Change.org vs GoPetition vs Petitions.com: Which Should You Use?

1. What's Actually Free?

Both platforms advertise free petitions, but "free" means very different things. On GoPetition, you can publish a petition, collect signatures, and manage your signature list online for free — you can even send your target the public link to your signature list at no cost. But to download your signature list (PDF, CSV or HTML) or get your signers' email addresses for contacting them, you have to buy Premium Services: a subscription with a minimum purchase of 30 days, and payments are non-refundable even if you don't use the full period.

On Petitions.com, the essentials are free. Full access to the contact details you collect, exporting your whole signature list in Excel, PDF or HTML, and consent choices you define are all included at no cost. There is no paywall between you and your own supporters.

2. Your Supporters, Without a Paywall

The people who sign your petition are the heart of your campaign. On GoPetition, contacting them again means paying for Premium: according to GoPetition's help pages, purchasing premium services lets you download your signature list email file and use your own email service to contact your supporters.

Petitions.com: Your Petition. Your Data. Your Rules.

If you choose to collect email addresses or phone numbers, you get full, direct access to that information for free. This allows you to:

• Build an Independent Movement: Contact your supporters directly for future campaigns, without depending on any platform or subscription.
• Collect Granular, Per-Purpose Consent: You define the specific purposes for collecting personal data, and signatories consent to each one individually — giving you a clear, defensible consent basis for your campaign.
• Communicate Directly: Send thank-you notes, organize local events, or survey your supporters.

This describes how these platforms work in general terms. It is not legal advice.

3. Professional & Campaign Features

GoPetition is an established platform with solid petition-management basics — you can add photos, video and documents, hide a petition as a private campaign, and clean spam out of your signature list. GoPetition charges for signature downloads and signer emails, and doesn't advertise these organizer tools — Petitions.com includes them all for free:

• Custom Data Fields & Consent: Collect exactly the information your campaign needs, with a separate consent for each purpose.
• AI Writing Assistant: Let AI help draft your title, text and cover image — and translate your petition into other languages.
• Multilingual Petitions: Run one petition in several languages that are cross-linked automatically and share a single signature list.
• Offline & Online Integration: Collect signatures on paper at events and combine them with your online total for a single, unified count.

4. GoPetition vs Change.org: Two Very Different Trade-offs

Comparing GoPetition and Change.org comes down to how each handles your supporters. GoPetition will give you your signers' email addresses — but only if you pay for a Premium subscription. Change.org never gives you signer emails at all, and its petitions are always public, whereas GoPetition lets you run a private campaign hidden from listings and search engines. So with GoPetition you pay to reach your supporters; with Change.org you simply can't.

Petitions.com avoids both trade-offs: free access to the contact details you collect, free exports, and the option to keep a petition private — no subscription and no locked-away data.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is GoPetition really free?

You can start a petition and collect signatures on GoPetition for free, but downloading your signers' email addresses and exporting your signature list require a paid Premium subscription. Petitions.com includes both for free.

Can I download my signers' email addresses on GoPetition?

Only with Premium Services, GoPetition's paid subscription. On Petitions.com, if you choose to collect email addresses, you get full access to them at no cost.

How much does GoPetition Premium cost?

GoPetition shows exact Premium prices only in the member control panel after you join. Its help pages state the minimum purchase period is 30 days and payments are non-refundable even if you don't use the full period. Petitions.com does not put these core features behind a subscription.

Can I make my GoPetition petition private?

Yes — GoPetition has a 'Private Campaign' option that hides a petition from its public lists and search engines. Petitions.com offers the same: you can keep a petition out of listings and search engines, which suits workplace, school or community campaigns.

Does GoPetition let signers choose what they consent to?

GoPetition's help pages don't describe per-purpose consent choices for signers. Petitions.com lets you define each data-collection purpose, and signers consent to each one individually.

GoPetition vs Change.org — which gives me my signers' emails?

GoPetition gives you signer email addresses only with a paid Premium subscription, while Change.org never provides them at all. Petitions.com gives you full access to the contact details you collect for free.