List of Volunteer Management Software
How do I define volunteer management software? Software that actually has "volunteer" somewhere in its official description and allows an organization to do most of the following:
How to Choose Volunteer Management Software
What's probably most important is that it can track ALL of your volunteers - volunteers who take on defined roles for year (board members, a project leader, mentors, counselors, a volunteer web master, etc.), volunteers who help only at onsite events or one-time activities (help at a beach cleanup, usher at a performance, etc.), volunteers who engage primarily online (helping by assignment, or by project, rather than taking on a role - that includes people who take on so-called microvolunteering), etc. That said, some organizations that involve thousands of volunteers in large-scale, multiple onsite microvolunteering / episodic volunteering activities -- beach cleanup, trail re-building, ivy-pull, etc. -- may want software that tracks only those thousands of "one-time", episodic volunteers.
If you have more than 50 active volunteers, then I think it's fundamental that the software you choose allows volunteers to update their information themselves, via the web.
Also, make sure the description has the word volunteer somewhere in the description, and if the company offers a demo, there is substantial focus on volunteer management (if it's 95% focused on donor management, and volunteer management is talked about only for a minute or two, look for something else). A company that doesn't use the word "volunteer" in its software description doesn't not rank volunteer engagement very highly among a nonprofit's constituent management - that's a guarentee you won't be satisfied with its volunteer management functionality.
Below I've listed all of the volunteer management software geared towards nonprofit organizations or non-governmental organizations (NGOs) -- as opposed to corporate volunteering programs -- that I know about, or nonprofit-related software/community relationship management software that has substantial volunteer management functions -- that means it actually uses the word volunteer somewhere on its web site in describing the product, not just "constituents" or "supporters". If you say explicitly your software can be used to manage data about donors or clients, then it should also say volunteers. A company that doesn't use the word "volunteer" in its software description doesn't not rank volunteer engagement very highly among a nonprofit's constituent management.
Again, please note that while there are volunteer recruitment web sites that have some volunteer management components, I'm not including them in the list here unless they have most of the above minimum characteristics.
I am NOT endorsing any of these software packages/platforms/products. It's up to YOU to further research and evaluate the individual products yourself. If you would like your company/software listed, email me the name of the company, the name of the software, the web address, if the software is focused on a specific area (like for health care or school settings), and your answers to fill in the chart below. If you do not use the word "volunteer" somewhere in the description of your platform, I will not list it (I will check your web site to confirm that word is there).
If you truly do not know which package to go with, then consider trying out a free package; see what it can do, and keep a spreadsheet on what you like and what you do not like about it. You will very quickly learn what you want in a more robust package that you might want to pay for down the road.
Why the questions marks in the chart below? Because I don't have the funding to spend the many months it would take to research and test each software package myself, but I'm happy to fill in the info if a company writes me and provides me with all the details (as a few have):
?? = means the company has not submitted appropriate information ("several hundreds" is not an acceptable answer for number of users, for instance)
* = feature not available with free version of the software
† = some organizations have blogs, Facebook or other online profiles that allow for customer comments or questions; for the purposes of this question, however, this does not qualify as a dedicated users' forum
WAI = Web Accessibility Initiative, meaning people with disabilities or using assistive technology can use the software or web site
♠ = access to different fields can be restricted to different users; for instance, access to fields regarding job performance could be restricted to just one or two users, volunteers could not see each other's information, etc.
NOTE: Sometimes, the answer "yes" to a question regarding what the software can do means the software could be configured to do this, but it may not already be designed for this functionality; in other words, the user would have to create this functionality himself or herself.
| Software Name |
Initial cost to purchase software |
Yearly subscription cost | # of orgs using software | year software launched | operating system needed | cloud software? (users access via Internet) |
Users can access info offline? | If web-based, is it WAI compliant? | online access for volunteers to input data themselves? | primary user can add & customize fields, input screens & reports? | online users forum?† | can track volunteer hours / completed tasks by week? | can track volunteer hours / completed tasks by month? | can track volunteer hours / completed tasks by project? | can track volunteer skills? | can track volunteer availability & interests? | easily exports data into other types of files (e.g. MS Excel) | more than one person can access product at same time? | scheduling function? | different users / different access ♠ |
| Andar Web-Based Volunteer Management, from Helix | ||||||||||||||||||||
| CERVIS (Community Event Registration and Volunteer Management System) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| CharityCounts.org | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Convio | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Count Me In (for sports league volunteers) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| CiviCore Volunteer Management | ||||||||||||||||||||
| DonorPro, by TowerCare Technologies | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ebase | ||||||||||||||||||||
| eteambuilder | ||||||||||||||||||||
| GiftMaker Pro Volunteer Module | ||||||||||||||||||||
| GiftsFriends&Time, by OneWhoServes, Inc. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| GiftWorks Volunteers, an optional feature of GiftWorks fundraising software, by Mission Research | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Global Relief Network volunteer management system, from AidMatrix | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Golden Futures Foundation 501(c)3 - For School Volunteer Programs | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Good Done Great Volunteer Management, built using QuickBase | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Hello Scheduling | ||||||||||||||||||||
| i-VolunteerOnline.com | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Income Manager v.5.1, which has a volunteer management component | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Ministry/Volunteer Scheduler Pro, created originally for Catholic churches but "can be used for any religious denomination." | ||||||||||||||||||||
| MyTimeScore Enterprise | ||||||||||||||||||||
| My Service Log, from Tronics Software LLC | ||||||||||||||||||||
| OnCorps Reports, for AmeriCorps and VISTA reporting | ||||||||||||||||||||
| OrgAction Online Volunteer Database | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ROVIR, the Retriever of Volunteer Information and Reporting | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Samaritan Technologies (eCoordinator) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| School Volunteer | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ShiftBoard | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Son of Service (SOS) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Tapestry, by VisionLink | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Tools for Organizations /Volunteer Matrix | ||||||||||||||||||||
| The Registration System (TRS) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Tuttidare.com | ||||||||||||||||||||
| V-Base, Developed by do-it and YouthNet UK (United Kingdom) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Volunteer Impact by Volunteer Squared/Volunteer2 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Virtual Volunteer / V.Soft from Raptor Technologies | ||||||||||||||||||||
| VolCentre | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Volgistics | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Voltrak | ||||||||||||||||||||
| VoluntEasy | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Volunteer Event Management (VEM) from Volunteer Solutions | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Volunteer Management System (VMS) , a MS Access database by Wright Information Technology Solutions | Free | |||||||||||||||||||
| Volunteer Organizer Pro , by PrimaSoft PC, Inc. | $145 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Volunteer Rally (built on Drupal) | Free | |||||||||||||||||||
| Volunteer Spot | free basic package; fee for extra reporting | |||||||||||||||||||
| Volunteer Reporter (formerly RSVP Reporter) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Volunteer Scheduler Pro | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Volunteer Works, by Red Ridge Software (although it is being phased out and replaced by Volgistics) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| VolunteerMatters, by Closerware, LLC | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Vol-Track | ||||||||||||||||||||
| VolunteerTown | ||||||||||||||||||||
| VSys One by Bespoke | ||||||||||||||||||||
| When to Help | ||||||||||||||||||||
| YourVolunteers | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Software Name |
Initial cost to purchase software |
Yearly subscription cost | # of orgs using software | year software launched | operating system needed | cloud software? (users access via Internet) |
Users can access info offline? | If web-based, is it WAI compliant? | online access for volunteers to input data themselves? | primary user can add & customize fields, input screens & reports? | online users forum?† | can track volunteer hours / completed tasks by week? | can track volunteer hours / completed tasks by month? | can track volunteer hours / completed tasks by project? | can track volunteer skills? | can track volunteer availability & interests? | easily exports data into other types of files (e.g. MS Excel) | more than one person can access product at same time? | scheduling function? | different users / different access ♠ |
* = feature not available with free version of the software
† = some organizations have blogs, Facebook or other online profiles that allow for customer comments or questions; for the purposes of this question, however, this does not qualify as a dedicated users' forum
WAI = Web Accessibility Initiative, meaning people with disabilities or using assistive technology can use the software or web site
♠ = access to different fields can be restricted to different users; for instance, access to fields regarding job performance could be restricted to just one or two users, volunteers could not see each other's information, etc.
The information about each package comes from the software company or designer themselves; if you feel the information is incorrect, please contact me.
Other things to ask a software company before purchasing:
There are also software programs that were not developed to manage volunteers, but there are some organizations that use these programs to manage volunteers. Often, the primary focus of these programs is on managing donors, clients or other constiuencies -- and it says a lot that they will say explicitly the word "donor" or "client", but not "volunteer." I'm listing some of these programs below, however, remember that the aforementioned software programs (the ones above in the chart) are specificlly designed or explicitly designed to support volunteer management, where as these below are not - they do not consider volunteers on the same level as donors or clients:
The above list also excludes all the specialized nonprofit software out there -- to manage animal shelters, to manage museums, to manage arts organizations, etc. -- that may include a way to track some volunteering activities.
I frequently get asked: why don't you provide more information or opinions about each individual package? Please note that I receive no funding to maintain this page. The only research I do is to try to find new packages out there; what I provide about them is what the companies have emailed to me to share.
Also see these database-related tip sheets:
Also see:
TechSoup
This comprehensive web site provides detailed information about a variety of technology-related issues specifically for mission-based organizations. This includes resources and advice regarding databases. It provides some of the best information you can find regarding technology resources for mission-based organizations. TechSoup is a non-profit organization based in San Francisco, California.
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