Text-to-Give for Nonprofits: How It Works and Best Practices

Text-to-give lets a supporter donate from their phone by texting a short keyword, like GIVE, to your nonprofit's number. An automatic reply sends back a link to your mobile giving page, where they pick an amount and finish the gift. The gift is recorded like any other online donation.

Below you'll find how the process works step by step, how text-to-give differs from text-to-donate, what it really costs, and a three-text GivingTuesday sequence you can borrow for your own campaign.

How does text-to-give work?

Every text-to-give campaign runs on two things: a keyword and a phone number. Here's the full path from your first setup to a recorded gift.

1. Pick a keyword. Choose a word tied to your campaign, such as GIVE, HOPE or the name of a program, and connect it to a giving page.
2. Share it. Put the keyword and your text number on event slides, mailers, emails, posters and social posts.
3. The supporter texts in. They send the keyword to your number and get an automatic reply with a link to your giving page.
4. They give. They choose an amount, enter their payment details on the page, and get a receipt.
5. You see the gift. The donation lands on the donor's record and counts toward your campaign goal.

Fewer steps means more people finish the gift. Donors are more likely to follow through on their intention to give when nothing gets in the way, and a short path from text to gift helps your donor conversion rates.

Short code or 10-digit number?

Some text-giving services use a five- or six-digit short code. Others, including DonorDock, use a standard 10-digit number that's registered with the mobile carriers. Donors experience both the same way: they text a word and get a link back.

Why nonprofits use text-to-give

Most donors already have their phone in hand. If someone can pay for coffee with it, they can give with it.

It also travels well. A keyword works on a gala stage, at the bottom of a direct mail letter, or in a social post, so it helps you reach supporters who might not open an email appeal.

Text-to-give vs text-to-donate: what's the difference?

Most people use the two terms interchangeably, and plenty of vendors do too. Strictly speaking, they describe two different setups:

• Carrier-billed text-to-give: the donor texts a keyword and a preset amount is added to their phone bill. The wireless carrier collects it, and the money reaches the nonprofit only after the donor pays that bill. Gift amounts are fixed and usually modest.
• Link-based text-to-donate: the donor texts a keyword and gets a link to your giving page. They choose any amount, pay with the methods your page accepts, and you capture their details for a proper thank-you and follow-up.

DonorDock uses the link-based method. When a supporter texts your keyword to your DonorDock Text Number, DonorDock matches it to one of your giving pages and replies with that page's link. If the phone number matches an existing contact, the text is logged on their record, so you can see it in their activity history and reports.

One detail worth knowing before you print anything: the keyword has to match exactly. Capitalization doesn't matter, but if your keyword is DONATE, a text that says DONATE NOW won't trigger the reply. The message still shows up in your text conversations, so you can answer it by hand. You can read more about how text-to-donate works in DonorDock.

How much does text-to-give cost?

Cost depends on how your platform is set up, so look at three pieces: the texts themselves, carrier registration, and the cost of processing each gift.

• Texting: each message uses text credits. In DonorDock, a standard text of up to 160 characters uses one credit, and longer messages split into segments that use more. Emojis and some special characters shrink a segment to about 70 characters, so a single emoji can double the credits a message needs.
• Carrier registration: US carriers require A2P 10DLC registration before you send bulk texts or one-to-one conversations from a 10-digit number. In DonorDock this comes with a one-time carrier registration charge, separate from your text credits.
• Giving: online gifts made through DonorDock giving pages carry DonorDock's 2% platform fee, and Stripe or PayPal processing fees apply separately.

The DonorDock plan, $500 a month billed annually, includes 1,000 text credits a month. If you need more, additional credits are $19 per 1,000, and purchased credits don't expire. Your monthly credits are used first.

Here's a quick way to size a campaign. Say you send a 140-character text with no emojis, link included, to 400 supporters. That's about 400 credits. Send three of them over a campaign and you're at roughly 1,200 credits: your 1,000 monthly credits plus one extra block of 1,000 for $19. Keyword replies to donors who text in use credits too, so keep your automatic response short.

Text-to-give best practices

Here's what separates campaigns that raise money from ones that fizzle.

Choose a platform that connects to your donor records

Start with the platform, since everything else depends on it. You need text-to-give that's secure and easy for both donors and your team.

Your texting should live in the same donor development platform as your donor records. The right one lets you accept gifts, track your donor data in your nonprofit CRM, and grow donor relationships without copying anything between tools.

Optimize the donation process for mobile phones

Keep your donation form short and secure. The fewer steps, the better the chance your donors follow through. Check out our donation page playbook for donation page best practices.

Whatever payment method a donor prefers, the experience on their phone should feel quick and familiar.

Create unique text codes and keywords

Choose a memorable word tied to your cause as your donation keyword. Short and easy to spell beats clever every time, especially when someone is reading it off a screen across a crowded room.

You can also create a QR code that links directly to an online giving page. Supporters scan it from a letter, an event screen or other printed materials and land right on your giving page.

Get permission before you text

Only send texts to supporters who have agreed to hear from you that way, and make it easy to opt out. In DonorDock, anyone who replies STOP is marked as SMS unsubscribed and won't receive texts from your account.

Keep it short and send a test

One clear ask and one link per message works best. Check the credit estimate before a bulk send, watch out for emojis, and send yourself a test so you see exactly what donors will see.

Track the results

Tracking shows which texts and send times bring in gifts, and how text compares with your other channels.

Use what you learn to shape your next text appeal around what actually worked.

DonorDock reports handle this for you, with every text and gift tied to the donor who sent it.

Protect donor data

Security matters when you're handling gifts by text. A trustworthy text-to-give service protects donor information during payment processing by encrypting sensitive details like card numbers and personal identifiers.

All donation platforms should be PCI compliant, meaning they follow the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). Ask any vendor how they protect donor data before you sign up. DonorDock, for example, is SOC 2 Type 2 compliant. A breach can erode donor trust fast, so make sure your setup is secure before you launch.

How to promote a text-to-give campaign

A keyword only works if people see it. Promote it through mobile channels and traditional ones at the same time.

Text the supporters you already have

Texting your supporters is a quick way to promote your campaign. A text is hard to miss, and it puts the giving link one tap away. You can also use texts to remind donors about a pledge and include a link to complete it.

Personal beats generic. Use the donor's name and refer back to how they've been involved, so the message reads like it came from someone who knows them. DonorDock's donor outreach tools let you send bulk texts with merge tags, schedule them ahead of time, and log every message on the donor's record. If you'd rather not start from a blank screen, borrow from these ready-to-send templates.

Use text-to-give at events

Put your keyword, or a QR code that goes straight to your giving page, on signage people can see from their seats. Better yet, announce it from the stage and run a live giving challenge.

Mix old-school methods with new technology

Don't overlook direct mail, especially for supporters who prefer it to digital channels. Add your text-to-give keyword or a QR code to your mailings so donors can give the moment they finish reading.

Worked example: a three-text GivingTuesday sequence

GivingTuesday 2026 falls on Tuesday, December 1. Here's a three-message sequence for donors who have opted in to texts. Each one fits in a single 160-character segment if you keep your details brief and skip emojis, so it uses one credit per recipient. Replace the brackets with your own details.

1. Monday, November 30, 6 p.m. (the heads-up): "Hi [first name], tomorrow is GivingTuesday! Your gift to [nonprofit] will help [impact]. Watch for our link in the morning."
2. Tuesday, December 1, 10 a.m. (the ask): "It's GivingTuesday! $[amount] helps [specific impact]. Give here: [link]"
3. Tuesday, December 1, 7 p.m. (the last call): "We're at $[raised] of our $[goal] goal with a few hours left today. Can you help us finish strong? [link]"

Schedule all three ahead of time and double-check the time zone. Before the last call goes out, remove anyone who has already given that day, then send those donors a thank-you text on Wednesday instead. For more wording ideas, pull from our 30 GivingTuesday text templates.

If you'd like to see keywords, bulk texts and giving pages working together in one place, see DonorDock in action.