Track Donors in Google Sheets Without Expensive CRM Software

Stop paying \$100/month for Salesforce. Build a robust, free CRM in Google Sheets that tracks donors, interactions, and total giving.

Salesforce Nonprofit Success Pack (NPSP) is "free" for 10 licenses, but the implementation costs $15,000. HubSpot costs $50/month per user. For small nonprofits, CRM costs bleed resources better spent on programs.

A CRM is just a relational database. You have one in Google Sheets (Donors) linked to another (Donations) and a third (Interactions). We just need to glue them together.

Here's What We'll Build

A sidebar in Google Sheets where you can log calls, notes, and donations without scrolling through 50 columns.

The Code: The "Quick Log" Sidebar

1. Setup

Tab 1: Donors (Col A: ID, B: Name, C: Email, D: Last Contact Date)
Tab 2: Interactions (Col A: Donor ID, B: Date, C: Type, D: Notes)

2. The Script

We need two files: Code.gs (Server) and Sidebar.html (Client).

Code.gs

function onOpen() {
  SpreadsheetApp.getUi()
    .createMenu('CRM')
    .addItem('Open Logger', 'showSidebar')
    .addToUi();
}
 
function showSidebar() {
  const html = HtmlService.createHtmlOutputFromFile('Sidebar')
    .setTitle('Donor Logger');
  SpreadsheetApp.getUi().showSidebar(html);
}
 
function logInteraction(donorName, type, notes) {
  const ss = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet();
  const interactionsSheet = ss.getSheetByName('Interactions');
  const donorsSheet = ss.getSheetByName('Donors');
  
  // 1. Log the interaction
  interactionsSheet.appendRow([
    new Date(),
    donorName, // Ideally use ID, using Name for simplicity here
    type,
    notes
  ]);
  
  // 2. Update "Last Contacted" on Donors tab
  const data = donorsSheet.getDataRange().getValues();
  for (let i = 1; i < data.length; i++) {
    if (data[i][1] === donorName) { // Assuming Name is Col B (index 1)
      donorsSheet.getRange(i + 1, 4).setValue(new Date()); // Update Col D
      return "Success";
    }
  }
  return "Logged (New Donor)";
}

Sidebar.html (Create this file by clicking "+ > HTML")

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
  <head>
    <base target="_top">
    <link rel="stylesheet" href="https://ssl.gstatic.com/docs/script/css/add-ons1.css">
  </head>
  <body>
    <div class="sidebar branding-below">
      <form>
        <div class="block form-group">
          <label for="donor">Donor Name</label>
          <input type="text" id="donor" style="width: 100%;">
        </div>
        <div class="block form-group">
          <label for="type">Type</label>
          <select id="type" style="width: 100%;">
             <option>Call</option>
             <option>Email</option>
             <option>Meeting</option>
          </select>
        </div>
        <div class="block form-group">
          <label for="notes">Notes</label>
          <textarea id="notes" rows="3" style="width: 100%;"></textarea>
        </div>
        <div class="block">
          <button class="action" id="save">Log Interaction</button>
        </div>
      </form>
    </div>
    <script>
      document.querySelector('#save').addEventListener('click', function(e) {
        e.preventDefault();
        const donor = document.getElementById('donor').value;
        const type = document.getElementById('type').value;
        const notes = document.getElementById('notes').value;
        
        google.script.run
          .withSuccessHandler(function() {
             document.getElementById('notes').value = ''; // Clear notes
             alert('Saved!');
          })
          .logInteraction(donor, type, notes);
      });
    </script>
  </body>
</html>

Why This is Better Than Excel

Excel is flat. This is interactive. You can browse your donor list, select a row, and instantly see their giving history in the sidebar (with a bit more code). You can’t do that with a static spreadsheet.