A free alternative with no setup fee and no sales call
Zelos covers open shifts, dispatch and team chat from day one, with nothing held back as a paid add-on.
Volunteer registration, landing pages, hour tracking, and CRM sync
Fits nonprofits with a donor CRM and a volunteer manager to run it.
Open shifts, task dispatch, notice board, and team chat
Built for coordinators who need it working today.
No credit card · Unlimited members on every plan · Set up in under 5 minutes
How signup works in each app
Events on a branded landing page
You build an event landing page and share the link; volunteers register for opportunities, join waitlists, and check in on the day.
Open shifts as the whole product
Admins post shifts and tasks; team members browse and claim what fits their skills and schedule.
What VolunteerHub is better at
If your workflow depends on the things below, VolunteerHub is the right pick.
Donor CRM integration
Connections to Raiser's Edge and Raiser's Edge NXT, Blackbaud CRM, Altru, Luminate, eTapestry, and Salesforce. If volunteer records need to sit beside donor records, that's VolunteerHub's core pitch and Zelos has nothing like it.
Recruitment landing pages
Branded, opportunity-specific landing pages with social sharing and automatic waitlists that register people when a spot opens. Zelos workspaces are invite-only, so it coordinates the team you have rather than growing it.
Check-in, waivers, and hour tracking
OnSite and Kiosk check-in, badge printing, advanced liability waivers, and hour tracking built for grant reporting. Food banks and missions rely on this daily and Zelos doesn't attempt it.
Thirty years in the sector
VolunteerHub has been at this since 1996, with a large base across food banks and rescue missions and support its customers rate highly. Zelos is smaller and doesn't pretend otherwise.
If these bullet points are non-negotiable, you're a VolunteerHub customer.
What Zelos is sharper at
If you don't need the full volunteer-management suite, Zelos is a better fit.
Free that doesn't expire
VolunteerHub starts at $143/month, billed annually, plus a setup fee, with no free plan and no free trial listed. The Zelos free tier has no headcount limit, no trial clock, and no credit card.
Nothing held back as an add-on
CSV export and gamification are marked optional on VolunteerHub's Plus and Pro plans. Data export and leaderboards are extras until you reach Enterprise. Both are included on the Zelos free plan.
Live in five minutes, no call
Sign up and post your first shift the same afternoon. VolunteerHub's path to a price is a call with an expert, a discovery conversation, and a tailored demo.
Chat that goes both ways
VolunteerHub communicates by automated email and text reminders sent out to volunteers. Zelos gives each task its own chat channel, plus group chats and direct messages, so questions and swaps happen in context.
If you're drawn to this kind of simplicity, you should spin up a free project in Zelos right away.
per month
VolunteerHub starts at $143 a month, plus a setup fee.
Zelos starts at nothing.
What you can actually find out before you commit
VolunteerHub publishes starting prices only, and plan limits come from the sales call.
| What you're checking | Zelos | Zelos Pro | VolunteerHub* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | $99/mo | From $143/mo + setup |
| Admin accounts | Unlimited | Unlimited | Not published |
| Volunteer accounts | Unlimited | Unlimited | Capped by plan |
| Communication | Chat, push and email | Chat, push and email | SMS and email |
* VolunteerHub pricing pulled from volunteerhub.com/pricing. Plus starts at $143/month and Pro at $288/month, both billed annually plus a setup fee; Enterprise is quote-only. Plans carry a volunteer limit, though the numbers aren't published, profiles drop out of the count after twelve months without a signup.
Seen enough?
Get started in our self-service.
Start your free project No credit card · Five-minute setup
Teams that pick Zelos over VolunteerHub
Small nonprofits without a volunteer manager
VolunteerHub is built for programmes big enough to justify $143 a month plus setup before the first shift is posted. When coordination is one of six things on your plate, that's a hard first cheque to write. Zelos is free, published, and live the same day.
Learn more →Grassroots and mutual aid groups
No procurement process, no budget approval, and often no legal entity. A quote-only platform with a setup fee is a non-starter before the features even come up. Zelos is free, published, and live the same day.
Learn more →Nonprofits outside the United States
VolunteerHub's integrations centre on US donor CRMs and its customer base is largely American. Zelos is used by coordinators in more than 40 countries, built in Estonia and GDPR-compliant by default.
Learn more →Disaster response teams
When a response scales to thousands in days, there's no time for a discovery call and an implementation window. Zelos handles smart targeting by skill and location, with chat attached to each task.
Learn more →Event staffing and festival crews
Event crews mix paid staff, contractors, and volunteers, and assemble in weeks rather than quarters. Zelos treats everyone as a member who claims work, whether they're paid or not.
Learn more →Sports clubs and community organisations
Match-day volunteers, kit runs, and canteen shifts across a season, usually run by a parent committee rather than staff. Unlimited admins means every section lead gets access without an upgrade.
Learn more →From teams who picked Zelos
What teams who picked Zelos say
"It helped us a lot reducing the planning overhead. It is way more motivating for staff to pick their task than just getting assigned!"
Manuel W.
Coordinator, Events Services
Full review → "We were looking for a system to handle our concert staff. Zelos is really easy to access both for the administrator and the users!"
Niels Peter H.
Board member, Music
Full review → "The overall experience has been great, the customer service is amazing and I can't wait for all the new changes coming up in the app!"
Celia D.
Coordinator, Motion Pictures and Film
Full review →Free for teams of any size
No credit card, no trial expiration.
Pro starts at $99/month, never per person.
Nonprofit and education discounts on Pro and Enterprise.
Frequently asked questions
How much does VolunteerHub cost?
Is there a free version or free trial?
Can I try Zelos without talking to sales?
Is there a limit on how many volunteers I can have?
Do I have to pay extra for data export?
Does Zelos have gamification?
Does Zelos have team chat like VolunteerHub?
Does Zelos integrate with our donor CRM?
Does Zelos handle waivers, check-in kiosks, and hour tracking?
What's the catch with the Zelos free plan?
Can I use both Zelos and VolunteerHub?
Ready to let your team
pick their own work?
Create your first project in under five minutes. No credit card, no onboarding call.
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Trusted by coordinators in 40+ countries since 2018.