MemberDrive vs. Anedot
Anedot is built for churches, schools, and nonprofits — and so are we. On card gifts, the all-in cost is close. The real difference is what each platform does.
The honest comparison
Anedot is a solid fundraising platform with a strong foothold in faith communities, schools, and political organizations. Their pitch is no monthly fees, no contracts — just a per-transaction rate. That's the right model. The rate itself is the question.
Anedot charges 3.3% + $0.30 per transaction for cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and PayPal, and 0.3% + $0.30 for ACH (for 501(c)(3) organizations). Those rates include card processing. MemberDrive charges 1%, and Stripe charges its processing fee on top: 2.9% + $0.30 at standard rates, or 2.2% + $0.30 at Stripe's discounted nonprofit rate. All in, a card gift costs about the same on both platforms, and ACH costs less on Anedot.
Anedot fees vs. MemberDrive fees, all in
| MemberDrive | Anedot | |
|---|---|---|
| Platform fee | 1% | None (built into the rate) |
| Card processing | Stripe: 2.9% + $0.30, or 2.2% + $0.30 at the nonprofit rate | Included |
| All-in card cost | 3.2%–3.9% + $0.30 | 3.3% + $0.30 |
| All-in ACH cost | 1% + Stripe ACH (0.8%, capped at $5) | 0.3% + $0.30 |
| Monthly fee | None | None |
| Donor tip prompt | None | None |
| Donors can cover fees | Yes | Yes |
| All-in cost on $25K of card gifts* | ~$950–$1,125 | ~$975 |
* Assumes 500 gifts averaging $50. MemberDrive's range runs from Stripe's nonprofit rate to its standard rate. Neither platform asks donors for a tip, and both let donors cover the fees. Anedot rates from anedot.com/pricing.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | MemberDrive | Anedot |
|---|---|---|
| Online donation forms | ✓ | ✓ |
| Recurring donations | ✓ | ✓ |
| Pledge tracking | ✓Multi-year | ✓Future Pledge feature |
| Matching gifts | ✓Full engine | ✗Not offered |
| Peer-to-peer / leaderboards | ✓ | ✗ |
| Donor self-service portal | ✓ | ✓Branded donor portal |
| Member content / posts | ✓ | ✗ |
| Bitcoin (non-custodial) | ✓ | ✗ |
| Gifts go to your own Stripe account | ✓ | ✗ |
| Donor CRM | ✓ | ✗CRM integrations via Zapier |
| Event ticketing | ✗ | ✓ |
| Text-to-give | ✗ | ✓ |
| Surveys / action pages | ✗ | ✓ |
| Apple Pay / Google Pay | Stripe-supported | ✓ |
| No 501(c)(3) required | ✓ | ✓For nonprofits — political orgs served separately |
Where Anedot wins
Anedot has built a robust toolset for political campaigns and organizations — text-to-give, petitions, surveys, action pages, and strong compliance tooling. They also support ACH at 0.3% + $0.30 all in, which is less than MemberDrive's 1% plus Stripe's ACH fee and matters for large bank-transfer gifts. Their credit card auto-updater is a useful retention feature, and their event ticketing covers a gap we don't fill today.
For faith communities specifically, Anedot has established credibility with a large customer base of churches.
Where MemberDrive wins
Cost is close, so features decide. Both platforms have no monthly fee and no contract. With Stripe's nonprofit rate, a MemberDrive card gift costs slightly less than on Anedot; at Stripe's standard rate, slightly more. So the choice comes down to what each platform does.
Matching gifts. Anedot doesn't offer matching gift campaigns. MemberDrive has a full engine: lead donor commitment, configurable multiplier, time-bound window, real-time public tracking, and automatic invoice on close. For churches and schools running annual appeals or capital campaigns, this is a meaningful gap.
Peer-to-peer / leaderboards. Anedot doesn't offer peer-to-peer fundraising. MemberDrive gives every donor a personal fundraising link and a public leaderboard — turning donors into advocates who bring in new supporters.
Member engagement layer. MemberDrive is a communications platform as well as a fundraising platform. Organizations can publish posts and updates to their member base. Anedot is fundraising-first with no equivalent content or engagement tooling.
Non-custodial model. Donations flow directly to your Stripe account. MemberDrive never holds your funds.
Bitcoin. Native on-chain Bitcoin with non-custodial wallets. Anedot has no crypto story.
A note on Anedot and faith communities
Anedot is popular with churches. MemberDrive is built with the same audience in mind. Both share the same no-monthly-fee, no-contract philosophy. Card costs are close, so the decision for most faith communities comes down to features: MemberDrive adds matching gifts, peer-to-peer fundraising, and Bitcoin that Anedot doesn't provide.
Who should choose Anedot
- →Political campaigns and advocacy organizations that need petition, survey, and compliance tooling
- →Organizations that rely heavily on ACH for large-dollar transfers (Anedot's ACH rate is lower)
- →Organizations that need event ticketing or text-to-give
- →Organizations already embedded in the Anedot ecosystem with existing data
Who should choose MemberDrive
- →Churches, classical schools, and faith communities where per-transaction cost matters
- →Organizations running matching gift campaigns or peer-to-peer fundraising drives
- →Organizations that want matching gifts and pledges without giving up the no-monthly-fee model
- →Organizations that want Bitcoin support (non-custodially)
- →Organizations that want an engagement layer — content, posts, member communications — alongside fundraising
Same no-monthly-fee model. More ways to raise.
MemberDrive charges 1% plus Stripe processing, with matching gifts, peer-to-peer fundraising, and Bitcoin that Anedot doesn't offer. Start in minutes.
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