betterplace.org
betterplace.org is Germany's largest online donation platform, founded in 2007, connecting individual donors with 71,976 verified nonprofit projects across 185 countries and processing over €361M in cumulative donations on a fee-free, tax-deductible basis.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2007
- HeadquartersBerlin, Germany
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingSoftware
What betterplace.org does
betterplace.org operates Germany's largest online donation platform, connecting individual donors with verified charitable organisations across 185 countries. The platform, founded in Berlin in 2007, hosts 71,976 projects and has processed more than €361M in cumulative donations, including €41M in 2024. Core functionality includes project discovery by category (animals, children, climate, refugees, women), tax-deductible donation processing via Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal, SEPA, and credit card, automated donation receipts, recurring giving, and a donor dashboard (My Donations). Supporting products include betterplace Academy (organisational training), Charity Streams and Creators4Charity (streamer and content-creator fundraising), and a Donation Gift (Spendengeschenk) feature.
The underlying technology is a web-based donation platform with a published public API (api-docs.betterplace.org) and identity integrations with Facebook and WirWunder. Projects must be operated by verified German-registered charitable entities to ensure tax-deductible status under §60a AO. The platform itself does not charge fees to nonprofits; instead, it operates as a charitable gGmbH, funded through its own fundraising activities. Following a 2024 spin-off (effective 06.09.2024), betterplace.org gGmbH is a 100% subsidiary of gut.org gemeinnützige Aktiengesellschaft and operates with 36 employees (16 full-time, 20 part-time) under Managing Directors Theresa Filipovic and Dennis Guggenheim.
Go-to-market operates across three motions: direct-to-consumer via the website (self-serve donation), community-led through streamers and content creators, and sales-led outreach to nonprofit organisations and corporate partners (120 corporate partners disclosed). The company holds charitable status, is a signatory of the Initiative Transparente Zivilgesellschaft (Transparency International Deutschland), and is tax-exempt (confirmed 18.10.2024). Customer segments span individual donors, verified nonprofit organisations, corporate CSR partners, and streamers/content creators.
betterplace.org firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- betterplace.org
- Legal name
- betterplace.org gGmbH
- Website
- https://betterplace.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2007
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- betterplace.org is Germany's largest online donation platform, founded in 2007, connecting individual donors with 71,976 verified nonprofit projects across 185 countries and processing over €361M in cumulative donations on a fee-free, tax-deductible basis.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
betterplace.org industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Online Charitable Donation Platform
- NAICS
- Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Other Grantmaking and Giving Services (813219), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)
- SIC
- Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Public Charities & Grantmaking Intermediaries (BPAGAKAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- International Grantmaking & Development Foundations (BPAGAKAH), Capacity Building & Nonprofit Infrastructure Funders (BPAGAKAO)
Keywords
Where betterplace.org is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Berlin
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
betterplace.org business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Platform Operations (Donation Pass-through): As a nonprofit organization (gGmbH), betterplace.org collects donations on its platform and passes them through to verified charitable organizations in Germany. The organization operates on its own fundraising with no disclosed platform fees charged to nonprofits.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Others | Free fundraising platform for nonprofits |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
betterplace.org product offering
Product offeringCore offering
betterplace.org operates Germany's largest online donation platform that enables individuals, organizations, and companies to discover and donate to verified charitable projects. Nonprofits can register and raise funds on the platform free of charge, while donors benefit from automated tax-deductible donation receipts, transparent project reporting, multiple payment methods, and category-based project discovery. Supporting programs include the betterplace Academy for nonprofit training and dedicated tools for streamers and content creators to mobilize audiences for charitable giving.
Product overview
betterplace.org operates as a unified charitable donation platform connecting donors with verified non-profit organizations. The core platform enables project-based donations across categories including animals, children, climate protection, refugees, and women. Supporting modules include the betterplace Academy for organizational education, My Donations dashboard for personal giving management, Donation Gift (Spendengeschenk) for gifting donations, and specialized features for Charity Streams and Content Creators to engage their audiences in philanthropy.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- betterplace academy: Educational platform for organizations to learn about fundraising and charity management
Products and services
- betterplace.org Donation Platform Germany's largest online donation platform connecting individual donors, nonprofit organizations, and corporate partners with verified charitable projects. Enables project discovery by category, one-off and recurring donations, gift donations, automated tax-deductible donation receipts, and supports multiple payment methods including Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal, SEPA, credit card, and bank transfer.
- betterplace Academy Educational platform offering training and resources for nonprofit organizations on fundraising, digital presence, and charity management. Hosted at betterplace-academy.org as a standalone offering for organizational fundraisers.
Quantifiable outcome
- €361+ million in total donations collected
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use betterplace.org
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
betterplace.org technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
betterplace.org partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- gut.org gAG (Parent Company)corebetterplace.org gGmbH is a 100% subsidiary of gut.org gemeinnützige Aktiengesellschaft. The gAG was formed through conversion of betterplace gemeinnützige Stiftungs-GmbH in 2010.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights5 records
betterplace.org competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- GoFundMe: Global donation and personal-cause crowdfunding platform operating in the same online donation marketplace category as betterplace.org. Both serve individual donors and nonprofit fundraisers, though GoFundMe is broader in scope (personal causes, startups) while betterplace.org is mission-locked to registered charitable projects.
- PayPal Giving Fund: Donation infrastructure embedded in the PayPal payments network that routes consumer donations to verified charities. Same payment-method set (PayPal, credit card), same mission of connecting donors to 501(c)(3) equivalents, but operates inside PayPal's broader fintech stack.
- Meta Fundraisers (Facebook/Instagram): Native donation and personal-cause fundraising features inside Facebook and Instagram. Captures a large slice of German consumer charitable giving through social distribution, competing for the same individual donor audience with zero platform friction.
- Blackbaud (JustGiving / GiveWP): U.S.-listed vertical SaaS provider for the nonprofit sector, owning JustGiving and GiveWP. Same end-customer (registered charities) and overlapping feature footprint (donation forms, CRM, peer-to-peer), but sold as enterprise software rather than a public donation marketplace.
Direct peers
- JustGiving: UK-based online donation platform owned by Blackbaud that connects individual donors to registered charities. Most direct international analog to betterplace.org: same verified-charity model, same project-page UX, same tax-receipt automation, different national market.
- GlobalGiving: U.S.-based crowdfunding marketplace for vetted international nonprofit projects, with a similar project-based donation format and country breadth (185+ countries on both platforms). Comparable in serving the cross-border charitable-giving niche that betterplace.org occupies.
Emerging players
- Donorbox: SaaS donation platform used by tens of thousands of nonprofits for recurring giving, events, and peer-to-peer fundraising. Closest modern software-product analog to betterplace.org's My Donations / project management tooling, particularly for the SMB nonprofit segment.
- Givebutter: Modern U.S. donation, event, and peer-to-peer fundraising platform popular with small nonprofits. Comparable feature set (recurring donations, embedded forms, donation pages) and overlapping nonprofit customer base, though younger and without betterplace.org's tax-privileged charitable status.
- Bonterra (Network for Good): U.S. donation and fundraising software provider for nonprofits (Network for Good). Comparable in serving the verified-charity fundraising workflow with donation pages, receipts, and CRM, though focused on the American market.
Regional players
- WirWunder: German donation platform operated by betterplace.org's social-login integration partner and direct competitor in the same domestic German market. Overlapping nonprofit project universe and donor base, providing a natural head-to-head comparison.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks1 record
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
betterplace.org social profiles
Digital presencebetterplace.org compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
betterplace.org financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
betterplace.org leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
betterplace.org funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
betterplace.org M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about betterplace.org
What does betterplace.org do?
betterplace.org operates Germany's largest online donation platform that enables individuals, organizations, and companies to discover and donate to verified charitable projects. Nonprofits can register and raise funds on the platform free of charge, while donors benefit from automated tax-deductible donation receipts, transparent project reporting, multiple payment methods, and category-based project discovery. Supporting programs include the betterplace Academy for nonprofit training and dedicated tools for streamers and content creators to mobilize audiences for charitable giving.
Is betterplace.org a public or private company?
betterplace.org is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was betterplace.org founded?
betterplace.org was founded in 2007. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is betterplace.org based?
betterplace.org is headquartered in Berlin, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does betterplace.org make money?
One revenue line is on record: platform Operations (Donation Pass-through).
Who are betterplace.org's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are GoFundMe, PayPal Giving Fund, Meta Fundraisers (Facebook/Instagram) and Blackbaud (JustGiving / GiveWP). Direct peers are JustGiving and GlobalGiving. Emerging players are Donorbox, Givebutter and Bonterra (Network for Good). WirWunder is listed as a regional player.
Does betterplace.org have an API?
Yes. betterplace.org exposes a public API. Developer documentation is at api-docs.betterplace.org.
What industry is betterplace.org in?
betterplace.org's product category is Online Charitable Donation Platform. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAKAE, Public Charities & Grantmaking Intermediaries, with a secondary code of BPAGAKAH, International Grantmaking & Development Foundations. Its NAICS code is 81321 and its SIC code is 8300.