CarDana

Name

CarDana

Legal name

CarDana, Inc.

Website

https://cardana.co

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Laguna Beach

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Personnel

Revenue model

1. Vehicle Donation Transaction Fee: CarDana charges a one-time flat fee of 20% of the vehicle's sale price on every completed donation. The remaining ~70% (industry average) of the vehicle sale price is forwarded to the charity. This is a transaction-based revenue model where CarDana is only compensated when a charity receives a car donation.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

CarDana is a technology-driven charitable vehicle donation platform that enables individual car owners to donate used vehicles to the charity of their choice. The platform integrates Kelley Blue Book for instant vehicle valuation, schedules pickup, sells the donated vehicle, and forwards approximately 70% of sale proceeds to the selected 501(c)(3) charity in exchange for a flat 20% transaction fee.

Product overview

CarDana is a technology-driven charitable vehicle donation platform that connects donors with charities they wish to support. The platform consists of a Vehicle Donation Form (integrating Kelley Blue Book for instant valuation), a Charity Profile Platform for organizations to accept donations, and delivers an Impact Statement to show donors exactly how their contribution will help. Proceeds from vehicle sales are donated to the donor's chosen cause after deducting a flat 20% fee, with an average of 70% of sale price reaching charitable partners.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• CarDana Vehicle Donation Platform A technology-driven vehicle donation platform that connects individual car donors with charities, providing vehicle valuation, pickup scheduling, transparent sale processing, and donation delivery to the donor's chosen cause.
• Vehicle Donation Form Online form where individual car donors describe the vehicle they wish to donate and select the charity or cause they want to support, with Kelley Blue Book providing instant vehicle value estimation.
• Charity Profile Platform Free platform for 501(c)(3) charities to create profiles and accept car donations directly. Includes a unique charity URL, automatic donation processing, and proceeds forwarding typically within 30 days.

Quantifiable outcome

• Approximately 70% of vehicle sale price reaches the charity on average, compared to a 15–20% national industry average
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Kelley Blue BookcoreTechnology or IntegrationKelley Blue Book provides real-time, industry-leading vehicle valuation estimates integrated directly into CarDana's online donation form, enabling donors to instantly see the projected value of their vehicle donation before committing.
• Lloyd Greif Center for Entrepreneurial Studies, USCminorOthersThe Lloyd Greif Center at USC's Marshall School of Business identified CarDana as one of the top 20 tech startups at the 9th Annual Venturing Summit, featuring top universities in Southern California. This recognition connects CarDana with the entrepreneurial ecosystem.
• University of California Irvine (UCI) — Wayfinder IncubatorcoreOthersCarDana won UCI's New Venture Competition in the Social Enterprise category and was accepted into the Wayfinder Incubator program, gaining access to UCI's Applied Innovation resources and entrepreneurial support ecosystem.
• Automotive VenturesminorOthersAutomotive Ventures, led by Steve Greenfield, featured CarDana in its 'Companies to Watch' Innovation Report, which highlights innovative automotive technology companies to an investor and industry audience.
• World Central KitchencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorld Central Kitchen (WCK) is a featured charity partner on CarDana's platform. Founded by Chef José Andrés in 2010, WCK is a 501(c)(3) public charity that provides meals in response to humanitarian and climate crises. Donors can specifically direct their vehicle donation proceeds to WCK through CarDana's platform.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Vehicles for Charity: Operates as a vehicle donation processor serving a network of nonprofit partners. Direct competitor on the supply (donor) side and the demand (charity) side of the market.
• Cars2Charities: Vehicle donation service focused on maximizing tax deductions and routing proceeds to donor-selected charities. Direct competitor with a similar donor-chosen charity model, comparable to CarDana's open-network approach.
• Kars4Kids: Operates a national vehicle donation program, primarily for a single affiliated charity, processing donated cars and distributing proceeds. Directly comparable in core vehicle donation processing, though less transparent on charity share and limited to one cause.
• DonateCar.com: Vehicle donation service that accepts cars, trucks, boats, and RVs on behalf of charities. Direct competitor in online donor intake and pickup logistics, though typically limited to a smaller curated charity network.
• One Car One Difference: National car donation program partnering with local charities; offers free pickup and tax-deductible donation processing. Closely comparable operating model and donor experience.
• Car Donation Wizard: Online vehicle donation platform connecting donors with charities nationwide. Closely comparable GTM and value proposition, with similar web-based intake and charity-payout mechanics.
• Charity Cars (1-800-Charity Cars): Nonprofit running a donated-vehicle program that distributes vehicles to families in need. Operates an adjacent vehicle donation processing model, though with a different end-use (direct vehicle gifting) rather than sale-proceeds forwarding.
• Donate Cars (Wheels For Wishes / Making Kids Wish): National car donation service routing vehicles to affiliated charities. Directly competes with CarDana in the same donor funnel, with similar pickup/auction/forwarding model.

Broad incumbents

• Goodwill Industries (Car Donation Program): Major national nonprofit network operating a vehicle donation program alongside retail and workforce programs. Indirect competitor with massive brand and donor-base advantage, but processes vehicles through internal/affiliate channels rather than an open multi-charity platform.
• Habitat for Humanity ReStores (Vehicle Donation): Runs a national vehicle donation program supporting the broader Habitat mission. Competes for the same donor and vehicle pool as CarDana, leveraging the Habitat brand rather than a technology-transparency story.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CarDanaCo
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cardana

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CarDana