How To Plan A Nonprofit Marketing Budget (+ Tips & Free Template!)

How much do nonprofit companies spend on marketing?

42% of nonprofit companies spend between $500 and $5,000 a month on digital marketing.

We’ll cover nonprofit marketing budgets in the following sections:

• How much do nonprofits spend on marketing?
• Nonprofit marketing budget breakdown
• Factors that impact nonprofit marketing budgets
• How to create a nonprofit marketing budget
• FAQ for nonprofit marketing budget

Download Now: Our Free Nonprofit Budget Planner

How much do nonprofits spend on marketing?

On average, 42% of nonprofit companies spend between $500 and $5,000 a month on marketing. However, a vast majority of nonprofits are undecided about how much they want to spend in 2025.

Here’s a better look at what nonprofits spend on marketing:

Nonprofit marketing budget breakdown

Once you have an idea of how much you should spend on marketing, you can start looking at the individual costs within your budget. The best place to start is by looking at the channels other nonprofits invest in:

The top services (email marketing and organic social media) are budget-friendly marketing options, so it makes sense that nonprofits would prioritize these strategies. By looking at the average price of digital marketing, you can see how much you can expect to spend on the top services per month:

Factors that impact nonprofit marketing budgets

Nonprofits, like any other industry, have their own unique challenges and factors that impact your marketing budget. Here are the top ones selected by others in your industry:

Below are other considerations for creating a nonprofit marketing budget:

• Limited resources: The main challenge for nonprofits is a lack of resources. Whatever budget you have should be used on the strategies that yield the best results.
• Proper accounting needs: Because the nonprofit industry is highly regulated, you need to track and account for all funds spent. Having a detailed budget will help you plan your marketing campaigns and improve your bookkeeping.
• Outdated technology: Limited resources often lead to a lack of technology improvements. Falling behind on digital transformation can lead to inefficiencies within your organization.

How to create a nonprofit marketing budget

How to Create Your 2025 Nonprofit Marketing Budget

• Allocate 5-15% of your total revenue for marketing
• Reserve between 5-10% of your marketing budget to invest in new marketing strategies

Now, it’s time to plan your marketing budget for 2025. Here are some steps you can follow to help you get started:

1. Outline your nonprofit’s mission-driven goals
2. Evaluate your current outreach strategy and community engagement
3. Allocate a budget to amplify your cause
4. Monitor your campaign metrics and optimize

1. Outline your nonprofit’s mission-driven goals

Outlining your goals is the first step to any good marketing budget. If your budget is a roadmap for your campaign, your goals are the endpoints that guide it. You should base your goals on your nonprofit’s mission to stay true to your overall purpose.

Creating SMART goals — specific, measurable, actionable, relevant, and time-bound goals — is a great place to start. These goals will help you achieve realistic growth for your business and structure your marketing budget accordingly.

Some examples of SMART goals for nonprofit marketing budgets include:

• Improve social media community engagement by X% over 3 months
• Earn X donations per month for 6 months
• Grow email engagement by X% over four weeks

2. Evaluate your current outreach strategy and community engagement

If you want to improve your nonprofit’s social impact, you have to see what channels you’re succeeding on already. Looking at your existing marketing strategy and see where you are earning engagement and reaching people.

You can also look at others in your industry to see what strategies they are using to reach their goals. If you notice multiple organizations using the same social platform, for example, you might try budgeting some time and resources for that platform.

3. Allocate a budget to amplify your cause

The next step is to define your budget and what you can realistically expect to spend on marketing. When calculating costs, be sure to account for:

• Marketing channels
• Your digital marketing provider
• Any technology needed for marketing
• Any updates to your systems

4. Monitor your campaign metrics and optimize

The final step to creating a marketing budget is evaluating it as needed. Take time to track, measure, and change your budget as needed throughout the year to make sure you’re investing in strategies that serve your nonprofit well.

FAQs for nonprofit marketing budgets

Want to learn more about nonprofit marketing budgets? Check out our FAQ below!

Want even more help with your 2025 marketing budget?

Even with all the right information, marketing budgets can be challenging. Working with a partner can help you ensure that you’re investing the right amount in the strategies that drive your business’s most revenue and growth.

That’s where WebFX can help!

Our team of 500+ marketing experts will help you allocate your marketing budget to the strategies that benefit your nonprofit most. With our help, you can reach a wider audience and get a higher ROI for your investment.

Want to learn more? Contact us online today to see how we can help your organization grow!

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