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For a recent project for a non-profit, I had to make a decision about using an out of the box solution for managing donations versus building our own solution.
We are still working on the decision, but here are the key points to consider:
1) Opportunity cost – What asking opportunities are we going to miss if we take the time to build our own?
2) Staff quality and availability – Do we have the staff and spare cycles to build a solution?
3) Upkeep – Can we maintain this solution with spare time and volunteers?
The outcome of my research indicates that the cost (on average, about $300 to setup, with 3 to 5% transaction fee, and usually a monthly fee) is often cheaper and will pay for itself in the first round of donations received on the platform, while freeing up staff and volunteers to focus on the core mission of the organization.
Groundspring seems to be the best of the non-profit tools available for donation management. Most offerings also include email list management, crm features, and other extras, all of which are better done with specific standalone packages.