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.
Comparison
Kickstarter vs Indiegogo
Kickstarter and Indiegogo both land on Depends.
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.
| Compare | Kickstarter | Indiegogo |
|---|---|---|
| Verdict | Depends | Depends |
| Best for | Creators with an existing audience | Gadget makers validating pre-orders |
| Who it's not for | Backers who can't afford to lose their pledge | Backers unwilling to risk unfulfilled campaigns |
| Privacy | Solid today: CyStack scores 91.9/100 and card numbers aren't stored; a 2014 breach forced password resets.⁹ | No active platform breaches found; only minor historical incidents in reviewed sources. |
| Support quality | Backers report lost money, no recourse | Scam and support complaints dominate reviews |
| Public sentiment | Opinion splits sharply: G2 reviewers praise it while Trustpilot reviewers report lost money and Reddit debates whether it's still trustworthy.¹ | Feedback is polarized: creators praise reach and results while backers report scam campaigns and poor support.12 |
| Biggest gotcha | Funded projects can still fail to deliver; refunds are rare and backers carry the risk¹ | Trustpilot's ~1,800 reviews skew toward scams and unanswered support tickets.12 |
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
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
Sources
- Kickstarter reviews on Trustpilottrustpilot.comreview
review
review
- Kickstarter Fees (US)kickstarter.comofficial
- Kickstarter Funding Handbookkickstarter.comofficial
- How secure is it to pledge on Kickstarter?help.kickstarter.comofficial
- Project review queue . Kickstarter Helphelp.kickstarter.comofficial
- Kickstarter data breach . Have I Been Pwnedhaveibeenpwned.comsecurity
- Is kickstarter.com Safe? . CyStackcystack.netsecurity
- Kickstarter Creator Resourceskickstarter.comofficial
- Indiegogo Trustpilot reviewstrustpilot.comreview
- Fees . Indiegogo Knowledge Basehelp.indiegogo.comofficial
- Indiegogo . Wikipediaen.wikipedia.orgofficial