Every nonprofit evaluating Salesforce hears about the 10 free licences. What gets lost is everything around them: how much the 11th licence costs, what the build costs, and when a donor or volunteer portal changes the budget. This guide takes the programme at face value and prices the rest.
- Eligible nonprofits get their first 10 licences free through Power of Us. At the Nonprofit Cloud Core list price of $70, that is worth $8,400 a year.
- With 10 or fewer staff users the licence bill is zero, and the budget is the build: about $22,900 in year one in our 8-user example.
- A 15-person charity pays about $3,900 a year in licences and about $29,300 in year one. Over three years: about $53,400.
- A donor portal for 500 occasional logins adds $3,000 a year in licences at list (about $2,100 at the rates we see on contracts) and $16,250 in build.
What Power of Us actually gives you
Power of Us is the programme through which Salesforce donates licences to eligible nonprofits. The first 10 licences of Nonprofit Cloud are free each year for as long as you qualify. TwinStack handles the application for clients at no charge, but eligibility rules are Salesforce's, so confirm them before you plan around the donation.
How big is the gift? At the $70 Core list price, 10 licences are $700 a month or $8,400 a year. Put differently: for a team of 10 or fewer, the software itself costs nothing, and the entire conversation shifts to what it takes to get the system working.
Nonprofit Cloud prices after the free ten
| Edition | Nonprofit list per user / month | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Core | $70 | Entry tier of the new lineup |
| Advanced | $125 | More security control and AI allowance |
| Max | $285 | The single tier for Grantmaking |
| Legacy Enterprise | $60 | Renewals only |
| Legacy Unlimited | $100 | Renewals only |
Verified 29 September 2026. Nonprofit Cloud for Grantmaking is a separate product at $285 (Max) in the new lineup.
Nonprofits negotiate too, though less. On client contracts we have seen Nonprofit Cloud Enterprise at $50.40 to $60 against a $60 list, so the estimator assumes about 7% below list. Our accuracy article explains where that number comes from.
Three real charity budgets
These come from running the estimator with offshore delivery at $65 an hour and benchmark pricing.
| Charity | Licences, year 1 | Services, year 1 | Year 1 total | 3-year total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 staff users, donors only | $0 | $22,864 | $22,864 | $38,464 |
| 15 staff users, donors and volunteers | $3,906 | $25,405 | $29,311 | $53,440 |
| 40 staff users, donors, programmes, volunteers, plus a donor portal | $33,348 | $72,872 | $106,220 | $194,638 |
TwinStack Cost Estimator, 29 September 2026 data. Power of Us applied in the first two rows; the 40-user row assumes no donation.
Reading the first row
At eight users the donated licences cover everyone, and the first year is a $22,864 build: about 120 hours of QuickStart configuration, 90 hours to move spreadsheets in, training and a small support block. That is the number a trustee needs to see, not "free".
Reading the second row
At 15 users, ten are donated and five are paid. Five Core seats at the benchmark price are $3,906 a year, no more than a modest annual software subscription, but the first year is still about $29,000 because the build is the real investment.
The costs outside the licence
Data migration
Most charities arrive with spreadsheets. We model 90 hours to clean, map and load them, about $5,850 offshore. Repeat imports later are easier with a purpose-built loader; the free Smart Lookup Data Loader was built for that.
Forms
If volunteers and applicants already use Google Forms, connecting them directly saves a re-keying job. See Google Forms to Salesforce for nonprofits and the free Google Form Auto Sync app.
Portals for donors and volunteers
A self-service portal is where nonprofit budgets jump. Licences are cheap, with Customer Community at $0.50 a login or $1.25 a member per month, but the build is real work: about 250 hours for an occasional-use portal and 450 for a regularly used one. For 500 occasional logins a month that is $3,000 a year in licences at list, about $2,100 at the rates we see on real contracts, plus $16,250 of build at offshore rates. We explain how to choose between the two pricing models in Experience Cloud pricing.
Grants
If you give out grants, the right product is Nonprofit Cloud for Grantmaking, which ships with intake, reviewer scoring, awards and payment tracking. It is $285 per user at list in the new lineup, and the Max edition includes 100 Customer Community Plus logins a month for applicants. It costs more than Core, but replicating that workflow on a plain CRM is months of custom work.
Three common mistakes nonprofits make
- Assuming free means a free project. The licences are donated. The people who configure Salesforce are not.
- Buying more than they need. Nonprofit Cloud Core, at $70 per user, is enough for most small organisations, and Max at $285 is a very different budget.
- Forgetting the second year. Our three-year totals show that after year one the cost drops to a support retainer of about $7,800 a year plus any paid licences. Budget for both so trustees are not surprised.
Five ways to keep a nonprofit budget lean
- Stay at 10 or fewer paid-for staff users in phase one if you can. The donation covers the licences entirely.
- Phase the build: donors and volunteers first, programmes second, portal third.
- Ask funders whether implementation can sit in a capacity-building grant. It is a one-off cost that suits that kind of funding.
- Choose offshore or nearshore delivery for the build and keep a small, steady support block rather than a large upfront project.
- Plan the renewal. Licences usually rise yearly; our model uses 6%.
To price your own organisation, start the nonprofit estimate. It asks whether you are applying for Power of Us and applies the donation automatically.
Frequently asked questions
What is Salesforce Power of Us?
It is the Salesforce donation programme for eligible nonprofits. The first 10 licences of Nonprofit Cloud are donated, every year, for as long as the organisation qualifies. Everything beyond the first 10 users, plus the implementation work, is paid.
How much does Nonprofit Cloud cost after the free licences?
At list price, Nonprofit Cloud Core is $70 per user per month, Advanced is $125 and Max is $285. Legacy Enterprise is $60 and Unlimited is $100. On our contract data nonprofits typically pay about 7% below list.
Is Salesforce implementation free for nonprofits?
No. Power of Us donates licences, not consulting. A small Nonprofit Cloud build with spreadsheet migration and training costs roughly $22,000 to $29,000 in year one at offshore rates, and more at onshore rates.
Do nonprofits get a discount on Experience Cloud portals?
Yes. Salesforce publishes lower nonprofit rates: Customer Community is $0.50 per login or $1.25 per member per month, against $2 and $5 for businesses. A portal also needs an Enterprise-level edition and a build project.
What is the cheapest way for a small charity to start with Salesforce?
Stay at or under 10 staff users, take the donated licences, keep the first phase to two or three outcomes such as donors and volunteers, and import existing data with a repeatable tool. Add programmes, a portal or grants in later phases.
How much do 10 free Salesforce licences save a nonprofit?
At the Nonprofit Cloud Core list price of $70 per user per month, 10 donated licences are worth $8,400 a year. For a team of 10 or fewer staff users the licence bill is zero, and the budget is the build.
Prices in this article are Salesforce list prices in US dollars, per user per month billed annually unless stated, as verified on 29 September 2026. Salesforce changes pricing, so confirm with Salesforce before you sign. Figures marked "estimator" come from the TwinStack Cost Estimator and are estimates, not quotes.
Budget your charity's Salesforce
Choose nonprofit, say whether you are applying for Power of Us, and the estimator shows licences, build and a three-year total.