Fees, Tips, and What the Family Receives

When someone opens a fundraiser for your household, relatives and coworkers will ask the same money questions in slightly different words:

• “What does the platform take?”
• “Do I have to leave a tip?”
• “How much actually reaches the family?”

This guide answers those questions from the family’s side of the table—what the verified beneficiary receives—using FundTheFirst’s public FAQ language. It is written for spouses, parents, adult children, and close contacts named as the beneficiary of intent, not only for the person who clicked Start.

Disclosure: iDfunder writes educational guides about FundTheFirst. Fee, tip, and beneficiary-receive statements below paraphrase the public FundTheFirst FAQ.

The family bottom line

According to FundTheFirst’s current FAQ:

• FundTheFirst does not charge platform, administrative, setup, goal, or payout-request fees. Stripe’s standard 2.9% + $0.30 credit-card processing fee currently applies.
• That Stripe processing fee is deducted from donation proceeds rather than charged on top of the donor-entered donation amount.
• The FAQ’s rounded example is that on a $100 donation, the beneficiary receives approximately $97 after Stripe processing.
• Donors may leave an optional tip to support the platform when they give.
• Only the verified beneficiary receives the funds. The organizer cannot access the money.

If you remember nothing else before the group text starts, remember that last line. The friend who organized the page is not the wallet. Your household—as the verified beneficiary—is who receives campaign funds after verification and payout setup.

What “the family receives” actually means

“What the family receives” is not the same as “what the donor typed,” and it is not the same as “what the organizer can withdraw.”

Break it into three layers:

Layer	Meaning (per public FAQ)
Donor-entered gift	The amount the donor chooses to give to the fundraiser.
After card processing	Stripe’s standard 2.9% + $0.30 fee currently applies and is deducted from donation proceeds. The FAQ’s rounded illustration: $100 → approximately $97 to the beneficiary.
Who can be issued funds	Only the verified beneficiary. Organizers are never issued campaign funds.

So when Aunt May says she gave $100, you can thank her and explain calmly that card processing comes out of proceeds at the published rate—and that the page is built so you (the beneficiary), not the organizer, are who receives issued funds.

For the role split in more depth, see Organizer vs Beneficiary: Why the Difference Matters on FundTheFirst.

Platform fees vs processing: say both parts

Families get hurt by incomplete slogans. “It’s free” without the processing sentence invites a later argument when someone notices that $100 did not become exactly $100 in the household account.

Use the paired FAQ framing:

FundTheFirst does not charge platform, administrative, setup, goal, or payout-request fees. Stripe’s standard 2.9% + $0.30 credit-card processing fee currently applies.

That pairing keeps trust intact for injury-recovery, LODD/honor, and family-hardship campaigns alike. You are not hiding costs; you are separating platform fees (not charged) from card processing (published, deducted from proceeds).

The $100 → approximately $97 example

The FAQ uses a simple rounded illustration so supporters can picture processing without a spreadsheet. Family talk-track:

• Say “approximately $97” when you quote the FAQ example.
• Do not treat $97 as exact arithmetic of 2.9% + $0.30 on $100.
• Do not invent other official dollar examples or “average net” percentages.

If live FAQ language changes, this article should be updated to match.

Optional tips: not the family’s gift

Donors may see an option to leave a tip. Per the FAQ, donors can choose to leave an optional tip to support the platform when they give.

For families, the important distinctions are:

• A tip supports the platform.
• A donation is the gift toward the fundraiser / beneficiary path (after processing).
• A tip is not required to give.
• Organizers and families should never pressure anyone to tip.

When someone asks, “Did my tip go to the family?” answer honestly: optional tips support the platform; the donation is what follows the campaign’s beneficiary path after processing.

Do not invent tip percentages, tip averages, or tip attach rates. Soft, optional, and separate is enough.

Who starts vs who receives (money flow for families)

A colleague may start the page. That does not make them the payee.

Public FAQ language families can lean on:

• Only the verified beneficiary receives the funds; the organizer cannot access the money.
• Organizers of fundraisers will never be issued funds; funds are only issued to the beneficiary of intent.
• The beneficiary is prompted by email to create an account, complete Stripe setup, and request payouts for direct deposit.
• A payout request may be initiated from the dashboard every five days.

Educational guides should not invent bank-arrival day counts beyond that published request cadence. What matters for the family is: watch for the beneficiary email, complete Stripe setup, and know that issued campaign funds go to the verified beneficiary—not to the organizer’s personal account.

What to have ready before Start (family money checklist)

Before a friend hits Start—or before you open a Myself campaign—have:

1. Correct beneficiary legal name and the email that should receive the account prompt
2. Agreement that the organizer is not the payee (unless it is truly a Myself / Bootstrap-Me raise for that same person)
3. A short fee sentence everyone can repeat (platform fees not charged; Stripe 2.9% + $0.30 currently applies)
4. Consent on the public story so money questions are not mixed with privacy surprises
5. One person designated to answer “where does the money go?” in the first 48 hours of sharing

Quiet readiness for departments and associations that support families repeatedly: Before the Next Emergency: Fundraising Readiness.

Family talk-tracks (copy/paste)

Group text when the page goes live

“Thank you for giving. FundTheFirst does not charge platform, administrative, setup, goal, or payout-request fees. Stripe’s standard 2.9% + $0.30 credit-card processing fee currently applies and is deducted from donation proceeds. Their FAQ’s rounded example is that on a $100 donation, the beneficiary receives approximately $97. Optional tips support the platform and aren’t required. Only the verified beneficiary receives the funds—the organizer can’t access the money.”

When someone asks “Where did my $3 go?”

“On card gifts, Stripe’s published processing fee applies. FundTheFirst’s FAQ uses a rounded $100 → approximately $97 example so people can see that processing comes out of proceeds—not as an extra charge stacked on top of what you typed. That’s card processing, not a FundTheFirst admin fee.”

When someone confuses tip with what the family gets

“Your donation is for the fundraiser and the verified beneficiary (after processing). An optional tip, if you choose one, supports the platform. You can donate without tipping.”

When someone worries the organizer keeps the money

“I’m/they’re helping run the page. Organizers aren’t issued campaign funds. Only the verified beneficiary receives them after account and Stripe setup.”

Common family pitfalls

1. Saying “totally free / no fees at all.” Incomplete—always pair free-platform language with Stripe processing.
2. Treating $97 as exact math. It is a rounded FAQ illustration—say “approximately.”
3. Assuming the organizer can withdraw “for” the family. Per the FAQ, organizers cannot access the money and are never issued funds.
4. Pressuring tips. Optional means optional.
5. Inventing averages (tip %, “families keep X%,” conversion claims). Stick to published FAQ figures.
6. Promising how many days until a bank deposit arrives. Use the published every-five-days request cadence; do not invent arrival SLAs.

Organizers who want the fee deep-dive written for campaign runners can also read What you actually pay (and don’t) when you fundraise on FundTheFirst. This article stays focused on what the family receives and how to explain it without shame or spin.

Family money Q&As

Q: Does FundTheFirst take a platform cut from our fundraiser? A: FundTheFirst does not charge platform, administrative, setup, goal, or payout-request fees. Stripe’s standard 2.9% + $0.30 credit-card processing fee currently applies.

Q: Is the Stripe fee added on top of what donors type? A: Per the FAQ, the processing fee is deducted from donation proceeds rather than charged on top of the donor-entered donation amount.

Q: Why does the FAQ mention $97 on a $100 gift? A: It is a rounded public example showing that after Stripe processing, the beneficiary receives approximately $97 on a $100 donation—not a claim that $97 is the exact arithmetic result of 2.9% + $0.30.

Q: Do donors have to tip for our family to receive the gift? A: No. Tips are optional support for the platform and are separate from donations.

Q: Who receives the money after processing? A: Only the verified beneficiary. The organizer cannot access the money and is never issued campaign funds.

Q: What should our household do after donations start? A: Watch for the beneficiary account email, complete Stripe setup for direct deposit, and know a payout request may be initiated from the dashboard every five days—without inventing bank-arrival timing.

When roles and fee language are clear, a trusted organizer—or you, on a Myself campaign—can Start a Fundraiser. Keep the FundTheFirst FAQ as the primary source if anyone challenges a number.

Disclosure: iDfunder writes educational guides about FundTheFirst. Fee, tip, processing-example, and beneficiary-only fund statements above track the public FAQ as of this page’s dates. Re-check the live FAQ if FundTheFirst updates those answers.