Title: Donor Merchant
Author: Matt McWilliam
Published: August 7, 2026
Last modified: August 7, 2026
---
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# Donor Merchant
By [Matt McWilliam](https://profiles.wordpress.org/mattmcwilliam/)
[Download](https://downloads.wordpress.org/plugin/donor-merchant.2.4.1.zip)
* [Details](https://wordpress.org/plugins/donor-merchant/#description)
* [Reviews](https://wordpress.org/plugins/donor-merchant/#reviews)
* [Development](https://wordpress.org/plugins/donor-merchant/#developers)
[Support](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/donor-merchant/)
## Description
**Donor Merchant** is a lightweight donation plugin for nonprofits, churches, schools,
and community groups. Drop the donation form on any page with a block or shortcode,
connect Stripe or PayPal, and start accepting gifts in minutes.
Unlike most donation plugins, **recurring giving is included in the free plugin**–
monthly, quarterly, and yearly gifts powered by Stripe subscriptions, at no extra
cost and with no transaction fees added by us.
#### Features
* **One-time and recurring donations** – monthly, quarterly, and yearly giving
built in, free.
* **Campaigns with goal thermometers** – run multiple donation forms, each with
its own goal, suggested amounts, and description, and show a live progress bar.
* **Donor portal** – a passwordless, magic-link dashboard where donors view their
giving history, download receipts, and manage recurring gifts (update card or
cancel) via Stripe’s secure billing portal.
* **Printable receipts & annual tax statements** – every gift gets a save-as-PDF
receipt, and donors can download a year-end giving statement. No PDF library
bloat.
* **Offline donations** – record checks, cash, and gifts taken elsewhere so donor
totals stay complete.
* **Stripe** – cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and **bank debit (ACH)** via Stripe’s
secure Payment Element. Card details never touch your server.
* **PayPal** – one-time gifts through Smart Buttons, plus **recurring PayPal subscriptions**.
* **Designations / funds** – let donors choose which fund their gift supports.
* **Integrations** – outgoing webhooks (Zapier, Make, or anything) and Mailchimp
audience sync.
* **Custom fields** – add your own questions to the donation form.
* **Fee recovery** – let donors add a little extra so 100% of the gift reaches
you.
* **Tributes and memorials** – donors can dedicate a gift in honor or in memory
of someone.
* **Donor management** – every donor and gift tracked automatically, with lifetime
totals and CSV export.
* **Email receipts** – customizable thank-you receipts and new-donation notifications.
* **Reports dashboard** – total raised, monthly totals, average gift, recurring
count at a glance.
* **Test mode** – try everything end to end with Stripe test keys and the PayPal
sandbox before going live.
* **International** – 20 currencies supported.
* **Block and shortcodes** – the Donation Form block, plus `[donor_merchant]`, `[
donor_merchant campaign="N"]`, `[donor_merchant_progress campaign="N"]`, and `[
donor_merchant_portal]`.
#### How it stays secure
Payment details are collected by Stripe and PayPal directly in the donor’s browser.
No card number, expiration date, or CVC is ever transmitted to or stored on your
server. Donation totals are always recomputed server-side, payment status is confirmed
server-to-gateway, and webhook signatures are verified.
#### External services
To process donations this plugin connects to third-party payment and (optionally)
marketing services. Nothing is sent until you enable and configure a given service.
* **Stripe** (only when Stripe is enabled). The Stripe.js library is loaded from`
https://js.stripe.com` on pages that display the donation form, so payment details
can be collected securely in the donor’s browser. Your server also calls the
Stripe API at `https://api.stripe.com` to create payment intents, customers,
and subscriptions, and to verify payments. Data sent: donation amount and currency,
the donor’s name and email, and the payment details the donor enters (handled
by Stripe – they do not touch your server). Stripe terms: https://stripe.com/
legal – privacy: https://stripe.com/privacy
* **PayPal** (only when PayPal is enabled). The PayPal JS SDK is loaded from `https://
www.paypal.com` on pages with the donation form. Your server calls the PayPal
API (`https://api-m.paypal.com`, or `https://api-m.sandbox.paypal.com` in sandbox
mode) to create and capture orders and subscriptions. Data sent: donation amount,
currency, and an internal reference. PayPal terms: https://www.paypal.com/legalhub–
privacy: https://www.paypal.com/privacy
* **Mailchimp** (optional – only when you enable it and the donor opts in). Your
server calls the Mailchimp API (`https://.api.mailchimp.com`) to add the
donor to the audience you choose. Data sent: donor email and name. Mailchimp
terms: https://mailchimp.com/legal/terms/ – privacy: https://mailchimp.com/legal/
privacy/
* **Outgoing webhooks** (optional). If you enter one or more webhook URLs, completed-
donation data is POSTed to those URLs – which you control and choose (e.g. your
Zapier or Make endpoint). No third party receives data unless you configure it.
#### Getting started
1. Install and activate the plugin.
2. Go to **Donor Merchant Settings Payments** and paste your Stripe and/or PayPal
API keys.
3. Add the **Donation Form** block (or `[donor_merchant]`) to any page.
4. Test with Stripe test mode, then switch to live.
## Blocks
This plugin provides 1 block.
* Donation Form
## FAQ
### Is recurring giving really free?
Yes. Monthly, quarterly, and yearly donations via Stripe are part of the free plugin.
You pay only the payment processor’s own fees.
### Do I need an SSL certificate?
Yes. Stripe and PayPal require your site to be served over HTTPS.
### Where do I find my Stripe API keys?
In your Stripe dashboard under **Developers API keys**. Use the test keys with
Test mode to try things out safely.
### Does the plugin store card numbers?
No, never. Card details are entered into fields hosted by Stripe (or on PayPal’s
site) and never reach your server.
### Can donors cover the processing fees?
Yes – enable fee recovery in settings and donors can opt in to add the estimated
processing fee to their gift.
### Are webhooks required?
Recommended, but not required for one-time gifts. Recurring renewal payments are
recorded via the Stripe webhook, so set it up if you accept recurring gifts. The
settings page shows the exact URL and events to use.
### Does it work with my theme?
The form ships with clean, self-contained styling that adapts to any well-built
theme, and everything is namespaced to avoid conflicts.
## Reviews
There are no reviews for this plugin.
## Contributors & Developers
“Donor Merchant” is open source software. The following people have contributed
to this plugin.
Contributors
* [ Matt McWilliam ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/mattmcwilliam/)
[Translate “Donor Merchant” into your language.](https://translate.wordpress.org/projects/wp-plugins/donor-merchant)
### Interested in development?
[Browse the code](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/donor-merchant/), check
out the [SVN repository](https://plugins.svn.wordpress.org/donor-merchant/), or
subscribe to the [development log](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/log/donor-merchant/)
by [RSS](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/log/donor-merchant/?limit=100&mode=stop_on_copy&format=rss).
## Changelog
#### 2.4.1
* Sanitization: every register_setting() call now declares an explicit sanitize_callback.
Secret fields use sanitize_text_field and preserve their stored value on a blank
save through a pre_update_option filter (WordPress.org review follow-up).
#### 2.4.0
* Form style customization: accent colour swatches with a live preview, plus a
button-shape control (pill / rounded / sharp).
* Contact form REST endpoint for the marketing site (rate-limited, honeypot-protected).
* Security: payment secret keys are no longer echoed back into the settings page;
secret fields render blank and keep their stored value on save.
* Compliance: all admin scripts and the receipt stylesheet are now loaded through
the enqueue API; all custom option, transient, and shortcode names use the donor_merchant
prefix; every database query is bound through wpdb::prepare() with the %i identifier
placeholder.
* Requires at least: WordPress 6.2 (for the %i placeholder in wpdb::prepare()).
#### 2.3.1
* Security: CSV exports now neutralize spreadsheet formula injection (donor-supplied
values beginning with =, +, -, or @ are escaped).
* Security: PayPal subscription activation now strictly requires the subscription’s
custom_id to match the donation, removing an edge-case bypass.
#### 2.3.0
* New: Monthly fundraising summary email – totals, new donors, recurring count,
and top campaign, sent on the first of each month (with a “send a sample now”
button).
* Docs: documented the developer hooks (actions, filters) and the signed outgoing-
webhook payload.
#### 2.2.0
* New: Bank debit (ACH) payments through Stripe – lower fees than cards.
* New: Recurring PayPal donations via PayPal Subscriptions, with a webhook for
renewals.
* New: Designations / funds – donors choose which fund their gift supports.
* New: Integrations – outgoing webhooks (Zapier/Make) signed with HMAC, and Mailchimp
audience sync with an opt-in checkbox.
* New: Custom form fields (text, paragraph, dropdown, checkbox), saved with each
donation and included in exports.
* Improved: Donations CSV now includes designation and custom-field columns; admin
notifications list them too.
* Developer: webhook payload includes campaign, designation, and custom fields.
#### 2.1.0
* New: Campaigns – multiple donation forms, each with its own goal, suggested amounts,
and description, plus a live goal thermometer (`[donor_merchant campaign="N"]`
and `[donor_merchant_progress campaign="N"]`).
* New: Donor self-service portal – passwordless magic-link dashboard for giving
history, receipts, and managing recurring gifts through Stripe’s billing portal(`[
donor_merchant_portal]`).
* New: Printable receipts (save as PDF) for every donation, plus year-end annual
tax statements, served securely over signed links.
* New: Offline / manual donation entry from the admin (checks, cash, bank, other).
* New: Tax-receipt settings (Tax ID/EIN, organization address, tax-deductible language)
and a donor-portal page setting.
* Improved: Donations CSV export now includes the campaign column.
* Developer: `donor_merchant_suppress_receipt` and `donor_merchant_suppress_admin_notification`
filters.
#### 2.0.0
* Complete rewrite for production.
* Stripe Payment Element with one-time and recurring (monthly/quarterly/yearly)
donations.
* PayPal Smart Buttons for one-time donations.
* Fee recovery, tributes/memorials, and donor notes.
* Donor and donation management with search, filters, and CSV export.
* Customizable email receipts and admin notifications.
* Stripe webhooks with signature verification (renewals, refunds, failures).
* Reports dashboard.
* Donation Form block for the editor; legacy [donation_form] shortcode still supported.
* Internationalization-ready; 20 currencies.
#### 1.0
* Initial prototype.
## Meta
* Version **2.4.1**
* Last updated **17 hours ago**
* Active installations **Fewer than 10**
* WordPress version ** 6.2 or higher **
* Tested up to **7.0.3**
* PHP version ** 7.4 or higher **
* Tags
* [donate](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/donate/)[donations](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/donations/)
[fundraising](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/fundraising/)[nonprofit](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/nonprofit/)
[recurring donations](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/recurring-donations/)
* [Advanced View](https://wordpress.org/plugins/donor-merchant/advanced/)
## Ratings
No reviews have been submitted yet.
[Your review](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/donor-merchant/reviews/#new-post)
[See all reviews](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/donor-merchant/reviews/)
## Contributors
* [ Matt McWilliam ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/mattmcwilliam/)
## Support
Got something to say? Need help?
[View support forum](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/donor-merchant/)