What You Need to Accept ZEC Donations
- A ZEC wallet (Zashi, YWallet, or Nighthawk — all free)
- Your Unified Address displayed publicly
- Optionally: a QR code image for mobile donors
- Optionally: a payment processor (Flexa, NOWPayments) for automated invoicing
That's it. There's no application to file, no merchant account, no 30-day payout delay. ZEC arrives directly in your wallet within 2 minutes of the donor sending it.
Step 1: Wallet Setup
Download Zashi (iOS/Android, by Electric Coin Company) for simplicity, or YWallet for advanced features. Create a new wallet and immediately write down the 24-word seed phrase offline. Never store it digitally. Tap "Receive" to see your Unified Address.
Step 2: Your Donation Address
Your Unified Address looks like: u1exampleaddress... (78+ characters). This single address accepts shielded (Orchard/Sapling) and transparent ZEC. Always publish the full Unified Address — do not shorten or truncate it.
Step 3: Adding to Your Website
A minimal donation snippet for your HTML page:
<div class="zec-donate">
<p>Support us with ZEC:</p>
<code>u1YourUnifiedAddressHere</code>
<img src="qr-code.png" alt="Scan to donate ZEC" width="150" />
</div>For QR codes, generate one from your wallet app or use a QR generator with the raw address string. Include alt text for accessibility.
Step 4: Using a Payment Processor (Optional)
For automated donation tracking, invoicing, and fiat conversion, services like NOWPayments or Coinbase Commerce support ZEC. These provide hosted payment pages, webhooks, and fiat settlement — useful for larger organizations that need accounting integration.
Handling Anonymous Donations
Shielded ZEC donations may arrive with no sender information. For donation acknowledgment and potential tax receipt purposes, ask donors to include their name/email in the ZEC transaction memo field (up to 512 bytes, encrypted). Donors who want full anonymity can donate without a memo — both options are valid.