Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers to the questions we hear most often.
Getting Started
How long does it take to get set up?
Most campaigns are fully operational within 48 hours. This timeframe includes our team assisting with your initial data migration, setting up your user accounts, and configuring your custom workflows. For larger statewide or national campaigns with complex legacy data to import, the process typically takes 3-5 days to ensuring every record lands correctly. We don't just hand you a login and wish you luck; we treat onboarding as a hands-on project to ensure you're ready to win from day one.
Do I need any technical expertise?
No. Civitas is explicitly designed for campaign professionals, not IT departments. If you are comfortable using modern email clients and spreadsheets, you will feel right at home with our platform. We handle all the technical complexity—server management, security updates, database optimization—behind the scenes so you can focus entirely on voter contact and fundraising.
Can I import data from my current tools?
Yes. We support seamless imports from all major political technology platforms including NGP VAN, ActBlue, Nationbuilder, Salsa, and most standard CRM systems. Our onboarding team handles the actual migration process for you at no additional cost, ensuring that donation history, volunteer notes, and voter tags are preserved accurately during the transition.
Is there a minimum contract length?
No. We believe that software should prove its value every single month. You can cancel your subscription at any time with no penalties or hidden exit fees. We don't lock you into long-term contracts because we're confident that once you experience the difference of using a modern, unified platform, you won't want to leave.
Platform & Features
What's included in the platform?
Civitas is a unified ecosystem that replaces multiple disconnected tools. Depending on your tier, you get access to CampaignMaster for field operations, DonorSense for sophisticated fundraising management, LegiTrack for legislative monitoring, Watchdog for opposition research, PolicySense for deep policy analysis, and WarRoomOS for overall campaign infrastructure. Instead of paying five different vendors and trying to make their tools talk to each other, you get one integrated suite where data flows freely between teams.
Does it work offline?
Yes. We know that campaigning happens in basements, rural areas, and crowded rallies where cell service is unreliable. Our mobile apps are built to be fully functional without an internet connection. You can cut turf, log voter responses, and collect donations offline, and the data will automatically sync securely to the cloud the moment your device reconnects.
How many users can I have?
User limits are designed to match the scale of your campaign. The Starter plan supports up to 25 team members, which is perfect for most local races. The Professional plan expands this to 100 users to accommodate larger field teams and staff. For Enterprise clients, we offer unlimited user seats so you never have to worry about rationing access among your volunteers and consultants.
Do you integrate with other tools?
Yes. While we aim to be an all-in-one solution, we know you have other favorite tools. We offer native integrations with major email marketing platforms, digital advertising tools, and voter file providers. For Professional and Enterprise clients, our API allows for custom integrations, enabling you to build bespoke workflows that connect Civitas to your specific data infrastructure.
Pricing & Billing
How much does Civitas cost?
Pricing is designed to be accessible for campaigns of all sizes. It starts at just $499/month for local campaigns on our Starter plan. For competitive races needing more power, the Professional plan is $2,499/month. Enterprise pricing is customized based on the specific scale and complexity of statewide or national operations. Crucially, all our pricing is transparent and flat—you'll never receive a surprise bill for "overage" or "data storage."
Are there any transaction fees?
No. Unlike many fundraising platforms that take a percentage cut of every dollar you raise, we believe your donations belong to your campaign. We do not charge any platform transaction fees. You only pay standard credit card processing rates from your payment gateway provider. Over the course of a campaign, this policy alone can save you tens of thousands of dollars compared to competitor platforms.
Do you offer discounts for nonprofits?
Yes. We are proud to support the ecosystem of advocacy organizations that work alongside campaigns. Registered 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) organizations are eligible for a 25% discount on all our plans. Please contact our sales team with your tax-exempt documentation to have this discount applied to your account.
What payment methods do you accept?
We accept all major credit cards for monthly billing to make things easy for treasurers. For larger accounts and Enterprise clients, we also accept ACH transfers and wire payments. We can arrange custom billing terms to align with your fundraising cycles if needed—just ask our sales team during setup.
Security & Compliance
Is my data secure?
Absolutely. Security is our first priority. We protect your data with bank-level AES-256 encryption at rest and TLS 1.3 encryption in transit. Our infrastructure is SOC 2 compliant and undergoes regular penetration testing by third-party security firms. We also implement strict access controls, so you can granularly manage exactly which staff members can see sensitive donor or voter data.
Is Civitas FEC compliant?
Yes. Compliance is built into the DNA of the platform. DonorSense includes automated features to track contribution limits, validate donor information, and generate the specific reports required by the Federal Election Commission. It creates an automatic audit trail for every transaction, giving your treasurer peace of mind and making filing deadlines significantly less stressful.
Who owns my data?
You do. Always. Unlike some vendors who try to hold data hostage, we believe your data is your property. You can export your entire database—donors, voters, volunteers, and history—in standard CSV or JSON formats at any time. If you ever decide to leave Civitas, your data comes with you, completely and immediately.
Where is data stored?
All client data is stored in secure, US-based data centers with full geographic redundancy to ensure that a natural disaster in one region never takes your campaign offline. For Enterprise clients with specific compliance needs, we can pin data residency to specific jurisdictions or even arrange for on-premise deployments.
Support
What support is included?
We know that campaign issues don't stick to business hours. All plans include 24/7 email support with a guaranteed 24-hour response time. Professional and Enterprise clients receive priority status with a 4-hour response guarantee and a dedicated success manager who knows your campaign intimately. We don't rely on outsourced call centers; our support team is staffed by former campaign professionals who understand exactly what you're up against.
Do you offer training?
Yes. We believe that powerful software is only useful if your team knows how to use it. All new accounts receive a guided onboarding session. Professional and Enterprise plans include ongoing, customized training sessions for your staff and volunteers, as well as access to a library of video tutorials and documentation tailored to your specific workflows.
What if something breaks during a campaign?
Campaigns live and die by uptime. On top of our standard support, we create specific "War Room" channels for Professional and Enterprise clients during the final weeks of the election. This gives you a direct line to our engineering team for immediate resolution of any critical issues, ensuring that nothing technical stands in the way of your get-out-the-vote operations.
Technical
What devices are supported?
Civitas works on any modern web browser (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge). Mobile apps are available for iOS and Android.
How reliable is the platform?
We maintain 99.9% uptime. Our status page shows real-time system health and any planned maintenance.
Can I white-label the platform?
Enterprise clients can customize branding, including logos, colors, and custom domains.
Still Have Questions?
Email: [email protected]
Phone: +1 (555) 0123
Live Chat: Available 9am-6pm ET
Or schedule a demo and ask us anything directly.