Mobile giving may be the latest fund-raising tool for nonprofits seeking an easy and efficient way to raise money, but it doesn’t come without start-up and maintenance costs.

Jason Dick, a college fund raiser, writes on his A Small Change blog about the prices charged by an array of providers. Some require an application process and sign-up fees of $500 to $1,000. Some have monthly fee packages, from $49 to $1,500, and transaction fees for each text message.

1. mGive: $500 sign-up fee; $400 to $1,500 monthly fee; $0.35 plus 3.5 percent per transaction.

2. MobileCause: $350 sign-up fee; $100 to $250 monthly fee; $0.50 per transaction.

3. Give by Cell: waived sign-up fee; $49 monthly fee; $0.48 per transaction.

4. g8wave: $350 sign-up fee; $350 monthly fee; $0 to $0.35 per transaction.

5. iLoop Mobile: $1,000 sign-up fee; $500 monthly fee; no information about the per-transaction fee is provided.

Missing providers on the chart include Give on the Go, MPower Giving, and Mobile Commons.

With such a big range in costs, it may not hurt to shop around.

Have you used these providers before? What was your experience like?