Fundraising software built for libraries and Friends groups
Givebear is library fundraising software with a tap-to-pay book-sale and circulation-desk kiosk, recurring Friends memberships, and per-branch fund routing. Book a demo.
Last updated July 2026 by Fatih
Quick answer
Givebear lets a library or Friends group replace the cash box at the book sale and the coffee can at the circulation desk with a card kiosk, run recurring Friends memberships, and route gifts to branch or program funds. Patrons pay by card, Apple Pay, or Google Pay, and receipts go out automatically, so a volunteer board is not writing thank-you letters by hand.
Key takeaways
- Book sales are among a Friends group's biggest fundraisers, and many buyers carry no cash.
- Give each branch and program its own fund, even under one organization.
- The battery floor stand works on a sale floor or at a farmers market table without an outlet.
Who this is for
- Friends of the Library groups with an annual book sale and a volunteer board
- Library foundations with an annual fund and restricted program gifts
- Multi-branch systems that report giving by branch
Turn the book sale and circulation desk into card-ready giving
Book sales are among a Friends group's biggest fundraisers, but a cash box misses everyone without bills. A kiosk at the sale gives patrons a way to add a gift by card; keep the book sales themselves on your existing till, since the kiosk takes donations rather than retail purchases.
The floor stand runs on a battery for the sale floor or a farmers market table, and gifts are recorded as they happen instead of counted from a drawer.
Library giving still arrives as cash: a can on the circulation desk, a cash box at the book sale, a paper Friends renewal form. Givebear adds a kiosk to the desk and the sale floor so patrons can give by card, Apple Pay, or Google Pay, with each gift recorded and receipted.
A Friends group or library foundation can run memberships as recurring gifts, send children's programs and local history gifts to separate funds, and keep each branch's giving apart under one organization.
Memberships and program funds, kept straight by design
A Friends membership can be a recurring yearly gift: members join once and renew automatically, and the donor records show who is current.
Gifts to the summer reading fund, the local history archive, or one branch's endowment go to their own funds and are reported separately.
Workable for volunteer boards and small offices
Most Friends groups run on volunteers. Receipts go out by email when a gift is made, so nobody mails acknowledgment letters by hand.
Givebear charges a flat platform fee from 1.9% to 5.9% depending on plan (one rate online, at kiosks, and on memberships), plus Stripe card processing at cost, with no setup fee and no monthly minimum, with no tip prompt for donors. The dashboard is simple enough for a volunteer treasurer who changes every year.
Practical use cases
- A kiosk at the circulation desk in place of the donation can.
- A floor stand at the book sale for patrons who want to add a gift.
- Friends memberships that renew each year without a paper form.
- A capital campaign fund for a new branch.
Key features
- Kiosk for the desk or a battery floor stand for the sale floor
- Funds by branch and by program
- Memberships as monthly or yearly recurring gifts
- Event tickets for author nights and galas
- Email receipts and donor records
The kiosk. From $999, paid once.
A 21.5" touchscreen with a tap-to-pay reader, on a wall mount or a battery floor stand. Gifts on it carry your plan's platform fee and land in the same funds as online giving.
Common questions
Can we use one kiosk at the book sale and another at the circulation desk?
Can patrons pay for books on the kiosk?
Can we run recurring Friends memberships?
Does Givebear handle separate funds for different branches and programs?
Related reading
See it with your own funds.
Book a 30-minute walkthrough. No slides and no hard sell: we set Givebear up around how your organization already gives.
- Your funds, set up the way your treasurer reports them
- Where a kiosk would go, and what it costs
- The reports your board will actually see
Rather set it up yourself? Start free
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