Insights/RallyUp for UK charities: raffles, auctions and the fees
RallyUp for UK charities: raffles, auctions and the fees
RallyUp turns up whenever a UK charity searches for raffle or auction software. It is a capable, well-reviewed product, built for American rules, and the pricing changes once your event moves from a laptop to a ballroom.
In short
- RallyUp is a US fundraising platform for raffles, auctions, ticketing and crowdfunding. It accepts UK charities, pounds sterling and Gift Aid declarations.
- Its Free plan charges no platform fee and asks donors for an optional tip. Its Flex plan charges 2.9% to 6.9% depending on the activity: 4.9% on auctions (capped at $100 per item) and 6.9% on raffles, as of October 2026.
- The tools a gala relies on, including silent auctions, live auctions, fund-a-need, paddle raises and automated checkout, are only on Flex.
- RallyUp’s raffle guidance is written for US states. In Great Britain, an online raffle needs a council registration or a Gambling Commission licence, whichever platform you use.
I built a fundraising platform myself, so I read other people’s pricing pages more closely than is probably healthy. Every figure below comes from RallyUp’s own pages in October 2026. I am not here to knock anyone. I am here to turn the lights on.
What is RallyUp?
RallyUp is an online and in-person fundraising platform that lets a charity run several activities from one campaign page with one checkout. Its menu runs from raffles to auctions, ticketing, crowdfunding and peer-to-peer.
It is self-serve, with setup it says can take 15 or 20 minutes. It is used in 47+ countries, and the United Kingdom is on its list, with pound sterling among the currencies.
Funds go straight to a Stripe or PayPal account you connect.
How much does RallyUp cost?
RallyUp costs nothing in platform fees on its Free plan, because donors are asked for an optional tip, and 2.9% to 6.9% of funds raised on its Flex plan, where nobody is asked to tip. There is also custom Enterprise pricing for large campaigns and in-person events.
The Flex rates, as published in October 2026:
| Activity | Flex platform fee |
|---|---|
| Ticketing, storefront | 2.9% |
| Auctions (live, online, silent), crowdfunding, fund-a-need, Paddle Raise+, A-thons | 4.9% |
| Raffles, sweepstakes | 6.9% |
| Donation pages, livestreaming | Free |
The auction fee is capped at $100 per item, however high the winning bid. The cap is in US dollars and the page does not say how it works for a campaign in pounds, so ask.
Card processing sits on top under both plans, with nothing added by RallyUp. For a UK charity on its own Stripe account, the standard rate for UK cards is 1.5% plus 20p.
There are no contracts, subscriptions or setup fees.
Can you run a gala on RallyUp’s free plan?
Not really. RallyUp’s Free plan covers raffles, online auctions, ticketing, crowdfunding and peer-to-peer, but the in-person tools sit on Flex.
RallyUp calls these Advanced Components, and its pricing page says they are only available on Flex: live auctions, silent auctions, fund-a-need, Paddle Raise+, event balances (a running tab for each guest), automated checkout and live display.
So for a ballroom with paddles, a screen and a silent auction on phones, the working price is not the tip model. It is 4.9% on the auction and the pledge, plus processing. That is fair enough commercially. Just know it before you plan the evening.
On the Free plan, the cost moves to your guests. Donors see a suggested tip they can change or remove, and in the UK, Fundraising Regulator guidance says a platform with an optional fee should offer a zero option with equal prominence. Check yours.
Where the money goes on a £30,000 night
Here is a gala raising £30,000 on Flex: £10,000 from a silent auction where no single lot passes the cap, and £20,000 from a paddle raise.
| Part of the night | Raised | Flex fee at 4.9% |
|---|---|---|
| Silent auction | £10,000 | £490 |
| Paddle raise | £20,000 | £980 |
| Total | £30,000 | £1,470, before card processing |
The pledge is the line I care about. Ten lots in a room of two hundred means ten winners; the pledge is where everyone else gets to give. At the Jigsaw Trust gala, the live pledge run straight after the auction raised £30,600, more than the auction before it. Through a 4.9% fee, about £1,500 of that would have gone to software.
A percentage takes more the better your evening goes. The generosity is already in the room, and I would rather all of it reached the cause.
Can UK charities run a RallyUp raffle?
Yes, but you will be working out the UK rules yourself, because its raffle guidance is written for US states and leaves compliance to the organiser. Its sweepstakes feature is open to US organisations only.
British law sets the route. The Gambling Commission says you need a registration or licence to run lotteries online, and it names fundraising platforms. A raffle at your gala needs no licence as an incidental lottery, but tickets must be physical, sold at the venue during the event, and never online or in advance.
Sell online and you need a small society lottery registered with your council. That caps a single lottery at £20,000 of tickets, limits sales to over-16s, and requires every ticket to cost the same.
Watch that last rule. RallyUp’s Free plan offers donors discounted bonus entries in exchange for a tip, and whether that fits a same-price lottery is a question for your council before launch. My plainer guide to the raffle licence covers the basics.
Does RallyUp work in pounds and with Gift Aid?
Yes on both. You can set pound sterling as your primary currency, and RallyUp has a setting to let donors Gift Aid their donations at checkout, and reports which donations carry a declaration, so you can claim from HMRC.
One caution, and it applies to every platform. HMRC says an auction payment is a purchase, not a gift, and only qualifies in narrow cases. Make sure your claim covers the donations and the pledge, not the hammer prices. The Gift Aid rules for auctions are worth reading first.
What do RallyUp reviews say?
RallyUp reviews are strongly positive. On G2 it holds 4.8 out of 5 from 117 reviews as of October 2026.
Reviewers keep praising the same things: easy setup, quick payouts and a support team that answers. Most reviewers are US schools and nonprofits running online raffles and auctions, so read them with a UK gala in mind.
Where Generosity Works differs
RallyUp is self-serve software. The Generosity Works platform comes with the evening: the strategy, the running order, the pledge and the night itself, designed by me months out and delivered by me on the night.
It is free when a charity books me as auctioneer and host, and my fee is the only money Generosity Works takes. The platform is not sold on its own; our pricing page explains why.
There is no percentage and no tip prompt. Charities use their own Stripe keys, so nothing is added to Stripe’s rate. The lots are donated, and the charity keeps every pound of the hammer price. Bidding, pledges, Gift Aid capture and cards on file are all part of the silent auction software.
Where RallyUp is stronger, I will say so. If you want an online raffle or a crowdfunding page live tonight, without hiring anyone, it does that well.
Before you choose a platform
Do one sum. Split the total you expect into auction, pledge and raffle, apply each plan’s fee to each part, add card processing, and write down what the charity keeps.
That is the test behind the belief Generosity Works is built on: does what you pay move with what the room gives?
If you have a number to hit this year, book a discovery call. Let’s talk about your number.
No obligation, and never a percentage of what you raise
Let’s talk about your number.
A conversation about your event, your room, and what the night should be raising.
Book a discovery call→Or hire Kevin directly as your auctioneer and host at thecharityauctioneer.uk. Book him, and the platform is free.