Free PTO software
Free PTO software that families actually use
"Free" in this category usually means a trial, a tier with the useful parts removed, or a fee buried in the terms. Here is what free means at Homeroom, and what it costs the people who pay you.
The short answer
Homeroom is free for the PTO with no subscription, seat limit, setup fee or expiry. The only charge is a 3% Homeroom fee on online payments, shown as a line at checkout and covered by the payer by default — so the PTO receives the full sticker price. Cash and checks carry no fee at all.
What's included at $0
The family roster with import, membership dues, fundraisers with per-student pages and leaderboards, announcements with per-grade and per-room targeting, volunteer signups with waitlists, forms and a store, teacher wish-lists, the opt-in directory, the treasurer's books with reimbursements and budget-vs-actual, and an audit log. Every feature, every board member, every family.
How the 3% works
When a family pays $25 in dues online, checkout shows $25.00 + a $0.75 Homeroom fee + card processing, and the PTO's Stripe account receives $25.00. A board can choose to absorb the fee instead. There is no other revenue — no data sales, no upsells on the things you already use.
Why it can be free
A subscription charges a PTO whether or not it collects a dollar. A published fee on money that moves means we are paid only when the PTO is — and a PTO that raises nothing owes nothing. That alignment is the whole business model.
When Homeroom is the wrong choice
If your state PTA mandates a specific dues platform, you'll run dues there and Homeroom for the rest. If you need silent auctions today, PTBoard and Givebacks ship them and we don't yet. If your board wants a phone-support contract, we're email and a founder who replies.
Questions boards ask
Is there a paid tier we'll be pushed into?
No. A $199-a-year add-on for text messaging, translation and background-check tracking is planned for later; nothing you use today will move behind it.
What do families pay?
Only when they pay online: the 3% line plus standard card processing (Stripe, 2.9% + 30¢), both shown before they confirm. Nothing to join, nothing to see announcements or sign up.
Set up your PTO in about two minutes
Free, no card, no call. Give us your current website and we'll read your colors and logo off it.
- Free for the PTO, no subscription
- 3% at checkout, paid by the payer
- No parent logins, ever