to direct them to your website, or to sign up for your event. These can cost as much or as little as your budget allows—but the more money you put into the advert, the more people who will see it on their Facebook feed.

Challenges to Consider:

If your target audience doesn’t spend much time on Facebook, they probably won’t come across your adverts, so it might not be worth putting much money into this project.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

3. Crowdfunding Page

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $-$$$$

Crowdfunding websites such as Kickstarter or Indiegogo are great for times when you have a project you’re working towards. They’re a simple way for people to donate online, to follow your progress and see how their money made a difference. Just set up your fundraiser campaign and share the link on your website, social media and email.

Challenges to Consider:

These websites work best when you provide regular updates for the people who have contributed, so factor in some time to keep everyone in the loop.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

4. Social Media Challenge

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $$

Remember the 2019 Ice Bucket Challenge that swept the internet? Online challenges have become a big hit, inviting participation across all ages. People love posting and sharing funny videos, especially if there’s an important message behind them.

Challenges to Consider:

Try to think of an engaging challenge that relates to your community or cause. The only real danger of a social media challenge is that people post or repost a video and don’t actually donate money (make sure you link directly to an online fundraising platform), but ultimately, it’s still garnering attention for your cause!

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Make sure the challenge is directly linked to an online campaign so that people actually give and don’t just post a cool video.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

5. Social Media Blitz

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $$

Have a day where your social media is focused exclusively on one donation campaign. You can prepare video testimonials in advance to post that day, have a giveaway to drive interest, and do shoutouts to people who donate over the day.

Challenges to Consider:

Doing a full day of social media takes some planning. Ask for volunteers to help you film videos, take photos, write posts, and respond to comments throughout the day.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

6. Amazon Smile Program

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $-$$$

If you can get your supporters to sign up for Amazon Smile, your organization will get 0,5% of each purchase they make. Although it’s not a big amount, promoting it won’t be a lot of work for your organization and even small amounts will eventually add up!

Challenges to Consider:

This fundraiser depends on your members. It’s probably only worth setting up if you know that they’re fairly tech savvy and shop online.

The Best Time to Do This:

Because this only gathers a small percentage of each sale, this is a fundraising idea that needs to be run year-round to see donations accumulate.

Amy Eisenstein

Development Professional and Fundraising Consultant

“You’ve probably heard the expression, “great minds think alike.” It rings true when looking for new donors for your organization. That’s because people who already support your organization are likely to know others who might be interested as well.

Start with your board members, volunteers, staff members, and clients. Find out who they know in their inner and outer circles. It won’t be easy, but that’s the most effective way to find new donors.

Remember – it’s not about the money. Don’t look for new “donors,” but for people who might be passionate about your mission. Once they are hooked, they are likely to turn into donors. The real key is getting the second and third donations. It could be time to stop looking for new donors and concentrate on keeping the ones you have.”

The best way to run your fundraiser online and capture supporter information? Try a 60-day free trial of WildApricot today.

17 Fundraising Sale Ideas

Capitalize on your audiences’ shopping habits with the following fundraising ideas.

1. Charity Calendars

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

There’s just something great about a paper calendar that has pictures from your favorite charity. Whether it’s cute puppies in need of a home or firefighters who need new uniforms, if you make sure the production value is high, people will want to have a copy.

Challenges to Consider:

Custom calendars are huge around the holidays, so get your order in early to ensure they arrive in time for holiday sales.

The Best Time to Do This:

Shoot for the holidays so that your calendars are out before January 1st!

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Try to link up with a local photographer to take the calendar pictures and keep costs low.

2. Succulent Sale

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Succulents are easy to grow, affordable, and on trend! You can either sell the plants directly with a small markup, or have volunteers repot them into interesting objects (plastic dinosaurs or teacups are sure to be a hit) for added visual interest.

Challenges to Consider:

Be sure to decide early whether you’ll be purchasing succulents from a nursery or growing them yourself.

The Best Time to Do This:

Succulents look great all year round!

3. Pre-Packaged Food Sale

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Head to your local wholesale store and pick up a car-load of packaged snacks. Local events, such as school events, sports matches, rallies, and markets, are a great place to set up your sale. The opportunities are endless!

Challenges to Consider:

Be aware of regulations around food sales in your area, and ask permission from the organizer if you plan to sell at an event. This can also work for packaged drinks such as Gatorade or water bottles.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Ask around to find events in your community at which you can participate.

4. Rubber Wristband Sale

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $$

It’s hard to believe, but rubber message bands are still very popular — kids in particular love to wear these. Think of a fun slogan or message for your cause and buy these in bulk. Selling them for even $1 each can turn you a profit.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

5. Sell-A-Trinket

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $$

This sale’s effectiveness is twofold: you make money by selling the item and you get advertising by those people wearing it. Get a local artist to design it and you’ll be promoting their work, too. It’s always great to incorporate your branding into fundraising activities!

Challenges to Consider:

Decide whether to design an item and get it made professionally, or to ask your community to help make them. Friendship bracelets and pins can easily be homemade… but beware, it’ll need to be nice enough that people will actually wear it!

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Art schools in your area might be willing to help out for exposure.

6. T-Shirt Sale

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

The secrets to a successful shirt sale are: 1. Create a design people will actually want to wear on a regular basis, 2. Use the most comfortable and flattering shirts, and 3. Consider printing on demand. Doing this means that you don’t have a huge outlay creating stock at the start, and everyone can get the exact size (and color) that suits them.

Challenges to Consider:

While printing on demand does save you money, it also means that each shirt costs more to produce, and it also takes more time. If you’re having a shirt sale event, you can rent a screen printing machine–all you need is your design and some volunteers to get everyone at the event exactly what they need.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

7. Chocolate Sale

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

A chocolate sale is one of the more straightforward approaches to charity fundraiser ideas. Just bulk buy chocolate, pick a busy location, and start selling!

Challenges to Consider:

Find a spot where there are plenty of people passing through, and not many stores to satisfy people’s cravings. Schools, sports clubs and local events could all work well.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

8. Greeting Cards

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Recruit some kids to design adorable holiday cards to sell individually or by the box. They can be easily copied and printed on high quality paper at FedEx. For an extra charge, offer to mail them out as well for complete holiday convenience.

The Best Time to Do This:

This idea also works well if you’re participating in a craft sale or have an office where people could drop by to buy them. Holiday season is the sweet spot for this fundraiser.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

You could partner with an art school or a local artist for more professional cards as well.

9. Dedicated Books

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

A personalized book makes a great present. Collaborate with a well-known author who is willing to hand write dedications in their books and gather requests for the names and messages people would like for a small fee. This would particularly suit literacy or arts charities.

Challenges to Consider:

Figuring out the kind of book to sell will be the hardest part!

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime, or connected to an event that relates back to the story you’re sharing.

10. Memory Wall

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Create a wall or other feature that includes memorial plaques. People can pay to have their loved one’s name and dates engraved on a plaque, and perhaps include a message to them. This can be a wonderful way to show support for your community, and is ideal for charities supporting those affected by illness or bereavement.

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll need a wall or other appropriate space for the plaques. The overhead cost for this fundraiser could also be quite high, but it also has the chance to raise some positive press for your organization.

The Best Time to Do This:

If you’re relating it back to your charity, try to time it appropriately (for example, Breast Cancer Awareness Month is in October).

11. Recipe Book

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Ask your community for family recipes, and compile them into a book that you can then sell at craft sales, farmers markets, and other events. Good fundraising ideas don’t just make money—they bring people together.

Challenges to Consider:

Producing a book can be expensive, so consider partnering with a sponsor to cover the cost of these in exchange for their name or advert appearing in it.

The Best Time to Do This:

This makes a great present, so make sure it’s ready for Christmas.

12. Community Coupon Book

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$

Collaborating with local businesses to build coupon books is a great alternative to direct donation. Ask each business to offer a deal or two, and compile them into a book of 50-100 coupons to sell to community members at an event.

Challenges to Consider:

This idea has two parts to organize—firstly, collaborating with businesses to get the deals and creating the coupon books, and secondly, organizing sales at various events or online.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

13. Christmas Tree Sale

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $

Buy a large number of Christmas trees in different sizes at wholesale prices, and set up your stand in a field or parking lot to sell them locally. You’ll need volunteers to run the sales, and a tree netting machine.

Challenges to Consider:

Have a plan in place for any trees that don’t get sold, and be prepared to clear up your space — Christmas tree needles get everywhere!

The Best Time to Do This:

Christmas, of course.

14. VIP Parking Sale

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $$

There’s always a prime parking spot in a workplace or apartment building parking lot. Auction off exclusive parking rights to the spot for a year and see the donations come rolling in. You could even add a sign with the winner’s name to make it officially theirs.

Challenges to Consider:

Be sure to check with the building management first, and to let everyone else with access to the parking lot know that the spot is now out of bounds.

The Best Time to Do This:

January, so you can auction off the spot for a full year. You can also auction it off month by month.

15. “Famous” Photographers Prints

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Find a well known photographer (or even a collection of people who are fairly well known locally) who is willing to let you use some of their images. You could use these to create products that are then sold at craft fairs or online.

Challenges to Consider:

Printing a calendar or book can be expensive, so shop around for a deal and promote them everywhere you can. Leftover stock can end up costing a lot!

The Best Time to Do This:

Create cards for Christmas, or calendars for the new year.

16. Buy-a-Brick

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

This is a perfect project if your organization is building something new or making a commemorative wall. Ask community members to donate to have their name or message engraved on a brick and be part of the structure.

The Best Time to Do This:

Get started whilst you’re planning a new building project.

17. Farmer’s Market Booth

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

This fundraising idea could combine a few of the other fundraisers we’ve listed. You could sell baked goods, calendars, crafts… anything that your volunteers or staff can make.

Challenges to Consider:

For this idea, you need to have people who are willing to contribute goods they’ve made or bought to your stall, as well as people who are willing to run it.

The Best Time to Do This:

Farmers’ markets typically run in the late spring or summer. However, you could also do this in the winter if you can find a Christmas fair or other craft sale nearby.

Marc A. Pitman

CFCC

The Concord Leadership Group: FundraisingCoach.com & The Nonprofit Academy

“In all of a nonprofit’s fundraising work, whether in events, through print and digital communications, or in one-on-one meetings, the nonprofit’s job is to show donors what they as donors have accomplished. That’s because the impact that has occurred through the nonprofit exists because of donations. So, as the nonprofit ties donors directly to the impact, donors will willingly give again and again.

And asking will be easier too. Nonprofits will now be able to say ‘Remember that great decision you made to give earlier? And the tremendous results your gift created? There are more opportunities. Will you make that great decision to give again, right now?’”

11 Fundraising Ideas For Kids

Although many of the ideas on this list can be adapted for kids, or are well-suited for organizations that focus on serving youth, here are a few that are specifically designed to appeal to a younger audience.

1. Lego Night

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $

Charge a reasonable entrance fee and invite children of all ages to build their coolest creations in hopes of winning a prize. You could also sell baked goods and drinks at the event for a little extra revenue on these fundraising activities.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

2. Petting Zoo

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Organize a petting zoo in your community by partnering with the SPCA or local farms.

Challenges to Consider:

Finding an appropriate location could be a challenge if you’re in a city. A field, large garden or sports ground could work, but there is likely to be mud and straw to clear up afterwards.

The Best Time to Do This:

Spring or summer is best for this outdoor event.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

As mentioned above, the SPCA or local farms are your best bet.

3. Carnation Sale

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

Pre-sell single carnations for kids to bring home to parents or give to best friends and teachers on a special day.

Challenges to Consider:

Be sure to decide early whether you’ll be purchasing carnations from a nursery or growing them yourself.

The Best Time to Do This:

Carnations typically bloom in late spring.

4. Box Tops

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

If you’re looking to raise funds for your school, collecting box tops is an easy way to do it. All you have to do is get children to collect them once parents have collected the products, and then set up an account with Box Tops for Education to mail them in.

The Best Time to Do This:

Cheques are mailed to schools in April and December, so you can make a bigger push around those times. It helps when your ideas for fundraisers are timed with a larger program!

5. Teeter Totter Marathon

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

This is a quick fundraiser that follows the idea of a dance marathon, but for kids. Get people to donate for each minute the child is on the seesaw (or the swings) and see how high they’ll go!

Challenges to Consider:

Make sure you have a playground available to use, whether it’s in your neighborhood or at your school.

The Best Time to Do This:

This could be a good end-of-the-school-year fundraiser, since it’ll be nice outside.

6. Breakfast with a Character

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $$

Host a breakfast with the Easter Bunny or another cartoon character. Attendees pay a fee and receive breakfast and a picture of themselves with the character.

Challenges to Consider:

Don’t forget to secure some talented breakfast chefs for the day AND enough brave souls willing to don silly costumes. You can buy a quick photo printer, offer to send the pictures digitally to parents, or get a Polaroid to capture a more vintage feeling.

The Best Time to Do This:

Consider which characters you want to introduce and schedule accordingly.

7. Candy Grams

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

During holidays such as Valentine’s Day, St Patrick’s Day, Halloween and winter holidays, students can pay to send a note and candy to another student.

Challenges to Consider:

Make sure teachers and administrators are on board and let you know the best delivery times that don’t disturb instruction.

The Best Time to Do This:

Holidays like Valentines Day, Christmas and graduation are great times to offer candy grams.

8. Read-a-Thon

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $$

This is an easy way to get kiddos engaged in reading and introduce them to the idea of philanthropy. Children can ask friends and families to sponsor them for each book they read. There’s little planning or management besides providing students with the initial pledge forms. 

You could also offer small prizes for the child in each category who reads the most books or collects the most donations!

The Best Time to Do This:

March 2nd is Read Across America Day. Depending on your location, there might be other days that are related to literacy that would be good to highlight.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Reach out to organizations like Scholastic or First Book to see if they have any additional resources or programming to support your event.

9. Painted Lollipops

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

Buy a box of inexpensive trinkets (and a few nice things) and another box of inexpensive lollipops. Paint or mark the ends of the lollipop sticks in different colors (blue for a trinket, red for a “grand prize), and stick them in a ball of floral foam to make a lollipop bouquet. Sell each pop for $1-2, and every kid wins a small prize in addition to their lollipop.

Challenges to Consider:

This wouldn’t bring in many donations on its own, so it’s worth adding it as an additional activity to a larger event you’re running.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

10. Santa!

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Posing with Santa is a classic childhood activity. You can also sell photos with Santa for an extra small fee.

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll need to hold your photos somewhere that gets decent pedestrian traffic, as well as promoting it well beforehand (to compete with all the other Santas around!) Before Christmas, of course! Try to plan it for early December, before schedules are too hectic.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Consider partnering with your local mall Santa to get a part of the proceeds donated to your organization.

11. Sleepover Party

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$

Let parents have the night off! Rent a space, play movies, and organize games to keep kids busy until they fall asleep.

Challenges to Consider:

The complexity of this event and the number of volunteers you’ll need depends on the number of kids who sign up, since you’ll need enough volunteers to manage them overnight (and enough activities to tire them out).

The Best Time to Do This:

Holding it over the summer is a good way to let parents have a break while kids aren’t in school.

Lori L. Jacobwith

Fundraising Culture Change Expert & Master Storyteller

Ignited Fundraising

“One of the very best ways to cause donors to give again is to share what I call “mission moments” before, during and after a fundraising event.  Our brains are wired to think in story. By sharing a mission moment story we help our donors see into the life of one person impacted by their contribution. And feel empathy. Causing a memorable connection that donors want to continue.”

65+ Great Fundraiser Ideas

Many of the best fundraising ideas come back to big events! Here are the best ones we found to get the gears turning.

1. Open House

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$$

Collaborate with a local landmark or venue that isn’t normally accessible to the public, and arrange a day when visitors can get a guided tour. You can sell tickets, and also offer a concession stand.

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll have to work closely with the venue to meet any security requirements they might have, and keep in mind ways to make this event accessible to as many people as possible. You might also need to split proceeds with the venue, particularly if their staff are the ones giving tours.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime—although if the venue requires any outdoor walking, the dead of winter might not be ideal.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

You’ll need to partner with the venue, such as a governmental building or museum.

2. Organize a Play

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 4

Expected Return: $$$

Sell tickets, programs and concessions at the play you’ve put on, and give people a great evening out! There are lots of scripts that are free to use, costumes can be sourced from thrift stores and amateur dramatics societies are often looking for their next showcase.

You could even use this fundraiser idea as a community project, or an opportunity for aspiring young actors to star on the stage for the first time (especially if your organization works with children or teenagers!).

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll need to make sure you find enough actors and publicize it thoroughly to make the effort of organizing a play worth it.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime!

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

You’ll need a venue (as well as some theatrical advice) so partner with your local theater, drama society or even an area school.

3. County Fair

Overhead Cost: $$$

Complexity to Plan: 4

Expected Return: $$$

Rather than organizing your own event, this is a chance to hop on someone else’s bandwagon. Partner with the organizers of your local county fair to get a portion of the proceeds donated to your organization, or a portion of the earnings from one fundraiser activity. You could even organize your own fair if you’re feeling ambitious!

Challenges to Consider:

Of course, this event only works if there’s a fair happening near you. You might also need to be a fairly (pardon the pun) well-recognized organization so that the fair is willing to partner with you, and be able to provide volunteers who can help with ticketing or running events.

The Best Time to Do This:

County fairs are generally held in the fall.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

You’ll need to partner with the city hall in your area or whatever local organization is arranging the fair.

4. Relay

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Hold your organization’s own version of the Relay for Life! It can be done though running, biking or even kayaking—whatever fits best with your demographic and your area.

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll need to have a large enough space to host the relay (whether it’s outdoors or a school gym). This might also mean you’ll need to work with local authorities to block off a road if you want lots of visibility for your relay.

The Best Time to Do This:

Over the summer, when weather permits outdoor activities.

5. Treadmill Relay

Overhead Cost: $-$$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

If you don’t have the space to organize an outdoor relay, why not do it on treadmills instead? Get supporters to donate for each minute of running and get them to sign up for predetermined time slots.

Or, turn it into a competition between teams by getting donors to sign up in groups. Assign them each a different treadmill and have small prizes for whoever goes for the longest (or the furthest!).

Challenges to Consider:

To get enough treadmills, partner with a local gym and offer to publicize their services as well. Good fundraising ideas often come from partnerships!

The Best Time to Do This:

An ideal time for this event is in January, when people are already trying to get fit, but it could be held anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

A local gym is your best bet. You could also ask them to have personal trainers on hand to offer advice (for a small extra donation!).

6. Reverse Raffle

Overhead Cost: $$$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$$

Instead of just selling tickets, make a party of it!

In a reverse raffle, you set a fixed number of tickets to draw folks into a larger grand prize (for example, 200 tickets for $100 grosses a $10,000 prize and $10,000 for your org!). Then, get some food, drink, music and games and start drawing numbers. Instead of the FIRST number being the winner, the LAST number is!

Watch the tensions rise as people’s odds increase. But wait! Save a special ticket and auction it off when there are just four numbers left…people might pay upwards of $500 to get that 1-5 chance of winning ten grand!

Challenges to Consider:

This isn’t a raffle, it’s an event! Make it a party, make it fun and look for ideas to get people to donate more throughout the evening.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

7. Art Auction

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 4

Expected Return: $$$

Ask members of your community or their kids to donate art, coordinate with a local shop to have them framed, and then auction them off. Pump up the hype by adding a theme like “come dressed as your favorite art or artist” and make a little extra cash for your charity by selling concessions.

Challenges to Consider:

Getting art from local artists who already have some recognition in your community might help with sales.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

You could also partner with an art gallery to get proceeds from sales at an opening.

8. Bake Sale

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

The bake sale is a classic fundraising idea. It’s something everyone knows how to do, and your audience knows what to expect from it. Also, since you’re dealing in consumables, people will always have a need for more baked goods!

Challenges to Consider:

Ask your volunteers to write down what they’re planning on making, so that you don’t have any duplicates. Definitely get some vegan or gluten-free options prepared so everyone can enjoy your tasty treats!

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Consider holding your sale during a larger event, such as a farmer’s market.

9. Bowling for Bucks

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Coordinate with a bowling alley to rent a group of lanes—or the entire building if you know you’ll have a lot of participants—and sign up teams. Participants can raise pledges per pin or just raise donations in general.

Challenges to Consider:

Renting lanes at a bowling alley can be costly. Reach out early to see if you can get a discounted rate for booking multiple lanes or the entire space.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

The bowling alley, of course!

Read More: Pledge Fundraising: 4 Tips for Creating a Powerful Campaign

10. Cakewalk

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

A cakewalk can be done on its own or be organized in conjunction with an event like a school open house or a community, PTA or city council meeting.

Challenges to Consider:

Remember, the prizes don’t need to be limited to cakes! Any fun item that people might want to win and that appeals to your audience can be used.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

A larger event where there is ample foot traffic for your walk.

11. Car Wash

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

The community car wash is another classic fundraiser activity! People love the idea of buckets and sponges for a worthy cause. This is also a great time to talk to participants about your cause and potentially recruit some new volunteers!

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll need to pick a location with access to a water source. Holding it in a busy parking lot can also help you get new supporters.

The Best Time to Do This:

Spring or summer is best for this event—you don’t want your volunteers getting cold!

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

You may be able to partner with a local gas station to use a part of the lot. It’s a great place to rope in clientele and easy clean up for you!

12. Movie Night

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$

Everyone loves a good movie night! Hold it at your local community center (or school gym) and charge admission. You can also have a concession stand for an extra way to raise money.

Challenges to Consider:

There are several factors you’ll need to consider with this fundraiser, including movie licensing, renting a projector and/or a screen and how you’ll get sound. Choosing a comfortable location is also key.

The Best Time to Do This:

Since you’ll be inside, you can do it anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Consider partnering with a local movie theater to split proceeds—you might not get quite as many donations, but you also won’t have to handle the challenges mentioned above.

13. Movie on the Lawn

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$

Stage your movie night with a summertime twist. Tell everyone to bring a blanket and you’ll be able to accommodate a lot of people. For a more nostalgic feel, organize a drive-in in a local field or park.

You could do free admission and just charge for concessions, or ask for voluntary donations. Make it extra fun and provide games for the kids to help pass the time until dark.

Challenges to Consider:

It’s important to consider the technology you’ll use to show the movie as well as making sure you have the proper movie licensing for a larger audience. It’s also wise to have a rain date in case of nasty weather.

The Best Time to Do This:

Spring and summer are prime outdoor screening times.

14. Community Yard Sale

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

One person’s junk is another person’s treasure… so why not raise money for something good with it, right? With even just a few neighbors clearing out those messy basements and clutter closets, you can turn a decent profit.

Challenges to Consider:

A few key logistics to consider are the location of sale (make sure you’ve got ample space for those larger items), as well as a convenient location where donations will be collected prior to the sale.

The Best Time to Do This:

Yard sales are best around April, when people are doing their spring cleaning and looking to get rid of things!

15. Craft Show

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

You may be surprised at the talent your community members have up their sleeves. From the secret woodworker to the prolific jewelry-maker, this kind of event is especially effective right before the holidays. Use your space and “sell” tables. Your profits will be fixed and you don’t have to do much besides rent tables and chairs!

Challenges to Consider:

Make sure you have enough space to display all of the items that people bring in. You’ll also want to know what people are bringing in beforehand, so you can arrange their stalls without placing competing products side by side.

The Best Time to Do This:

Hosting during the holiday season will surely boost the success of this event.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

You could potentially partner with an organization that runs art classes (such as a pottery studio) to get their students involved.

16. Doggy Happy Hour

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Drinks and puppies—what more could anyone ask for? Ask your community members to bring out their cutest four-legged pals for an adorable doggy happy hour at a reasonable entrance fee. While this event is a great fit for animal-related organizations, puppies are really just a hit to raise money for any demographic.

Challenges to Consider:

Make sure people understand the allergy risk, and that parents sign a consent form for children under 18 if your event is open to minors.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

This is a cool fundraising idea to invite your SPCA chapter to partner with you on!

 17. Pup Walk

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

You need to walk your dog, so why not walk with everyone else in your community at the same time? A pup walk can be as simple as selling a ticket, providing a goodie bag and arranging a meetup location. Or if you wanted, it could be as elaborate as closing down the streets, adding in contests, and making a parade and festival out of it. Go wild!

Challenges to Consider:

Same as above.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

This is a great event to invite your ASPCA chapter to partner with you on.

18. Dance Marathon

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$

How many hours can you keep moving? A classic dance marathon means you get pledges, and every hour you’re on your feet your sponsors shell out. Will you keep them up all night, or just do daytime jitterbugs? Either way, you can also livestream your marathon so people can tune in and check on their dancers.

Challenges to Consider:

Make sure you’re playing a variety of music so that everyone is satisfied. You’ll also need to find an area large enough for all your dancers—consider an arena or community center.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime

19. Dunk Tank

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $

Who doesn’t love seeing someone humiliate themselves for a good cause? Rent a tank from a party supply company and get dunking! This event would go well with a larger summer fundraising day—consider having ice cream on hand for spectators to buy.

Challenges to Consider:

Try to think of community members that attendees would love to dunk (e.g. local elected officials, favorite teachers, board members, etc.) to generate some buzz, and don’t forget to plan your event with a water source in mind to fill that tank!

The Best Time to Do This:

This event is best during the summer, so your brave volunteers don’t freeze!

20. Educational Clinic

Overhead Cost: $-$$$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

If your nonprofit is filled with experts, leverage their knowledge to host a clinic, conference or workgroup. Paid registration required helps fill your coffers, but be sure to offer discounts for those who may not be able to afford to come.

Challenges to Consider:

If your nonprofit doesn’t have any experts that people would pay to see, consider reaching out to someone else who’s well-known in your community who can offer some skills to share.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

A local bookstore might be a good location for hosting (particularly if your expert has written a book they can sell!).

21. Clothing Swap

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

Most people have clothes that they want to get rid of. Why not have them give to a good cause? Either have people pay a donation fee to participate, or have them offer to pay a small donation for every piece of clothing they take.

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll need a large enough group of people to make the swap worthwhile for all participants, as well as enough tables to spread out all the clothes you’re going to get.

Consider getting participants to drop off the clothes the night before so you have time to organize them beforehand—and have a plan for the leftover clothes, such as dropping them off at your local shelter or thrift store.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime, but spring cleaning time might give you the most donations!

 

22. Garden and Plant Sale

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Get started early to grow plants, or purchase them if you’re short on time. If you’re a garden club, have your members donate some of their favorite starts.

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll need either a nursery to make a donation or to grow your own seedlings or flowers to sell. Either way, you’ll need to start planning early! Catch people in spring or early summer, when they’re beginning to really think about their gardens.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

To incentivize a nursery to donate, offer to give attendees applications to their loyalty or rewards programs.

23. Host a Discussion

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Every community has someone who has a great story and a high profile. Find that person and host a discussion with them, moderated by another notable figure in the community. Who knows, you might even be able to turn it into a whole lecture series…

Challenges to Consider:

You’d need to get a moderator, an expert, and a venue. Consider also selling refreshments for a little extra boost!

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

A local restaurant with a discussion space, a library, or a local bookstore—the latter two are particularly good if the expert also has a book for audiences to read.

24. Karaoke

Overhead Cost: $$$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Karaoke can be a terrific icebreaker and community builder. You can have a general “open mic” or even do a full-on singing competition!

Challenges to Consider:

Getting the right location and equipment could be a challenge. Simply renting out a karaoke bar that already has all you need may be the best option.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

25. Pancake Breakfast

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

A pancake breakfast is relatively easy to pull together and it provides your community with a chance to mingle. Buy some mix, some toppings and get cooking!

Challenges to Consider:

Hungry people don’t like to wait too long! Ask your community members to loan you their griddles and best spatulas to get as many hands moving as possible.

The Best Time to Do This:

Picking a day that’s already associated with pancakes, such as Mardi Gras, is a great option.

26. Pool Party

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Kids and adults alike enjoy a chance to splash around with their pals in a pool and would pay a fair price to do so. Partnering with a public pool will keep your costs down and may encourage a wide range of community members to attend.

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll need to pay lifeguards. You might also want a food and alcohol permit if you’re going to aim for a hipper vibe for the event.

The Best Time to Do This:

This is the perfect “say hello” or “say goodbye” to summer event!

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

The YMCA and local public pools are great resources. If you’re including alcoholic drinks, consider reaching out to hotels.

27. Scavenger Hunt

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $

This one takes a little bit of organizing, but if you can pull it off, there’s a lot of fun to be had. Social media can make scavenger hunts even easier—have your participants take photos of the items on their lists and use a hashtag to track them. Good fundraising ideas are ones that build community!

Challenges to Consider:

Be sure to plan the hunt route ahead of time so that it’s safe and fun for participants of all levels of ability. You’ll also want to establish if participants can do it via car or on foot.

The Best Time to Do This:

Summer is probably best—consider having an alternate day in case of poor weather if your participants will be on foot.

28. Silent Auction

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$$

People love to win things, and it’s fun to come to see what others are bidding on. Since it’s a silent auction, there’s a little more freeform than some other events, and your participants can come and mingle while putting in their bids. You can also include a mix of services and items (or focus solely on one or the other) depending on the demographic you’re trying to engage.

Challenges to Consider:

Securing donations can be a challenge, but start early and really sell businesses on your vision and cause. Taking advantage of fundraising software such as Fundly can also make it easier for you.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Leverage local businesses who can donate items.

Read More: The Donation List Template Your Organization Needs to Stay on Track

29. Murder Mystery Dinner Party

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$

Get your community members to pull out their acting skills for this one! There are board games you can purchase so that your participants know what to do, or you can come up with a script yourself.

Challenges to Consider:

Organizing this one might be a little more difficult than some of the others on this list because of the amount of players involved, so give yourself plenty of time to figure it out.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Partner with a local restaurant who has enough room for all of your participants and your actors. Alternatively, find a local murder mystery dinner theater so that you don’t have to organize quite as much yourself.

30. Dinner Party Auction

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$$

Who doesn’t love a dinner party? The excuse to get dressed up and eat delicious food will certainly attract an audience. Combine food and the excitement of bidding (as well as a little wine), and you’re sure to have a winning night!

Challenges to Consider:

Securing donations can be a challenge, but start early and really sell businesses on your vision and cause.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Leverage local businesses who can donate items. You could potentially also partner with a local restaurant to host the night!

Cindy Wagman, CFRE, MBA

President and CEO

The Good Partnership

“Small nonprofits shouldn’t look at big organizations and try to compare. Instead of approaching all the big companies who get a million asks, think of a creative way to engage small, local businesses in sponsorship and philanthropy. Find businesses that are a good fit with your mission and involve them in your organization beyond writing a cheque.”

31. Trivia Night

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$

Tons of people already pay for trivia at bars and restaurants, so leverage this interest by inviting them to pay an entrance fee to play at your organization. Consider making the questions specific to your cause or community for added fun!

Challenges to Consider:

You can alway make your own questions and display them with a simple projector to cut costs, but there are also plenty of trivia rental companies that will come prepared with all you need to make your event a success.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Ask around for bars and restaurants that may be willing to host in exchange for a drink minimum for attendees.

32. Volunteer Auction

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$$

Have members of your community volunteer their services (anything from handyman to web design!) and then auction off those services and put the money toward the charity. Not only are people able to get some of their much-needed things done, but your community members can get to know each other better.

Challenges to Consider:

Be sure to follow up with the volunteers to make sure the services go smoothly for the auction winners.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

 

33. Hiking Day

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $$

We can all use more fresh air! Bring your donors on a hike or nature walk outside your town for a small fee. Great fundraiser ideas don’t always have to be complicated.

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll need to find a wildlife expert or guide who can lead the walk. Guests should also be made aware of any potential dangers such as bears or ticks. Depending on your area, coordinating transportation—such as a bus that will pick up and drop off registrants at an easy-to-reach location—should also be arranged.

The Best Time to Do This:

Hold it when it’s warm outside (but not too hot!) especially if you live in an area that might have snow long into spring.

34. Applebee’s Flapjack Fundraiser

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Partner with Applebee’s and start flipping those pancakes! You can coordinate a day with them and start selling tickets to your breakfast.

Challenges to Consider:

Applebee’s will do all the cooking, but you’ll need to have enough volunteers on hand to bus tables and serve pancakes.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

35. Chili Cook-Off

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$

This event can take place in your office, in which case you’d have your employees bring their favorite dish or item, or in the wider community. Whichever it is, get participants to bring a dish centered around the chosen theme. At lunch, charge a small fee to sample the food then have everyone vote for the dish they liked best!

Challenges to Consider:

Be sure to secure a space to serve food with burners ready to keep it all hot. You should also have people pay in advance so that you’ll know if you have enough food for all attendees.

The Best Time to Do This:

Consider a theme and time of year appropriate for the item. For example, a chili cook-off in winter around the Superbowl, a BBQ cook-off around Memorial Day or the Fourth of July, or pie baking around Thanksgiving.

36. Bake-Off

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $

With the success of shows like The Great British Bake-Off, you should find it easy to get participants for this one! Get a panel of judges (or ask the public to vote) on a variety of baking categories. You can even sell the top performing entries off afterwards for some extra funds, and hold this in tandem with the craft fair or another similar event mentioned above to boost the attraction.

Challenges to Consider:

Make sure the venue you’re picking has enough room for all the cakes you’re going to display, as well as facilities for tea and coffee (judging cakes can be thirsty work!).

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Ask your local cooking school to help promote the event to their students to boost registrations.

37. Walk for the Cause

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

A walk can be a great way to get people involved in fundraisers. Not only do the walkers have to spread the word about your cause in order to get sponsorships, but you can give away t-shirts that advertise what you’re raising money for.

Challenges to Consider:

Make sure to keep it safe—have water and medics available just in case.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Don’t forget to coordinate with local authorities to make sure the course is safe and closed.

38. Fun Run

Overhead Cost: $-$$$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

From a city-spanning, timed marathon to a quick family one-miler, a fun run can be as easy as gathering on the local track or as complicated as you want to make it. The good news: runners like to run, and they’re growing in numbers. Be creative and get people out moving!

Plus, you can always pick a theme: Costume contest run through the cemetery at sunset? Ugly sweaters at the holidays? Red dress for Valentine’s Day? Be creative, pull together some swag and a party at the end, and turn exercise into a festive experience.

Challenges to Consider:

See above.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

39. Ghost Tour

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Does your town have some haunted places? Organize a haunted walk to showcase them—or make the stories up yourself!

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll need to get willing guides who will rehearse their stories beforehand (and dress up in a spooky costume).

The Best Time to Do This:

Ghost walks can be good anytime of year, but might perform even better around Halloween.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

If you’re not familiar with the history of your area, consider partnering with a museum or historical society to help you out. Fundraiser ideas can benefit from collaboration!

40. Themed Office Lunch Party

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

Pick a cause, pick a theme and get your co-workers or officemates to meet up for a charity lunch. Maybe it’s the start of football season or the end of summer, charge for lunch and raffle off prizes to make a few dollars for a good cause.

Challenges to Consider:

Be sure to secure a space to serve food with burners ready to keep it all hot. You should also have people pay in advance so that you’ll know if you have enough food for all attendees.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Try to secure donated or discounted food from local restaurants so no one has to worry about prep.

41. Beer Garden Night

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Coordinate with a local beer garden to co-host a happy hour or dinner where a portion of the evening’s sales go to your cause. You can also get more creative with themes, specialty offerings, drink specials, and games like cornhole or horseshoes, depending on your location.

Challenges to Consider:

Beer gardens may be more willing to host in exchange for a drink minimum for attendees (which could potentially be included in your ticket cost).

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime, but summer could be a good bet so attendees get to sit on the patio!

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

A local bar or restaurant is your best bet.

42. Eating for a Cause

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Coordinate with a bar or restaurant to co-host a regular or one-off happy hour or dinner where a portion of the evening’s sales go to your cause (You can use a service like GroupRaise). Fundraiser ideas that pair with local businesses tend to do really well!

Challenges to Consider:

Bars and restaurants may be more willing to host in exchange for a drink minimum for attendees.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

A local bar or restaurant is your best bet.

43. Armchair Olympics

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$

Sign up teams of four to compete in a series of off-the-wall “Olympic” events of your design. Teams pay to enter and spectators come to cheer them on (and purchase food and drink!). Tricycle races, inflatable raft paddle, hamster wheel run, sponge toss, frisbee throwing and more can all be part of a fun, messy afternoon.

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll have to come up with original and fun events for participants, especially when considering different ability levels. You’ll also want to make sure you have a large enough space to host everyone, whether it’s outside in a field or indoors in a larger event space.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime (although summer might be best if you’re hosting it outdoors).

44. Breakfast In Bed

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$

Create your organization’s version of UberEats—get people to order food and then deliver it to them, either for breakfast or for another special occasion.

Challenges to Consider:

First, decide whether you’re going to be preparing the food yourself or partnering with a local restaurant to deliver their food. Either way, you’ll need a lot of volunteers to help you deliver and/or prepare it (or get restaurants to help you deliver and share profits).

The Best Time to Do This:

This is a great activity to do in the winter when people are feeling lazy and don’t want to leave the house!

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Partner with local restaurants to increase the publicity around this event.

45. Bingo Night

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

It is what it says. BINGO! As far as great fundraiser ideas go, this is a classic.

Challenges to Consider:

Bingo sets are generally pretty affordable and worth buying if you plan to repeat the event, but if not, party rental suppliers are a good option. Consider selling refreshments as well—Bingo can be thirsty work!

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Consider partnering with a local Bingo hall to have an ongoing event where part of the proceeds go to your organization.

46. Pop-Up Picnic

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$$

People think of picnics as being in the park, but what if everyone brought blankets and ate under the stars in the center of Main Street? Pick a non-picnic location, be sure to coordinate with local authorities and sell tickets in advance for a community dine-together experience.

The good news: attendees bring their own food and seating! This makes your responsibilities: location, parking and transportation, bathrooms, trash and entertainment.

To make it even more fun, don’t reveal the location until the same day!

Challenges to Consider:

Coordinate with local authorities to ensure the spot you’ve chosen is safe and closed to vehicle traffic. Don’t forget to obtain the right permits, if you’ll be allowing attendees to bring alcohol.

The Best Time to Do This:

Over the summer, when weather permits outdoor activities.

47. Color Al Fresco

Overhead Cost: $$-$$$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$$

Just like a pop-up picnic, color al fresco is a pop-up dining experience in a unique location – but the twist is that everyone wears the same color! Often done in white, these dinners are gaining in popularity. Consider renting tables and chairs so the colorful centerpieces, outfits, and decor can be on full display!

Challenges to Consider:

As above, you’ll have to coordinate with local authorities to make sure everything goes smoothly. You’ll also have to decide if you want to provide food to attendees or if they need to bring their own.

The Best Time to Do This:

Over the summer, when weather permits outdoor activities.

48. Hand-on-the-Prize

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

A throwback fundraiser! You’ve secured a big donation, and auctioning or raffling just won’t cut it? Sell tickets and the “winners” get a chance to sit all together in a room with their hand-on-the-object. The last one to break contact wins!

Challenges to Consider:

Securing a donation item can be a challenge, but start early and really sell businesses on your vision and cause.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

49. Spa Day

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$

How can you turn something everyone already loves into a fundraiser? Add-ons and markdowns. By partnering with a local spa, your event attendees will pay to enjoy the basic services—sauna, hot tubs, champagne, snacks—and a portion of any add-ons they schedule can go to your cause.

Be sure to book in time slots so you can maximize your time at the spa (and make sure they understand that the service providers aren’t working for free and still require a tip!).

Challenges to Consider:

Getting free services is always a challenge, but work on selling your mission and vision in a compelling way to engage donors with your fundraiser ideas.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

You’ll need a spa to agree to partner with you.

50. Traveling Dinner

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$$

Either at homes or at restaurants, groups gather to sample a multi-course meal at multiple (walking distance, ideally) locations. This could also take the form of a local food tour for your participants, or a cafe crawl. Make sure everyone comes hungry!

Challenges to Consider:

Make sure you reach out to restaurants early to begin mapping out a convenient route for your participants.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Think about which restaurants are community favorites — those are your greatest resource!

51. Living Room Social

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$

Everyone has something to offer, and most folks are excited to share. Whether it’s a knack for Greek cuisine, a best friend who owns a bakery, overnight preparation of meat in the backyard smoker or just a pool.

Encourage a group of “donors” to each plan a party for 4-8 “strangers”. Sell tickets to each party online or at your silent auction. You keep the proceeds, but don’t have to actually host any guests!

Challenges to Consider:

Reach out to potential hosts early to make sure they have a plan and are comfortable talking to strangers.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

52. Singles Charity Night

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 4

Expected Return: $$$

You can choose to run this event as a typical speed dating night, or to run it in a way that directly benefits your organization (for example, asking singles to help make care packages for your shelter). Either way, sparks are sure to fly!

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll need a decent volume of single people to sign up to make the event a success.

The Best Time to Do This:

Consider holding it around Valentine’s Day.

53. Pet Wash

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $

You’ve heard of a car wash… now try the same thing, but for pets!

Challenges to Consider:

Some animals can be sensitive to new people. Make sure all your volunteers have some familiarity with animals, and that everyone has signed a liability form just in case.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Consider partnering with your local SPCA, pet store or pet grooming store to get pet washing advice.

54. World Record Attempt Party

Overhead Cost: $-$$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $

Make a list of world records you think your audience could break, and invite people to participate in doing so! Charge a small fee for the privilege.

Challenges to Consider:

It might take some combing through the Guinness World Record Book to find one you can actually break.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime, depending on the record.

55. Treasure Hunt

Overhead Cost: $-$$$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Post clues on social media leading up to the big day, and get teams to participate by following the clues. Apps like Actionbound can also help you create an experience that teams won’t forget!

Challenges to Consider:

The main difficulty of this event lies in making sure your clues are hard enough to figure out that teams can’t do it immediately, but not so hard that no one gets them. Consider having volunteers on hand to help answer questions if need be.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime!

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Try to get a local business to donate a prize, or have a couple of different ones set up for first, second and third prize.

56. Dish Smash

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $

Collect old and chipped dishes your community no longer uses and hold a dish smashing event. How many other ideas for fundraisers get all the anger out?

Challenges to Consider:

Keep an eye on the health and safety — make sure no one is standing in the way of flying bits of broken crockery, and potentially provide safety goggles for your participants.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

57. Coffee House

Overhead Cost: $-$$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$$

This event can take place at a coffee shop (if it’s in your budget), at someone’s home or your venue of choice. It’s a great opportunity to share some warm drinks and snacks with community members, and for people to showcase their talents (singing, dancing, poetry, etc).

Challenges to Consider:

Numbers will be limited to the size of the venue, and if you’re holding your event at a cafe or arts space, you might have to book out the whole space.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime, but it’s an especially cozy event to host in the winter.

58. Cooking Class

Overhead Cost: $-$$

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

Almost anyone can plan a cooking class (you don’t have to be a chef!). If you have access to a kitchen or can rent a space with one, you can put on a cooking class fundraiser in a variety of ways.

This could be learning the basics of cooking, learning to cook a specific dish, learning to make some staple holiday meals, or anything else you’d like to lead. Each student pays a small fee to be involved.

Challenges to Consider:

The amount of people able to participate would be limited to the size of the kitchen.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Cooking classes in your area might be willing to partner with you and donate part of the proceeds.

Sandy Rees

Chief Encouragement Officer

Get Fully Funded

“One of my clients is Illuminate India, a US-based nonprofit that helps vulnerable children in India have a brighter future. Because they’re global in scope, a traditional local fundraising event wasn’t going to work. So, we created a virtual event called Curry for a Child and launched it in 2017. The premise is that people sign up then gather a team together. As a team, they either cook a traditional Indian meal or go out for Indian food, then donate $360 to Illuminate India to feed a child in poverty in Calcutta or villages south of there where II works.

We weren’t sure how it would be received and knew it might be small for its first year, but has TONS of potential. We threw it out there and watched as people got excited and started signing up, even when back-to-back hurricanes rocked the US just before the event date. The goal was $10,000 (which was pretty big for a small nonprofit with a small email list, small donor base, and small social media following) and they raised about $11,000. It was a fun way for people to participate and support the organization.

I think the real key to any fundraising event is to make it FUN and easy to participate, and tie the results to something meaningful. In this case, the money each team raises will feed and educate a child for the next year, changing that child’s life forever.”

59. Museum After Dark

Overhead Cost: $$$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$$

Open up your local museum for a night of fun past normal opening hours. This could work just as well at a zoo or aquarium—any spot people are interested in attending.

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll need to get catering and a liquor license, as well as potentially a DJ or other entertainment if you want to get really fancy.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

The museum you’re partnering with is key.

60. Panera Fundraiser

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $-$$

Panera Bread cafes help you run fundraising events in their stores. Contact them to arrange the event and then distribute flyers amongst your supporters. Panera will then donate 20% of sales directly to your organization.

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll only get the donation back from sales that are made with a valid flier, so be sure to distribute plenty of them, and remind people to bring them along.

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime.

61. Step Challenge

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 1

Expected Return: $$$

Get people to pledge to walk a certain amount per day in exchange for donations (or have people pledge a certain amount for every 1000 steps).

Challenges to Consider:

To keep track of people’s steps, you could encourage them to download a free pedometer app, such as Apple Health and Google Fit, that allow you to count your steps. You could even make this an internal competition within your office to get more people to join in.

The Best Time to Do This:

Make the most of the January health kick when people are focusing on fitness after the holiday season.

62. Silent Disco

Overhead Cost: $$$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$

If you haven’t heard of a silent disco before, it’s an opportunity for people to dance while listening to their own music through headphones (or for several DJs to play music at once).

 There are companies such as Silent Events that rent everything you need to run a silent disco, so setting up doesn’t need to be difficult. Because there’s no noise, the disco can be held almost anywhere that there’s enough space. Popular with teenagers particularly!

Challenges to Consider:

You’ll need to get enough participants interested to cover the costs of renting a space—and to make sure they don’t feel silly dancing alone!

The Best Time to Do This:

Anytime, but summer is best if you want to hold it outdoors.

63. Community Clean Up Day

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $

Participants can ask for pledges for each bag of trash they collect as they walk around the community. Prizes can be offered for the individual or team that collects the most bags of trash. All you’ll need to prep is big, durable trash bags and some gloves.

Challenges to Consider:

Make sure all participants wear gloves. If you are working with children, make sure they understand what sorts of things they should NOT pick up.

The Best Time to Do This:

The ideal time to do this is in spring, once snow has melted and you can see just how much garbage there really is! Earth Day might be the perfect date.

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

Check with the Sierra Club, WWFN or any ecological organization to see if they can provide any resources or programming to support your event.

64. Mini-Golf Tournament

Overhead Cost: $$

Complexity to Plan: 3

Expected Return: $$

Everyone loves this relaxing, low-pressure “sport”.  Ask donors and local businesses to sponsor players or to donate based on player scores.

Challenges to Consider:

Renting the course could be very expensive, so start inquiring early. You may also want to try slightly off-peak months to curb costs.

The Best Time to Do This:

Most outdoor mini-golf courses open in the spring and stay open until early fall.

65. Polar Bear Plunge

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

This is a chillingly good fundraiser for colder locales! Have donations based on whether or not your participants are brave enough to jump into the water, or charge a small entry fee that goes to support your organization.

Challenges to Consider:

Obviously, this event must be in a cold location or occur during a cold weather month. You’ll definitely need to have someone on site for safety emergencies just in case! You could also consider selling warm treats like hot chocolate or coffee for participants once they’re out of the water.

The Best Time to Do This:

Depending on where you live, winter is your best, coldest bet!

66. History Walk

Overhead Cost: $

Complexity to Plan: 2

Expected Return: $$

If there are buildings with an interesting history in your town, why not share the historical facts with the rest of your area? Many of the best fundraising ideas utilize local spaces!

Challenges to Consider:

This walk can work equally well as an architectural tour. You’ll need knowledgeable guides, or at least people who are willing to follow a script!

The Best Time to Do This:

History is good any time of year!

Sponsoring or Partnering Organization:

A museum or historical society is your best bet. You could also consider partnering with an architectural society if you’re interested in the way buildings were constructed or designed.

Elizabeth Engel

CEO & Chief Strategist

Spark Consulting

“If you’re hoping to get more volunteers engaged to help with your fundraisers, here are three main things you should be focusing on:

1. Make it fun. For this, you need to know your audience. What *would* be fun for your volunteers? Some people are competitive and might respond well to a contest with publicly available tracking and prizes. Some are cooperative and might enjoy working together as a team to “earn” something for the whole group. Some groups are more formal in tone and need to communicate that way, but some are less formal and might want to communicate using humor.
2. Make it easy. If you want people to help you fundraise, you have to provide them tools that are pretty much plug-and-play. Provide fully written out scripts, emails, and social media posts that they can just send to people in their spheres of influence, but also allow them to just provide contact information for people to you, and you send the messages for them.
3. Give them options. Different people are going to be comfortable doing different kinds of things and will have different amounts of time they can devote. Some volunteers might be comfortable making direct personal asks to people they know, but some might be more comfortable hosting a fundraiser cocktail party or brunch. Some will be able to afford to buy a table at your black-tie gala, but some might be more comfortable inviting some friends to come to a food truck event. Some volunteers might be more comfortable sharing your message through their social media platforms (and some of them may have a much greater reach that your organizational account). Let them choose their path of engagement with your fundraising campaign.”

Choosing the Best Fundraising Ideas for You

And that’s our great big list of fundraising ideas—whew! As you pick out which ideas are best for your organization, be sure to think about what you’re hoping to gain from the event.

Fundraising not only brings money into your organization, but it also builds community. Think about who you want to bring to your event (and how you want it to feel!) and you’ll be sure to make memories out of your fundraisers.