$0 Platform Fees on Donations and Memberships

Ideali does not charge platform fees on donations or memberships. That means Ideali does not take a percentage of the money you raise, so your cause keeps more of it.

Only standard payment processing fees may apply through the payment provider for handling transactions. Events is priced separately. Contact us for Events pricing.

Paid Directly to Your Bank

Payments go straight to your organization’s own Stripe account, and Ideali never holds your funds. Stripe then pays them out to your bank account:

• Card, Apple Pay and Google Pay — Can reach your bank within 24 hours, usually within minutes, with Stripe Instant Payouts.
• ACH and PAD bank payments — Paid out once they clear, typically in 4–5 business days.
• Without Instant Payouts — Paid out on your Stripe payout schedule, usually 2–3 business days.

Note: Instant Payouts are available to eligible Stripe accounts and include a Stripe fee (currently 1.5% in the US and 1% in Canada), paid by your organization. New accounts may need to meet Stripe’s eligibility requirements first, and a new account’s first payout can take 7–14 days. Learn more about instant payouts.

Donations, Memberships and Events in One Place

Run all your fundraising and supporter activity from one dashboard:

• Donations — Launch campaigns and collect one-time and recurring donations. Learn more.
• Memberships — Sell membership plans with monthly, annual or lifetime billing, and keep members engaged with alerts, documents and a member portal. Learn more.
• Events — Sell tickets with ticket tiers, early-bird pricing and QR e-tickets, and manage sessions and venues. Learn more.

Secure, PCI-Compliant Payments

Every payment is processed through Stripe, a PCI-DSS Level 1 certified payment provider, the highest level of security certification in the payments industry. Card details are entered in Stripe’s secure payment fields and are never stored by Ideali, and payment and personal data are protected with 256-bit encryption. This gives your supporters confidence that their information is safe, and means your organization does not have to handle sensitive card details itself.

Your organizer account is protected too, with two-factor authentication and new sign-in alerts.

Optional Tips

Supporters may optionally leave a tip when donating or joining a membership to support the Ideali platform. Tips are completely voluntary and are not offered on event ticket purchases.

AI-Powered Content Creation

Ideali includes AI tools to help you build your campaign, membership and event pages faster, including:

• AI-generated descriptions
• AI-generated banners
• Content suggestions

Multiple Banner Options

You can:

• Upload your own image
• Choose a free high-quality photo from the built-in Unsplash library
• Generate an AI banner

Fast, Flexible Checkout

Supporters can pay in USD or CAD using:

• Apple Pay
• Google Pay
• Credit cards
• Debit cards
• ACH bank transfer (US)
• PAD pre-authorized debit (Canada)
• Check or cheque

See all payment methods accepted on Ideali.

Tap to Pay

Turn your phone into a point of sale with the Ideali Tap to Pay app, and accept in-person donations and membership payments anywhere. Learn about Tap to Pay.

Built-In Integrations

• QuickBooks — Sync donation and membership payments to your accounts. Learn more.
• Constant Contact — Sync donors and members to your email lists. Learn more.
• WordPress — Embed your campaigns on your website with the Ideali Donate plugin. Learn more.

Ideali is built for a wide range of users, including:

• Nonprofit organizations — registered charities and foundations looking for a transparent way to fundraise online with no platform fees
• Charities and community groups — local and national organizations raising money for relief, development, or community causes
• Religious organizations — simplify offerings and community collections
• Educational institutions — schools, universities, and student groups funding scholarships, research programs, or equipment
• Humanitarian aid — enable rapid response to emergencies, 24/7
• Healthcare and medical — support patient healthcare and medical research
• Environmental causes — fund conservation efforts and climate initiatives
• International NGOs — accept donations as an NGO, worldwide
• Arts and culture — fund museums, theaters, and cultural preservation
• Community services — support local food banks and shelters
• Membership organizations — associations, clubs, and societies selling and managing memberships
• Event organizers — organizations selling tickets for galas, conferences, workshops, and fundraising events
• Individual fundraisers — anyone raising funds for a personal cause, medical expenses, emergencies, or community initiatives

Ideali is completely FREE for Donations and Memberships. There are no monthly fees, setup fees, or platform charges for creating and managing your donation campaigns or membership plans. We rely on voluntary tips from donors and members to keep our engines running.

Events is priced separately from Donations and Memberships. Contact us for Events pricing.

What You Pay at a Glance

• Donations — No platform fees. Only payment gateway transaction fees apply. Donors can add an optional tip.
• Memberships — No platform fees. Only payment gateway transaction fees apply. Members can add an optional tip.
• Events — Priced separately. Payment gateway transaction fees apply, and there are no tips on ticket purchases. You can choose to pass processing fees on to ticket buyers.

Payment Gateway Transaction Fees

Payment gateways such as Stripe apply their own transaction fees when processing donations, membership payments and ticket sales. These fees are charged by the payment processor directly and are not collected by Ideali. Payments can be accepted in USD or CAD, depending on the currency of your payment account.

Transaction fees vary depending on the payment method used:

• Debit and Credit Cards — Stripe typically charges a small percentage plus a fixed fee per transaction. Exact rates depend on your Stripe account plan and country.
• Apple Pay / Google Pay — Digital wallet payments are charged at the same rate as debit and credit card payments.
• ACH USD — ACH transfers generally carry lower transaction fees than card payments, making them a cost-effective option for larger payments.
• PAD CAD — Pre-Authorized Debits from Canadian bank accounts generally carry lower transaction fees than card payments, making them a cost-effective option for larger and recurring payments.
• Check or Cheque — Physical check payments do not go through Stripe and are not subject to Stripe transaction fees.

Passing Processing Fees to Ticket Buyers (Events Only)

For event ticket sales, you can add an optional processing fee for each payment method so buyers cover the cost instead of you. The fee is shown at checkout under your own label, for example “Payment gateway fee.” If you don’t pass the fee on, you absorb the transaction cost as usual. Learn how to set up processor fees.

Processing fees can’t be added to donations or memberships.

Where to Find Your Transaction Fee Details

Your exact transaction fee rates are set by Stripe and can be found in your Stripe account dashboard. If you have questions about Stripe pricing, visit the Stripe pricing page or contact Stripe support directly.

Every payment made through Ideali, whether it’s a donation, a membership payment or an event ticket, goes straight to your organization’s own Stripe account. Ideali never holds your funds. From there, Stripe pays the money out to your bank account on your payout schedule. Eligible accounts can also use Stripe Instant Payouts to send card and digital wallet payments to a debit card or bank account, usually within 30 minutes.

How Payouts Work

Many fundraising platforms collect payments into their own account and transfer them to you on a fixed schedule. Ideali works differently. Your Stripe account is connected directly to your campaigns, membership types and events, so when a supporter pays, the money goes straight to your Stripe account without passing through Ideali.

Getting money from your Stripe account to your bank is handled by Stripe. How quickly it arrives depends on the payment method and the type of payout:

• Card, Apple Pay and Google Pay (including Tap to Pay) — On a standard payout, funds are usually paid out 2–3 business days after the payment, depending on your country. With Stripe Instant Payouts, eligible accounts can send these funds to their bank or debit card any time, including weekends and holidays, and they usually arrive within 30 minutes. Some banks take longer.
• ACH bank transfers (US) — Funds usually become available in your Stripe balance about 4 business days after the payment is made. They are then paid out on your payout schedule, or can be sent with an Instant Payout once settled.
• PAD pre-authorized debits (Canada) — Funds usually become available in your Stripe balance about 5 business days after the payment is made, then are paid out on your payout schedule.
• Your first payout — For new Stripe accounts, the first payout is usually scheduled 7–14 days after your first successful payment while Stripe completes its checks.

Your bank’s own processing time, weekends and bank holidays can add extra time before funds appear in your account.

Instant Payouts: What You Need to Know

• You request them — Instant Payouts don’t happen automatically. You start each one from your Stripe Dashboard or the Stripe mobile app. Any funds you don’t send with an Instant Payout are paid out on your regular payout schedule.
• Eligibility — New Stripe accounts aren’t eligible straight away. Stripe usually requires some processing history (often at least 60 days) and an account in good standing. To check, log in to Stripe and go to Balances > Payouts. If you don’t see the Instant Payout option, your account isn’t eligible yet.
• Which funds qualify — Card and digital wallet payments can be paid out instantly as soon as the charge completes. Bank payments (ACH) only qualify after they settle.
• Stripe fee — Each Instant Payout includes a Stripe fee, currently 1.5% of the payout in the US and 1% in Canada. The fee is deducted from the payout and paid by your organization. This is a Stripe fee, not an Ideali fee, and it is separate from the payment processing fee charged on each transaction. Standard payouts have no extra fee.
• Where funds are sent — In the US, Instant Payouts go to an eligible debit card or a supported bank account. In Canada, they go to an eligible debit card in CAD. Not every bank or card is supported, so check Stripe’s list of supported banks and cards.
• Limits — You can make up to 10 Instant Payouts per day, and Stripe sets minimum and maximum amounts per payout and per day. Daily limits reset at midnight US Central Time. You can see your current limits in your Stripe Dashboard.
• Currency — Instant Payouts are made in your account’s local currency (USD in the US, CAD in Canada).

Things That Can Affect Your Payouts

• Stripe reviews — Ideali never holds your funds, but Stripe may pause payouts or hold funds if it needs to verify your account or review activity. If a payout is late, check your Stripe Dashboard and email for any requests from Stripe.
• Refunds, disputes and failed payments — These are taken from your Stripe balance. A bank payment (ACH or PAD) can still fail after the funds show as available, and Stripe will then remove those funds. If your balance isn’t enough to cover the amount, Stripe may debit your bank account. If you use Instant Payouts often, consider leaving a buffer in your Stripe balance.
• Bank processing — Once Stripe sends a payout, your bank may take extra time to post it, especially over weekends and holidays.

Why This Matters

When a platform holds your money, it can take days or weeks to reach you. That creates cash flow problems, especially when you need funds quickly for an urgent cause or a time-sensitive expense.

• No holding periods — Payments are never held by Ideali.
• No middleman — Funds go straight from your supporter to your own Stripe account.
• Fast access — Eligible accounts can use Stripe Instant Payouts to send card and digital wallet payments to their bank, usually within 30 minutes.
• Full visibility — Every transaction is recorded in Ideali and visible in your payments lists in real time.

What You Need to Get Started

To receive payments, connect a payment account in Ideali. Ideali currently supports Stripe as its payment merchant. Learn how to set up your payment account.

Tracking Your Payments

You can see every payment in Ideali as it comes in:

• Donations — Go to Donations in the left sidebar and click Payments. Learn more.
• Memberships — Go to Memberships in the left sidebar and click Payments. Learn more.
• Events — Go to Events in the left sidebar and click Payments. Learn more.

To check when a payout will reach your bank, or to start an Instant Payout, log in to your Stripe Dashboard and go to Balances > Payouts.

Note: Fees, limits and payout timing are set by Stripe and can change. For the latest details, see Stripe’s Instant Payouts documentation and Stripe’s payouts documentation.