Recording gifts and giving
Forge's giving tools let your finance team record contributions, organize them into funds, and produce the statements your givers need at tax time. This article covers the everyday work of recording gifts and keeping them tidy.
Ways to record a gift
There are a few entry methods, each suited to a different situation.
| Method | When to use it |
|---|---|
| Quick form | A single gift, recorded from a person's profile |
| Batch entry | Many gifts from one collection, such as a Sunday offering |
| Import | A bulk load from a CSV or an integration |
| Online | Gifts recorded automatically from a payment processor |
For a one-off gift, the quick form on a person's profile is fastest. For a stack of checks and cash from a service, batch entry keeps everything organized and reconciled.
Recording a batch
A batch groups the gifts from one collection so the total can be checked against the deposit.
- Open Finance > Contributions.
- Click New Batch.
- Enter the batch details: date, deposit total, and any notes.
- For each gift, search for the giver, enter the amount, choose the fund and allocation, select the payment method, and add a check number if relevant.
- Confirm the batch total matches your deposit.
- Click Save Batch.
- Optionally send receipts to the givers.
Checking the batch total against the deposit before saving is the simplest way to catch entry mistakes early.
Funds
Funds let you direct gifts toward specific purposes and track each balance separately. Forge supports three types.
| Type | What it's for |
|---|---|
| General | Unrestricted operating gifts, such as tithes and general offerings |
| Designated | Donor-directed but not legally restricted, such as a building fund |
| Restricted | Legally restricted for a specific purpose, such as a grant |
To create a fund, open Finance > Funds, choose New Fund, name it, pick its type, and optionally set a goal amount. You can mark funds active or inactive to control whether they're available for new gifts. Before recording your first gift, make sure at least a General fund exists.
Pledges and campaigns
If you're running a fundraising effort, campaigns let you set a goal and record pledges against it. You can track fulfillment as gifts come in, send reminders, and watch progress on a campaign dashboard. Pledges live under Finance > Pledges & Campaigns.
Giving statements
Statements summarize what someone gave over a period, which givers often need for taxes.
To generate year-end statements:
- Open Finance > Contributions.
- Open the Statements dropdown.
- Choose Generate Year-End Statements.
- Pick the year and options, such as individual or household statements and a minimum amount.
- Preview the statements.
- Generate them all, or download individually.
- Optionally email them to your givers.
Statements can be produced per person or combined for a whole household, and you can set a custom date range when you need something other than a calendar year.
A note on accounting
Forge keeps a record of every transaction so your books stay accountable, and it can connect to QuickBooks Online for a read-only view of your financial data if you use it. You don't need to be an accountant to record gifts. The day-to-day work is entering contributions, choosing funds, and sending statements, and Forge handles the bookkeeping behind that.
Tips
- Set up your funds before your first batch so gifts land in the right place.
- Reconcile each batch against the deposit total before saving.
- Use household statements to give families a single combined summary.
Common questions
Can a single gift be split across funds? Yes. When recording a gift you can allocate it across one or more funds.
How do online gifts get recorded? Gifts made through a connected payment processor are recorded automatically.
Can I produce a statement for a custom date range? Yes. Statements support custom date ranges in addition to year-end.
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