How does WhyDonate charge fees on recurring donations?

WhyDonate operates on a 0% platform fee model, funded by an optional donor tip. For recurring donations, there's one important detail to be aware of: the tip only applies to the first payment.

How it works

First (initial) payment:

• If the organizer enables the tip option, WhyDonate charges 0% platform commission on that payment.
• If the organizer disables the tip option, WhyDonate charges 3% platform commission on that payment.

Every subsequent payment:

• The tip is only collected once, on the first payment of the recurring series.
• From subsequent payments onward, no tip is charged again — regardless of whether the organizer enabled the tip originally.
• Because no tip is collected, WhyDonate applies a 3% platform commission on each subsequent payment.

Why does this happen?

Recurring donations are processed automatically on a recurring basis. Since the tip setting is only captured at the moment the donation is set up, it isn't re-requested on each future charge. To keep supporting the platform on payments where no tip is collected, a 3% commission applies from subsequent payments onward.

Example

A donor sets up a €20 recurring donation, with the organizer's tip option enabled, and adds a €2 tip at signup.

Can I avoid the recurring commission?

Currently, there is no way to re-add a tip to ongoing recurring payments after the first one. The 3% commission on subsequent payments is part of how WhyDonate keeps operating with a 0% fee model.

Where can I see the fees I've been charged?

You can find a full breakdown of processing costs and platform commission for each transaction in your organizer dashboard, under the donations tab.

Updated on: 21/07/2026