18 Church Fundraising Ideas That Work

You likely have individual groups as part of your house of worship who all need a boost with their budget. Starting church fundraisers doesn’t have to be complex. After determining the amount each group has to raise, create separate Teams GoFundMe fundraisers for each activity—$500 for the choir, $250 for Sunday school, and so on. This way, your church community can donate to their preferred team or cause.

Introduce some friendly competition to motivate everyone to fundraise the most they can and brainstorm some faith fundraising ideas to promote on social media. This promotion will drive more people to your donation page and help raise more funds.

Another effective approach is peer-to-peer fundraising, where community members set up their own fundraising initiatives to support the cause.

This approach can be set up alongside a central campaign and allows individuals to tap into their networks to raise money by sharing their own stories. Do you have a keen runner in your community who might run a marathon in aid of your good cause? Every fundraising page set up will contribute to your overall mission, so get creative and think outside the box.

A practical, faith-based fundraising idea involves offering hand-delivered gifts from community members in exchange for donations. It can be centered around any religious occasion and is a great way to incorporate youth group fundraising into your community. The key is to make it an action rather than just a gift. Ask the youth group and other church members to promote it on social media, including Instagram and TikTok.

It could mean singing telegrams, Christmas carols, gifting candles during Hanukkah, or handing out treats during Eid. It’s a unique opportunity to connect with donors and strengthen community ties.

There are many unique fundraising event ideas for churches, such as organizing a fun scavenger hunt for a holiday and requesting donations for participation.

Everyone loves a good Easter egg hunt! But you can also do a family-friendly scavenger hunt with clues related to the holiday or faith to reach a church fundraiser goal. This is an excellent chance to invite other community members to come together and enjoy some fun activities.

Encourage participants to share their search on social media and use a specific hashtag to allow others to follow along with the competition.

Of all the church fundraising event ideas, this one is a classic. Pick a day for a potluck dinner—it can be on a specific day of the week, like Shabbat, or a holiday, like Easter Sunday. Use your online fundraiser to organize what you want everyone to bring to the potluck.

Ask supporters to donate to your fundraiser instead of buying a ticket for the potluck. A potluck is one of the best ways to raise money while you chat about the food with whoever made it—and if you’re lucky, maybe they’ll share their family recipes.

To raise money, charge a small entry fee to the event or charge per dish. You could also introduce a friendly competition or a cook-off to raise more funds and draw a crowd, with attendees paying to vote for their favorite dish.

Church fundraising events don’t always need to be high-energy. You can host a conference to share your faith with others and inspire them to contribute to funding lectures, talks, and panels with a donation for admission. The church youth groups can volunteer and help with set up.

You can record videos of the workshops and best talks and add them to your church, temple, synagogue, or mosque’s website. To raise funds, make them accessible for a small donation to your GoFundMe fundraiser.

Looking to raise funds for your next mission trip or church choir competition? Take advantage of Giving Tuesday—a global day of giving—and watch as your fundraising goals are met and exceeded.

Use social media and email to spread the word and see how your community rallies behind your cause.

A recipe book is a great way to get the whole of your community to come together to raise funds for your church. Ask members of the congregation to submit their favorite recipes to be compiled into one big mouth-watering cookbook.

You can then sell the cookbook after service and put the money towards your fundraising goal. If you have a small church congregation, why not broaden your target market by selling the recipe book to others in your local community? You could also sell raffle tickets to the wider community to raise more funds.

A talent show never goes out of style. They are also an excellent way to get to know your congregation even better. Everyone has a hidden talent and most people don’t need much of a push to show theirs off!

Set up a talent show at your church and invite people to sign up and perform. Charge the audience a small entrance fee and an admission fee to take part. Before you know it, you will have raised a bunch of money and have thrown a fun, community-building event in aid of a good cause.

The way to most people’s hearts is food, so why not lean into this by throwing a BBQ fundraiser? Whether you are a big church or a small church, the best thing about a BBQ is that it can be a big or small event. Choose a sunny day and invite your congregation and members of your local community. It doesn’t cost much to buy the supplies and you can charge people an entrance fee to come and enjoy the day.

You could even set up a paddling pool for the kids to make it a family-friendly event for all age groups, and a trivia night to keep the adults entertained.

Everyone loves a movie marathon. Grab the popcorn and a beloved trilogy and you are all set! You can even make your movie night-themed and encourage people to dress up like characters in the film that you are screening. Charge people an entry fee, sell concessions, and offer a prize for the best dressed. Then all that’s left to do is watch the donations roll in (and the film, of course).

A yard sale is a great way to raise money for your church and offers community members to declutter their homes for a good cause. What’s not to love? You could charge a small fee for entry to the yard sale and encourage donations from the wider community and local businesses, too.

Depending on how many people want to donate, you may need a big space. Consider hosting the yard sale in the parking lot of your church or religious building. You could also sell refreshments to raise some extra funds.

Don’t have anything to sell in a yard sale? Don’t panic, you can always bake your way to meet your fundraising goal. Encourage your congregation to get their aprons on and contribute one baked good each and have yourself a bake sale. From baked goods to pancakes, it’s a delicious way to bring people together in person.

You could host a raffle and sell refreshments as another way to raise funds. Why not team up with other local businesses to sell your cakes at their events and bring your bake sale to a wider audience?

Most people hate washing their cars. Take away their stress and raise funds at the same time. Host a car wash in your church parking lot and ask members of the congregation to pick up a sponge and get scrubbing. Advertise the car wash in the weeks before in local cafes, the local press, and online.

Gaming is becoming increasingly popular and is a great way to raise funds. Host a games night and incorporate video and board games. Participants can pay to play and compete against each other for a prize. Charge a small entry fee for the friendly competition. Prize ideas could be a jar of sweets or a voucher. Better yet, partner with local businesses and local restaurants asking them to donate prizes for the winners.

A toy drive can be an incredibly effective way to raise funds. It is an event organized to collect new or pre-used toys to give to children in need, typically ahead of the holiday season.

Start by setting clear goals and organizing volunteers, partnerships, and a timeline. Promote the drive through social media, flyers, and local media. Incorporate fundraising by setting up online donation platforms like GoFundMe and placing donation boxes at drop-off points.

You can even ask local businesses for sponsorship and donations. You can offer incentives and public recognition to significant donors and collaborators, and enlist influencers or well-known members of the community to encourage donations.

A fun way to rally your local community is to host a walk-a-thon challenge. Participants can raise money to walk a set distance or have people sponsor per mile. It’s an effective fundraising campaign strategy and gets people more active in the wider community. Charge a small entry fee for those wanting to take part and encourage donations by sharing on your social media.

A silent auction is one of the best church fundraising event ideas. You can partner with local businesses to provide items to auction or send outreach to your community asking them to provide services others can bid on. For example, an elderly community might need some help with gardening or a young family would be interested in a spot of babysitting.

Create a list of all of the auction items, and your community can submit sealed bids on how much they’re willing to spend. You can announce the winners during the event or on social media as another opportunity to promote your donation page.