RoundUp.org blog

RoundUp.org | Turn Every Company Purchase Into Support for a Nonprofit

Jed Carlson — Thu, 05 Mar 2026 22:04:57 GMT

RoundUp.org is a fintech platform, and approved financial partner of Visa/Mastercard, that enables automatic micro-donations by rounding up everyday purchases to generate recurring revenue for nonprofit organizations.

This approach represents a new category of donation technology within the broader nonprofit tech ecosystem.

What is Donation Technology? Donation technology refers to software platforms and digital financial tools that make charitable giving easier and more automated. These systems enable features like recurring donations, micro-donations, and embedded giving within everyday transactions.

“Every purchase our company makes helps support a nonprofit we care about.”

With RoundUp.org, companies can link a small business or corporate credit card to a nonprofit they support. Once linked, every purchase made with that card is automatically rounded up to the next dollar, and the spare change becomes a donation to the nonprofit. 

It’s a simple idea, but one that is part of a growing wave of donation technology and nonprofit tech innovation that is transforming how organizations receive support.

Instead of relying solely on large one-time donations, nonprofits can now benefit from recurring micro-donations generated through everyday spending.

How It Works

Using RoundUp.org is straightforward:

A business chooses a nonprofit they want to support.
They link a company credit card to that nonprofit.
Every purchase made with that card rounds up to the next dollar.
The spare change is collected and distributed as a donation to the nonprofit.

For example:

A $24.62 purchase becomes $25.00, and the $0.38 difference is donated.

Across dozens or hundreds of purchases each month, these small contributions add up to meaningful support.

Most businesses contribute around $30 per month, but the value goes far beyond the dollar amount.

A Powerful Message to Employees and Customers

Companies increasingly recognize that values matter—both internally and externally.

Employees want to work for organizations that contribute positively to society. Customers want to support businesses that care about their communities.

By linking a corporate card through RoundUp.org, businesses can honestly say:

“Every purchase our company makes helps support a nonprofit we care about.”

That message resonates with employees, customers, and stakeholders alike.

It’s a small operational change that sends a powerful signal about what a company stands for.

Why Recurring Micro-Donations Matter

Individual donors give hundreds of billions of dollars to nonprofits each year in the United States. However, the vast majority of those gifts are one-time donations rather than recurring contributions.

Recurring giving provides nonprofits with something they value enormously: predictable revenue.

By turning everyday spending into small recurring donations, round-up technology helps nonprofits build a more stable financial foundation.

This approach represents an emerging category of nonprofit technology designed to create sustainable giving models rather than relying only on periodic fundraising campaigns.

Ideal for Small Businesses and Corporate Teams

RoundUp.org works particularly well for:

small businesses
startups
real estate professionals
professional service firms
corporate departments
companies that already support a nonprofit

Any organization that uses a business credit card can easily participate.

Because the contributions are small and distributed across many transactions, this form of giving typically does not require budget approval or a formal donation program.

It simply integrates charitable giving into the normal flow of business spending.

Supporting the Nonprofits That Matter to You

Businesses can choose any nonprofit they want to support.

Many companies link their cards to organizations connected to:

their local community
causes employees care about
nonprofits they already sponsor
organizations where employees or leaders volunteer

By connecting everyday business spending to these causes, companies create a consistent stream of support that nonprofits can rely on.

Getting Started Takes Less Than a Minute

Setting up RoundUp.org is quick and simple.

Companies choose the nonprofit they want to support and link a business credit card. From that point forward, every purchase made on that card generates a small donation automatically.

It takes less than a minute to get started.

Link your company card and support a nonprofit today.

From Episodic Giving to Embedded Generosity: Nonprofit & Donation Tech

Jed Carlson — Wed, 04 Mar 2026 13:15:00 GMT

This approach represents a new category of donation technology within the broader nonprofit tech ecosystem.

What is Donation Technology? Donation technology refers to software platforms and digital financial tools that make charitable giving easier and more automated. These systems enable features like recurring donations, micro-donations, and embedded giving within everyday transactions.

Most charitable giving follows a familiar pattern.

A disaster strikes. A fundraising email arrives. A campaign launches.

Donors respond generously — and then the moment passes.

This pattern, often called episodic giving, has supported nonprofits for decades.

The Challenge of Episodic Donations

Episodic giving creates cycles of urgency rather than stability.

Nonprofits must repeatedly invest time and resources into fundraising campaigns instead of focusing on their mission.

Meanwhile, the demand for services never pauses.

How Nonprofit Tech Is Changing the Model

Modern donation technology is enabling a new model of giving.

Rather than asking donors to remember to give, technology can embed generosity into everyday financial activity.

This approach turns occasional donors into consistent supporters.

The Rise of Micro-Donations

Micro-donations illustrate this shift.

When a purchase rounds up from $4.60 to $5.00, the additional forty cents may seem insignificant.

But when thousands of donors contribute small amounts consistently, those contributions become meaningful recurring support.

Consistency matters more than size.

Embedded Generosity

Embedded giving integrates philanthropy into everyday life.

Donors can designate a nonprofit once, and small donations happen automatically through normal spending activity.

This eliminates decision fatigue and reduces fundraising pressure on nonprofit organizations.

A Cultural Shift in Philanthropy

Donation technology is enabling a cultural shift.

Instead of relying solely on major campaigns or large gifts, nonprofits can benefit from millions of small acts of generosity happening every day.

This approach complements traditional philanthropy while expanding participation.

When generosity becomes automatic, more people participate — and nonprofit funding becomes more stable.

About: RoundUp.org is a fintech platform, and approved Financial Partner of Visa and Mastercard, that enables automatic micro-donations by rounding up everyday purchases to generate recurring revenue for nonprofit organizations.

Why I Built RoundUp: Founder’s Perspective on Nonprofit Tech

Jed Carlson — Wed, 01 Oct 2025 13:00:00 GMT

This approach represents a new category of donation technology within the broader nonprofit tech ecosystem.

What is Donation Technology? Donation technology refers to software platforms and digital financial tools that make charitable giving easier and more automated. These systems enable features like recurring donations, micro-donations, and embedded giving within everyday transactions.

Before starting RoundUp.org, I spent years building companies in the software industry.

One principle appeared repeatedly.

Businesses with recurring revenue were more stable.

Predictable income allowed companies to invest in growth, hire employees responsibly, and build long-term strategies.

Eventually I began asking a question:

Why doesn’t philanthropy work the same way?

The Nonprofit Funding Challenge

Nonprofits perform some of the most important work in our society.

They support medical research, feed families, educate children, and protect communities.

Yet many nonprofit organizations depend heavily on unpredictable fundraising campaigns.

Meanwhile, traditional sources of funding — including government programs, corporate giving, and foundations — face increasing pressure.

Applying Technology to Giving

Donation technology makes it possible to rethink this model.

Instead of asking donors to commit to large recurring donations, micro-donations allow people to contribute small amounts automatically.

Each transaction might generate only a few cents.

But millions of transactions can create steady support for nonprofits.

A Personal Perspective

During my own battle with cancer, I saw firsthand how important nonprofit organizations are.

Patient support groups, research foundations, and community organizations play an essential role during difficult moments.

Those experiences reinforced something for me:

Nonprofits are not optional. They are essential infrastructure in society.

The Vision Behind RoundUp

RoundUp.org was created to make generosity effortless.

Consumers can designate a nonprofit they care about and allow everyday purchases to generate small automatic donations.

It’s a simple idea.

But simplicity can be powerful.

When generosity becomes automatic, participation increases — and nonprofits gain the stable funding they need to focus on their mission.

A $350B Opportunity: Why Recurring Donations Are the Future of Funding

Jed Carlson — Fri, 01 Aug 2025 12:00:00 GMT

This approach represents a new category of donation technology within the broader nonprofit tech ecosystem.

What is Donation Technology? Donation technology refers to software platforms and digital financial tools that make charitable giving easier and more automated. These systems enable features like recurring donations, micro-donations, and embedded giving within everyday transactions.

Each year, individuals in the United States donate hundreds of billions of dollars to nonprofit organizations. According to Giving USA, individuals contributed approximately $350 billion annually to charitable causes.

These donations support everything from cancer research and disaster relief to food banks, education programs, and the arts.

But there is a structural issue hidden within these numbers.

Most donations happen only once.

The Stability Problem Facing Nonprofits

Many nonprofits receive the majority of their donations during short periods of time — often during year-end campaigns or emergency appeals.

Meanwhile, nonprofit organizations operate year-round. Staff must be paid. Programs must run. Communities depend on consistent services.

Yet revenue often arrives in unpredictable bursts.

This challenge is increasingly being addressed through donation technology and nonprofit tech platforms that enable recurring support.

The Power of Recurring Donations

Recurring donations allow nonprofits to build predictable funding streams.

Organizations can plan long-term programs
Staffing decisions become more stable
Less time is spent fundraising
More time is spent delivering mission impact

In the software industry, recurring revenue models have proven extremely powerful. The same principle is now being applied to nonprofit funding.

The Untapped Opportunity

Despite the benefits, recurring giving remains a small portion of total donations.

Research from the Fundraising Effectiveness Project suggests that only a small percentage of total donations come from recurring contributions.

If recurring donations grew from roughly 3% of total giving to just 10%, that shift could generate an estimated $40 billion in additional annual nonprofit funding.

This is one of the largest opportunities in modern philanthropy.

How Donation Technology Is Changing Giving

Modern nonprofit tech platforms are lowering the barriers to recurring giving.

Instead of requiring donors to make large monthly commitments, new donation technology enables micro-donations that happen automatically through everyday purchases.

Small contributions — often just cents — accumulate into consistent support over time.

This approach transforms occasional generosity into embedded generosity.

The Future of Everyday Philanthropy

Technology has already transformed how people communicate, shop, and pay for services.

Now it is transforming how people give.

Platforms like RoundUp.org help donors turn everyday purchases into small automatic donations supporting the nonprofit organizations they care about.

For donors, the process is simple.

For nonprofits, the impact can be profound.

Start Supporting Your Favorite Nonprofit Automatically

If you believe generosity should be part of everyday life, explore how RoundUp.org helps turn spare change into recurring impact.