Frequently Asked Questions
Is it really free?
Yes. 100% free to use. We never charge members.
How do surprise donations work?
All tips are used to assist and help further the release of more frequent surprise donations. Tips are revenue of Surprise Donations LLC and are used to maintain and operate the site; one of those operations is issuing surprise donations. Member-to-member donation money belongs to the members and is never held, pooled, or redistributed by us.
Do I have to be a certain age?
All members must be 18 or older.
How do I list a free item?
Sign up, then click “List a free item” on the Classifieds page.
How do I receive a free item?
Open the item page and click “Request item.” You'll be connected with the owner.
Why do you ask me to send a thank-you?
Showing appreciation keeps our community kind and welcoming.
Are direct messages private?
Yes. Direct messages are private 1:1 conversations — only you and the other member can read them. Messages aren't shown to other members or visitors.
How often do you send Surprise Cash Donations?
Surprise cash donations are sent out a minimum of once per week, and up to every day depending on the revenue we take in. All tips are used to assist and help further the release of more frequent surprise donations. The more tip and advertising revenue we receive, the more frequently surprise donations can be issued.
How long does it take for a tip to reach Surprise Donations?
Your card, Apple Pay or Google Pay confirms instantly — the thank-you screen appears right away. The funds then settle into our platform balance in about 2 business days (US), and take another 1–2 business days to reach our bank. Your tip helps assist and further the release of more frequent surprise donations as soon as it confirms.
How long until a member receives their surprise donation?
First the recipient confirms how they'd like to receive it and connects a bank account. Once that's done, the transfer is started immediately and usually lands in their bank within 1–2 business days. A member's very first payout can take longer — up to about 7 days — while their bank verifies the account. If a member hasn't connected a bank yet, the clock starts the moment they do. Requests made on weekends or holidays begin processing the next business day.
Someone wants to send me a donation — what do I do?
You'll get a bell alert, an email and a banner on your phone. Here's the whole process:
- Open the message. The donation request appears as a green panel at the top of that conversation (you can also reach it from the bell or the email link).
- Choose how you want to receive it: In person, By mail or Direct to bank (Stripe). You can also Decline. Nothing is charged to the donor until you answer.
- If you chose in person or by mail, reply in the chat with the details you're comfortable sharing (a meeting place, or a mailing address) and arrange it directly with the donor.
- If you chose direct to bank, tap Connect a bank account right inside that green panel (or the wallet icon marked Get paid — bank in the top menu) and follow Stripe's short form. Then come back to the message and press Re-check my bank to confirm.
- Once you confirm, the donor can send the money and it lands in your bank account — usually 2-4 business days (a first payout can take longer).
- Surprise Donations sends its donations the same way: pick Direct to bank, connect your bank, and the platform releases the money automatically — no reply needed.
Remember to keep a photo on your profile — it is required to be eligible for any donation. And if your bank is not connected yet, we will keep sending you friendly reminders with a one-click link.
I received a Surprise Donations gift card — what do I do?
It's a real Visa gift card, already loaded and active, tucked inside a Surprise Donations sleeve — you can spend it anywhere Visa is accepted. To let us know it reached you, and to see what the card looks like, open the Gift cards link at the bottom of any page (surprisedonations.com/card), sign in, and enter the code printed on the back of the sleeve. A real person checks every code by hand.
I was sent a donation — will you remind me to finish setting it up?
Yes. If you accept a donation and choose to receive it through the site, we'll send a friendly reminder the next day, then every few days (up to four reminders) until your bank account is connected. Each reminder includes a one-click link to finish. As soon as you're set up, the donation is sent automatically — you don't have to ask the donor again.
What happens if a donation request isn't answered?
Nothing is charged until the recipient answers. If a request sits unanswered, we send gentle reminders, and a few days before it expires we let both people know it's about to close. The donor is also notified if a week goes by with the request still waiting, so they always know where things stand.
What is the Monthly Surprise Winner Giveaway?
Every month we spotlight one member of our community as our Monthly Surprise Winner Giveaway recipient. This is our free monthly member spotlight — separate from the surprise donations we and other members send out every week. Every Monthly Recipient will receive a exciting special gift and is automatically entered into our Ad Feature Pool — a chance to be spotlighted (with your consent) in future Surprise Donations commercials and shown in our success story Reels.
Do I need a profile photo to receive donations?
Yes. To be eligible for any type of donation — member-to-member donations, free-item gifts arranged as donations, our weekly surprise cash donations, and the Monthly Surprise Winner Giveaway — you must have a photo on your member profile. Photos keep our community real and trustworthy and help protect both donors and recipients. Add yours any time from Edit Profile; eligibility turns on right away.
Can my church, food bank, radio/TV station or nonprofit advertise for free?
Yes. Qualifying organizations — churches and places of worship, food banks and pantries, radio and TV stations, registered nonprofits, fire departments and firefighter associations, police and law enforcement associations, and veterans organizations — can advertise with us at no charge. A qualifying organization gets one placement of its choice (a banner slot, a promoted marketplace listing, or a sponsored feed post), free and ongoing while it stays in good standing. Open the Advertise page, click “Apply for free advertising,” and tell us about your organization. We review every application by hand and reply by email.
How is Surprise Donations different from Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and X?
Big social platforms run on a heavy machine-learning feed — large ML models rank every post to maximize your watch time and engagement, which requires massive infrastructure (GPU clusters, feature stores, billions of events per day) and is tuned to sell ads against your attention. Surprise Donations uses a simple chronological, trust-based feed because our goal is generosity between real neighbors, not ad revenue. We don't harvest your behavior to target ads, and every donation flows through a chargeback-safe request-first process: the recipient confirms how they want to receive help before any money moves. Generosity is the product — the feed exists to support giving, not to hold your attention.
How do I install the app on my iPhone or iPad?
- Open surprisedonations.com in Safari (Apple only allows installing from Safari — not Chrome or Firefox on iPhone/iPad).
- Tap the Share icon at the bottom of the screen.
- Scroll down and tap Add to Home Screen.
- Tap Add in the top-right corner. The app icon will appear on your Home Screen.
How do I install the app on my Mac (MacBook or iMac)?
- Open surprisedonations.com in Safari.
- In the top menu bar, click File → Add to Dock…
- Click Add. The app icon appears in your Dock and Launchpad.
- Prefer Chrome or Edge? Click the install icon in the address bar, or open the browser menu and choose Install Surprise Donations…
How do I install the app on my Android phone?
- Open surprisedonations.com in Chrome.
- Tap the Install app button if it appears, or tap the menu ⋮ in the top-right.
- Choose Install app (or Add to Home screen).
- Tap Install. The app icon appears on your Home screen.
How do I install the app on my Windows PC?
- Open surprisedonations.com in Chrome or Microsoft Edge.
- Look for the install icon on the right side of the address bar and click it.
- If you don't see it, open the browser menu (⋮ in Chrome, … in Edge) and choose Install Surprise Donations… or Apps → Install this site as an app.
- Click Install. The app appears in your Start menu and can be pinned to the taskbar.
Can I change the site language?
- Yes. Look at the top-right of any page for the globe icon next to your current language code (e.g. EN).
- Tap the globe to open the language menu.
- Pick English or Español. A check mark appears next to the active language.
- Your choice is saved on this device — and to your profile if you're signed in — so the site stays in your language next time.
How do calls and notifications alert me on my phone?
Surprise Donations can ring and pop up alerts on your phone, tablet, or laptop — no phone number needed. One toggle now powers both incoming-call ringing and phone alerts for your notifications, and it works through your browser's notifications.
- On the device you want alerts on, sign in and go to Settings → Notifications, then turn on Ring & notify this device.
- When your browser asks, tap Allow to grant notification permission.
- iPhone / iPad only: open the site in Safari, tap Share → Add to Home Screen, then open Surprise Donations from the new Home Screen icon before turning the toggle on — Apple requires this for all phone alerts, not just calls.
- Repeat on every device you want alerts on — phone, tablet, laptop. You can turn it off on any device anytime from the same screen.
You don't need the site open. As long as you're signed in on that device and the toggle is on, you'll get alerts with sound and vibration for incoming calls, new direct messages, site announcements, and bell notifications like follows, comments and donation activity. Likes never send a phone alert. A few alerts — donation activity and new free items — are always on for every member and can't be switched off.
Which alerts pop up on my phone?
With Ring & notify this device turned on, these wake your phone:
- Incoming member calls (with ringtone and vibration)
- New direct messages
- Site announcements from Surprise Donations
- Bell notifications — new followers, comments, and donation activity
Likes do not send a phone alert — they still appear on your bell inside the site. That's on purpose, so your phone isn't buzzing all day. Donation activity and new free items are always on and also arrive by email.
Which alerts can't be turned off?
For safety and fairness, three kinds of alerts are always on for every member and can't be switched off:
- Someone wants to send you a donation or a surprise donation
- A response to a donation request you sent
- A new free item posted to the community
Each of these sends a bell notification, a phone alert (if that device's toggle is on), and an email. Everything else — follows, comments, likes and messages — stays under your control in Settings → Notifications. Emails still respect unsubscribes for deliverability.