The best crowdfunding platforms, according to hackers
5 crowdfunding platforms recommended in Hacker News comments over the past year, ranked by how many separate people recommend each one.
All crowdfunding platforms
- KickstarterPeople recommend Kickstarter for letting small creators launch products and fund projects, including open source work, and for testing demand before production. Critics say scam campaigns and refunds are weak points.12recommend
- Open CollectiveRecommended for letting open source projects and communities collect donations and get fiscal sponsorship. Main caveat: some call its non-charity middle-man setup suspicious.8recommend
- Crowd SupplyCrowdfunding platform for open-source hardware, recommended for its expertise in bringing projects to market and for finding unusual open hardware. Common caveat: slow support when hardware arrives faulty.5recommend
- PiecesPeople recommend it for pre-release funding, where backers either get the information they paid for or get paid for their attention if a project flops.5recommend
- CleverCrowLets backers fund open source projects with tokens, targeting specific issues. Critics doubt its value add and call the 20% fee a lot.5recommend