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Introducing Charitable 1.8.4 – New Onboarding, Auto-Color Constract, Donation Form Templates and More!

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We are proud to announce Charitable 1.8.4 (and the newest update 1.8.4.2) – and with it we are making this the go-to tool for non-profits and organizations to run campaigns and get donations!

We have been working hard to improve the Charitable plugin, aiming to make it more accessible for new WordPress users while simultaneously incorporating substantial updates for advanced users and developers. Our recent updates include features that our customers—many of whom are just concluding a busy holiday and charity season—have been requesting.

Now, let’s delve into what’s new.

First-Class Onboarding

When users install Charitable, they are eager to get started. I would be too! The goal of Charitable has always been to get you from new plugin install to having a campaign in 5 minutes or less. And thanks to the new onboarding tool, that’s now possible! 🎉

The new onboarding tool allows you to set up the following quickly:

✅ Activate donor and admin emails.

✅ Confirm currency and country settings.

✅ Add addons with license, and download recommended third-party plugins.

✅ Create a campaign by selecting a template and entering the title, description, goal, and end date!

In combination with the Charitable Checklist, even if you have never used Charitable before you can build a campaign and start accepting donations in just a few minutes.

Auto-Color Contrast For Campaigns

Often when you are customizing the look of your campaign, you want to change the basic colors and build your campaign… but at the same time, you want the text to be easily readable. This is especially true for donation buttons. In Charitable 1.8.4.2, Charitable will automatically adjust the text on donation buttons to whatever has the best contrast (and CSS in your theme or custom CSS can still override).

We hope to roll this feature out to more elements in the campaign builder, so stay tuned.

Donation Form Templates

Donation form templates

For the first time, you can now select a different layout for donation forms – right from Charitable settings with no code. While we offer the standard layout, there is a new “minimal” layout that (along with the setting to remove non-required fields) will make your donation form more compact (perfect for modal donation forms or if you need to fit the form into a tighter space). More layouts are coming – but try these beta features and let us know what you think!

Credit Card Fields Format

If you use Stripe, you’ll be happy to know that you can try our new multiple forms setting which will show the credit card form in four textboxes. This has been a big request from customers! This is currently in beta.

Other Updates

Outside of what was mentioned above, here’s a sampling of items that have been addressed and included since Charitable 1.8.4.

  • NEW: You can now opt-in to data collection to improve Charitable. See “advanced settings” screen for details.
  • FIX: Visual Campaign Builder: Updated documentation links.
  • FIX: Visual Campaign Builder: Adjustments and tweaks to campaigns in Visual Builder (admin and frontend).
  • FIX: Resolved issue involving sanitization of non-english dates in some scenarios resulting in incorrect “days until” calculations.
  • FIX: Resolved an issue involving the “Use This Template” button in a visual campaign when choosing campaigns in some scenarios.
  • FIX: Minor adjustments and tweaks to campaign templates including word breaking and word wrapping in the visual builder.
  • UPDATED: Revised output of the “Your Donations” title that was causing issues for those adding HTML via the ‘charitable_donation_amount_legend’ filter.
  • FIX: Minor translation, misc CSS, UI, and PHP coding updates.

And There You Have It!

Excited to take advantage of the latest Charitable features for your nonprofit organization? Update to the newest version of Charitable on your WordPress site today to optimize your fundraising efforts and simplify the donation process.

If you haven’t started using Charitable yet, there’s no better time to begin! Upgrade your WordPress site with Charitable Pro to elevate your nonprofit’s fundraising efforts with the top donation and donor management plugin available.

We must express our gratitude to our incredible community, comprising diverse charitable organizations, for making this update possible. We sincerely appreciate your ongoing support and feedback. Your commitment to fundraising continues to inspire us.

If you haven’t already upgrade to Charitable Pro – there’s never been a better time. Check out which plan is best for you.

(Want more? We’ve got more updates and surprises coming up for you, so stay tuned!)

author avatar
David Bisset Project Manager
David is the project manager of Charitable since 2022. David works with several non-profits (one operated by his wife) along with managing and developing features, support, and marketing for Charitable. Has been with WordPress since 2006 and has been lead organizer of multiple conferences, events, and meetups.

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Improvement New Security

📣 New Security Features

We’ve introduced a suite of new security tools to give you total control over who accesses your forms, plus a new way to tidy up your database.

Advanced Security Suite

Layered protection: Cloudflare, ReCAPTCHA, IP Controls, and Rate Limiting.

We have overhauled our security settings to stop bots without blocking real donors.

  • 🤖 Flexible Protection: Choose between Google reCAPTCHA v3 or the privacy-first Cloudflare Turnstile to block bots invisible.

  • 🚦 Rate limiting: Stop spam floods by limiting how many submissions an IP address can make in a set timeframe.

  • 🛑 Total control: Use the new IP Blacklist to block bad actors instantly, or the IP Whitelist to let your team bypass checks during testing.

The Clean Donation Tool

Go from “Testing” to “Live” in seconds.

Finished setting up your site and need to get rid of all those test transactions?

  • 🧹 Sweep it clean: Bulk delete test donations and donor records with a single click.

  • 📉 Accurate reporting: Ensure your revenue stats are 100% accurate for launch day.

  • ⚙️ Reset sequences: Automatically resets sequential invoice numbering.

.aioseo-author-bio-compact { display: flex; gap: 40px; padding: 12px; text-align: left; border: 1px solid black; border-radius: 5px; color: #111111; background-color: #FFFFFF; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-left { flex: 0 0 120px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right { flex: 1 1 auto; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-left .aioseo-author-bio-compact-image { width: 120px; height: 120px; border-radius: 5px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-header { display: flex; align-items: center; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-header .author-name { font-size: 22px; font-weight: 600; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-header .author-job-title { margin-left: 12px; padding-left: 12px; font-size: 18px; border-left: 1px solid gray; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main { margin: 12px 0; font-size: 18px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main > p:last-of-type { display: inline; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main .author-bio-link { display: inline-flex; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main .author-bio-link a { display: flex; align-items: center; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main .author-bio-link a svg { fill: black; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-expertises { display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; gap: 10px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-expertises .author-expertise { padding: 4px 8px; font-size: 14px; border-radius: 4px; background-color: #DCDDE1; color: inherit; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-socials { margin-top: 12px; display: flex; gap: 6px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-socials .aioseo-social-icon-tumblrUrl { margin-left: -2px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-site-editor-disclaimer { color: black; margin-bottom: 12px; font-style: italic; } @media screen and (max-width: 430px ) { .aioseo-author-bio-compact { flex-direction: column; gap: 20px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-left .aioseo-author-bio-compact-image { display: block; margin: 0 auto; width: 160px; height: 160px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right { text-align: center; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-header { justify-content: center; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-socials { justify-content: center; } }
author avatar
David Bisset Project Manager
David is the project manager of Charitable since 2022. David works with several non-profits (one operated by his wife) along with managing and developing features, support, and marketing for Charitable. Has been with WordPress since 2006 and has been lead organizer of multiple conferences, events, and meetups.
donation form New

🏗️ Visual Donation Form Builder

Building the perfect donation form just got easier. We have completely reimagined how you create forms with a new drag-and-drop interface.

Design Visually, in Real-Time

No coding, no guessing. Just point, click, and build.

Say goodbye to confusing settings pages. You can now edit your form and see exactly what your donors will see, instantly.

  • 🖱️ Drag & Drop: Easily add fields like names, addresses, or file uploads by dragging them exactly where you want them.

  • 🎨 Customize everything: Click any field to tweak labels, placeholders, and requirement settings on the fly.

  • 👁️ Live preview: See your changes immediately as you make them—ensure your form flows perfectly before you hit publish.

Flexible & Powerful

Works with all your existing campaigns.

  • 🧩 Deep customization: Add custom HTML, shortcodes, or CSS classes for advanced branding.

  • ⚙️ Smart fields: Collect exactly what you need with support for dropdowns, checkboxes, dates, and hidden fields.

.aioseo-author-bio-compact { display: flex; gap: 40px; padding: 12px; text-align: left; border: 1px solid black; border-radius: 5px; color: #111111; background-color: #FFFFFF; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-left { flex: 0 0 120px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right { flex: 1 1 auto; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-left .aioseo-author-bio-compact-image { width: 120px; height: 120px; border-radius: 5px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-header { display: flex; align-items: center; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-header .author-name { font-size: 22px; font-weight: 600; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-header .author-job-title { margin-left: 12px; padding-left: 12px; font-size: 18px; border-left: 1px solid gray; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main { margin: 12px 0; font-size: 18px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main > p:last-of-type { display: inline; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main .author-bio-link { display: inline-flex; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main .author-bio-link a { display: flex; align-items: center; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main .author-bio-link a svg { fill: black; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-expertises { display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; gap: 10px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-expertises .author-expertise { padding: 4px 8px; font-size: 14px; border-radius: 4px; background-color: #DCDDE1; color: inherit; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-socials { margin-top: 12px; display: flex; gap: 6px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-socials .aioseo-social-icon-tumblrUrl { margin-left: -2px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-site-editor-disclaimer { color: black; margin-bottom: 12px; font-style: italic; } @media screen and (max-width: 430px ) { .aioseo-author-bio-compact { flex-direction: column; gap: 20px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-left .aioseo-author-bio-compact-image { display: block; margin: 0 auto; width: 160px; height: 160px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right { text-align: center; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-header { justify-content: center; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-socials { justify-content: center; } }

author avatar
David Bisset Project Manager
David is the project manager of Charitable since 2022. David works with several non-profits (one operated by his wife) along with managing and developing features, support, and marketing for Charitable. Has been with WordPress since 2006 and has been lead organizer of multiple conferences, events, and meetups.
Leaderboards New

🏆 Donor Leaderboards!

Turn your fundraising into a community event. Recognize your most generous supporters and inspire friendly competition with our new leaderboard tools.

Gamify Your Fundraising

Celebrate your top donors and encourage others to climb the ranks.

Create a public “Hall of Fame” to give your donors the recognition they deserve.

  • 🎨 Two stunning layouts: Choose the List View for a clean, data-rich table or the Card View for a modern, visual grid with avatars.

  • 🥇 Automatic highlights: The top 3 supporters get special Trophy and Crown icons to make them stand out.

  • 🧩 Place it anywhere: Add it to any page using the new Gutenberg Block, or drop it directly into your campaign using the Visual Builder.

Total Customization

You decide what to show and what to hide.

  • ⚙️ Flexible data: Choose to display or hide donation amounts, donor counts, or avatars.

  • 🔄 Lifetime stats: Works seamlessly with Recurring Donations to show a donor’s all-time total impact.

.aioseo-author-bio-compact { display: flex; gap: 40px; padding: 12px; text-align: left; border: 1px solid black; border-radius: 5px; color: #111111; background-color: #FFFFFF; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-left { flex: 0 0 120px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right { flex: 1 1 auto; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-left .aioseo-author-bio-compact-image { width: 120px; height: 120px; border-radius: 5px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-header { display: flex; align-items: center; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-header .author-name { font-size: 22px; font-weight: 600; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-header .author-job-title { margin-left: 12px; padding-left: 12px; font-size: 18px; border-left: 1px solid gray; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main { margin: 12px 0; font-size: 18px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main > p:last-of-type { display: inline; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main .author-bio-link { display: inline-flex; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main .author-bio-link a { display: flex; align-items: center; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main .author-bio-link a svg { fill: black; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-expertises { display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; gap: 10px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-expertises .author-expertise { padding: 4px 8px; font-size: 14px; border-radius: 4px; background-color: #DCDDE1; color: inherit; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-socials { margin-top: 12px; display: flex; gap: 6px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-socials .aioseo-social-icon-tumblrUrl { margin-left: -2px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-site-editor-disclaimer { color: black; margin-bottom: 12px; font-style: italic; } @media screen and (max-width: 430px ) { .aioseo-author-bio-compact { flex-direction: column; gap: 20px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-left .aioseo-author-bio-compact-image { display: block; margin: 0 auto; width: 160px; height: 160px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right { text-align: center; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-header { justify-content: center; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-socials { justify-content: center; } }
author avatar
David Bisset Project Manager
David is the project manager of Charitable since 2022. David works with several non-profits (one operated by his wife) along with managing and developing features, support, and marketing for Charitable. Has been with WordPress since 2006 and has been lead organizer of multiple conferences, events, and meetups.
Improvement New templates

🎨 New Templates & List Builder

Launch faster and design better. We’ve added three professional campaign templates and a versatile new content block to help you tell your story.

3 New Campaign Templates

Ready-to-use designs for specific fundraising needs.

Don’t start from scratch. Pick a template tailored to your cause and launch in minutes.

  • 🎄 Holiday Fundraiser: A warm, festive design perfect for year-end giving, toy drives, or food pantries.

  • 🎓 School Fundraiser: Built for PTAs and sports teams. clearly highlights goals like playground upgrades or classroom tech.

  • Church Fundraiser: A trustworthy layout designed for building funds, mission trips, and tithes.

The New “List” Block

Organize your campaign details without writing code.

Make your campaign pages easier to scan and more visually engaging with our new builder block.

  • 📝 Flexible layouts: Choose from 3 distinct styles to display sponsorship levels, donation perks, or project goals.

  • 🎨 Rich customization: Add colorful headlines, support for emojis, and unlimited list items.

  • 👣 Smart footers: Include a built-in footer for extra context or a final Call to Action.

.aioseo-author-bio-compact { display: flex; gap: 40px; padding: 12px; text-align: left; border: 1px solid black; border-radius: 5px; color: #111111; background-color: #FFFFFF; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-left { flex: 0 0 120px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right { flex: 1 1 auto; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-left .aioseo-author-bio-compact-image { width: 120px; height: 120px; border-radius: 5px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-header { display: flex; align-items: center; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-header .author-name { font-size: 22px; font-weight: 600; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-header .author-job-title { margin-left: 12px; padding-left: 12px; font-size: 18px; border-left: 1px solid gray; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main { margin: 12px 0; font-size: 18px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main > p:last-of-type { display: inline; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main .author-bio-link { display: inline-flex; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main .author-bio-link a { display: flex; align-items: center; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-main .author-bio-link a svg { fill: black; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-expertises { display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; gap: 10px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-expertises .author-expertise { padding: 4px 8px; font-size: 14px; border-radius: 4px; background-color: #DCDDE1; color: inherit; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-socials { margin-top: 12px; display: flex; gap: 6px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-socials .aioseo-social-icon-tumblrUrl { margin-left: -2px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-site-editor-disclaimer { color: black; margin-bottom: 12px; font-style: italic; } @media screen and (max-width: 430px ) { .aioseo-author-bio-compact { flex-direction: column; gap: 20px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-left .aioseo-author-bio-compact-image { display: block; margin: 0 auto; width: 160px; height: 160px; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right { text-align: center; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-header { justify-content: center; } .aioseo-author-bio-compact-right .aioseo-author-bio-compact-footer .author-socials { justify-content: center; } }
author avatar
David Bisset Project Manager
David is the project manager of Charitable since 2022. David works with several non-profits (one operated by his wife) along with managing and developing features, support, and marketing for Charitable. Has been with WordPress since 2006 and has been lead organizer of multiple conferences, events, and meetups.