One of the first questions a charity asks about a contactless donation device is also one of the most practical: what can a donor actually use to give? The short answer is reassuringly broad. If a supporter can tap to pay for a coffee, they can tap to donate. Understanding the detail, though, helps you set expectations, brief your volunteers and avoid the occasional moment of confusion at the point of giving.
Contactless cards
The everyday contactless debit and credit card is the workhorse of in-person giving. Visa, Mastercard and the other major card schemes are all supported, and for most donors this is exactly how they will give: a quick tap of the card they already have in their pocket. There is nothing for them to set up and nothing to remember. For a charity, this is the single most important method to get right, because it is the one most donors reach for first.
Phones and watches: Apple Pay, Google Pay and wearables
A growing share of donors no longer carry a card at all. They pay with a phone using Apple Pay or Google Pay, or even with a smartwatch or a payment enabled wristband. All of these work at a donation device in the same simple way, because they use the same underlying contactless technology. This matters more every year, particularly with younger supporters and at events where people travel light. It is also where the quality of the hardware shows. The near field communication reader inside the device, which DonorDynamics builds the hardware around, is what determines how forgiving the tap is. A well tuned reader gives a generous, reliable tap area, which is exactly what you want when a donor is presenting a watch or a phone in a cased holder rather than a flat card. We explain how this works in our guide to NFC technology in donation kiosks.
How the contactless limit affects donations
In the United Kingdom, ordinary contactless card payments are subject to a per transaction limit, currently one hundred pounds. For the great majority of in-person gifts this is no obstacle at all, since most donations sit comfortably below it. It is worth being aware of, though, if you want to encourage larger single gifts. Payments made with a phone or watch can often go above the card limit, because the donor confirms their identity on the device itself, for example with a fingerprint or face check. The giving app provided by Give A Little manages the payment flow, so the donor is guided through whatever step is needed. The practical takeaway is simple: set your suggested amounts sensibly, and know that very large single gifts may behave slightly differently from a small tap. We cover the art of choosing those figures in our piece on setting donation amounts that increase the average gift.
Why this is not the same as chip and PIN
It is worth distinguishing all of this from the older chip and PIN style of payment, where a card is inserted and a number typed. Contactless giving is faster and more hygienic, and it keeps the interaction to a single, friendly tap, which suits the spirit of a donation far better than a checkout style transaction. If you would like the fuller comparison, we set it out in contactless donation kiosks versus chip and PIN card readers.
Two layers working together
Behind every successful tap, two parts are doing their jobs. The device hardware, its Android operating system and its contactless reader, all from DonorDynamics, make the tap quick and dependable. The giving experience and the payment processing, provided by Give A Little, handle the donor facing screen and the secure handling of the gift. The donor never thinks about this division, and nor should they. They simply tap, see a thank you, and move on. For a starting device that suits almost any setting, a compact CharityTab accepts the full range of contactless methods just as the larger units do.
In short
A modern donation device welcomes contactless cards, phones, watches and payment wearables, covering very nearly every way a UK donor might choose to give in person. Keep an eye on the contactless card limit if you are chasing larger gifts, lean on a well tuned reader so taps just work, and let the two layers do the rest. If you have a specific question about what your supporters can use, our FAQ page is a good place to start, or you can ask our team directly.