How to Get Donations for a Game That Stays Free

You can take donations for a free game by keeping the game playable at $0 and giving players a voluntary support link tied to a named cost. The honest limit is permission: if the game uses someone else’s IP, the rights holder’s rules decide whether money is allowed. A Goal is one named goal with a progress bar: followers make one-time contributions and every contribution is yours whether or not the goal is reached — no deadline unless you set one, and nothing to ship.

To get donations for a game that stays free, keep access free and ask players to fund one named cost, such as a $100 store fee, a server month, or a sound pass. Put the support link on the download page, devlog, release notes, and other places players already follow the game.

With Brillay Goals, several goals can be open at once and only contributions to a goal move its progress bar. Supporters pay upfront by card as guests when they send a Tip or contribute to a Goal, with no application or follower minimum to clear first. No monthly fee, you only pay a small platform fee when you get paid. 8% platform fee when a follower pays for work, 5% platform fee on tips and goals. Card processing is separate.

Can you take donations for a game you give away?

Yes, if the game is yours to distribute and the platform you use allows voluntary payments. Free does not have to mean money cannot pass; it means the player can still play without paying. The clean framing is “support this free game” or “help fund the next update,” not “buy the game.”

For free-game creators, itch.io’s creator pricing documentation says that even when a creator gives content away for free, downloaders “will still have the opportunity to send you money before they download” through pay-what-you-want pricing (itch.io pricing docs). That is the mental model many free-game players already understand: download now, optionally pay more than zero.

If your game is not hosted on itch.io, the same logic still works, but the support page is separate. Put the link where the game already explains itself: the download page, README, launcher, main menu, devlog, Discord welcome channel, and release post. This is practical placement advice, not a claim that every platform permits the same links in every surface. That one link carries every offer, with nothing to moderate and no community to keep warm.

The test is simple: can a player still get the build without paying, and can they tell what their voluntary contribution supports? If both are true, you are not turning the game into a product checkout. You are giving players a way to help carry one named cost of a game they already chose to play.

Donations or a named goal?

A named goal is usually better for a free game than a generic donation button. Tips let a supporter send you a one-time amount to say thank you, with nothing to deliver in return, while Goals show supporters the named game cost their contribution helps cover. That distinction matters when players are paying $1, $3, $5, or $10.

For game donations on Ko-fi, Ko-fi’s own help centre says Ko-fi Free has 0% service fees on one-time tips and 0% on crowdfunding goals, while Standard applies a 5% fee to one-time tips and crowdfunding goals, with normal payment processor fees still applying (Ko-fi fee help). That makes Ko-fi strong for general tips; the tradeoff is whether your support page is organized around one named game expense or around a wider creator profile. A Goal names its target on the page itself, so a player sees exactly what a $5 or $10 contribution funds and pays upfront by card as a guest, with nothing to negotiate first.

For a free update that should not become a formal launch, Kickstarter’s support page is a useful contrast: a successfully funded project pays a 5% Kickstarter fee plus payment processing fees of roughly 3–5%, and if the project does not reach its goal, no fees are collected (Kickstarter fees). That all-or-nothing structure can be useful for a launch, but it is often too heavy for “please help me pay for this free update.” One named goal with a progress bar on the page your followers already visit.

You do not need a huge audience to start: choose the smallest honest goal you can explain, then show a few committed players exactly what their $3, $5, or $10 helps fund. “$100 for a Steam Direct fee,” “$60 to license UI clicks and menu sounds,” or “$250 for two menu tracks” gives the player a reason to care. “Support development” can work after you already have trust; it is a weak first ask.

The most useful goal title names the thing, not the emotion. Write “Fund one server month for co-op testing,” not “Help us continue our dream.” Write “Cover the next sound pass,” not “Keep development alive.” For wording differences between tips, donations, and paid requests, see tips vs donations vs paid requests.

What about mods and supporter games?

Mods and supporter games need a separate caution: the donation question belongs to the rights holder’s rules, not to the payment tool. If the game uses someone else’s characters, title, assets, world, code, or trademarked branding, do not assume that calling the money a “donation” changes the permission question.

The real anxiety is the argument that breaks out in a supporter game’s Discord over whether taking donations is even allowed. That argument is not legal authority; it is a good picture of the dead end. Discord cannot settle what the rights holder allows. For a supporter game, look for the rights holder’s own published policy, then follow it or ask permission through the channel they provide. If no policy exists, the uncertainty does not disappear because the support page says “donate.”

Nintendo’s published Game Content Guidelines for Online Video & Image Sharing Platforms say creators may monetize videos and channels only using monetization methods separately specified by Nintendo, and that other forms of monetization of Nintendo intellectual property for commercial purposes are not permitted (Nintendo guidelines). That page is about online video and image sharing, not a blanket permission slip for supporter games; its value here is the method: use the rights holder’s own policy, and do not stretch it beyond what it says.

Mods can also be governed by the original game’s modding rules, storefront rules, workshop rules, and engine license. A careful support page for a mod usually avoids selling access, promising exclusive files, or implying official endorsement. The line is policy-specific. Treat “can I accept donations?” as an upstream permission question before you build the payment page.

Where do free-game players expect the link?

Place the support link near the game, not just near your personal identity. In practice, that means the page where the player downloads the build, the devlog where they read the patch notes, the Discord channel where they report bugs, and the main menu or credits if your platform rules allow it.

Use contextual copy. After a browser build: “Enjoyed the demo? Help fund controller testing.” Under a changelog: “This patch was free; the next goal is a sound pass.” In a pinned Discord post: “Support the next content drop here.” In a main menu, a quiet “Support development” button is better than a popup that blocks play.

For donation links on Steam, Valve’s Steamworks announcement about written store descriptions says there should be “No links to other websites,” including social media pages, in store page descriptions (Steamworks announcement). Treat the Steam store description as the wrong place for a donation URL; use your own site, Discord, itch.io page, README, release notes, or other channels you control, and review Steamworks rules before placing payment links inside any Steam surface.

If you use Brillay, supporters can pay by card without creating an account, and creators in 41 countries can connect their bank through Stripe. That matters for free-game players because they may like your build but not want to join another platform just to send $5. Check whether your country is on that list before you start.

For small player contributions, Stripe’s published US pricing lists 2.9% + 30¢ per successful domestic online card transaction, which is the typical US online-card processing cost rather than a universal rate for every country, card, or payment method (Stripe pricing). The fixed 30¢ part is why the suggested amounts matter: on a $1 contribution, typical US online-card processing alone is about 33¢ before any platform fee, while on a $5 contribution it is about 45¢.

Here is the arithmetic for a goal, using Brillay’s 5% platform fee and Stripe’s typical US online-card pricing. If 60 players each chip in $5 toward a $300 sound-pass goal, the gross support is $300, Brillay’s platform fee is $15, and typical US online-card processing is about $26.70, leaving about $258.30 before any other costs. If the same $300 arrives as 10 contributions of $30, the platform fee is still $15, but typical US online-card processing is about $11.70. That does not mean small amounts are bad; it means $3, $5, and $10 suggestions often fit free-game support better than only $1.

If your current setup is stream-first, the same placement logic applies: use the tool that matches the player’s context. A stream alert link is useful during a livestream; a free game needs a support link on the game’s page and update posts. For a fee-focused comparison, see collect donations without Streamlabs fees.

What should the goal be?

The goal should be one real production cost with a number attached. Do not make the first goal “make the game better.” Make it “cover the Steam Direct fee,” “pay for one month of multiplayer hosting,” “license 20 UI sound effects,” “hire a composer for the main menu loop,” or “buy two controllers for testing.”

For a free game trying to reach Steam, Valve’s Steam Direct documentation says the Steam Direct Fee is $100 for each product you want to distribute on Steam, and that it is recoupable after the product has at least $1,000 adjusted gross revenue for the Steam Store and in-app purchases (Steam Direct fee). For a game that stays free, that $100 may never recoup through Steam sales, which makes it a clean example of a named player-funded cost.

Good goals have three traits. First, the player can understand the object. Second, the amount is small enough that progress feels possible. Third, reaching the goal does not create a fulfillment burden you did not intend. A free-game support goal should not quietly become a pre-order, beta access sale, or reward ladder. If you are not shipping rewards, say so.

Use plain labels:

• “Fund one server month”
• “Cover the Steam page fee”
• “Pay for the next sound pass”
• “Help buy testing controllers”
• “Fund a Spanish proofreading pass”

Then write one short description: “The game stays free. This goal helps cover one concrete production cost for the next build. Contributions are support for the project, not a purchase of a copy or a reward tier.”

If you need a game-specific walkthrough for choosing the expense, see how indie game devs can fund a game goal. The simplest sequence is: choose one cost, set the target, add the link to the download page and devlog, mention it in the next release note, and thank supporters by describing what the money made possible.

Frequently asked questions

How do I get donations for a free indie game without charging for the game?

Keep the download free and point players to a separate support page with one named goal. A line like “The game is free; this goal funds the next sound pass” is clearer than a generic “donate” button because it tells players what their contribution supports.

Is Ko-fi good for game donations?

Ko-fi supports one-off tips alongside posts, memberships, and shop items, while a Goal keeps one game expense and its progress in focus. Turn one specific game expense into a named Goal with a clear funding target and progress bar.

Can I accept donations for a game mod?

Maybe, but the payment tool is not the deciding factor. Check the original game’s modding rules, platform rules, and rights-holder policy before asking for money, and do not assume “donation” makes a mod acceptable if the owner’s rules say otherwise.

Should I put the donation link inside the game?

Yes, if the platform and storefront rules allow it and the placement is not intrusive. A small “Support development” button in the main menu or credits is usually more natural than a popup, and the same link should also appear on the download page and release notes.

What is a good first goal for a solo game developer?

Choose one cost players can understand: a $100 store fee, a server month, a sound pack, a controller, or a proofreading pass. Avoid vague goals like “support development” until players have already seen that named goals are real and achievable.

A free game can stay free while players help carry the next concrete cost. Name the thing, show the progress, keep the promise small, and put the link where the people who just played will actually see it.

Create your free Brillay page and give your free game one clear goal players can support.