Why am I receiving less than I expected in my withdrawals? – GoFundMe Help Center

Because GoFundMe works with online payment processors, and not banks, to transfer funds, there are a few key differences in how we process and send withdrawals. Please find answers below to questions you might be asking after setting up withdrawals.

If you would like help setting up your withdrawals, please check out this article with a helpful video.

I was sent less than the total amount I raised. Why?

Our payment processor sends funds to your bank account as they are being processed. Your first withdrawal may not contain the full amount of funds you’ve raised because your recent donations are still processing.

Donation processing time depends on when the donations were made and how they were made. For example, donations from Visa or MasterCard can take 1-2 business days (3-5 days) to process and donations from American Express can take 5-14 business days (7-18 days) to process. Once the funds become available, we'll automatically schedule a transfer, and you'll receive the money in 2-5 business days.

Funds from pending donations won’t show in your withdrawal summary. Please wait a few days for them to appear, and if they still do not show as scheduled, feel free to contact our team.

Why are you charging so many fees?

While there is no cost to an organizer to set up a personal fundraiser, in the US, Canada, Australia, the UK, and most major European countries, there is a standard transaction fee to cover credit and debit card processing and the safe transfer of funds.

If you receive your first withdrawal, and it is much less than what you expected to receive, this is due to donation processing times, and not because GoFundMe is deducting additional fees. You will receive the full amount of your funds in additional withdrawals after standard transaction fees have been deducted.

Check out this article to look further into the standard transaction fees.

I don’t want to withdraw my money yet. Can I pick a date?

Due to financial regulations, our payment processor is unable to hold on to your funds for longer than 30 days, because they are only a payment processor and aren't allowed to act as a bank by holding your funds for long periods of time. While you are unable to pick a specific withdrawal date, you can choose the frequency at which you want to receive your withdrawals.

The three frequencies that we offer are daily, weekly, and monthly. Weekly withdrawals will initiate on Mondays, and monthly withdrawals will initiate on the 1st of each month. If you don’t want to receive your funds right away, choosing a different withdrawal frequency is a good alternative. Keep in mind, all transfers will take up to 5 business days to arrive once sent.

Note: In Canada, only daily transfers are available for certain accounts.

Can I pick how much I’d like to withdraw at a time?

Our payment processor is unable to offer partial withdrawals, because they cannot act as a bank by holding onto the funds for long periods of time. Each time a withdrawal initiates, it will always be for your full available balance. Instead of picking an amount to withdraw, you can choose a longer withdrawal frequency to spread out the amount of time over which you’ll receive your funds.

Your full available balance will include any donations that have processed completely and are able to be withdrawn.

I was sent less than the total amount I raised. Why?

Why are you charging so many fees?

I don’t want to withdraw my money yet. Can I pick a date?

Can I pick how much I’d like to withdraw at a time?

Related articles