Matched giving

A business or major donor promises to match public gifts dollar-for-dollar up to a cap, for a set window.

Typically raises

$2,000

$500–10,000 per campaignest.

About $267 per organiser hour

Based on one matched window

Is it right for us?

Money: $2,000–10,000
Work: An afternoon
Helpers: 1–2 people
Lead time: 2–3 weeks
Red tape: None

Uncommon: powerful but rarely used by small groups

People: 1-2
Organiser time: 5-10
Lead time: 2-4 weeks to find a matcher
Up-front cost: Nothing up front
Risk: none
Who can use it: Givealittle's built-in matching is available to Charity and Business profiles with a page.

Suits: Charity

Less usual for: Primary or intermediate school, High school, Sports club or team, Team going to a tournament or tour, One person (athlete, performer, student), Church, Community group, marae or service club, Kapa haka, choir, theatre or band

When: Summer (Dec–Feb), Autumn (Mar–May), Winter (Jun–Aug), Spring (Sep–Nov), Christmas

How big a job: An afternoon, 1–2 people

How it works

The money, as an example sum

Nothing to pay up front, and the typical result for one matched window is about $2,000 per campaign.

From the typical figure on this page. Your result will differ.

Where the money figure comes from

ESTIMATE: matched pot plus public gifts. Givealittle says matches are generally larger than $500.

Last checked October 2026. Ran this? Tell us what you raised and we’ll use real results to improve the figures.

Step by step

Find a matcher: a local business owner, a major donor, a staff-matching employer.
Agree the cap, dates and how the matcher is acknowledged.
Set up the matching window on the page.
Announce 'every dollar doubled until Friday'.
Push hard during the window; post the running total.
Thank the matcher publicly and privately.

Getting the word out

Even a well-run plan fails if nobody hears about it. There are two asks, and the first one goes out first.

Ask for help: Members to pass the ask on to people they know.
Ask people to buy: People and businesses to give.
When to start: Ask for helpers first, as soon as the date is set. Start the public ask about 3–4 weeks out, and book newsletter and paper notices before that: small newsletters close early.

Where to put it

Asking people yourselfMost yeses come from someone asking directly. Give every member a short message they can send to family and workmates.
Email lists and group chatsYour members’ email list and the class, team or church group chats. Short, with one date or one link.
School, club and church newslettersYour own newsletter is free and read by the families most likely to say yes. Check when it closes.
Local Facebook pages and community groupsPost in your town’s community page and local groups (check their rules), and share from your group’s own page.

The full guide to getting the word out: every channel from flyers to the evening news, with lead times and costs.

What you’ll need

Place: Not neededNone needed
Landowner’s permission: Not needed
Council permit: Not needed
Food rules: Not neededNo food sold
Alcohol: Not neededNo alcohol sold
Gambling rules: Not neededNot gambling

Givealittle offers dollar-for-dollar matching for charity and business pages. The matcher's tax treatment depends on donee status and whether it gets advertising.

Tips

Short windows (24-72 hours) create urgency.
Ask donors' employers about staff-matching programmes.

Watch out for

Over-promising the match ('doubled!') after the cap is used up.

Matched giving: checklist

0 of 8 done

Before

Find a matcher: a local business owner, a major donor, a staff-matching employer.
Agree the cap, dates and how the matcher is acknowledged.

While it runs

Set up the matching window on the page.
Announce 'every dollar doubled until Friday'.
Push hard during the window; post the running total.

After

Thank the matcher publicly and privately.
Bank the money and record it in the books.
Tell supporters what you raised and what it will pay for.