How much does a fundraising consultant cost in the UK?

The broadest figure comes from a free advice website for charities that is not itself a consultancy (it lists paid adverts from bid writers, and its page credits input from a freelancer marketplace): freelance fundraisers' rates "typically range from £250 to £400 per day, with some as low as £150 and others as high as £800. Agencies may charge more." (its guide to freelance fundraisers)

At the top end, 1 supplier's guide says individual or new consultants "may charge from £200 or £300 per day, whereas some specialist agencies may charge up to £2,000 per day" (the supplier's guide to fees, a supplier's own figure).

The 2 firms among our 20 that show prices fall within these ranges. 1 asks from £350 a day for grant writing. The other, which mostly writes tenders for businesses, asks £450 to £750 a day (both websites checked again on 27 September 2026).

If a working day is 7 hours, £250 to £400 a day comes to roughly £36 to £57 an hour. None of our 20 shows an hourly price. "When employing a consultant, most charities pay for support based on a daily rate," says 1 supplier (its answers to common questions). If you do get an hourly quote, ask how many hours it assumes, so you can set it against a day rate.

• By the day (a day rate). In our view, this suits work that is hard to size in advance, such as reviewing where your income comes from, or covering a post while you recruit.

• By the job (a fixed fee). 1 price for 1 agreed piece of work, for example a single bid or a written fundraising plan. You know the cost up front; ask what happens if the job turns out bigger.

• By the month (a retainer). A set monthly sum for continuing work, for example a regular flow of bids. Both firms in our 20 that show prices list monthly packages: 1 a writing retainer from £950 a month, the other full bid writing support from £1,950 a month (their websites, checked 27 September 2026).

Before you ask anyone for a price, write down what you need. The Chartered Institute of Fundraising says "a written brief is strongly advisable" (CIoF guidance on working with consultants). When every supplier prices the same brief, their quotes can be set side by side.

We found no neutral source giving a standard price for 1 grant application or 1 fundraising plan, and the 1 firm in our 20 that publishes fixed fees for writing a bid prices tenders for businesses, not grant applications.

The size of the job varies: a 2-page form for a local trust is not the same as a large bid with a full budget and evidence. Ask each supplier how many days they expect to spend and on what, then multiply by their rate. A cheaper day rate can still mean a dearer job, if it takes more days.

Ask, too, how much notice they need. 1 bid-writing firm says it aims "to have at least four weeks to put together a good solid application" (the firm's guide, a supplier's own view, 2021). In our view, a rushed deadline costs more or produces less.

A supplier must register for VAT once its taxable turnover for the last 12 months goes over £90,000, or is expected to in the next 30 days (GOV.UK). A smaller freelancer who is not registered charges no VAT at all.

For many charities, VAT on these fees is a real cost. HMRC says "many of the goods and services that charities buy will be subject to VAT, regardless of whether the charity is registered for VAT", and that only "charities that are VAT registered may be able to reclaim some of" it.

Even a registered charity "cannot reclaim any VAT it is charged on purchases that directly relate to non-business (outside the scope) activities" (HMRC, VAT Notice 701/1). Non-business activities are the work you do not charge for, such as free services paid for by grants and donations. At the standard rate of 20 per cent (GOV.UK), a £300 day becomes £360 if you cannot reclaim the VAT. Compare quotes with VAT included.

A fundraising manager for trusts, foundations and public bodies such as councils, at a smaller charity, is paid £38,000 to £45,000 a year, and an officer £28,000 to £35,000 (Harris Hill Salary Survey 2025, a charity recruitment agency's survey; its 2026 edition sits behind a sign-up form). The agency notes that most of the jobs it works on are in London and the South, and that pay elsewhere is typically a little lower. Take a salary of £40,000. On top of it, you pay:

• Employer's National Insurance: 15 per cent of pay above £5,000 a year, so £5,250 (GOV.UK, rates for employers 2026 to 2027). Charities can claim the Employment Allowance (GOV.UK, who can claim), which takes up to £10,500 a year off the whole charity's National Insurance bill, not each person's (GOV.UK, rates for employers 2026 to 2027). If your existing staff already use it up, a new post pays the full £5,250.

• A workplace pension: at least 3 per cent of pay between £6,240 and £50,270, so about £1,013 (GOV.UK).

Since 1 November 2025, the Fundraising Regulator's Code "no longer sets rules around commission based payments". Instead it asks charities to consider whether the way they pay fundraisers "fits with an organisation's values" (as summarised by the law firm Bates Wells on 4 November 2025). The advice we found is still against it.

The Chartered Institute of Fundraising says commission "should only be paid in exceptional circumstances" (CIoF), and the consultants' own body, the Association of Fundraising Consultants and Freelancers, has a code of practice under which members' fees are not worked out as a share of the money raised (AFCF code of practice). 1 supplier says it understands commission payments are "typically 15%" (its answers to common questions, a supplier's own figure).

Offered "no win, no fee"? Find out what the supplier earns on a bid that is turned down, and whether your funders accept a fee paid out of their grant.

Before you pay, look at what costs nothing:

• Your local charity support body (often called a council for voluntary service, or CVS) "may have free or low-cost bid reviewing or bid writing service" (NCVO, last reviewed 2020).

• Some funders pay for consultants for the charities they fund. Lloyds Bank Foundation's support "would normally be up to six days of consultancy" (Lloyds Bank Foundation), and it "is provided free of charge to partners" (Lloyds Bank Foundation, what you can expect).
• Cranfield Trust offers "free and pro bono management support" to eligible charities (Cranfield Trust).

Money given with no conditions, known as unrestricted funding, is money "organisations can use for anything within their charitable objects" (IVAR), and that includes paying for fundraising help. Some funders give a lot of core or unrestricted funding: "Around two thirds of our active grants are for core costs, or are unrestricted," says Esmée Fairbairn Foundation (Esmée Fairbairn).

A grant for a named project is tied to that project. NCVO advises you to "check whether the grant allows you to ask for funding for core costs or overheads" (NCVO). When unsure, ask the funder before you spend.

Across the UK voluntary sector, 10 per cent of spending, £6.3 billion, goes on generating funds (NCVO Almanac 2024, 2021/22 figures).

We found no neutral body that publishes a sector-wide success rate for UK grant applications. 1 consultancy's 2026 survey of 75 charities, most with an experienced fundraiser on staff, found an average trust success rate of 39 per cent among the 61 that gave trust figures.

The same article reports that a shared list of 122 funders' success rates averages 22 per cent once the top and bottom tenth are removed, and suggests charities without a professional fundraiser may do "well below 22%" (the consultancy's report, its own figures). On any of these figures, more bids fail than win. In our view, you should measure a supplier by what is in their control: deadlines met, each bid matched to what that funder says it supports, and a written log of every bid sent.

The Chartered Institute of Fundraising is plain: "You must have a contract in place before work starts" (CIoF). If the person will ask for money on your behalf and is paid for it, the law also requires a written agreement with set contents (Charity Commission, CC20). On money, the contract should cover:

• How the fee works: by the day, by the job or by the month, and whether VAT is included.
• What the fee pays for: the research, each draft, how many rounds of changes, and whether they help you learn from a rejection.
• Expenses: travel and anything else billed separately.

• When you pay: a date for each payment. The CIoF asks charities to "agree and stick with payment schedules" (CIoF).
• Insurance: ask for professional indemnity cover. The CIoF explains that it "covers financial loss, personal injury and property damage resulting from your negligent act, error or omission while you're working for a client" (CIoF).

• Changes and ending early: the CIoF asks charities not to make "arbitrary changes part way through"; if the scope changes, "renegotiate the contract".

1. How many days will this take, and who will do them?
2. Are you charging by the day, the job or the month, and what if the work grows?
3. Is VAT included?
4. What does the price cover: research, drafts, changes, help after a decision?
5. Will you bill any expenses on top?
6. Does any part of your fee depend on what we raise?