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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsTo make a charity website, first confirm the organization’s public and tax-status facts, then plan the pages and actions visitors need, choose a platform the team can maintain, and test the complete donation journey before launch. Make the mission clear, keep essential information on the site, and explain donation fees, fund routing, and data sharing before a donor gives. Tax, fundraising, privacy, and accessibility rules depend on where the charity operates and where it solicits donations.
1. Confirm the charity’s facts and status
Before writing copy or choosing a design, assemble one verified source of truth for the site. Record the organization’s exact public name, mission, service area, programs, contact route, and the person responsible for updates. Confirm that descriptions of services and impact are current and supportable.
If the organization is in the United States, distinguish state-law nonprofit incorporation from federal tax-exempt recognition. The IRS explains that most organizations must apply for recognition; nonprofit corporate status alone does not automatically create federal income-tax exemption. Organizations seeking recognition under section 501(c)(3) generally use Form 1023 or, if eligible, Form 1023-EZ. Do not describe gifts as tax-deductible unless the organization’s actual status and the particular contribution support that claim. Check current IRS instructions or consult a qualified adviser for the organization’s circumstances.
2. Decide who the site serves and what visitors should do
List the audiences the organization needs to reach: people seeking services, donors, volunteers, partner organizations, or the public. For each audience, identify the next useful action, such as learning about a program, requesting help, giving, volunteering, or contacting staff. Prioritize the actions that match the charity’s actual services and capacity rather than adding routes it cannot support.
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Make the organization’s mission and a clear next step easy to understand from the first screen. Google’s guidance for its nonprofit program flags unclear mission statements, missing identifying information, poor navigation, broken links, slow mobile loading, and lack of HTTPS among reasons a site may be rejected. Treat this as a useful quality checklist, not as a universal legal or accessibility standard.
3. Choose a website platform your team can maintain
Choose based on the organization’s technical capacity and the real work the site must do. A hosted builder may suit a small team that wants an integrated editing and donation setup; a custom build or another hosted or open-source option may fit different needs. The evidence available here does not establish a best provider or support a platform ranking.
Compare contenders against the same practical questions, using each provider’s current documentation and terms:
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- Total cost: What recurring platform, hosting, add-on, and transaction costs apply?
- Giving: Can the organization explain the donation route, fees, transfer timing, and data practices clearly?
- Control: Can the team export its content and retain access to relevant data if it changes providers?
- Usability: Can staff update pages and links without relying on a developer for routine changes?
- Access and support: What accessibility features, integrations, maintenance responsibilities, and support are available?
Squarespace’s nonprofit guide is one example of a hosted-builder resource covering design, donations, and community engagement; it is not evidence that one platform is best for every organization.
4. Publish the pages visitors need
Build substantive pages around the organization’s real work. Keep essential information readable as web content rather than making a PDF the only place it appears. Google’s nonprofit website policy identifies insufficient unique content and heavy reliance on PDFs among site concerns.
- Mission and organization: Explain what the charity does, whom it serves, and where it works. Identify the organization clearly.
- Programs or services: Describe what people can access, how to take the next step, and any relevant service-area limits.
- Ways to help: Provide distinct, working routes for donations, volunteering, or other forms of support the organization can actually accept.
- Contact: Give visitors a reliable way to reach the organization, with enough context to direct service requests or other questions.
- Transparency: Make relevant organizational information and public-record access easy to find without exposing private donor details.
Use original, current explanations. Avoid placeholder text, unsupported impact claims, and pages that promise services or response times the organization cannot deliver.
5. Set up and explain the donation journey
Place a visible donation route where visitors can find it, then test it from the first click through confirmation. Google for Nonprofits’ Website policy says: “Donation links must work and go to a secure page dedicated to donations.” Use HTTPS across the site and confirm the giving page is secure, dedicated to donations, and the intended destination.
If a third-party portal or intermediary handles gifts, explain the actual arrangement before a donor commits. The FTC’s June 2018 guidance on online charitable giving portals emphasizes clear, conspicuous information about who receives and distributes donations, fees, transfer timing, and whether donor information will be shared. State, where applicable:
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- What fee or percentage is deducted, based on the provider’s current terms.
- When the charity should expect funds and what happens if a transfer cannot be completed.
- Whether donor information is shared, and with whom.
Keep these explanations close to the donation claims and before the point of giving, not buried in fine print or behind an unclear link. The specific fees, timing, and data practices depend on the provider and arrangement. FTC guidance cited here is dated 2018; check current applicable law and the provider’s current terms before publishing disclosures.
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6. Make trust information findable while protecting donors
For a US tax-exempt organization, IRS guidance generally says the three most recent annual returns must be available for public inspection on request. The IRS also says these returns can be made widely available online. The rules depend on organization type, so confirm the requirements that apply before deciding what to publish or how to provide access.
Transparency does not require publishing contributor names or addresses: the IRS says those details are not required to be disclosed as part of public inspection of annual returns. Avoid exposing donor information in the name of openness, and describe tax status accurately. The IRS’s Stay Exempt guidance notes that its content may not reflect subsequent legislation; check current primary guidance or seek qualified advice for tax-related claims.
7. Check the site before launch
Test the experience on desktop and mobile, including the full giving route. Use this launch checklist:
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- Key pages contain accurate, original information and are not just placeholders or PDFs.
- Menus, contact routes, and donation links work.
- The donation link reaches the intended secure page dedicated to giving.
- HTTPS is active throughout the site, with no mixed-content warnings.
- Pages load and remain usable on mobile devices.
- Where an intermediary is involved, applicable fee, fund-flow, timing, and data-sharing information appears before the gift.
Google’s nonprofit policy also says a .org domain is not required for its program if the organization fully owns and controls its site domain. That is a Google-program rule, not a general legal requirement or a reason to choose a particular domain.
8. Assign ongoing ownership
A site becomes unreliable when no one owns routine changes. Name a staff member, volunteer, or role responsible for reviewing program descriptions, contact and board information, donation links, and public-record access. Set a recurring review schedule that fits the organization’s operations, and check provider terms and applicable regulator guidance when donation or tax disclosures change. For organizations soliciting across borders, confirm requirements with the relevant regulators or qualified advisers in the operating and donor jurisdictions.
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