Blackbaud Alternative
Looking for a Blackbaud alternative? Communal provides enterprise-level features at a fraction of the cost—with faster implementation and simpler operations.
Key Differences of Blackbaud vs Communal
Faster Implementation
Skip the lengthy enterprise implementation. Communal gets you up and running quickly with intuitive setup and responsive support.
Affordable Pricing
Enterprise software at small org prices. No complex licensing, no hidden fees, no per-user charges for admins.
Modern Experience
A modern, intuitive interface that staff and volunteers actually enjoy using—no training manuals required.
Blackbaud Pros & Cons
Blackbaud Strengths
- Comprehensive enterprise suite
- Strong fundraising and donor tools
- Extensive reporting capabilities
- Large ecosystem of products
- Established market leader
Blackbaud Limitations
- Complex and expensive
- Long implementation timelines
- Steep learning curve
- Multiple products can create silos
- Less suited for smaller organizations
Why Communal
Enterprise features without enterprise complexity
Get the capabilities you need without the overhead. Communal delivers powerful features with straightforward pricing and fast implementation.
- All-in-one platform
- Transparent pricing
- Quick setup and go-live
- Modern user experience
- Responsive support team
Designed for your organization size
Blackbaud serves large enterprises. Communal is built specifically for community associations, recreation centers, and growing nonprofits.
- Right-sized for community orgs
- No enterprise complexity
- Intuitive for volunteers
- Flexible to your needs
- Grows with your organization
Detailed Feature Comparison
| Feature | Communal | Blackbaud |
|---|---|---|
| Memberships | ||
| Membership management | ||
| Digital membership cards | ? | |
| Auto-renewals | ||
| Member portal | ||
| Donations & CRM | ||
| Donor CRM | ||
| Online donations | ||
| Tax receipting | ||
| Fundraising campaigns | ||
| Facilities | ||
| Facility booking | ||
| Rental management | ||
| Online agreements | ||
| Volunteers | ||
| Volunteer scheduling | ||
| Hour tracking | ||
| Volunteer discounts | ||
| Events | ||
| Event registration | ||
| Member pricing | ? | |
| Program sessions | ? | |
| Other Features | ||
| Unlimited admin accounts | ||
| Simple pricing | ||
| Quick implementation | ||
Let's find the right fit for your organization
Book a friendly 30-minute chat. We'll learn about your organization and show you how Communal can help. No pressure, just honest answers.
Trusted by 500+ community organizations across North America
Powering 500+ community organizations
We love hearing from our customers and are proud to have helped 500+ organizations drive more impact and grow their communities.
We are finally able to communicate with our members, run booking software and a program payment platform all in one application. The cost to our Community is very reasonable and the team is fantastic to work with.
My experience with the software and the team has been overwhelmingly positive. We switched from another provider and the difference was night-and-day!
Revenue from membership sales and renewals increased, and we save a significant amount of staff time and paperwork. The customer service is outstanding and the team at Communal continues to add helpful features.
Frequently asked questions
Switching is simpler than you might expect. Our team handles the data migration, transferring your members, donors, and historical records. Unlike Blackbaud's complex implementation process, Communal's intuitive design means your staff can be productive within days, not months. Book a demo to discuss your migration.
Organizations typically see significant savings when moving from Blackbaud. Communal offers transparent pricing without per-user fees for admin accounts, no expensive add-on modules, and no lengthy consulting engagements. Visit our pricing page for details, or contact us for a cost comparison based on your current Blackbaud spend.
While Blackbaud implementations often take 3-6 months or longer, Communal gets you up and running in 2-4 weeks. Our platform works out of the box with pre-built nonprofit features, so there's no need for extensive customization or consulting projects.
Communal is purpose-built for community associations, recreation centers, and small to mid-sized nonprofits. You get membership management, donor CRM, facility booking, volunteer scheduling, and event registration—all in one platform without enterprise complexity.
Communal provides responsive, personalized support from a team that understands nonprofit operations. Unlike Blackbaud's tiered support model, all Communal customers get access to our support team. Our intuitive interface also means less training is required—volunteers and staff can learn the system quickly without formal training courses.
Absolutely. We follow secure data migration practices and work directly with your team to ensure all member, donor, and transaction history transfers accurately. Many organizations run both systems briefly during transition to verify data integrity before fully switching over.
Your data is stored in a secure database that is not accessible to anyone. Users' credit card information is not stored on our platform. We utilize Stripe to process payments, learn more about how they store their data here.
You can! Our team is happy to help migrate data from an excel spreadsheet or an existing platform you utilize today. Contact us for more questions.
Communal directly deposits into your bank account. We do not hold any funds on our platform.
Yes, Communal is fully PCI-DSS compliant as we partner with Stripe as our payment processor. Stripe has been audited by an independent PCI Qualified Security Assessor (QSA) and is certified as a PCI Level 1 Service Provider. Communal does not have access to see or store any credit card data as all transactions are sent directly to Stripe.