Free, practical help for aid and development work
OpenAid is a public good: free to use, open to everyone, and made for the people working in aid and development, NGOs and nonprofits. Guides, templates and AI prompts, no sign-up.
Start from where you are
I work at a local NGO
Community groups, local and national NGOs, small teams.
- Prepare Local NGO Registration Questions
- Check US Nonprofit Status and Filing Duties
- Clarify Board Roles and Decision Authority
I manage grants or finances
Program, grants and finance staff, country and regional teams.
- Create a grant compliance tracker from a grant agreement
- Grant Closeout and Early Termination Checklist
- Budget Versus Actual Expense Report
I raise money
Proposals, concept notes and funding that does not depend on one funder.
- Decide Whether to Bid for Funding
- How to write a concept note for funders
- Compare Funding Options After an Income Loss
I give or fund
Foundations, family funds, donor-advised funds and other funders.
Open For FundersI report on or research aid
Journalists, researchers and students.
How OpenAid worksSomething else?
Eight situations people tell us about, each with its steps in order.
All eight situations
Guides and templates
I just won a grant
Open the 6 stepsTurn the agreement into owned actions
What you will find
- Guides77Explain one thing, with the sources it was checked against.
- Decision guides34Help you choose between two or three options.
- How-tos128Steps to finish a task, often with AI steps.
- Templates53Fill-in templates and checklists to copy and adapt.
- Prompts31Text to paste into your own AI assistant.
- Playbooks6A task done start to finish with an AI assistant, checked at each step.
More from OpenAid
Sectors
Start from your field of work: water and sanitation, health, education, food security and more, with free guides and tools for each. Also free learning, jobs and careers, and open data.
Sectors
Every page shows its work
Each guide lists the published sources it was written from, the date it was last reviewed, its version and every correction since it went up. Your own agreement, your funder's rules and the law where you work always come first.
How guides are madeExample: the foot of Recovering Indirect Costs for Nonprofits
Further reading. Cost allocation and apportionment. Full cost recovery.
Last reviewed October 26, 2026. Version 1.1. Guidance is general: check your own agreement, funder rules and national law.