---
title: "How to Start a Monthly Giving Program at a Small Nonprofit"
slug: start-monthly-giving-program
description: "Monthly donors are your steadiest supporters. Here's how a small nonprofit can start a monthly giving program in a few weeks, with no development staff."
publishedAt: 2026-10-02
status: published
category: monthly-donors
tags: [monthly giving, recurring donors, sustainers, small nonprofits]
featured: false
readingTime: 7
takeaways:
  - "A monthly giving program is simply a way for donors to give a set amount every month automatically. Small nonprofits can start one with a donation page, a name, and a welcome note."
  - "Monthly donors stay. M+R Benchmarks found 71% of monthly sustainers were still giving after 12 months in 2025, far above one-time donors."
  - "Offer two or three amounts, each tied to something concrete your organization does, and invite your repeat donors and recent second-gift donors first."
  - "The risk with monthly donors is silence. Because the money arrives automatically, send a short progress note every month or two, and handle failed cards within a day or two."
---

Every small nonprofit has a few people who seem to give whenever you ask. Imagine if they gave every month without being asked at all, and you could plan around it. That's what a monthly giving program does, and it's far less complicated to start than most executive directors assume.

The direct answer to how to start a monthly giving program at a small nonprofit: **add a monthly option to your donation page, give the program a simple name, offer two or three amounts tied to concrete progress, invite your most loyal donors first, and then keep in touch every month with a short note about what their giving made happen.** You can set that up in a few weeks. The part that takes discipline is the staying in touch.

## What is a monthly giving program?

**A monthly giving program is a way for donors to give a fixed amount every month, charged automatically, until they choose to stop.** Some organizations call these donors sustainers, members, or partners. The name matters less than the habit.

For a small organization, monthly giving does two things. It smooths out your cash flow, so you're not riding the swing between December and everything else. And it changes the relationship. A monthly donor isn't deciding each year whether to give again. They've already decided. Your job is to keep them glad they did.

## Why monthly donors matter for retention

Monthly donors retain far better than one-time donors. [M+R Benchmarks](https://mrbenchmarks.com/fundraising/) found that 71% of monthly sustainers were still active 12 months after they started in 2025. Compare that with the 43.3% overall donor retention rate the Fundraising Effectiveness Project reported for the same year, and the gap is obvious. (More on how those numbers compare in [what a good donor retention rate looks like](/learn/donor-retention-rate-benchmarks).)

That retention is real, but it has a catch. Because the gift renews on its own, it's very easy to stop talking to monthly donors entirely. They become a line on the deposit report. And the main ways monthly donors leave are quiet: a card expires, or they start wondering whether their money still matters. Both are preventable.

## How to set up a monthly giving program, step by step

### 1. Give it a simple name

You don't need a clever brand. "Monthly Supporters" or "The Garden Circle" or "Friends of the Pantry" is plenty. The name gives donors something to belong to and gives you something to call it in emails. If a name feels forced, skip it and just say "give monthly."

### 2. Pick two or three amounts tied to real progress

Donors give more confidently when they can picture what a month of their gift does. Tie each amount to something concrete:

| Monthly amount | What it does (example) |
|---|---|
| $10 | Books for one child in the reading program each month |
| $25 | A week of after-school snacks for the whole group |
| $50 | One family's grocery box every month |

Use your real costs, rounded to something honest. Don't offer six options. Two or three, plus an "other amount" field, is enough.

### 3. Put a monthly option on your donation page

This is the step that actually creates the program. Your donation page should make monthly an easy, visible choice, not something hidden behind a link. A simple toggle between "one time" and "monthly" at the top of the form works well. Most donation tools support recurring gifts already; check yours before assuming you need something new.

### 4. Invite your most loyal donors first

Don't launch with a mass appeal. Start with the people most likely to say yes:

- **Repeat donors** who have given in at least two different years.
- **Recent second-gift donors.** Someone who just [gave a second time](/learn/second-gift) has shown they're more than a one-off.
- **Board members and close volunteers**, who can also tell you what's confusing about the ask.

A personal email to twenty of these people will usually do more for a new program than a newsletter blast to everyone. Here's a short version:

> Hi Laura,
>
> You've given to the pantry three times now, and I wanted to ask you something new. We're starting a small group of monthly supporters. $25 a month covers a week of fresh produce for the families we serve, and it lets us plan instead of guess. Would you consider joining? Here's the link. Either way, thank you for everything you've already done.
>
> Teresa

We go deeper on timing and wording in [how to ask a one-time donor to give monthly](/learn/ask-donor-give-monthly).

### 5. Send a real welcome

When someone signs up, send a personal welcome within a couple of days. Name what their monthly gift will do, tell them what to expect from you ("a short update every month or two, never a pile of appeals"), and tell them how to change or pause their gift. That last bit builds trust. People commit more easily when they know they can leave.

### 6. Send progress, every month or two

This is what keeps monthly donors. A short note that shows what a month of giving made happen:

> This month, our monthly supporters covered 41 grocery boxes. One of them went to a grandmother raising her two grandsons who told us it was the first week since spring she didn't have to choose between groceries and the electric bill. Thank you for being part of that.

Three sentences. No ask. If you only build one habit around monthly giving, build this one. We cover more ways to do it in [how to show donors their impact](/learn/show-donors-impact).

### 7. Handle failed cards quickly

Cards expire, get lost, and get replaced. When a monthly payment fails, most donors haven't decided to leave. They just haven't noticed. A warm, practical note within a day or two, with a link to update their card, saves many of these gifts. Here's [what to do when a monthly donor's card fails](/learn/failed-recurring-donation), with sample messages.

## A monthly giving launch checklist

| Step | Done when |
|---|---|
| Name chosen (or skipped on purpose) | You can say it in one sentence |
| Two or three amounts with real examples | Each amount names something concrete |
| Monthly option on the donation page | A donor can choose monthly in one click |
| Invite list | 20 to 50 repeat and second-gift donors |
| Personal invitation sent | From you, not "The Team" |
| Welcome note written | Ready to send within two days of signup |
| Progress note rhythm set | A calendar reminder every month or six weeks |
| Failed-card process | You know where failures show up and what you'll send |

## How many monthly donors do you need?

You don't need hundreds for this to matter. Ten monthly donors at $25 is $3,000 a year you can count on, and those ten people are among the most likely in your whole database to still be with you next year. Start small, keep the ones you have, and add more over time. Ask again during year-end and after every progress update that lands well.

## Where Perennial fits

[Perennial Giving](/) includes a hosted donation page with a monthly option, so gifts come straight into the same place you track donors. When someone becomes monthly, it drafts a welcome in your voice. When a card fails, it drafts the rescue note the same day. And it flags monthly donors who haven't heard any progress in a while. You approve each message. You can run all of this by hand too; the steps above don't depend on any tool.

## Start with twenty people

A monthly giving program isn't a campaign. It's a promise: you give steadily, and we'll keep telling you what it does. Pick your amounts, put a monthly option on the page, write to twenty loyal donors, and then keep your side of the promise every month. That's how small organizations build the steadiest base of support they've ever had.

---

Source: https://perennialgiving.com/learn/start-monthly-giving-program

*Perennial Giving is a donor retention engine for small nonprofits. It notices who needs to hear from you, drafts the message in your voice, and you approve it in seconds. https://perennialgiving.com*