Online fundraising website for people, causes, and nonprofits

GoFundMe

GoFundMe is an online fundraising platform where people create donation pages, share personal or nonprofit causes, collect contributions, post updates, and transfer money to organizers or beneficiaries.

Launched

GoFundMe says it has helped people help each other since its launch in 2010.

Scale

GoFundMe's about page says more than $40 billion has been raised through its technology since 2010.

Core use

People use GoFundMe for personal needs, emergencies, medical costs, memorials, education, charities, crisis relief, and community causes.

GoFundMe is an online fundraising website for donation pages, personal causes, nonprofit giving, crisis relief, organizer updates, and supporter contributions.View image on original site

What GoFundMe is

GoFundMe is an online fundraising website where people, families, teams, and nonprofits can create public donation pages and ask others to contribute. A fundraiser usually explains who needs help, why money is being raised, how funds will be used, and how supporters can donate or share the page.

How fundraising works

A GoFundMe organizer starts by choosing a category, naming the fundraiser, writing a story, adding a photo or video, and setting a goal. The page can then be shared by link, text message, email, or social media. Donors contribute through GoFundMe, and organizers can post updates, thank donors, and set up bank transfers for the money raised.

People, causes, and nonprofits

The platform covers both personal fundraising and charity-related giving. Some pages support an individual or family directly, while others raise money for a certified nonprofit or a broader relief effort. GoFundMe also operates GoFundMe Pro, built from the Classy nonprofit fundraising software it acquired in 2022.

Fees, transfers, and goals

GoFundMe says there is no fee to start or manage a fundraiser in the United States, while a transaction fee is deducted from each donation. Organizers do not generally need to reach the public goal amount before receiving funds, which makes the goal a signal of need rather than an all-or-nothing threshold.

Trust and safety

Fundraising pages ask donors to trust a story, a person, and a transfer process. GoFundMe promotes safety tools such as identity checks, a Trust and Safety team, and the GoFundMe Giving Guarantee. Donors should still read the page carefully, check updates, understand who receives the money, and report suspicious fundraisers.

Why it matters

GoFundMe has made personal fundraising part of everyday internet culture. It can mobilize help quickly after accidents, illness, disasters, memorials, and community emergencies. At the same time, its visibility shows how often people turn to public donations when formal insurance, savings, institutions, or public support do not meet urgent needs.

Limits and cautions

A GoFundMe page is not proof that every claim is complete, verified, or free from misunderstanding. Donation pages can simplify complicated situations, and donors may not know the organizer, beneficiary, or full financial context. The platform can help process and protect giving, but donors still need judgment before contributing.

WHOIS domain data

Data pulled: May 19, 2026View current WHOIS record

Domain: gofundme.com
IP address: 3.167.37.36
Registrar: GoDaddy.com, LLC
WHOIS server: whois.godaddy.com
Referral URL: http://www.godaddy.com
Created: January 21, 2010
Updated: January 22, 2026
Expires: January 21, 2028
Nameservers: ns-1018.awsdns-63.net (205.251.195.250); ns-1860.awsdns-40.co.uk (205.251.199.68); ns-1148.awsdns-15.org (205.251.196.124); ns-279.awsdns-34.com (205.251.193.23)
Domain status: clientDeleteProhibited; clientRenewProhibited; clientTransferProhibited; clientUpdateProhibited
Contact privacy: Registrant and technical contacts are listed as Registration Private through Domains By Proxy, LLC in Tempe, Arizona, US.

Key concepts

A fundraiser page explains the need, goal, organizer, beneficiary, donation flow, and updates.
A fundraising goal helps describe the amount requested, but GoFundMe fundraisers are not usually all-or-nothing campaigns.
Donors can give money, share the page, leave words of support, or follow updates from the organizer.

Website features

Create public donation pages for personal, community, emergency, nonprofit, memorial, medical, education, and crisis-relief needs.
Share fundraiser links, post organizer updates, thank donors, invite team members, and set up bank transfers.
Browse categories, verified relief efforts, nonprofit pages, giving funds, help articles, pricing information, and safety resources.

Common misconceptions

A GoFundMe goal is not the same as a guaranteed budget or final cost estimate.
A donation page can support an individual directly or a nonprofit, so donors should check who receives the funds.
Platform safety tools reduce risk, but they do not remove the need to read a fundraiser carefully before donating.

Open questions

How should online fundraising platforms balance fast help with verification, privacy, and fraud prevention?
What does the growth of medical and emergency fundraising reveal about gaps in public support systems?
How will donor behavior change as crowdfunding, nonprofit software, social media, and payment apps overlap more closely?