Best Charity Auction Software in Canada (2026)

Canadian charities picking auction software face a distinctive market. Two of the strongest platforms are Canadian built, the free-with-donor-tips model is more established here than anywhere else, and provincial rules shape what you can run online, especially for raffles. This guide compares the six platforms Canadian charities and schools shortlist most often: GalaBid, Givergy, Zeffy, Auctria, OneCause and Handbid.

GalaBid is our platform, so we have kept the assessments factual and told you plainly where a competitor is the better fit.

How we compared the platforms

• Pricing model and total cost. Free with donor tips, transaction percentage, subscription, or per event fee. Check whether card processing is billed at the processor's standard published rate or marked up; on some platforms the processing rate includes a margin. Note that several US vendors price in USD.
• Mobile bidding experience. How easily guests register, bid and pay from their phones, and whether an app download is required.
• Event night features. Leaderboards, live auction and paddle raise support, check-in and volunteer tools.
• Payment handling. Whether funds go directly to your organisation or pass through the platform first.
• Support. Availability, channels, and whether help is included or costs extra.

Quick comparison

GalaBid

GalaBid has run charity auctions since 2011 and supports silent auctions, live auctions, paddle raises, raffles, ticketing and donations in a single campaign, with overtime bidding, sealed bid and buy now formats and full control over the campaign's branding. Guests bid in the browser with no app download, and winners pay on their phones at checkout. Support is live chat with a real person, day or night, included on every tier. GalaBid is rated 4.9 on Trustpilot and 4.9 on Capterra, the highest Capterra score of the platforms in this guide.

Payment handling is the standout for Canadian organisations: funds go directly to you in Canadian dollars through your own Stripe account. GalaBid never holds your money, there is no platform float, and you pay Stripe's published processing rates with no markup added. The built-in consignment shop lets you add sale or return items to your catalogue at no upfront cost, paying only when an item sells.

Pricing: the free tier includes the full feature set, with optional donor contributions at checkout. A paid tier at 4.9% removes donor-facing prompts, and a flat fee option is available for larger campaigns. Card processing fees apply on all tiers.

Best for: charities and schools that want the money side handled cleanly, a full feature set on the free tier, and live human support at any size of event.

Consider alternatives if: you want a vendor with staff physically at your event. That is Givergy and OneCause territory.

Givergy

Givergy is a big name in Canadian event fundraising and the managed-service auction specialist of this set, with a Canadian operation alongside its UK, US, Australia and Hong Kong regions. Beyond the software, its packages can include on-site event support and sourcing consignment lot items for your catalogue, and it has supported thousands of charities worldwide since 2009.

Its Trustpilot score sits at 3.8 from over 200 reviews, the lowest of the rated platforms in this guide, and recent feedback is mixed: some reviewers praise the event support, while others report problems with campaign administration and slow resolution from the customer service team. Worth reading the recent reviews yourself before committing.

Also factor in that in March 2026 Givergy merged with US text-giving platform Tatango to form a new private equity backed company, momoGood, with new leadership replacing the founder-era executives. Branding, pricing and product direction can shift after a merger, so ask where the platform is headed before signing a multi-year arrangement.

Pricing: a free self-service tier, with quote-based managed packages above it.

Best for: charities that want the auction largely run for them, including item sourcing and staff at the event.

Consider alternatives if: you want a self-service platform with published pricing, or certainty about the product's direction following the merger.

Zeffy

Zeffy, founded in Montreal, is the platform most Canadian charities will already have heard of. It is completely free for registered nonprofits in Canada and the US, covering donations, ticketing, raffles, lotteries and silent auctions, and it even covers card processing costs. The model is funded by contributions requested from donors at checkout, pre-selected so that donors must actively opt out. Being Montreal built, it also handles French-language campaigns well, which matters in Quebec.

Pricing: free, with no platform or processing fees charged to the organisation. Suggested donor contributions default to 15 to 17% on smaller amounts.

Best for: small registered charities where zero cost outweighs everything else, and organisations running French-language campaigns.

Consider alternatives if: you want the contribution prompt gone (it cannot be removed), more branding control, or you are an individual fundraiser or school group without registered status, who cannot use the platform. Reviewers also note that some donors find the pre-selected contribution confusing.

Auctria

Auctria began life in Ontario as Charity Auction Organizer and is now one of the most reviewed auction tools anywhere, with strong scores from a large base of small nonprofit users. It is catalogue-first: items, bidders, websites, printed bid sheets and text bidding, at a low price.

Pricing: from US$375 per year plus transaction fees. A free tier exists but is limited to events raising under US$10,000 a year.

Best for: small charities and volunteer committees that mostly need an affordable way to manage the lots and are comfortable doing the setup.

Consider alternatives if: you want donor communications beyond auction emails, or payment options beyond credit and debit cards.

OneCause

OneCause, part of Bonterra, is the big US name in event fundraising and serves Canadian organisations too. Its strength is the service layer: responsive human support and on-site event staffing options that the Canadian-built platforms do not offer.

Pricing: in US dollars; pay-as-you-go from US$200 with a capped fee, and annual packages such as the Professional Auction and Event package at US$2,995. Processing fees apply, and reviewers note on-site support and equipment add to the total.

Best for: large galas where vendor staff at the venue justifies a premium, USD-priced package.

Consider alternatives if: USD pricing and a US-centric feature set do not fit a smaller Canadian event budget.

Handbid

Handbid is the mobile bidding specialist: one-tap bidding, instant outbid notifications and a real-time leaderboard through its bidder app, which auctioneers rate for bid velocity in the room.

Pricing: in US dollars; the self-service Big Event package is US$1,396 per year, with per event packages above that. Transaction fees apply.

Best for: gala committees that consider the bidding experience the single most important factor on the night.

Consider alternatives if: asking every guest to download a native app is a step too far for your audience. Handbid offers web bidding too, but the polished experience it is known for lives in the app.

Which charity auction software should you choose?

There is no single winner. Match the platform to your situation:

• Zero cost above all, registered charity, comfortable with the donor contribution prompt: Zeffy.
• Smallest subscription spend, happy to do the setup: Auctria.
• Vendor staff physically at your venue: OneCause, priced accordingly in USD, or Givergy for a fully managed auction including item sourcing, noting the recent merger.
• Mobile bidding app polish above all else: Handbid.
• Full features free, direct CAD payments with no platform float, and live human support at any size of event: GalaBid, with raffles, ticketing, overtime bidding, sealed bids and a built-in consignment shop in the same campaign.

What about Trellis?

Trellis, built in Kelowna, BC, comes up in Canadian shortlists but is best known as a raffle and 50/50 platform, holding certification across most provinces and territories, with auctions as a secondary capability. If the licensed raffle or 50/50 is your main event, or you run Raiser's Edge NXT and want its direct sync, it is worth a look; for an auction-led fundraiser the platforms above go deeper.

Frequently asked questions

How much does charity auction software cost in Canada?

From free to several thousand dollars a year. Zeffy and GalaBid's free tier are funded by optional donor contributions at checkout. Auctria starts at US$375 per year, Handbid at US$1,396 and OneCause annual packages at US$2,995, all plus card processing. Watch the USD pricing on the American vendors; the exchange rate adds meaningfully to the real cost in Canadian dollars.

Do auction platforms mark up card processing fees?

Some do. A platform quoting a single blended processing rate may be adding a margin above the payment processor's standard published rate. Ask each vendor whether processing runs at the processor's own rate. On GalaBid, payments run through your organisation's own Stripe account, so you pay Stripe's published rates directly and GalaBid adds no processing markup.

Can we run a raffle or 50/50 with our auction in Canada?

Raffles and 50/50s are licensed provincially in Canada, and the rules on online sales differ by province. Trellis holds certification in most provinces and territories. GalaBid supports raffles alongside auctions in the same campaign; see our guide to Canadian raffle rules for what applies in your province.

Do guests need to download an app to bid?

Not on most platforms. GalaBid, Zeffy and OneCause support browser-based bidding; guests tap a link or scan a QR code and are bidding in seconds. Handbid is built around its bidder app, which is part of why its in-app experience is so polished, though an app download adds a step at check-in and some guests will not take it.

Which platforms are Canadian?

Zeffy (Montreal) is Canadian built, Auctria has Ontario roots, and raffle specialist Trellis (Kelowna) is Canadian too. GalaBid is international and runs Canadian dollar campaigns with funds settling directly to your Canadian bank account through your own Stripe account.

Pricing and Capterra ratings checked September 2026 from vendor websites and verified review platforms. Confirm current pricing with each vendor before you commit.

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