4 Best AmpliFund Alternatives & Competitors [2024]

In your search for grant management software, you might have come across AmpliFund. While designed to streamline processes, there are some limitations to this tool that should be considered.

In this article, we’ll explain some potential drawbacks to AmpliFund and evaluate four of its top alternatives, including:

• Instrumentl
• GrantWatch
• GrantHub Pro
• GrantSeeker (formerly Fluxx)

We will compare each by their features, types of funders listed, user-friendliness, popularity, and pricing. By the end, you’ll have all of the information you need to make an informed decision about which alternative to AmpliFund is best for you and your nonprofit.

Sound good? Let’s dig in!

While AmpliFund is a popular grant management software, it’s not the right fit for every organization. Here are the top three reasons you might look for an alternative:

Higher Price Tag

AmpliFund is more expensive than many grant management tools on the market today. Though they don’t list their pricing on their website, through some digging we found that their subscriptions typically start at around $5,000/year.

Amplifund also offers custom enterprise packages, but you’ll need to contact their customer service team to learn more about pricing.

An important note: Amplifund is primarily a management tool, and doesn’t prioritize the prospecting and research side of the grant lifecycle. What this means is that nonprofits may have to invest in additional tools to help them identify good-fit funding opportunities. Because of its relatively high entry price, Amplifund may be out of reach for some organizations.

Governmental Agency Focus

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AmpliFund primarily serves government agencies rather than nonprofits. In fact, on their “Who We Serve” page, they list out local, state, and tribal government agencies independently, and all other entities are lumped together in the additional markets tab. If you get most of your funding from foundations, you may not get as much value out of AmpliFund’s tools.

With a focus on government funding and compliance, AmpliFund really tailors its tools to help the funders get the reports and results they need. This includes:

• Funding distribution
• Managing funding
• Monitoring recipients

If you have a diversified funding portfolio that goes beyond government grants, you may want to seek AmpliFund alternatives.

Audit-Centric Tools

Many of AmpliFund’s tools and features are centered around streamlining the audit process rather than the entire grant management lifecycle. This is great if you receive federal funding because it can help you with compliance requirements. Federal, state, and local grants often have very strict reporting requirements, and they can sometimes be challenging to meet.

Because it helps you meet the more rigorous, time-sensitive needs of funders, this software actually aligns more with government entities than nonprofit organizations. If you are looking for something to help you through the entire grant prospecting and management process, you may need to look for an alternative.

Now that we’ve covered some of Amplifund’s limitations, let’s explore four of its top alternatives. You can also check out our grant management software guides for even more insight into choosing the right solution for your organization.

1. Instrumentl‍

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Features

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Instrumentl is an end-to-end solution that covers the entire grant lifecycle—from prospecting to tracking to management.

Instrumentl’s platform streamlines the process of finding, winning, and managing grants through a suite of intuitive features, including:

• Personalized Smart Matching to active RFPs and funders based on your nonprofit’s mission, location, funding needs, and more.
• Advanced Funder Insights that include openness to new grantees, average grant size, funding preferences, etc. to help you quickly evaluate whether a grant is worth pursuing.
• A dedicated Grant Tracker where you can organize your prospects, assign tasks to your teams, manage deadlines, store documents, and more.
• An Awards Dashboard to help you manage your funding, keep track of reporting deadlines, and maintain compliance.
• Automatic Reports of your prospects, awards, etc. to keep your nonprofit’s leadership in the loop.
• Weekly Emails with deadline reminders, new opportunities, and more.

With all of these features available in a single platform, grants managers can win funding more quickly and effectively.
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“With Instrumentl, there isn’t any wasted time. They identify the funder, link you to their website, show projected deadlines, provide information about communities where they work—before, we could have wasted time on a potential funder without that information.”—Maureen McGuire, Grants Manager at Habitat for Humanity DuPage Chicago South Suburbs.

Types of Funders Listed

Instrumentl’s comprehensive grant database pulls together funding opportunities from all sectors, including public, private, government, corporate, foundations, and more. Within the searchable database there are more than:

• 400,000 funders
• 15,000 live RFPs
• 150 new opportunities added each week

User Friendliness

Instrumentl is easy to navigate, with an intuitive and straightforward interface. You can collaborate within the platform, share opportunities with your team not on Instrumentl, and more. Because it’s so easy to use, Instrumentl allows you to get buy-in from other departments and leadership to start applying for new opportunities faster.

Beth Noble, Senior Grant Administrator at Phoenix Children’s Foundation, shared more about why she loves Instrumentl:
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“What I really like about Instrumentl as an all-year round platform is that we can track on a year-on-year basis, we got history in there, we got documents in there. It just makes everything easier.”

Instrumentl also provides free resources and tools to help you take your grant research and management to the next level.

Popularity

Instrumentl is popular among nonprofits, as seen by user reviews from G2. Thousands of customers trust it to find grants, win funding, and manage their awards.

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Pricing‍

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Instrumentl has different pricing tiers depending on your needs.

• Basic: $179/month
• Standard: $299/month
• Pro: $499/month

Instrumentl serves nonprofits and consultants, and there are also custom packages available for large institutions like hospitals. Because Instrumentl covers the entire grant lifecycle, you won’t have to invest in other grant research or tracking tools—it has everything you need for end-to-end grant management.

2. GrantWatch

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GrantWatch is another grants database designed to help nonprofits discover active funding opportunities.

Features

GrantWatch’s main feature is its extensive database, with each funding opportunity including:

• Grant eligibility information
• Geographic focus
• Pre-application and workshop information
• Description of grant program
• Links to grant applications and documents

While its database is large, GrantWatch does not have robust features to support full end-to-end grant management, including recipient profiles, intelligent matching, task management, spend down tracking, integrations, and more.

Types of Funders Listed

The funding opportunities listed in GrantWatch’s database include grants from private and public foundations, corporations, charities, and government sources.

User Friendliness

Many users report that GrantWatch is easy to use, especially when it comes to finding new opportunities. However, its lack of management features causes some nonprofits to explore alternatives.

Popularity

GrantWatch is an affordable and popular entry point for many looking to streamline the grant prospecting process, including nonprofits, municipalities, libraries, small businesses, and individuals across the United States and internationally.

Pricing

Grantwatch offers four different pricing plans.

• Weekly: $18
• Monthly: $45
• Quarterly: $90
• Yearly: $199

There is no difference in the features available per tier, only the duration you are able to access the database.

3. GrantHub Pro

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GrantHub Pro doesn’t prioritize grant prospecting or research, but it is a strong tool for grant management.

Features

GrantHub Pro’s top features include:

• Grant information, recipient profiles, and basic funder insights. There is no intelligent matching to your criteria, and they rely on an integration with Foundation Directory Online for their grant information.
• Task management features, including task management, deadline tracking, and reminders. There are no calendar integrations available.
• Grant ownership and collaboration features, like spend-down tracking and customization.

Unlike Instrumentl, there are no support and training resources readily available to help upskill you on the platform.

Types of Funders Listed

There are more than 150,000 funders available on the platform thanks to an integration with Foundation Directory Online.

User Friendliness

GrantHub has a modern and advanced interface, however some customers find the platform cluttered and the lack of a calendar view can create challenges. No integrations with common third-party systems can also lead to duplicate efforts and wasted time across teams.

Popularity

GrantHub Pro is popular with nonprofits, grant writers, and organizations who are looking to streamline the management of their awards.

Pricing

GrantHub Pro costs $349/month, and new users will also need to pay a one-time implementation fee of $500 to set it up for their nonprofit. You can check out this article, Is GrantHub Worth It?, to learn more about the value of the platform.

4. GrantSeeker (formerly Fluxx)

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GrantSeeker, formerly known as Fluxx, is a grant management tool that was initially built to service grantmakers, though its platform has broadened to help grant seekers as well.

Features

Top GrantSeeker features include:

• Grant database to help search available opportunities.
• Saved prospects to help you stay up to date on opportunities of interest.
• Notes, which help you to stay organized.

GrantSeeker doesn’t offer intelligent matching or advanced funder insights, making identifying good-fit funding opportunities a much more difficult process. For nonprofits looking to save time and avoid manually searching for grants, GrantSeeker may not have the features you need.

Types of Funders Listed

GrantSeeker lists government, private, and foundation funding opportunities. It is unknown exactly how many opportunities are in their database.

User Friendliness

GrantSeeker is easy to use with a modern interface. However, its lack of organization by project can make it harder to navigate for some nonprofits with lots of different programs.

Popularity

GrantSeeker is popular based on its low price point; however, it lacks features to make it a truly one-stop shop for all your end-to-end grant management needs.

Pricing

GrantSeeker has three tiers available. Basic is free, premium is $14.99/month, and prospecting is $39.99/month.

We may be biased, but we’re pretty confident that Instrumentl is the best AmpliFund alternative. Here are some things that truly set our platform apart:

Automagical Deadline Reminders

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Instrumentl will automatically email you reminders to help you see what deadlines are coming up, including funder deadlines and task reminders. We’ll also automatically notify you if a funder changes their grant deadline or priorities.

Integrated Information from IRS 990 Forms

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Instrumentl pulls information from the Form 990 to provide insights into a funder’s previous grantees, funding focus areas, geographical concentration of giving, and more. It’s an easy-to-understand interface that makes learning about potential funders a breeze.

Intelligent Matching to RFPs and Funders

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When you set up a project in Instrumentl, its powerful algorithm will automatically match you to relevant grant opportunities that meet your criteria, sharing weekly updates about new opportunities, upcoming deadlines, and more.

Easy Collaboration and Task Management

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Gone are the days of endless spreadsheets to track project plans and opportunities. Instead, you can use Instrumentl to collaborate with your team, assign tasks per project, share opportunities, and more.

Find Foundations Open to New Grantees

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Not all funders are open to working with new nonprofits, so Instrumentl saves you time by showing you which funders award grants to new grantees.

Generate Reports in a Flash

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You can easily generate reports with the click of a button in Instrumentl, making reporting your grants pipeline, open projects, and so much more a breeze.

Organize by Project

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Instrumentl lets you organize your searches by project. You can see what opportunities you have available, track your progress, and more. This streamlines the workflow exponentially.

AmpliFund is a powerful tool, but grant managers may want to seek alternatives if they’re looking for a more accessible price point, more robust prospecting abilities, and less of a governmental focus.

As an end-to-end platform designed specifically for nonprofits, we think Instrumentl is the perfect alternative to help fill those gaps, providing the best grant prospecting, tracking, and management solution available.

But don’t just take our word for it. Sign up for your free, 14-day trial today!