A website for an NGO or nonprofit

A donor, a volunteer, a funder or a journalist who finds a nonprofit online asks the same questions: Is this organisation real? What does it do? Does it do it well? Where does the money go? How can I help? A good NGO website answers each plainly, with evidence, and does not rely on emotion alone. This guide covers NGOs and nonprofits of any size.

I have not built a website for a nonprofit for a client and do not claim to have. This is general advice.

What visitors look for

1. The mission, in a sentence, and who you serve.
2. What you actually do: programmes, places, numbers of people reached, said carefully.
3. Proof you are real: registration details, trustees or board members, an address and a working phone number.
4. Transparency: annual reports, audited accounts, how funds are spent.
5. How to help: donate, volunteer, partner, share.
6. Recent news, which shows the organisation is active.

Be careful with numbers and stories

Impact figures persuade, and overstated ones damage trust and can break rules.

• Say what the number counts and over what period.
• Do not round up or mix beneficiaries across programmes without saying so.
• Get consent before using any person’s story or photograph, and take extra care with children and vulnerable people.
• Name your sources for statistics you quote.
• Do not claim a registration, tax status or recognition you do not hold. If donors can claim a tax deduction, state the exact provision and certificate that applies, only if you have it, and say where to check.

Pages that earn their place

• Home: mission, one strong image, the main way to help.
• About: history, people, governance.
• Programmes, one page each, with the people and places involved.
• Impact and reports, with downloadable annual reports and accounts.
• Get involved: volunteer, partner, give.
• News or stories, kept up to date, or removed.
• Contact, with a physical address if you have one.
• Privacy and donor information.

How people give

Giving online involves money and personal data, so decide the route carefully:

• Bank details or a UPI QR code on the page, with a clear statement of who the account belongs to. The simplest route, and it needs no payment system on the website.
• A payment link from a provider.
• A donation form with a payment gateway is a larger piece of work with a backend, receipts, and records of donors. It is not part of my packages unless agreed in writing; see online payments on a business website.

Whichever you choose, state clearly how donors receive a receipt and what you do with their details.

Accessibility

Many of your audience will use older phones, slow connections and sometimes assistive technology. Keep pages light and readable, write alt text for images and make sure the site works on a small screen. Accessible, responsive websites lists what to ask for.

Keeping it current

A nonprofit site that shows an event from two years ago looks inactive. Decide who updates it and how often. What a website maintenance plan should include lists the questions, and website maintenance describes my optional service.

Size and cost

A small organisation can be described clearly in a modest number of pages. Essential is ₹19,999 for 20 to 30 pages, frontend only. The pricing page lists what each package includes and excludes. To talk about your organisation, message or call Harman with what you do and who will approve the content.

Read next

• What pages a business website needsA page earns its place by answering a question a visitor really has. Here is the core set, the pages that depend on your business, and a test for pages you can leave out.
• How to get more enquiries from your websiteMore enquiries rarely come from one trick. They come from a clear first screen, easy contact, honest proof, fast pages and knowing which pages work. Here is the checklist.
• Online payments on a business website: what changesTaking payment online turns a brochure site into a shop with duties attached. Here is what changes, what it costs in effort, and the simpler routes worth trying first.
• Accessible, responsive websites: what to ask forTwo promises sit behind almost every website quote: it works on a phone, and it works for people with different abilities. Here is how to check both without being an expert.
• What a website maintenance plan should includeA maintenance plan is only worth paying for if you can say what is checked, how often, and what is left out. Here is how to read one, and when to decline.
• What decides website cost for different businessesBusinesses are priced by scope, not by sector. This guide shows what each kind of business usually needs on its website, and which of those items push the cost up.

Where this leads

• Packages and pricesThree one-time packages from ₹19,999 to ₹34,999 plus applicable taxes: what each includes, and which costs stay separate.
• Talk to HarmanCall or message on WhatsApp, or build a short brief that opens a WhatsApp message.