The short answer: Proof is king. Many consultants charge hourly, and they can make meaningful additions to an organization’s ability to fundraise effectively, but they are too often limited in their scope and expertise to address all the governance, programmatic, and risk elements that must be managed to enable fundraising to succeed. More substantive engagements, such as a fundraising plan, a business plan or a board overhaul, are priced as a project or a monthly retainer rather than by the hour. What you’ll actually pay depends on scope, how long the engagement lasts and how senior the team is.
Common pricing models
| Model | How it works | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Hourly | You pay for time used | Short advice, reviews, coaching calls |
| Fixed project fee | One price for a defined deliverable | Assessments, business plans, feasibility studies |
| Monthly retainer | Ongoing access to a team for a set fee | Fundraising acceleration, coaching, campaign support |
| Commission or percentage | A share of funds raised | Not recommended. The AFP Code of Ethics prohibits percentage-based compensation for fundraisers. |
What drives the price
- Scope: a one-time assessment costs far less than a multi-month, embedded engagement.
- Seniority: experienced firm partners charge more than individual or junior consultants. Retainers for the most proven consultants can range from $10,000 to $30,000 a month.
- Deliverable vs. capability: a report is cheaper than coaching your team until the new system works, but the report is more likely to sit on a shelf.
- Organization size and complexity: more programs, sites and funding streams mean more complexity and a correspondingly larger expense.
How to judge ROI
Compare the fee with the revenue or impact the engagement is designed to unlock, and with the cost of the alternative. For example, fundraising staff turnover has been estimated to cost organizations well over $100,000 per departure (Chronicle of Philanthropy). Ask any consultant for:
- Specific, measurable outcomes from similar clients
- Who will actually do the work
- How they’ll transfer skills to your team
- Actual results produced (keeping in mind that you must do your part)
A useful maxim is that you want “RESULT-ants,” not “consultants.”
How Altruist Partners prices its work
We scope each engagement to the outcomes you’re targeting and start with a free 30-minute consultation. Many clients begin with a Performance Assessment, a fixed-scope analysis of about 50 variables delivered in a few weeks, before committing to a larger engagement.
Frequently asked questions
Is it worth hiring a nonprofit consultant?
Only when the consultant is tied to measurable outcomes and builds your team’s capability. If the deliverable is a report with no implementation support, or a squishy facilitation process – hard no. Altruist Partners has a decades-long track record of returning our clients $25 for every $1 in our fees, often within the first fiscal year of retaining us. If your prospective consultant cannot speak “ROI,” well, there likely isn’t one.
Can grants pay for consultants?
Sometimes. A number of foundations offer capacity-building grants that cover consulting for planning, fundraising and board development. The most engaged and committed boards often pass the hat among themselves and hire the consultant directly.
How long do nonprofit consulting engagements last?
Assessments usually take a few weeks, and business plans a few months. Coaching and deeper engagements working side-by-side often run six to nine months on average. Long-term, light-touch support is available for as long as our clients need it. Deep relationships that produce sustained results are our goal.
Sources: Nonprofit.ist 2025 Consultant Cost & Compensation Survey (reported by The NonProfit Times, January 2026); AFP Code of Ethical Standards; Chronicle of Philanthropy.