70+ Free Nonprofit Resources to Help You Raise More

Because nonprofits depend on donations, they’re often stretched thin for resources. Luckily, there are plenty of free nonprofit resources online for your organization to take advantage of. By tapping into the plethora of free resources, your team can better prepare for your fundraising campaigns to raise more money and more awareness for your cause. These resources often offer great advice so you can create a first-rate fundraising strategy.  

Whether you’re just starting on your fundraising journey or a seasoned fundraising professional, these free resources will help you fill up your team’s digital library! 

• Webinars
• Podcasts
• Blogs
• Newsletters
• Resource libraries
• Virtual conferencing
• Online learning platforms
• Fundraising software
• Social media resources
• Email marketing
• Website management
• Volunteer management
• Advertising resources
• Analytics

Educational resources for nonprofits 

Your nonprofit is constantly working to make a positive impact on your community. However, the journey towards meaningful change is often filled with obstacles from having limited resources to use. Free nonprofit resources offer your organization knowledge, strategic planning, and valuable data to help you accomplish your goals more efficiently. 

These resources come in various forms, ranging from educational webinars and podcasts to newsletters and fundraising software. The goal of these free resources is to provide ways for your team to streamline day-to-day operations so you can spend more time fundraising.  

How to use educational resources for your nonprofit 

There are a few major benefits to utilizing free nonprofit resources to their full potential.  

• Enriched knowledge. Free webinars and other educational materials can keep you up-to-date with fundraising trends and best practices in the digital era. These virtual resources provide a wealth of knowledge tailored to help you raise more funds. Whether it’s providing an effective guide to grant writing or delving into expert advice on digital marketing strategies for nonprofits, these free nonprofit resources provide invaluable knowledge to help you develop your fundraising skills. 
• Enhanced outreach. Social media and email marketing resources and templates can help you transform your mass communications into personalized donor engagements. With expert knowledge in crafting compelling posts, tweets, and pins, your team can better promote your mission and interact with your community on new levels. 
• Optimized fundraising. Software and toolkits can play a crucial role in streamlining the donation process and creating a more convenient and engaging experience for potential donors looking to contribute to your cause. By taking advantage of free software packages, your nonprofit can make simple pathways for your supporters to follow to boost your fundraising efforts effectively and efficiently. 

Best free nonprofit resources 

With all the free nonprofit resources online, it’s important to find a few of the best resources you can use to keep your fundraising knowledge updated. Explore the wealth of information and tools online that can help you change the world! 

Webinars  

Engagement is key in the world of fundraising. And what better way to learn about donor engagement than by participating in engaging nonprofit webinars? There are a few platforms online that provide free education webinars for nonprofits to hear from experts in fundraising. Check out these webinar series to get your fundraising journey started.  

• Qgiv Fundraising Webinars. Check out Qgiv’s webinar series, which features speakers from different parts of the fundraising world.  
• Bloomerang Webinars. Sign up for free educational webinars from Bloomerang to help you learn more about the fundraising world. 
• Nonprofit Learning Lab’s Free Nonprofit Webinars. Use this webinar series to learn more about fundraising marketing.  
• Institute for Nonprofit Practice’s Leadership Learning Series. This resource provides free webinars from key fundraising leaders. 
• Moz Webinars. Take advantage of these webinars for more information on creating your website strategy.  

Podcasts 

Everyone loves a good podcast! Plug in your earbuds and learn valuable information about the fundraising world. Nonprofit podcasts provide fundraising experts with a way to build a community of people looking to make an impact on the world. Listen to episodes from these podcasts and get involved with their communities for fundraising inspiration.  

• What the Fundraising. This podcast founded by Mallory Erickson, an executive coach and fundraising consultant, helps nonprofits find the best practices for their fundraising strategy.  
• We Are for Good. This podcast has over 500 episodes to help nonprofits like yours boost their fundraising and marketing efforts.  
• Nonprofit Nation. This podcast hosted by Julia Campbell—digital marketing and fundraising expert, nonprofit consultant, and author—helps nonprofits build their communities.  
• Fundraising is Funny. This podcast by Lynne Wester and T. Clay Buck helps nonprofits learn better fundraising practices through interesting case studies and situations.  
• The Philanthropy United Podcast. This podcast, hosted by Leila Adnani, helps nonprofits share their impact stories to promote the work that they do for potential donors.  

Blogs 

If you learn better through reading than listening, nonprofit blogs are a great source of information for your organization. Once you find a blog with a voice or writing style you like, you’ll be able to absorb a plethora of knowledge online. Explore these blogs to keep up with the latest trends and best practices. 

• Qgiv Fundraising Blog. Take advantage of Qgiv’s fundraising blog to learn different fundraising techniques. 
• Bloomerang Blog. Use Bloomerang’s blog to learn expert insight into donor retention, volunteer management, fundraising, and more. 
• Ask An Expert Archives. Check out Bloomerang’s Ask An Expert archive for answers to your fundraising questions.  
• Nonprofit Tech for Good. Use this blog for updates on how to use technology for fundraising. 
• Double the Donation. This blog can keep you up to date on matching gift best practices.  

Newsletters 

Another great source of written knowledge is in nonprofit newsletters. There are quite a few nonprofit publications that provide the latest news in the fundraising world. Sign up for one of these newsletters to stay updated on all the fundraising trends. 

• NTEN Publications. Use this resource to find updates on the digital fundraising landscape.  
• The NonProfit Times. Check out this newsletter for an exclusive look at nonprofit news. 
• Nonprofit Quarterly.  Take a look at this newsletter for updates on different nonprofit causes. 
• NonProfit PRO.  Sign up for this newsletter for more information on fundraising. 
• Big Duck. This resource can show you insights into your nonprofit’s branding strategy.  

Resource libraries 

Bloomerang and Qgiv go above and beyond blogs and webinars; they provide extensive libraries filled with templates, guides, and tools specifically tailored to meet the needs of the nonprofit sector. These resources aim to empower organizations to maximize their impact and achieve their missions effectively. 

• Bloomerang Guides & Templates. Check out Bloomerang’s resource library for different guides and templates.  
• Qgiv Resources. Take advantage of Qgiv’s resource library for free fundraising eBooks and templates.  
• Nonprofit Library. Sign up for Nonprofit Library’s resource center to help you find the best software for your organization.  
• Nonprofit Hub Home. Use this resource to find tips to help you boost your fundraising.  
• National Council of Nonprofits. This resource library can help you keep up with current nonprofit trends.  

Virtual conferencing 

In this digital age, virtual events have become key for networking, knowledge sharing, and engaging with your community. Using a free virtual conferencing platform can help you better connect with your team and your donors.  

• Zoom. This video conferencing platform is well-known and easy to use.   
• Google Meet. This virtual conferencing platform helps you keep all your work in your Google Workspace.  
• Skype. This platform can help you connect with your team no matter where you are.  
• Microsoft Teams. This tool can be used to chat or video conference with your team in one workspace.  
• FreeConference. You can host a virtual conference for up to 100 participants with this resource.   

Online learning platforms 

If you’re looking for a more structured learning experience, there are a few online learning platforms nonprofits can use to help enhance your team’s skills. These academies offer free courses online to train different skills your organization needs to fundraise effectively.  

• Bloomerang Academy. This online learning platform provides an in-depth look at the best ways to use Bloomerang software.  
• HubSpot Academy. This platform offers courses on how to market more effectively for your nonprofit marketing team.  
• Nonprofit Ready. This platform provides courses to help you more effectively manage your organization. 
• Coursera. There are a couple of courses for nonprofits that you can enroll in for free on this learning platform, 
• Ahrefs Academy. Use this platform to learn more about SEO tools to analyze your content.  

Software 

The right software can help you streamline campaigns and better your donors’ experience with your nonprofit. From fundraising software to task management software, there are many free tools online your team can use to more effectively complete your daily tasks.  

• Qgiv Starter Package. This free package for fundraising software can help your nonprofit boost online fundraising.  
• PayPal. This digital wallet can make it easy for your donors to give to your organization.  
• Asana. This task management software can help keep your team on track when doing tedious tasks.  
• Slack. This software can help keep your team connected in your fundraising mission.  
• QuickBooks. This accounting software can help your financial team keep everything in order.  

Social media resources 

Social media is constantly shifting and changing! With all the trends and platforms, it can be hard to stay up to date on your social media marketing. Fortunately, there are free nonprofit resources for social media management that can help you no matter your expertise level. By using these platforms, you can optimize your social media marketing strategy.  

• Buffer. This tool helps you schedule and analyze your social media marketing efforts. 
• Hootsuite. This resource helps draft and publish your social media posts.  
• Canva. This tool helps you design high-quality graphics for your marketing efforts.  
• Unsplash. This resource offers free stock photos for your organization to use.  
• Linktree. This tool allows you to create a page of links to put in your social media profiles.  
• Meta Fundraising Tools. Meta provides a full suite of fundraising tools for nonprofits for both Facebook and Instagram.
• Meta Blueprint for Nonprofits and NGOs. Access free online learning resources and certifications from Meta to enhance your efforts.

Email marketing  

Email inboxes are constantly overflowing with advertisements trying to get people’s attention. However, there are some free nonprofit email marketing resources that can help you craft and schedule your emails to donors for the best chance of being opened. 

• Constant Contact. This resource offers over 100 email templates to help you market your organization.  
• Mailchimp. This marketing software can help you reach donors across your marketing channels. 
• Campaign Monitor. This software can help you automate your email campaigns.  
• Grammarly. This free nonprofit resource can check your grammar in your marketing emails. 
• Klaviyo. This tool can help you automate your digital marketing campaigns.

Website management 

Your website is often the first impression potential donors have of your cause, so it’s best to create an engaging site that’s easy to navigate. These free nonprofit tools can help you create an interactive and user-friendly website that encourages visitors to donate to your mission.  

• Jotform. This resource offers free forms and surveys you can put on your website to gain feedback from visitors.  
• WordPress. This tool allows you to easily create and manage your website page.  
• Google Forms. This tool can help you create sign-up and feedback forms for your donors to fill out. 
• Adobe Express. This resource can help you edit your visual content for your website.  
• Giphy. Use this resource to find fun gifs for your website content.  

Volunteer management  

Volunteers are crucial to your nonprofit’s success, providing free help to keep your staff from being overworked. However, managing volunteers can be a bit complicated because they often have conflicting schedules to work around. Thankfully, there are free volunteer management resources you can use to maximize your volunteers’ efficiency. 

• Volunteer Management & Retention Best Practices for Nonprofits. This guide can help you better manage and retain your volunteers.  
• The Smart Nonprofit’s Guide to Volunteer Management. This resource can help you learn volunteer management best practices. 
• Volunteer Management: The Essential Guide for Nonprofits. Check out this guide to increase volunteer involvement. 
• Nonprofit Volunteer Management: Three Tips to Increase and Maintain Engagement. Use these tips to engage with your volunteer base for better retention.  
• How to Streamline Your Nonprofit’s Volunteer Management. This guide can help you manage your volunteers more efficiently.  

Advertising resources 

Advertising can sound scary, but it doesn’t have to bankrupt your nonprofit! There are a few free nonprofit resources to help you advertise your cause and reach a wider audience of supporters. These effective advertising tools can really make a difference in your marketing strategy. 

• Google Ad Grants. This resource offers free advertising grants to nonprofits that meet their criteria.  
• Meta Ads Manager. This comprehensive tool is used forr creating, managing, and optimizing advertising campaigns across Facebook and Instagram to reach specific target audiences effectively. 
• TikTok for Good. TikTok for Good is TikTok’s platform dedicated to promoting social causes and supporting nonprofit organizations through user-generated content for positive impact.  
• ChatGPT. This AI-powered tool assists in generating natural language text, helping streamline content creation processes—including generating ad copy—and enhancing communication effectiveness.
• Bitly. This URL shortening service allows users to create shorter, customized links that are easier to share and track for use in ads and beyond. 

Analytics 

Tracking your data is key to figuring out what fundraising strategies are effective for your nonprofit. By delving into free analytic tools, you can gain valuable insights into how your campaigns are resonating with your donors. Analyzing data trends can provide a comprehensive look at what works best and where adjustments are needed to achieve your goals. 

• Google Analytics. This resource allows you to track website pages and see how many views your nonprofit is getting.  
• HubSpot. This tool helps you track your marketing efforts and see who’s opening links to your pages.  
• Hotjar. This resource helps you map user behavior to see how people are responding to your page. 
• Zapier. Use this tool to automate your data tracking.  
• SEMrush. This resource can help you analyze your SEO content.  

Final thoughts 

Accessing valuable resources is just the beginning of your journey toward fundraising success. By applying all the wisdom behind these resources to your fundraising strategy, you can raise more money and awareness for your noble cause. These free nonprofit resources can help support your cause and empower your team to change the world.  

Additional resources 

• 7 Great Design Resources for Nonprofits (That Won’t Hurt Your Budget). Check out this blog post for more design resources. 
• 10 Fundraising Resources You Don’t Want to Miss. Use this list to find more nonprofit resources to help you fundraise.  
• Build A Strong Nonprofit Board With These Essential Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, And Inclusion (DEAI) Resources. Use these resources to create the most effective nonprofit board.