Make a Donation Through Ideali
Support a cause in just a few steps. Learn how to make a donation and make an impact.
Step 1: Select Your Donation Amount
Visit the campaign page you would like to support. You will see the campaign’s fundraising goal, progress so far, and a short description explaining the cause.
Under Choose Your Donation, select your giving frequency:
- One Time — A single contribution.
- Monthly — A recurring contribution charged every month.
- Yearly — A recurring contribution charged once a year.
Choose one of the preset amounts shown, or enter a custom amount of your choice. Once you have selected an amount, click Continue to Payment to move to the next step.
Step 2: Choose Your Payment Method
Depending on what the organization has enabled, you may be able to pay using one of the following methods:
- Debit and Credit Card — The most common payment method, available to donors worldwide.
- ACH USD — A bank to bank transfer available to donors with a US bank account. This option is often used for larger donations.
- Check or Cheque — A traditional payment option for donors who prefer to send a physical check rather than pay digitally.
📹 Watch: Donate Using Credit Cards ⏱ 1m 26s
📹 Watch: Donate using ACH USD ⏱ 1m 4s
Not every campaign will offer all three options, as the organization chooses which payment methods to enable.
Step 3: Enter Your Payment Details
Enter your payment information based on the method you selected to complete your donation.
Optional Tip to Support Ideali
Before completing your payment, you may see an option to leave an additional tip to help support Ideali’s platform. This tip is completely optional and you can adjust the amount, choose a different percentage, or skip it entirely. Learn more about the optional tip.
Completing Your Donation
Once your payment details are entered, confirm your donation to complete the transaction. You will receive a receipt by email confirming your contribution, along with a summary of the amount donated and the campaign it supported.
Optional donor tips
Donors can optionally add a small tip to support the Ideali platform when making a contribution. Learn how the tip works and how it is kept separate from your campaign funds.
When donors make a contribution through your campaign they are given the option to leave an additional tip to help support the Ideali platform. This tip is completely optional and donors can choose to include it, adjust the amount, or skip it entirely.
How It Works
On the donation summary screen donors will see a section called Help keep our platform free for charities. This is Ideali’s way of sustaining its free platform for nonprofits without charging organizations directly.
Donors can choose a tip percentage from the following options:
- 5% of their donation amount
- 10% of their donation amount
- 15% of their donation amount
- Other — donors can enter a custom tip amount
The selected tip is added to the total and shown clearly in the summary before the donor confirms their payment. Donors can also select Other and enter zero if they prefer not to leave a tip.
Does the Tip Affect Your Campaign Funds?
No. Donor tips go directly to Ideali and are separate from the donation amount that goes to your campaign. Your fundraising total only reflects the actual donation amount, not the tip.
Make a Recurring Donation
Give consistent support to a cause you care about. Learn how to set up a monthly or yearly recurring donation.
When you choose to give on a recurring basis, Ideali makes it easy to set up, view, and manage your ongoing contribution at any time.
Setting Up a Recurring Donation
On the campaign page you would like to support, go to Choose Your Donation and select either Monthly or Yearly instead of One Time. Choose one of the preset amounts shown or enter a custom amount, then click Continue to Payment and complete your payment details as you would for any other donation. Learn more about making a donation.
Once confirmed, your card or bank account will be automatically charged the same amount on the frequency you selected, and you will receive a receipt by email each time a payment is processed.
Viewing Your Recurring Donation
Every receipt you receive includes the details of your donation, including the campaign, amount, and frequency. You can refer to these emails at any time to confirm your recurring contribution is active and being processed as expected.
Cancelling a Recurring Donation
If a Payment Fails
Your Donation Receipt
Every donation comes with a receipt confirming your contribution. Learn what information is included.
After completing a donation, you will receive a receipt by email confirming your contribution. You can refer to this receipt at any time as proof of your donation, for tax purposes, or to keep a record of your giving.
What’s Included in Your Receipt
Your receipt includes the following details:
- Receipt Number — A unique number assigned to your transaction.
- Date Issued — The date your donation was processed.
- Status — Confirms your payment was successfully completed.
- Total Amount — The full amount charged, including any tip if you chose to add one.
- Donor Information — Your name, email, and phone number as provided during checkout.
- Campaign Details — The name of the campaign you supported and the payment type.
- Payment Breakdown — A breakdown of your donation amount, any optional tip, and the total amount paid along with the payment method used.
Downloading Your Receipt
Click Download PDF in the top right corner of your receipt to save a copy for your records.
Did Not Receive Your Receipt?
If you completed a donation but did not receive a receipt by email, check your spam or junk folder first. If you still cannot find it, reach out to the organization you donated to directly and they can resend your receipt.
