Most lists of fundraising ideas leave out the thing you most want to know: how much work each one is. A sponsored silence and a charity ball both raise money for charity, but only one of them can be organised on a Tuesday night.
This guide sorts fundraising ideas by effort. Each section is split into ideas you can run online and ideas you run in person. Start with the effort you can actually give, then pick the ideas that suit your cause and the people you know.
How the ideas are sorted
- An evening's work: one person can set it up in a few hours.
- A weekend's work: a day or two of organising, maybe with a friend or two helping.
- A month's work: a small team, a venue or a date to plan around, and a few weeks of asking people.
These are the hours it takes you to organise. Most ideas also need some time spent sharing them, and that's usually where the money comes from. An idea that takes an evening to set up still raises more if you spend a few minutes a week reminding people about it.
An evening's work
Online
A virtual duck race. Supporters pay to adopt a duck, give it a name and an outfit, and on race day the ducks race on a screen. The first one over the line wins a prize. Setting up the race page takes a few minutes. After that, the work is sharing the link and pressing start on the day. It suits clubs, schools and anyone with a group chat full of people who like a bit of competition. It works best if you give it three or four weeks between launch and race day. How to run a virtual duck race covers it step by step.
A birthday fundraiser. Ask for donations to your cause instead of presents. Facebook and the main donation platforms all let you set one up in minutes. It works because friends were going to spend something on you anyway.
Sell things you no longer use. Clear a cupboard and list it online, then give the money to your cause. Some selling sites let you send part or all of the sale straight to a charity.
In person
A bake sale at work. Bring in cakes, put out an honesty box and a sign saying what the money is for. Ask a couple of colleagues to bake too, so it isn't all on you.
A dress-down or fancy-dress day. Everyone who takes part pays a small amount. It works in offices, schools and clubs, and needs little more than an email and someone to collect the money.
A games or film night at home. Invite friends, ask for a donation instead of a bottle, and keep it small. It won't raise a large amount, but it's an easy start.
A weekend's work
Online
A sponsored challenge with a donation page. Pick something you'll do (a run, a walk, a swim, a hair shave) and set up a donation page so people can sponsor you. The organising takes a weekend. The challenge itself may take longer if you need to train. Sponsorship works best when the challenge is a real stretch for you and people can see you working towards it.
An online auction of promises. Friends and local businesses donate things to bid on: an hour of gardening, a homemade cake every week for a month, a meal out. You list them in a social media post or a shared document and take bids until a closing time.
In person
A car boot or garage sale. Collect donated items from friends and neighbours, then sell them on one day. Book your pitch early, and price things to sell rather than to sit there.
A coffee morning. Tea, coffee and cake in your home, a church hall or a community room, with a donation box on the table. Add a small raffle if you have a prize or two (see the note on raffles below).
A charity car wash. A few buckets, sponges and a busy car park, with the landowner's permission. Suits youth groups and sports teams who want to do something together.
A month's work
Online
A month-long personal challenge. Walk a set distance every day, give up something for a month, or learn a new skill, and ask people to sponsor you for finishing. Post updates on how it's going. Regular updates give people a reason to donate partway through.
An online quiz night. Run it on a video call with a ticket price per team. It takes a month mostly because you need time to sell tickets and write a good quiz.
In person
A quiz night. Teams of four to six, a ticket price per head and a raffle at half-time. Many pubs and clubs will give you a room for free on a quiet night, because it brings them customers.
A sponsored walk or fun run you organise. Choose a route, invite people to take part and collect sponsorship. It needs a risk assessment, permission from the landowner and volunteers on the route, so give yourself time.
A gig, comedy night or dinner. Ticketed events at a venue raise more per person, but they also cost more to put on. Get the venue and any performers agreed before you sell a single ticket, and work out how many tickets you need to sell to cover the costs.
Choosing the right idea
If you're still not sure, ask yourself three questions:
- Who will you ask? If your supporters are spread out, pick an online idea. If they're in one place, like a workplace, school or club, an in-person event will feel more fun.
- Do you want an event or a page? A donation page suits one person doing a challenge. An event suits a group that wants to do something together. You can use both, with the event for the fun and a page for people who just want to give.
- How much time do you have? Be honest. An evening idea that you actually finish raises more than a month-long one that never happens.
If you're raising money for a school, school fundraising ideas sorts ideas by term instead, with PTAs in mind.
Things that apply to every idea
Gift Aid. If you're raising money for a registered charity, Gift Aid adds 25p to every £1 a UK taxpayer donates. Most donation pages collect it for you. It only applies to donations, not to tickets, cakes or anything else people get something for.
Matched giving. Many employers match what their staff raise for charity. Check whether yours does, and ask your supporters to check theirs.
Raffles and prizes. Anything where people pay for a chance to win a prize can count as a lottery. In Great Britain, a raffle run at your event itself, with tickets sold only on the day, is normally fine without a licence. Selling tickets in advance or online usually needs a small society lottery registration with your local council. A paid duck race with prizes can count as a lottery too. Offering a free entry route normally turns it into a free draw instead, and every Pledglings race page includes one.
This is general guidance, not legal advice, and the rules are different in Northern Ireland and outside the UK. If you're unsure, check with the Gambling Commission or your local council.
Say what the money is for. "£300 for a new set of football kits" raises more than "money for the club". A specific target also gives people something to watch you get closer to.
Looking for easyfundraising? If you came here looking for the shopping cashback site, it's at easyfundraising.org.uk. It gives a small percentage to your chosen cause when you shop online through it, at no extra cost to you, and it works well alongside any of the ideas above.
Ready to try a duck race?
It's the quickest idea on this list to set up. You can race some ducks in the free demo right now, or read adopt a duck or race for your class to see which format suits your group.