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2025 Fundraising Campaign Results

· 3 min read
Martin Magdinier

As we close the 2025 community giving campaign, I want to take a moment to share the results, reflect on what we learned, and thank everyone who supported OpenRefine over the past few months.

This campaign was one part of a broader effort to better understand how community giving and merchandise sales can contribute to OpenRefine’s sustainability, alongside grants and institutional funding. It was also our first time running a structured community giving campaign, and the results provide a useful benchmark if we decide to repeat this exercise in the coming years.

Campaign results​

Outside of the FLOSS/fund contribution, the campaign raised approximately USD 595 through a combination of one-time donations, store sales, and new recurring support.

One-time donations​

We received five one-time donations, for a total of USD 317.21. Four donations came through the donation page, and one came via the store checkout.

Merchandise store​

During the campaign period, the OpenRefine store recorded 13 orders, representing:

  • USD 899.86 in total sales
  • USD 107 in total profit
  • USD 69.22 average order value
  • 11.89% average profit per sale

The most popular items were:

The store continues to be a useful way for people to support the project and show affiliation, even if it remains a modest source of funding.

Github Sponsor Recurring donations​

We welcomed one new recurring donor at USD 10 per month on our GitHub Sponsor page. OpenRefine now has eight recurring donors, contributing USD 67 per month, or approximately USD 804 per year.

Overall total​

Combining one-time donations, store profit, and the three months of the new recurring donation, the campaign raised approximately USD 595.21.

Outreach and engagement​

To support the campaign, we reached out to the community through:

  • Banner on OpenRefine website homepage
  • Two emails sent to approximately 265 community members
  • A limited number of social media posts across LinkedIn, Mastodon, and X
  • Ongoing forum updates focused on transparency around funding efforts

We did not run the campaign using OpenRefine notification, which is something we may explore in future outreach efforts.

While the financial outcome was modest, the campaign provided useful insight into engagement patterns and how different parts of the community prefer to support the project.

What we learned​

This campaign confirmed something we already suspected: community giving alone is not sufficient to sustain the OpenRefine core team. While community support remains important, long-term sustainability will continue to depend primarily on grant funding and institutional partnerships aligned with OpenRefine’s mission.

We will continue to explore these funding paths and share progress transparently as we refine our approach.

Thank you​

Thank you to everyone who contributed, shared the campaign, bought something from the store, or followed along. OpenRefine exists because of its community, and your engagement continues to shape the project in important ways.