Indiegogo
Depends
Confidence: Medium
Buy if you are a creator launching a physical product with an existing audience and you accept the 5% fee plus backer-risk reputation.
New check
Comparison
Indiegogo vs Kickstarter
Indiegogo and Kickstarter both land on Depends.
Kickstarter
Depends
Confidence: Medium
A fit if you're a creator with an existing audience and a fulfillment plan . fees only hit on successful funding.
| Compare | Indiegogo | Kickstarter |
|---|---|---|
| Verdict | Depends | Depends |
| Best for | Gadget makers validating pre-orders | Creators with an existing audience |
| Who it's not for | Backers unwilling to risk unfulfilled campaigns | Backers who can't afford to lose their pledge |
| Privacy | No active platform breaches found; only minor historical incidents in reviewed sources.⁷ | Solid today: CyStack scores 91.9/100 and card numbers aren't stored; a 2014 breach forced password resets. |
| Support quality | Scam and support complaints dominate reviews | Backers report lost money, no recourse |
| Public sentiment | Feedback is polarized: creators praise reach and results while backers report scam campaigns and poor support.¹ | Opinion splits sharply: G2 reviewers praise it while Trustpilot reviewers report lost money and Reddit debates whether it's still trustworthy.10 |
| Biggest gotcha | Trustpilot's ~1,800 reviews skew toward scams and unanswered support tickets.¹ | Funded projects can still fail to deliver; refunds are rare and backers carry the risk10 |
Pick Indiegogo when
- Gadget makers validating pre-orders
- Indie filmmakers raising production funds
- Enterprise brands launching new products
When Indiegogo is not a fit
- Backers unwilling to risk unfulfilled campaigns
- Anyone needing responsive customer support
- Teams wanting strict all-or-nothing curation (use Kickstarter)
- Buyers needing formal security review for vendor approval
Pick Kickstarter when
- Creators with an existing audience
- Board game and gadget launches
- Pre-manufacturing product validation
- Backers chasing early access
When Kickstarter is not a fit
- Backers who can't afford to lose their pledge
- Creators needing guaranteed delivery timelines
- Charity and personal fundraising
- Businesses wanting a simple ongoing storefront
Sources
- Indiegogo Trustpilot reviewstrustpilot.comreview
review
review
- Fees . Indiegogo Knowledge Basehelp.indiegogo.comofficial
- Indiegogo . Wikipediaen.wikipedia.orgofficial
news
- Indiegogo Campaign Hacked This Weekend . TechCrunchtechcrunch.comsecurity
- Gamefound acquires Indiegogogamefound.comnews
- Indiegogo BBB complaintsbbb.orgreview
- Kickstarter reviews on Trustpilottrustpilot.comreview
- Kickstarter Fees (US)kickstarter.comofficial
- Kickstarter Funding Handbookkickstarter.comofficial
- How secure is it to pledge on Kickstarter?help.kickstarter.comofficial