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You are here: Home / Blog Post / List of 35+ silent auction software vendors (including mobile bidding vendors)
Nov 06

List of 35+ silent auction software vendors (including mobile bidding vendors)

Sherry Truhlar 5 Comments

Screen shot of mobile bidding software on phone, silent auction software vendors Bidpal

This is the text I received from GreaterGiving, inviting me to bid in a school’s online silent auction.

This is a good post to share with your other Gala Chairs who are seeking to invest or change their auction software, but don’t know all the players.

==============================

It’s been five years since I published a list of silent auction software vendors.

Specifically it was a list of mobile bidding software vendors.  Back then, mobile bidding had been growing in popularity.  Sharing a list of companies selling the tool seemed like a good idea.

I struggled with what to name the post — Mobile bidding?  Electronic bidding?  Text bidding or text-to-bid?  Online bidding?

The industry hadn’t yet settled on common terms. Each vendor had its own branded name to describe the concept of bidding on a device (phone, iPad) instead of a paper bid sheet.  

Beyond the naming conventions, another difference of the times was that not all traditional silent auction software vendors had updated their code to accommodate mobile bidding.

Some partnered with the newcomers, allowing companies like BidPal (now called OneCause) to bridge into their robust auction management software systems while they themselves raced to build out their own tool for mobile bidding.

Bidpal silent auction software vendors mobile bidding text

BidPal was one of the first silent auction software vendors to offer mobile bidding. One client used the BidPal (now, OneCause) platform for its own silent auction. This screenshot shows the alerts I received.

Simultaneously, the mobile bidding companies worked to build out their auction management platform to offer the functionality that had traditionally been the domain of  long-standing companies like GreaterGiving, Maestrosoft, and AuctionTracker.

Everything changed quickly, and it’s still changing.

CEOs have been fired.  Employees have switched companies. Name changes are common.  Mergers and acquisitions are prolific.

It’s time to share an updated list.

I offer this list without commentary on price or quality of service.  At least 25 of the companies mentioned offer some form of mobile bidding.

In addition to these companies, others offer payment processing to the nonprofit auction industry but do not also offer a silent auction management system.  I didn’t include them in the list.

Regardless of your budget, you can find a silent auction software package to fit your pocketbook. 

Some of these systems start at less than $100 for small events.

Others are larger, more comprehensive and offer CRM capabilities, too.

====================

  1. 32auctions.com (Madison, WI)
  2. AuctionCoChair.com
  3. AuctionHarmony.com (Minneapolis, MN)
  4. Auction & Events Solutions (AES) – www.AESAuctions.com (Englewood, CO)
  5. Auction Express XT from Sterling Sound Data – www.CharityAuctionSoftware.com (Chicago, IL)
  6. Auction Frogs – www.auctionfrogs.com (Boise, ID)
  7. AuctionStar – www.barcodedauctions.com (Houston, TX)
  8. Auction Systems / Auction! – www.AuctionSystems.com (Colorado Springs, CO)
  9. Auctria.com (formerly known as CharityAuctionOrganizer). (Canadian software company)
  10. AuctionZoom / BidStation- GoAuctionZoom.com (Vancouver, Canada)
  11. BenefitEvents.com (New York, NY)
  12. BetterUnite.com (Austin, TX) – this is a donor management/CRM software with several modules tied to events, like text-to-give and auctions.
  13. BidCoz.com (Nashville, TN)
  14. BiddingForGood.com (Cambridge, MA) – sold in 2015. Now owned by FrontStream Holdings
  15. BiddingOwl.com (Gaylord, MI)
  16. Bid-Partner.com (Buffalo, MN)
  17. BidRocket.com (formerly AuctionSource) (Austin, TX)
  18. CharityAuctionsToday.com (Willowbrook, IL)
  19. ClickBid ClickBidOnline.com (Grand Rapids, MI)
  20. CommunityAuctionServices.com (product is called EasyAuction) (Colorado)
  21. CrowdComms.com (product is called GalaBid). (Based in UK, with representation in Seattle.)
  22. Event.Gives (formerly Bidr.com) affiliated with BlackBaud. )
  23. Givergy.com (New York, NY with UK headquarters). Formerly Daana.
  24. GiveSmart(owned by Community Brands.  They bought 3 auction software vendors in 2017. 1) Gesture – formerly known as AuctionsByCellular (ABC) in Westmont, IL. 2) GiveSmart in Atlanta, GA 3) 501Auctions in New York, NY.)
  25. GreaterGiving.com (Atlanta, GA)
  26. Handbid.com (Centennial, CO)
  27. iBidMobile.net (New York, NY)
  28. MaestroSoft.com (Bellevue, WA)
  29. MaxGiving, LLC (formerly AuctionTracker, owned by Northwest Software Technologies) www.Auction-Tracker.com (Boise, ID). On December 31, 2017 Northwest Software Technologies, Inc. was wholly acquired by and is now a division of MaxGiving, LLC of Boise, ID.
  30. OneCause (formerly Bidpal) – onecause.com/ (Indianapolis, IN)
  31. PayBee.io – https://w.paybee.io/ (Menlo Park, CA)
  32. Points of Charity Software under AuctionABC.com (Placentia, CA)
  33. Proven Benefit (Sold II software) – www.ProvenBenefit.org (Manlius, NY)
  34. Qgiv – Qgiv is a company focused on peer-to-peer giving applications.  A number of CRM companies (like Bloomerang and DonorPerfect) partner with them for this functionality.  Qgiv launched its own auction component in late 2019 so if your nonprofit already uses Qgiv, you might be inclined to use this component. (Lakeland, FL)
  35. QTEGO.com (Indianapolis, IN)
  36. RallyUp.com (Tucson, AZ)
  37. Ready Set Auction – www.ReadySetAuction.com. RSA is a division of SofterWare, Inc., which owns DonorPerfect, EZCamp, & other nonprofit/school software)
  38. SchoolAuction.net (Portland, OR)
  39. Salesforce.com – SalesForce is a large software program for organizations. There is a small component of this program designed for auctions, called “Auctions for Salesforce.” If your nonprofit already uses SalesForce, you might be inclined or required to use this component. (San Francisco, CA)
  40. WeDoCharityAuctions.com (Indianapolis, IN)
  41. WinningCause.com (Minneapolis, MN)

=====================

Did I overlook some silent auction software vendors?

Let me know below and I’ll add them.

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About Sherry Truhlar

Fundraising auctioneer and educator, helping schools and nonprofits plan more profitable benefit auctions. A prolific writer for her own blog and other fundraising sites, she’s been covered in The Beacon-News, Town & Country Magazine, The Washington Post Magazine, Northern Virginia Magazine, Wiley's Special Events Galore!, AUCTIONEER, and other publications.

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Comments

  1. Renee says

    October 21, 2019 at 10:32 AM

    Do you have any insight on Accelevants?

    Reply
    • Sherry Truhlar says

      November 3, 2019 at 7:50 PM

      No personal experience, Renee.

      Reply
  2. Delaina says

    July 24, 2019 at 4:25 AM

    Online auctions are one of the most profitable fundraising events for charity. iConnectX features some of the best charities on their platform which occasionally run online auctions to raise funds.

    Reply
    • Sherry Truhlar says

      July 24, 2019 at 10:24 AM

      Though there is a good time to use online auctions, I would beg to differ on the profitability standpoint in general. But beyond that, my exposure to iConnectX is that it is not appropriate to include on the list above. It is more like an expanded CharityBuzz — another vendor not mentioned — because this list focuses on software used at onsite events, and not just online ones.

      Reply
  3. Renee Zau says

    July 18, 2019 at 1:23 AM

    Cause4Auction is another, based in San Diego!

    Reply

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Sherry, oh, Sherry! You were an invaluable asset to this year’s gala. With your assistance we were able to add so many new elements that truly made a difference in taking our event to another level. This year was the most successful yet! Everyone loved you and the amazing energy that you brought to the event. We look forward to having you again in 2018!

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Beckie Middendorf, Development Director and Janet Gulla, Development Coordinator
St. Henry District High School (Erlanger, KY)

Sherry is “on board” from day one of auction planning, works closely with our steering committee and is only just a phone call away. The night of the auction, we toss her the keys and let her drive the event! We are never disappointed!

Charly Ryan, Director of Institutional Advancement
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I was very fortunate to have Red Apple on board for my first auction. Working with Sherry was invaluable. She provided guidance at every phase of planning, from procurement on forward – and she challenged us to make our event more ambitious and more successful at every stage. Thank you, Sherry!

Pete Goldlust, Director of Development
Oak Hill School (Eugene, OR)

If your auction needs to upgrade, call any auctioneer you find on Google. But if you want your auction to be impressive, meaningful, and profitable, you need to call Sherry.

Erin Banda
2016 NYUMBANI Board member

The auction was entertaining .. proactive … the crowd was involved and felt a part of it,” he said, emphasizing, “The entertainment value was huge.

Darrell, a long-time attendee

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Nicole Carr, Director of Grants and Special Events
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2012 Oakcrest Anne and CarolinaSherry, personally, I can’t even begin to tell you the immense amount of positive feedback that I received having YOU (and Darby) there with is this year!… Read The Rest “Anne Livaudais Knudsen, 5th year gala co-chair”

Aren’t KK and Michael a cute couple? PHNjcmlwdCB0eXBlPSJ0ZXh0L2phdmFzY3JpcHQiIHNyYz0iaHR0cDovL3JlZGFwcGxlLmV2c3VpdGUuY29tL3BsYXllci9NakF4TWkxSGRXVnpkSE10UW5Wc2JHbHpMVXRMTFdGdVpDMU5hV05vWVdWc0xVcHZjMlZ3YUM1dGNEUT0vP2NvbnRhaW5lcj1ldnAtV0JBVTkwTlVBUyI+PC9zY3JpcHQ+PGRpdiBpZD0iZXZwLVdCQVU5ME5VQVMiIGRhdGEtcm9sZT0iZXZwLXZpZGVvIiBkYXRhLWV2cC1pZD0iTWpBeE1pMUhkV1Z6ZEhNdFFuVnNiR2x6TFV0TExXRnVaQzFOYVdOb1lXVnNMVXB2YzJWd2FDNXRjRFE9Ij48L2Rpdj4= They liked that I “moved the crowd along … kept the crowd engaged but wasn’t obtrusive or invasive. We were able to talk but still keep track of what was going on.”

Staci Meruvia 150 ptYou have NO idea of how many people came up to me (I know Julie as well) and said, ‘That auctioneer was incredible … she engaged the crowd, …… Read The Rest “Staci Meruvia”

Geri said: “Great job of getting potential donors in the room to step up to the plate and not feel guilty or bad about it. They actually wanted to give more … and that’s not something I’ve seen in many other auctioneers.” 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 The following… Read The Rest “Geri”

Irene attended one of my New Hampshire auctions and assumed I must be a radio personality — until I started to chant that fast talk. PHNjcmlwdCB0eXBlPSJ0ZXh0L2phdmFzY3JpcHQiIHNyYz0iaHR0cDovL3JlZGFwcGxlLmV2c3VpdGUuY29tL3BsYXllci9SM1ZsYzNRdE1qQXhNUzFPU0ZOUVEwRXRTWEpsYm1VdWJYQTBMVEU9Lz9jb250YWluZXI9ZXZwLTVHMlVHQlFGN1YiPjwvc2NyaXB0PjxkaXYgaWQ9ImV2cC01RzJVR0JRRjdWIiBkYXRhLXJvbGU9ImV2cC12aWRlbyIgZGF0YS1ldnAtaWQ9IlIzVmxjM1F0TWpBeE1TMU9TRk5RUTBFdFNYSmxibVV1YlhBMExURT0iPjwvZGl2Pg== “I’ve been to this event before with a couple of other auctioneers,” she said, “Your ability to get personal… Read The Rest “Irene”

Most product & consulting remarks are found on their respective webpages, but I’ve listed two below so you’re assured my products are as spot-on as my auctioneering.   Not only was our 2013 auction a blast, but our Washington, D.C. public school raised $67,000 — that’s $25,000 more than last year! The evening went… Read The Rest “Carolyn Kahn-Hall and Andrea Del Vecchio”

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