The CRM for small nonprofits run by one or two people
Orbit is a CRM for nonprofits with 16 AI agents built in. June keeps donors warm with personal check-ins, Tess drafts volunteer and grant follow-up, and Mia briefs you before funder meetings. Track donor pipelines and grant deadlines in one place, and approve every message before it sends. Free to start, no credit card.
Why is donor and grant work so easy to drop?
A small nonprofit runs on relationships and deadlines, and both fall through the cracks the same way. A donor who gave last year never hears from you until you need money again. A grant with a hard deadline sneaks up because nobody owned the calendar. A volunteer who offered to help gets no reply and never comes back. None of it is about caring less. It is one or two people doing the work of five.
A donor pipeline behaves a lot like a sales pipeline: prospects, cultivation, an ask, a gift, and stewardship after. Grants are deals with deadlines. Volunteers are leads who already raised their hand. Treat all three like the relationships they are, and the same engine that helps a solopreneur keep clients warm keeps a mission funded.
The agents that fit a nonprofit
Orbit ships 16 agents. Three carry a small development shop:
- June keeps donors and lapsed supporters warm. When someone has gone quiet for 30 days or more, she drafts a specific, personal check-in, an impact update or a thank-you, not a fundraising blast. You approve every word.
- Tess scans your inbox each morning and drafts follow-up for volunteers who offered to help, partners who went quiet, and grant officers waiting on a reply, so nobody who reaches out gets ignored.
- Mia hands you a one-page brief 75 minutes before any funder or board meeting: who they are, your history, their giving record, and what to raise.
Set it up for donor and grant work
- Donor pipeline stages: Prospect, Cultivation, Ask made, Gift received, Stewardship.
- A separate grants pipeline with stages tied to deadlines: Identified, LOI, Application, Submitted, Decision.
- Tags for donors, volunteers, board members, and grantors so smart views show one group at a time.
- Custom fields for giving level, last gift date, and grant deadline, with scheduled tasks that surface a deadline well before it lands.
- A booking page so funders and volunteers can pick a slot without the back-and-forth.
How the stewardship engine runs
Retention is cheaper than acquisition in fundraising the same way it is in business. The donor you already have is worth more than the one you have to find, and the way you keep them is consistent, genuine stewardship. June handles the cadence so you do not have to remember every anniversary and impact moment by hand. It is the nonprofit version of AI client check-ins, tuned to gratitude instead of upsell.
Everything stays personal because nothing auto-sends. Each donor and volunteer carries a full timeline, every draft is a card you approve, and the warmth that keeps people giving stays yours. If you have never run donors as a pipeline before, this explains what a pipeline is and the idea maps cleanly onto development work.
Donors leave in silence, not in anger. Orbit makes sure the silence never starts.
Keep exploring
Frequently asked questions
What is the best CRM for a small nonprofit?+
Orbit fits small nonprofits where one or two people run donors, grants, and volunteers at once. It tracks donor and grant pipelines and uses AI agents to keep donors warm, follow up with volunteers, and brief you before funder meetings. Free to start, no credit card.
Can Orbit track grant deadlines?+
Yes. Run a separate grants pipeline with stages tied to deadlines, add a grant-deadline custom field, and set scheduled tasks that surface well before the date so nothing sneaks up on you.
Will Orbit's donor messages feel personal?+
They are meant to. June drafts specific, personal check-ins, not blasts, and nothing sends until you approve the card. Donors carry full timelines so every message reflects the real relationship.
How much does a nonprofit CRM like Orbit cost?+
The free plan is free forever: all 16 agents with your own AI key, unlimited contacts, one pipeline, a booking page, and forms. AI providers bill you directly at cost, typically cents to a few dollars a month. Gmail and calendar sync are part of the upcoming Pro plan.
Keep donors warm and grants on time
Bring your own AI key and June, Tess, and Mia get to work on your mission. Free plan, no credit card.
Free forever plan. No credit card. No spam.