Fundraising Tools & Software     |     2 September 2025

Givebutter vs. Gofundme vs. Silent Auction Pro: What’s the Best Option for You?

How these fundraising platforms really compare when you’re short on time, energy, and patience

10 minute read

You didn’t exactly sign up for this job. Maybe you nodded at the wrong time during a PTA meeting or answered an email from your neighborhood association when no one else would. Now you’re trying to pull off a fundraiser, and everything feels urgent. The deadline is creeping closer, you're juggling 12 tasks at once, and all you really want is a tool that doesn’t make the process harder than it needs to be.

That’s where platforms like Givebutter, GoFundMe, and Silent Auction Pro come in. At first glance, they all promise to help you raise money online, but they each do it in very different ways. Some are more streamlined, some more flexible, and some are purpose-built for events like silent auctions or raffles.

So, which one is actually the right fit for your group?

Let’s walk through the pros and cons of each option, not just by listing out features, but by looking at how each one works for real people who are doing this kind of work in their spare time. 

What fundraising platforms actually do (and why it matters)

Let’s be honest, “crowdfunding platform” sounds like the kind of thing someone says right before asking you to watch a 90-minute webinar. For most volunteer fundraisers, it just means: “a tool that helps you collect donations from lots of people in one place.”

If you’ve used GoFundMe before, you already know the basic idea. It’s a simple, donor-facing webpage where you can write a short description of what you’re raising money for, upload a few photos, and then share the link with friends, family, or your community.

Givebutter builds on that concept. It’s also donation-focused but adds features like ticketing, email blasts, peer-to-peer fundraising, and even auctions. That makes it feel more like a toolkit than just a place to drop a donation link.

Then there’s Silent Auction Pro, which plays a different game entirely. Instead of just collecting donations, it helps you plan and run full-blown events. Think silent auctions, wine pulls, trivia nights, and golf tournaments. You can manage ticket sales, assign tables, send text reminders, and even track paddle raise bids in real-time. Silent Auction Pro goes beyond simply raising money; it helps you run an event from start to finish.

So while all three options fall under the “fundraising software” umbrella, they’re not interchangeable. What you choose should depend on how you’re fundraising, the level of involvement from your team, and the amount of support you need along the way.

Comparing Givebutter vs. Gofundme

Here’s where things start to split. If you search Givebutter vs. Gofundme, you’ll see both platforms compared side-by-side in terms of fees, tools, and user experience. While they might seem similar on the surface, the differences are easy to spot once you start building your campaign.

Both platforms are free to set up and use. They rely on transaction fees, typically 2.9% plus $0.30 per donation, but there are no subscription costs or setup charges for basic use. Givebutter, however, has a plus plan at $29 per month that unlocks the real tools. Both also offer clean-looking pages that are mobile-friendly and easy to share.

But that’s where the overlap ends.

GoFundMe is designed for simplicity. It’s primarily used by individuals who require rapid access to donations, such as personal emergencies, memorials, or community relief efforts. You get one page, one message, and one way to give. It works well when you just need to collect funds and move on.

Givebutter is a much more flexible system. It allows you to build customized donation pages, sell tickets, host virtual or hybrid events, and even run auctions. You can add branding, send automatic receipts, run text-to-donate campaigns, and create peer-to-peer teams.

In other words, Givebutter vs. GoFundMe really comes down to this: Do you just need a donation link, or do you want tools that support a more complex campaign?

You’ll also find differences in the types of users each platform serves. GoFundMe leans heavily toward individual fundraisers and informal causes. Givebutter, on the other hand, is made for nonprofits, schools, and volunteer-run teams that need to manage donors, send updates, and build long-term engagement.

If you’re helping a local school raise funds for a new playground or organizing a gala dinner, you’ll probably outgrow GoFundMe pretty quickly. Givebutter gives you more control, more ways to reach supporters, and more options for collecting donations beyond a single one-time ask.

When your campaign involves tickets, sponsors, or a silent auction? That’s when you’ll want to look beyond both of these and start exploring what Silent Auction Pro can do instead.

What real fundraisers actually need day to day

It’s easy to compare features on a pricing chart, but those boxes don’t always reflect what the job really looks like on a Tuesday night when you’re trying to figure out who forgot to send in auction item descriptions or whether table 12 has any vegetarian meals. Tools are helpful but only when they actually save you time.

If you’re a volunteer, teacher, parent, or committee lead, you need a system that works even when your team is scattered, your board hasn’t approved the flyer yet, and you’re printing raffle tickets from your kitchen. Givebutter and Silent Auction Pro stand out here for very different reasons.

Givebutter supports communication tools and peer-to-peer fundraising, allowing you to leverage your network and let it do some of the heavy lifting. It’s a solid option when you’ve got a few people helping spread the word and your goal is to raise funds online with minimal event coordination.

Silent Auction Pro, on the other hand, is the kind of software that thinks about the entire evening, not just the donation. It’s structured for fundraisers where multiple people need access, data needs to be tracked across different roles, and guests are expecting more than just a donation link. It keeps everything in one place so you can spend more time getting donations and less time syncing three spreadsheets and a group chat.

The more pieces your fundraiser has (volunteers, auction items, sponsors, ticketing) the more important it is to work with tools that handle complexity gracefully. Real-world fundraisers are often messy and unpredictable. Your platform should help you adapt, not require a perfect plan from day one.

Silent Auction Pro offers a different kind of help

If Givebutter and GoFundMe are built for simple online campaigns, Silent Auction Pro is designed for individuals planning full-scale fundraising events, although it works wonderfully for those simple events, too. That’s exactly why it stands out.

It isn’t a traditional crowdfunding platform, and that’s intentional. Silent Auction Pro is designed for real-world fundraisers, the kind with tables, check-in lists, raffle tickets, and a growing spreadsheet of donor names and email addresses (though it has a simple text-to-give option if you just can’t imagine creating a whole event). Whether you’re putting on a school auction, a charity golf tournament, or a wine tasting with a silent bidding table, this platform gives you tools that are meant to support the entire event, not just the donation page.

You can set up and sell tickets, assign seating, promote your event, manage sponsors, track donations, build your auction catalog, and process payments in one place. It streamlines the pieces that usually require a hodgepodge of spreadsheets, group texts, and last-minute favors. Everything lives under one login. No duct tape required.

If your fundraiser involves moving parts and more than just an online form, Silent Auction Pro is the kind of platform that keeps you from losing sleep. It’s made for the kinds of events that bring people together—and actually helps you pull it off without burning out.

What Silent Auction Pro does that others don’t

Here’s where Silent Auction Pro really shows up for volunteer teams.

It’s one thing to offer online donations. It’s another to support everything else that makes a real-world fundraiser work. Silent Auction Pro includes built-in support for silent and live auctions, paddle raises, wine pulls, 50/50 raffles, and sponsor packages. You can create custom ticket types, set pricing tiers, and define what each guest gets with their admission, whether that’s a drink ticket or a commemorative t-shirt.

Need to assign seating? You can drag and drop people right into table layouts and have table numbers print directly on their bid paddles. Want to make sure no one forgets to check out? Automated reminders take care of that. You can even handle check-in and checkout from your phone, turning that typically chaotic line at the registration table into something more manageable.

The communication tools are especially handy. You can schedule emails and texts to go out before, during, or after your event, keeping donors and bidders in the loop without sending late-night messages from your personal inbox. Plus, everything you send can be tracked, so you’ll know what’s been opened, clicked, or missed entirely.

And, like the name suggests, the platform handles silent auctions and every other kind of auction type with grace. Easily create a stunning online catalog, or print easy-to-use paper bid sheets, as well as everything you need for your live auction, all from the same platform that is managing your tickets, wine pull, and sponsorships. The best part is that you're not left to figure it out alone. Silent Auction Pro comes with free support, including real people (yes, actual humans!) available during your event, even after hours.

It’s this kind of support and all-in-one functionality that makes Silent Auction Pro one of the most helpful GoFundMe alternatives if you're planning an event. 

Making the right choice for your team

Every fundraiser has different needs, but if you're overwhelmed and trying to make the smartest choice with limited time and energy, here’s a simple way to think about it:

• Do you need a basic donation page set up quickly? GoFundMe is the simplest path.
• Want a more flexible campaign with donation tiers, peer-to-peer fundraising, or event ticketing? Givebutter provides you with those extra tools at no additional cost.
• Planning an in-person, hybrid, or online only event with multiple components: auctions, games, guests, and more? Silent Auction Pro was designed specifically for this type of fundraiser, but can handle smaller, simpler events as well.
  
  

At the end of the day, your platform should make things easier, not pile on more to-dos. Fundraising is hard enough already. Choose the tool that fits how you work, not the other way around.

What happens after the fundraiser matters, too

It’s tempting to focus only on how a platform helps you get to your goal, but what happens after your event or campaign wraps up is just as important, especially if you're trying to build momentum year over year.

Givebutter has solid follow-up tools, like donor receipts, contact segmentation, and reporting features that help you learn what worked and what didn’t. You can even track recurring donations and build a plan to keep supporters engaged beyond a single fundraiser.

Silent Auction Pro takes post-event organization even further. You’ll have detailed reports on donors, bids, and purchases that can be exported, shared with your board, or used to prep for next year. You can send thank-you texts or emails with a couple of clicks, and your contact list doesn’t disappear once the event ends. Everything stays in your system, ready to go when planning starts again.

GoFundMe, in contrast, doesn’t offer much in the way of post-campaign management. Once your donations are in, the platform’s role is essentially done. That’s fine if you’re running a one-time emergency appeal, but not ideal if your goal is to grow, re-engage donors, or plan future events.

If your fundraiser is part of a larger strategy, whether that’s building relationships with supporters, securing future sponsors, or running annual events, Silent Auction Pro gives you the foundation to build on, without starting from scratch every time.

Fundraising without the frustration

You’re doing good work. Maybe not always glamorous, often underappreciated, but important all the same. While there’s no software that can magically erase the stress of planning a fundraiser, there are tools that can take a lot of weight off your shoulders.

GoFundMe is a quick and easy way to collect donations if you just need a simple solution. Givebutter is packed with helpful features for teams looking to engage donors more deeply. However, when your fundraiser goes beyond the basics, when it involves events, teams, auction items, and actual people showing up, Silent Auction Pro is built to handle the whole picture. It takes the best of all of the platforms and combines them into a single, user-friendly and affordable platform.

You’ve got enough going on. Let your software handle the logistics.

Don’t take our word for it. Request a free demo of Silent Auction Pro and take one thing off your plate.