Pledges & Installments

Record offline pledges, manage their installment schedules, and process payments as they arrive.

Understanding Pledges

A pledge is a commitment to give. It's a promise of money that has not yet been collected. Every pledge is an expected revenue record: just the commitment, with no money attached.

A pledge can have many payments, partial fulfillment, missed payments, or be paid in a single lump. The commitment record stays the same regardless.

How a pledge is collected

A scheduled installment plan is the typical collection method. You set the period and frequency on the pledge record, and the system generates the invoices. As each invoice is paid, the system creates a revenue record (money received) that points back to the parent expected revenue.

Other collection patterns work too. A pledge can be paid in a single lump sum, paid early, paid late, or never paid. The installment schedule is the typical collection mechanism, not a defining feature of the pledge itself.

Example

A pledge for $1,200 with twelve monthly installments produces twelve $100 invoices, one per month. The pledge record carries the $1,200 commitment; the twelve invoices carry the collection schedule.

Pledge vs Recurring Donation

	Pledge	Recurring Donation
Total amount	Defined up front (e.g. $1,200)	Open-ended; no end date by default
End condition	All installments paid (or cancelled)	Donor cancels, or card fails permanently
Underlying record	Expected revenue + installment schedule	Recurring profile generating new donations
Use case	"I'll give $1,200 over the next year"	"Charge me $50 every month indefinitely"

Pledge vs Donation

A donation creates a Revenue record — money received right now. A pledge creates an Expected Revenue record — money committed but not yet received. When installments are paid against the pledge, those payments create Revenue records linked back to the original Expected Revenue.

Creating Pledges

Add offline pledges via the Create button on the Pledges page:

• Pledge Details - Enter the pledgor's information, total pledge amount, installment schedule, and payment method
• Contact Linking - Use the contact selector to link the pledge to an existing contact, or search by name/email to auto-suggest matches
• Auto-Creation - If no contact is linked, a new contact record is automatically created from the pledgor details (name, email, address) provided on the form

For a detailed guide to every field, see Creating Pledges.

Accessing Pledge Data

From the Manage sidebar:

• Pledges - View all pledge profiles
• Installment Invoices - View scheduled/unpaid installments
• Installment Payments - View completed installment payments

Pledge Statuses

Status	Description
Active	Pledge is in progress with remaining installments
Past Due	One or more scheduled installments are overdue
Failed	A charge failed and could not be recovered
Voided	Pledge was cancelled before completion (use the Void Pledge action)
Completed	All installments have been paid

Viewing Pledge Details

Click any pledge to view:

• Pledgor Information - Name, email, contact details
• Pledge Summary - Total amount, amount paid, balance remaining
• Installment Schedule - All planned payments with dates and statuses
• Payment History - Completed installment payments

Managing Pledges

Add Installment Invoice

Add an unscheduled installment invoice:

1. Select the pledge profile
2. Click Add Invoice
3. Enter the amount and due date
4. Save the invoice

Add Installment Payment

Record a payment against an invoice:

1. Select the pledge profile
2. Find the invoice in the schedule
3. Click Record Payment
4. Complete the payment form:

Contact — pre-filled from the pledge profile. You can change the linked contact or organization for this specific payment.

Payer Details — pre-filled from the pledge profile. Includes display name, first/last name, email, address, and anonymous settings (with hide type: name, amount, or both). These attach to the installment payment record, not the contact record.

Payment Information — enter the payment Amount (required) and Payment Date (required, defaults to current date/time).

Revenue Settings — pre-filled from the pledge's expected revenue record. Includes payment method, payment reference, revenue status, payment channel, and payment notes. Revenue splits are calculated proportionally from the expected revenue splits based on the payment amount. You can also add revenue credits and revenue tags.

Custom Fields — if installment-level custom fields are configured, they appear in a separate section.

Send Payment Reminders

Resend the pledge receipt with payment portal link:

1. Select the pledge profile
2. Click Actions > Resend Receipt

The pledgor receives an email with a link to make payments.

Installment Invoices

Invoice Statuses

Status	Description
Unpaid	Payment not yet received
Paid	Payment has been recorded against this invoice

An invoice that's still Unpaid past its due date is considered overdue and contributes to moving the parent pledge into Past Due. Overdue isn't a separate stored status — it's derived from the invoice's due date.

Editing Invoices

1. Select the invoice
2. Click Edit
3. Modify amount or due date
4. Save changes

Installment Payments

Recording Offline Payments

For check, cash, or other offline payments:

1. Navigate to the pledge profile
2. Select the unpaid invoice
3. Click Record Payment
4. Enter:
   • Payment amount
   • Payment date
   • Payment method
5. Save

Refunding Payments

1. Select the installment payment
2. Click Actions > Refund
3. Enter refund amount
4. Confirm

Finance Side

A pledge creates an Expected Revenue record (the commitment). As installments are paid, each installment creates a Revenue record linked back to the parent Expected Revenue.

Both the Expected Revenue (pledge) and the Revenue records (installment payments) carry the same finance fields: splits, credits, solicitors, and tags. The splits and credits on the Expected Revenue serve as the expected allocation; when an installment is collected, its Revenue record's splits are calculated proportionally from those of the parent.

Related Articles

• Donations
• Recurring Profiles
• Revenue Basics — concept overview of the finance side
• Expected Revenue
• Exporting Data