Which has the better website builder, WildApricot or Zeffy?

WildApricot. Its drag-and-drop builder, themes, widgets and member-only pages are the center of the product and come with every plan. Zeffy has no website builder; its forms are embeds or Zeffy-hosted campaign pages.

Can a US nonprofit use Zeffy?

Yes. Zeffy is available to US and Canadian nonprofits only, and its automated tax receipts handle both. Organizations outside those two countries cannot use it.

What if we also run programs or book rooms?

Neither WildApricot nor Zeffy has facility booking or volunteer shift scheduling; Zeffy handles volunteer signups through its Event form type and recommends other tools for scheduling. Communal covers memberships, program registration with waitlists, facility booking with approvals, donations with tax receipts and volunteer shifts in one member database.

Head to head · 2026

WildApricot vs Zeffy: which one fits your nonprofit, and when neither does

Zeffy is free to the nonprofit, funded by optional donor tips, and covers donation forms, ticketing, basic memberships with auto-renewal and emailed digital membership cards; it is the right pick for a small US or Canadian charity that mostly needs forms.

WildApricot is the better membership system: website builder, member-only pages, mature events and email, a public API and a 60-day trial. Groups that also run programs, rent rooms or schedule volunteer shifts usually need a third option.

Wild Apricot

Membership database, events, email and a website builder whose pricing counts every contact.

Memberships
Events
Donations
Website

Best for: Small to mid-size clubs, associations and nonprofits that want website, member database and events from one vendor and are comfortable using the in-house payment processor
Watch out for: Pricing is by total contacts (lapsed members, prospects, newsletter subscribers all count), so database growth pushes you into higher tiers; A subscription surcharge for using your own payment gateway instead of Personify Payments

Zeffy

Free fundraising and membership forms funded by optional donor tips.

Memberships
Events
Donations

Best for: Small US or Canadian nonprofits that want donation forms, ticketing, and basic memberships with zero software cost
Watch out for: Volunteer workaround only: volunteer signups use the Event form type; no shift scheduling or hours tracking (Zeffy itself recommends POINT or SignUpGenius); No website builder; forms are embeds or Zeffy-hosted campaign pages, and no facility or room booking

Side by side

Wild Apricot vs Zeffy, plus the option most comparisons skip.

Communal is listed as a third column because organizations comparing these two usually need the same things it was built for: memberships, programs and facilities in one database.

Feature	Wild Apricot	Zeffy	Communal
Membership management	Included	Included	IncludedTiers, custom fields, segments
Automated renewals	Included	Included	IncludedReminders and auto-renew
Digital membership cards (Apple / Google Wallet)	Partial	Included	IncludedIncluded in every plan
Event registration & ticketing	Included	Included	Add-onPrograms & events add-on
Program & class registration	Not listed	Not listed	Add-onWaitlists, capacity, attendance, rosters
Facility booking & rentals	Not offered	Not offered	Add-onApprovals, invoices, agreements, iCal
Volunteer shifts & hour tracking	Not offered	Partial	IncludedShifts, hours, auto volunteer discounts
Donations & fundraising	Included	Included	IncludedIncluded; donor covers fees option
Automatic tax receipts	PartialDonation receipts	Included	IncludedAutomatic
Member self-service portal	IncludedMember app	Partial	Included
Email campaigns	Included	Partial	IncludedCampaigns and segments
Website builder	Included	Not offered	Not offeredWorks beside your site
Public API	Included	Partial	IncludedREST API, Zapier webhooks, MCP server

The detail

The short version

Pick Zeffy if you are a small US or Canadian nonprofit that needs donation forms, event tickets, a simple membership form and tax receipts, and you want to pay nothing for software. Pick WildApricot if membership is the center of your organization and you want a website, member-only pages, events, email and a member database from one vendor. Pick neither if your week includes hall rentals, kids programs or volunteer shifts.

Disclosure: Communal is our product. We cover it at the end for the cases where neither of these two fits.

Where WildApricot wins

Membership depth. Member levels and bundles, automated renewals, invoicing, a member directory, member-only pages and a member app. Zeffy's membership is a form with auto-renewal and a card.
Website builder. A mature drag-and-drop builder, themes and WordPress widgets in every plan. Zeffy has no site builder.
Events and email. Registration types, waitlists, guest registration and a full email editor. Zeffy's email marketing and member portal are partial.
Ecosystem. Public API, Zapier and Make, QuickBooks sync, admin and member mobile apps, a 60-day no-card trial and a very large user base. Zeffy's public API is read-only.

Where Zeffy wins

It is free. Zeffy charges the nonprofit nothing and funds itself through an optional donor tip at checkout.
Fundraising toolkit. Donation forms, ticketing, raffles, auctions, peer-to-peer, e-commerce and Tap to Pay, plus automated tax receipts. WildApricot has donations and receipts but none of the raffle or auction tools.
Digital membership cards. Free branded scannable cards emailed on signup. WildApricot offers cards only through its member app or a third-party PassKit integration.
No contact counting. Zeffy does not meter by database size; WildApricot counts every contact.

Who should pick which

If you are...	Lean towards
A small charity that mainly needs donation forms, tickets and receipts	Zeffy
A club whose members want a card and auto-renewal, nothing more	Zeffy
An association that needs a website, member-only pages and a directory	WildApricot
A group running many events with waitlists and guest registration	WildApricot
An organization outside the US and Canada	WildApricot (Zeffy is US/Canada only)
A community league, rec center or club that rents space or runs programs	Neither; see below

The third option

If you are comparing these two because your current setup no longer fits, look at what your organization does week to week. Communal was built for groups that run memberships alongside programs, facility rentals, donations and volunteers, and it counts members rather than contacts: donor, volunteer and POS software included, programs and facility booking as add-ons, no contract and free migration from either tool. It has automatic numbered tax receipts with separate CRA and US templates and Apple and Google Wallet membership cards. It does not have a website builder, raffles or auctions, which is the honest trade against both products here.

Questions people ask about Wild Apricot vs Zeffy

Short answers.

Zeffy has membership forms with auto-renewal and free scannable digital membership cards, which covers a lot of small clubs. WildApricot goes further: member levels and bundles, a member directory, member-only website pages, a member app, invoicing and a public API. If your membership program is the core of your organization, WildApricot is the fuller tool.