Powering your nonprofit organization’s purpose takes more than just donations. You also rely on passionate volunteers who dedicate their time and effort to furthering your cause. But how do you manage, recruit, schedule, and retain hundreds of volunteers at once? The answer is volunteer management software.
Volunteer management systems keep all volunteer recruitment data in one centralized platform to help streamline the management process.
In this guide, we’ll explore several of the best solutions for managing nonprofit volunteers and answer common questions you might have about this impactful tool.
- 1. Bonterra Fundraising and Engagement
- 2. Mobilize
- 3. Golden
- 4. VolunteerHub
- 5. Bloomerang
- 6. VolunteerLocal
- 7. Giveffect
- 8. Civic Champs
- 9. Timecounts
- 10. Rosterfy
- 11. Boardable
- 12. POINT
- 13. PlanHero
- 14. YourVolunteers
- 15. WhenToHelp
- 16. SignUpGenius
- 17. Doodle
- 18. SignUp.com
- 19. 360MatchPro
What is a volunteer management system?
A volunteer management system is a tool that helps nonprofits manage volunteer data, organize events, and communicate with volunteers, all from one centralized platform. Volunteer management tools can help you streamline each stage of the process, including:
- Planning: Easily plan and organize volunteer events, set goals, and allocate resources.
- Recruitment: Attract and recruit volunteers through targeted campaigns and online sign-up forms.
- Scheduling: Create and manage volunteer schedules, assign tasks, and track volunteer hours.
- Training: Develop and deliver training programs to ensure volunteers are prepared and equipped to succeed.
- Engagement: Keep volunteers motivated and involved through regular communication, recognition programs, and growth opportunities.
- Evaluation: Track volunteer performance, measure program impact, and gather feedback to improve future efforts.
With software, you can streamline the process of hosting a volunteer event from start to finish. Use tools that simplify recruitment, marketing, registration, feedback collection, and more.
Plus, comprehensive donor and volunteer management software also integrates with your CRM to enable easy volunteer tracking so you can build strong relationships with your biggest supporters.
The best volunteer management software options
Now that you know what to look for, check out our list of the top 19 volunteer management software comparison solutions to turn volunteers into donors. We’ll start with our top recommendations.
1. Bonterra Fundraising and Engagement
Best for: Nonprofits looking for full fundraising and volunteer management suite
Why focus on volunteer management alone when you can use a full fundraising and volunteer management suite?
Built on a foundation of the best legacy nonprofit software solutions like EveryAction and Network for Good, Bonterra Fundraising and Engagement is a comprehensive, all-in-one software suite that includes everything you need to manage volunteers and donors.
Fundraising and Engagement is much more than a volunteer management system — it’s a platform that provides you with a 360-degree view of your volunteers, supporters, and programs from one central location. After all, your volunteers are often also donors or advocates, and they want a unified experience with your organization.
By integrating volunteer management with donor management, fundraising, and other key features, you can streamline operations, enhance efficiency, and maximize your impact.
Pricing: Essentials, Pro, and Enterprise Levels
Features:
- Unified operations: Manage volunteers, donors, and programs from a single platform.
- Bring-a-friend functionality: This proven functionality can increase your volunteer sign-ups by almost 14% by automatically encouraging volunteers to recruit their friends to join.
- Automated event reminders: Reduce no-show rates by up to 30% with Fundraising and Engagement’s automatic volunteer event reminders. Use email and mobile messaging to keep in touch with volunteers and hold their attention.
- Supporter-created events: Take volunteer engagement to the next level by allowing your most passionate supporters to create and share their own volunteer events on behalf of your organization.
- Automatic feedback collection: With custom email and text surveys, you can automate feedback requests and collection after volunteer events to learn how you can improve.
- Social sharing features: Encourage your volunteers to share their volunteer sign-ups and activities on social media. This way, you can leverage the power of social proof to boost your recruitment efforts.
Curated event feeds: Your volunteers can access personalized feeds and event suggestions to easily discover their next opportunity. They’ll see exactly what actions to take next based on their preferences and volunteer history.
2. Mobilize
Best for: Nonprofits that promote volunteer events
Bonterra’s Mobilize solution is another great option for nonprofits and advocacy organizations looking to boost their recruitment efforts. When you create and promote volunteer events with Mobilize, you can tap into a network of over five million potential volunteers.
Beyond volunteer events, you can also use Mobilize to encourage volunteers to take advocacy actions, sign petitions, and make pledges.
Pricing: Essentials, Pro, and Enterprise Levels
Features:
- Event promotion: Event creation for both scheduled and recurring events, whether virtual, in-person, or hybrid.
- Volunteer communication: Volunteer-led groups that allow supporters to connect with each other and host their own volunteer events.
- CRM integrations: Integrations with top nonprofit CRMs like Bonterra Fundraising and Engagement and Salesforce.
3. Golden
Best for: Volunteer centers and grassroots movements
Golden’s volunteer management software aims to guide you seamlessly through the entire volunteer management process. While Golden’s free plan offers basic volunteer management features, Golden’s Enterprise plan provides a comprehensive solution, including AI-driven insights, advanced integrations, and support for multiple users.
Pricing: Starting at $110/mo for Professional Plan
Features:
- Streamlined onboarding: Live volunteer background checks and an automated interview process.
- Simplified Tracking: Hours tracking and the ability to complete volunteer tasks within the system.
- Data-Driven Insights: Real-time insights into your volunteer program’s reach, engagement, and growth.
4. VolunteerHub
Best for: Organizations looking for a holistic volunteer solution
As a holistic volunteer solution, VolunteerHub helps you streamline the volunteering process with scheduling, organizing, and communication tools. VolunteerHub offers three pricing plans, and you can add optional features like recognition and liability waivers based on what your nonprofit needs.
Pricing: Starting at $143/mo for Plus Plan
Features:
- Branded event pages: Custom, branded volunteer event landing pages for major or seasonal events.
- Self-service volunteer management: Self-managed volunteer scheduling, hours tracking, and liability waivers, all housed in a central database.
- Volunteer recognition: Volunteer recognition features like point-based rewards, live leaderboards, and incentives.
5. Bloomerang
Best for: Nonprofits that don’t need CRM integration
Bloomerang is a software company that offers both a donor database and volunteer management software for nonprofits. If you consider this option, keep in mind that Bloomerang’s volunteer management solution is separate from its CRM and has limited integrations.
Pricing: Starting at $119/mo
Features:
- Customizable dashboards: Customizable volunteer dashboards for staff and volunteers, both online and through Bloomerang’s mobile app.
- Streamlined scheduling: Scheduling tools that help you manage sign-ups, send confirmation messages, and track which volunteers attend.
- Actionable insights: Report templates to provide you with actionable volunteer data that syncs with your CRM.
6. VolunteerLocal
Best for: Volunteer registration and communication organization
VolunteerLocal is a registration platform that helps nonprofits manage volunteers. VolunteerLocal only integrates with Salesforce, DonorPerfect, and Neon CRM, so this software works best for nonprofits with one of these databases.
Pricing: Starting at $600/yr for Discover Plan
Features:
- Time tracking: Hours tracking via the VolunteerLocal website, mobile app, kiosks, and admin screens.
- Streamlined registration: Custom volunteer registration forms help you capture all the information you need from volunteers.
- Communications templates: Basic email and text message capabilities, including templates for broadcast messages and event reminders.
7. Giveffect
Best for: Organizations that don’t need an all-in-one CRM solution
Giveffect offers a volunteer management solution along with other nonprofit management tools like wealth screening and relationship management. Giveffect’s volunteer solution is meant to be used with its own nonprofit CRM offering, which comes with multiple pricing options and tiers.
Pricing: Lite, Ultimate, and Ultimate+ Levels
Features:
- Digital waivers: Custom online application forms and liability waivers.
- Automated communications: Communication features like volunteer newsletters, automated emails, and private online calendars.
- Virtual check-in: A virtual kiosk feature that lets you quickly check in and assign volunteers at in-person events.
8. Civic Champs
Best for: Hunger and welfare-focused organizations
Civic Champs is a specialized volunteer management software solution used by nonprofits in cause areas like housing, animal welfare, hunger relief, and education. Civic Champs has multiple CRM integrations and a large partner ecosystem you can explore.
Pricing: Starting at $588/yr
Features:
- Individual volunteer profiles: Centralized volunteer profiles where you can track their hours, personal information, survey responses, and other notes.
- Virtual check-in: Check-in options via kiosks, the mobile Civic Champs app, and admin devices.
- Event customization: Event creation tools that allow you to include location, roles, shifts, and onboarding information.
9. Timecounts
Best for: Organizations that frequently host events
A volunteer organizing platform that works with a number of different cause areas, Timecounts is a low-cost solution for small to midsize organizations. All of their pricing plans include unlimited volunteers, but you’ll need to consider how many administrative users you need before exploring this option more.
Pricing: Starting at $69/mo for Pro Plan
Features:
- Custom branding: A custom, branded volunteer hub that includes volunteer opportunities, registration pages, and an FAQ for your supporters.
- Custom forms: Drag and drop form builders for signup forms and volunteer applications.
- Reporting tools: Reporting dashboards for volunteer hours, top volunteers, and other custom data.
10. Rosterfy
Best for: Universities and local governments.
Rosterfy’s volunteer management system has empowered nonprofits, government agencies, and universities to track over 100 million volunteer hours, streamlining processes and maximizing impact.
Pricing: Multiple plans to choose from
Features:
- Digital screening: Built-in background checks and other compliance tools for screening prospective volunteers.
- Automated workflows: Workflow automations for volunteer onboarding, scheduling, and communication.
- Rewards features: A customizable volunteer rewards program with gamification tools, redeemable points, and merchandise rewards.
11. Boardable
Best for: Organizations focused on board development
While Boardable isn’t your typical volunteer management software, it does cater to a specific supporter segment: your board members. Boardable might be the right solution for your nonprofit if you’re currently focusing on board development and don’t need a full volunteer management platform right now.
Pricing: Starting at $17.99/mo for Essentials Plan
Features:
- Agenda assets: Creation tools for board meeting agendas, resource packets, and other documents.
- Shareable meeting board: A public board member meeting page where you can conveniently share your agenda, minutes, and even meeting recordings.
- Communication tools: Discussions, groups, and individual board member tasks that you can manage from one place.
12. POINT
Best for: Universities managing student volunteer programs
POINT is an all-in-one free volunteer management software solution designed for nonprofits and schools. While the core POINT platform is free for nonprofits, some features like waivers and offline time tracking are only available with a paid Pro plan.
Pricing: $0/mo for Core Plan, $99/mo for Pro Plan
Features:
- Digital hub: Access to POINT’s volunteer hub, web platform, and mobile app, plus a widget you can add to your own website.
- Contact database: A volunteer database with unlimited admin users and volunteers.
- Project management tools: Event creation tools with volunteer shifts, self-registration, deadlines, shareable links, and calendars.
13. PlanHero
Best for: Small nonprofits seeking a simple solution
PlanHero is a simple group organizing platform. If your organization only hosts a few volunteer events, PlanHero offers a free version of its volunteer management software for up to three events. If you want to host more than three events, you’ll need to upgrade to access all of PlenHero’s features.
Pricing: Free Plan, $12/mo for Essentials Plan
Features:
- Automated signup forms: Quick signup sheet creation with automatic email confirmations and customizable auto-reminders.
- Shareable event page: A public landing page for all of your volunteer events and signup options.
- Communication tools: Messaging feature to send out last-minute event updates or changes.
14. YourVolunteers
Best for: Nonprofits with a focus on volunteer recognition
YourVolunteers is a basic, cloud-based volunteer scheduling solution that’s free for nonprofits and currently used by 12,000 organizations. However, the YourVolunteers free version does come with advertisements, which you’ll need to consider if you dive into this option further.
Pricing: Free Plan, $20/mo for Premium Plan
Features:
- Scheduling features: Create volunteer shifts and match them with your volunteers’ availability for easy assignment.
- Communication tools: Messages that appear when volunteers log in in case they missed an email announcement.
- Time tracking: Hours tracking with no-show reports and summaries for volunteers.
15. WhenToHelp
Best for: Organizations that put on one-time events
WhenToHelp is an online volunteer scheduling tool that’s available for free for qualifying 501(c)(3) organizations. If you upgrade to the paid version of WhenToHelp, you can access additional features like text alerts and automatic Google Calendar updates.
Pricing: Free Plan, $16/mo for Subscription Plan
Features:
- Easy scheduling: Weekly volunteer schedules that you can add shifts to and manually or automatically assign to volunteers.
- Customizable layouts: Choose between 12 configurable layouts to view and export volunteer schedules.
- Communication alerts: Instant notifications when volunteers or coordinators change their schedules or request time off.
16. SignUpGenius
Best for: Building volunteer signup pages only
SignUpGenius is a basic tool for creating events and collecting sign-ups that’s free and easy to use. SignUpGenius does come with ads, but your organization can switch to an ad-free plan for a low cost if needed.
Pricing: Free Plan, $8.99 for Silver Plan, $22.49 for Gold Plan
Features:
- Signup page templates: Create a volunteer sign-up page from scratch or using a professionally designed template.
- Customizable preferences: Choose start and close dates for sign-ups, time zone settings, and email reminder settings.
- Automatic reminders: Send automatic email invitations and event reminders to volunteers who sign up.
17. Doodle
Best for: Scheduling volunteer events only
Doodle’s basic scheduling tool is designed for small groups of friends, family, or peers, but it can work for smaller volunteer events as well. Doodle is one of the simplest volunteer management systems on this list, but it’s a good option if all you need to do is schedule a group of volunteers quickly.
Pricing: Free Plan, $6.95 for Pro Plan, $8.95 for Team Plan
Features:
- Poll volunteers: Survey volunteers for times and dates that they’re open, may be available, and cannot attend.
- Optimized event planning: Automatically tally how many votes each time slot receives to find the best time for your volunteer event.
- Transparent scheduling: Allow volunteers to see which dates and times work best for the whole group.
18. SignUp.com
Best for: Managing volunteer sign-ups for events and activities
Another event registration tool, SignUp.com allows you to create basic sign-up pages and leverage a few communication features. For a small monthly fee, you can upgrade with SignUp.com to receive features like SMS reminders, additional custom questions, and waitlist notifications.
Pricing: Free Plan, $8.34 for Starter Plan, $20.83 for Plus Plan
Features:
- Sign-up pages: Unlimited sign-up pages and participants, with no need for volunteers to create a login or password.
- Communication sharing: Emails, calendar syncs, and social media sharing capabilities.
- Custom capabilities: One custom question you can ask participants on your volunteer sign-up pages.
19. 360MatchPro
Best for: Organizations seeking gift-matching capabilities
360MatchPro offers a suite of matching gift fundraising features. Create branded email campaigns and identify potential gift-matching opportunities with automated features.
Pricing: $999/yr for Nonprofit Plan, $2,500+ for Standard Plan
Features:
- Tool integrations: Identification tools like signup pages and email management for easy integration.
- Automated gift-matching: Automated engagement features to identify major donor gift-matching potential.
- Customizable branding: Design customizations to build brand recognition.
Benefits of using volunteer management software
Using dedicated volunteer management tools instead of spreadsheets, paper sign-up forms, or a variety of separate solutions comes with many benefits.
First and foremost, software designed for nonprofit volunteer management helps you streamline administrative tasks and boost your team’s efficiency, giving you more time to focus on what matters most — your purpose. However, the benefits of a quality system go beyond that.
- Improves communication: Features like email templates, volunteer segmentation, and automated mobile messaging help you easily connect with volunteers using personalized communications.
- Boosts recruitment: Software with tools and social sharing capabilities allows you to introduce your cause to new potential volunteers.
- Streamlines data: Track event attendance, volunteer hours, and actions taken to quickly gauge the progress and success of your volunteer programs.
- Increases participation: Some platforms give your volunteers access to their own profiles and dashboards where they can access personalized suggestions for volunteer opportunities they may be interested in.
- Simplifies registration: Simplify the administrative side of volunteer event management so you can focus on connecting with volunteers and furthering your organization’s purpose.
Top volunteer management software features
Not all volunteer management systems are created equal, and some will have more impactful features for your nonprofit than others.
As you explore your options, look for essential volunteer management features like:
- Volunteer tracking: Your system should be able to track volunteer hours, host volunteer profiles, and store information about their interests.
- Recruitment tools: The best volunteer tracking software allows you to boost recruitment with standout, shareable volunteer events and sign-up pages.
- Email and mobile messaging: Access communication tools to personalize volunteer messages automatically.
- Volunteer event management: Your software should enable you to easily manage nonprofit events from start to finish — including registration, check-ins, and follow-up.
- Reporting dashboard: Glean insights about your volunteer program and events by seeing all the data you need in one place.
- Personalized volunteering suggestions: Some volunteer management software includes features like personalized feeds and newsletters to suggest the right opportunities for each volunteer.
- CRM integration: Your system should be able to integrate with your CRM to keep all of your supporter data organized and accessible.
How to choose the best volunteer management software
You know the top features to look for, but how exactly do you prioritize these based on your goals to find the right software to manage volunteers?
Here are some key factors to consider:
- Number of volunteers: Know your volunteer group size to choose a tool that can effectively accommodate communication and management.
- Data privacy and security: Ensure the software prioritizes data protection and complies with relevant regulations.
- Ease of use: A user-friendly interface will make it easier for both volunteers and administrators to navigate the system.
- Integration capabilities: Consider how well the software integrates with other tools you use, such as your CRM or email marketing platform.
- Cost: Evaluate the pricing plans and features different providers offer to find the best fit for your budget.
- Customer support: Look for a provider that offers reliable and responsive customer support.
By carefully considering these factors, you can select the volunteer recruitment management software that best meets your organization’s specific needs.
Get started with volunteer management software for nonprofits
The right volunteer management software can make a major difference in the success of your organization’s program. As you evaluate all the options we discussed, consider your budget, most pressing needs, and ultimate goals for your program.
If you want a system that meets all of your volunteer management and fundraising needs, explore Bonterra Fundraising and Engagement and how it can help your nonprofit thrive.
Get started with the best unified volunteer management solution:
FAQs about volunteer management software
What is volunteer management?
Volunteer management is the process of recruiting, tracking, engaging, and retaining volunteers to support an organization’s fundraising goals.
How can nonprofits manage volunteers effectively?
In addition to using volunteer management software to streamline operations, nonprofits can effectively manage volunteers by:
- Clearly defining roles and expectations.
- Providing adequate training and resources.
- Offering opportunities for growth and recognition.
- Maintaining open and honest communication.
What system would you use to keep track of volunteers?
A dedicated volunteer management software is the most efficient way to track volunteers. The best volunteer scheduling app will include recruitment, scheduling, and tracking features to streamline the process.
Why use volunteer management software for nonprofits?
The software makes it easier for volunteers to find and sign up for opportunities, making your program more accessible to a wider audience.
