CiviCRM review

CiviCRM is the open source option on this list and the only one with no license cost. It covers contact management, contributions, events, memberships, email marketing, reports, case management and peer-to-peer fundraisers, and it plugs into WordPress, Drupal, Joomla or Backdrop, so donors and members can sign up and give on your own website. CiviCRM says more than 14,000 nonprofits use it. You can host it anywhere, which gives you control over where your data lives, and the project offers CiviCRM Spark as a quick hosted start alongside a directory of expert partners. The cost moves from licenses to people. CiviCRM itself describes self-hosting as for experts only, so most nonprofits will pay a partner for hosting, setup and support, and the day-to-day experience depends on how well the system is configured. Without technical help it is harder to start with than any hosted tool here.

Who it is for

Nonprofits with technical help that want full control of their data and no license fees.

Price

Free open source software; hosting and setup through a partner or your own servers cost extra.

CiviCRM is free to download, use and share!
Quoted from the vendor pricing page on November 6, 2026.

Key features

• Contact management for donors, members and constituents
• Contributions, events, memberships and peer-to-peer fundraisers
• Email marketing, reports and case management
• Integrates with WordPress, Drupal, Joomla and Backdrop
• Self-host or use a hosting partner, including the CiviCRM Spark quick start

Strengths and weaknesses

• Strength: No license fees
• Strength: Free choice of host and country for your data
• Strength: Large partner ecosystem and community
• Weakness: Self-hosting is for experts, so most nonprofits pay a partner
• Weakness: More setup and configuration than hosted tools
• Weakness: Interface depends on your CMS and setup

Key facts

• License: Open source, free to download, use and share
• Users: More than 14,000 nonprofits, per CiviCRM
• Hosting: Self-hosted, partner-hosted or CiviCRM Spark
• CMS support: WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, Backdrop

Where it ranks

CiviCRM is No. 10 in our Best Nonprofit CRM verdict.