What are URL parameters? 🧮

URL parameters are bits of information appended to the end of a URL to pass data to the page. The result is a pre-selected checkout process with one or more of the desired parameters on both Givebutter.com links and embedded Widgets!

Please note that it is not possible to pre-fill or pre-populate a donation form with individualized donor information such as name and address.

URL parameters cannot create new donation amounts, funds, or promo codes, and they cannot activate new frequencies on your campaign. Parameters must correspond with existing options on your campaign to work successfully.

Using URL parameters ⚙️

The available parameters for Givebutter campaigns are:

amount - preselect an existing donation amount option (ie. 25, 50, 100, 250)
frequency - preselect an existing frequency option (ie. monthly, quarterly, yearly)
fund - preselect an existing fund by the fund ID (numeric fund code shown in the dashboard)
promo - preselect an existing promo code (ie. EARLYBIRD)

To add parameters to your campaign URL, add ‘?’ to the end of the link. After the ‘?’, parameters have a name=value syntax.

Example:

https://givebutter.com/yourcampaign?amount=250

Parameters can also be used on external websites with Givebutter Widgets installed:

https://www.nonprofit.org/donate/?promo=EARLYBIRD

Once you've created your URL with added parameters, you can send this link to your supporters or use it on social media to pre-populate any of the supported information automatically.

For Form campaigns with URL parameters, donors will see the parameters pre-populated on the campaign page when it loads. For Page and Event campaigns, donors need to initiate the checkout process by clicking the Donate button on the campaign page, then they will see the parameters pre-populated in the checkout.

For campaigns that include tickets: URL parameters do not apply to the ticket selection step – they apply to the donation amount step after ticket selection.

Multiple URL parameters ➕

You can also add multiple parameters to a URL. When more than one parameter is required, they must be separated by an ‘&’.

Example:

https://givebutter.com/yourcampaign?amount=250&frequency=quarterly

Widgets Example:

https://www.nonprofit.org/donate/?amount=99&frequency=monthly

Full URL examples 🔗

Pre-select amount and frequency:

https://demo.givebutter.com/form?amount=250&frequency=quarterly

Automatically apply a promo code:

https://demo.givebutter.com/livestream?promo=20OFF

Automatically open a pre-populated checkout 🛒

Want a shortcut past the Donate button for Page and Event campaigns? You can also use URL path segments to automatically open the checkout process for Pages and Events when the campaign page is loaded. In combination with a URL parameter, the page can open the checkout automatically, with a pre-populated donation amount or other supported parameter.

What are URL path segments? Slashes (/) are used in URLs to separate path segments, which represent a website's hierarchical structure. Path segments can be used to direct the user to a specific location.

To open the checkout process upon page load:

For campaigns without /c/ in the URL (usually refers to campaigns without an auction), add /donate to the end of the URL, then the URL parameter you want to use: https://demo.givebutter.com/form/donate?amount=250
For campaigns with /c/ in the URL (usually refers to campaigns with an auction), add /support to the end of the URL, then the URL parameter you want to use: https://demo.givebutter.com/c/event/support?amount=250

Using URL parameters with Widgets 📝

Givebutter supports amount , frequency , fund and promo as widget parameters. If also using URL parameters, the priority is:

amount=25 as HTML tag parameter
?amount=25 as URL parameter

Example usage:

<givebutter-widget id="xLWmpB" amount="25"></givebutter-widget>
<givebutter-widget id="xLWmpB" amount="25" frequency="monthly"></givebutter-widget>

FAQ 🤔

What's the difference between URL parameters and UTM parameters?

URL parameters are elements added to a specific URL to pass information along when a link is clicked, ie. color=orange. These are not tracking-related. Read more about using URL parameters →

UTM parameters are pieces of code added to your campaign URL to keep track of online traffic by attributing a source, ie. Facebook. These are useful if you want to track where a donor first clicked on your campaign, or what the final touch for conversion was. You can learn more about UTM parameters via GA4 (Google Analytics).

Are URL parameters supported on embedded campaigns/Widgets?

Yes! Third-party websites that use Widgets are also supported. See above for different applications for Givebutter and external URLs.

Which fund code do I use for URL parameters?

Funds have a set numeric code in the dashboard, as well as an optional user-set code in the settings for each specific fund. For URL parameters, you'll need to use the code in the URL for the fund you want to use. The user-assigned code will not correlate to this fund.

Can you use UTM and URL parameters together?

Yes! Any URL parameters can be used together in the same URL as long as they are properly formatted with "&" between each one. For example, you may want to use UTMs in addition to any of the available URL parameters (ie. promo codes) in the same URL they are sharing via email, social, or QR code.

How to leverage URL and HTML parameters