---
title: "How we’re funded | CharityCompare"
description: "How CharityCompare makes money: charity memberships, business data licences and optional reader donations. Scores and rankings are never for sale."
source: https://charitycompare.pages.dev/how-were-funded
retrieved: 2026-08-22T21:57:45.243Z
license: "Charity data © Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0"
---

Quick answer

CharityCompare is free for donors and takes no commission on donations. It is funded by charity memberships, business data licences and optional reader donations. Scores and rankings are never for sale.

## Why we introduced paid plans

CharityCompare began as a completely free, donation-funded project. As the directory grew to cover every
registered charity in the UK — England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland — voluntary donations no longer
covered hosting, data processing and
development. Introducing optional charity memberships and business data licences lets us keep the site free
for donors, keep every score independent, and run CharityCompare as a professional, sustainable service —
rather than one that depends on goodwill alone.

## We fund the site in three ways

- 01

### Charity memberships

Any charity can claim its profile free. Paid Supporter and Partner memberships add presentation features (photos, videos, impact links) and clearly-labelled “Featured partner” visibility on browse pages.

[See partner pricing](https://charitycompare.pages.dev/partners)
- 02

### Business services

We licence our data and API to companies — such as payroll-giving platforms and financial advisers — and offer sponsored placements to professional services that work with charities (auditors, accountants, insurers).

[Talk to us](https://charitycompare.pages.dev/contact)
- 03

### Reader donations

Optional, via Stripe.

[Support our work](https://charitycompare.pages.dev/about-and-support#support)

## What money cannot buy

The Clarity Score, the ranking order, and any red flags are computed solely from UK regulator filings.
No charity or company can pay to change a score, rank higher in rated lists, or remove unfavourable filing data.
Paid placements are always labelled “Featured partner” and never appear inside ranked results.

Our full scoring method is published at [/methodology](https://charitycompare.pages.dev/methodology).
If you ever believe a commercial relationship has influenced a rating, tell us:
[complaints@charitycompare.org.uk](mailto:complaints@charitycompare.org.uk)
— every complaint is reviewed under our [editorial policy](https://charitycompare.pages.dev/editorial-policy).

## Common questions

Does CharityCompare take a cut of my donation? + No. Donate buttons link to each charity’s own website — we never process donations and never take a commission. Your whole donation goes to the charity.

Can a charity pay to improve its Clarity Score or ranking? + No. The Clarity Score, the ranking order and any red flags are computed solely from UK regulator filings. Paid memberships add presentation features and clearly-labelled “Featured partner” visibility only — never inside ranked results.

Who can advertise on CharityCompare? + Partner-tier charities can appear in clearly-labelled “Featured partner” slots on browse pages, and professional services that work with charities (auditors, accountants, insurers) can take sponsored placements. Every paid placement is labelled and excluded from ranked lists, leaderboards and comparison tools.

How do I report a concern about commercial influence? + Email complaints@charitycompare.org.uk. Every complaint is reviewed under our editorial policy.