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

1. Who Gets Your Supporter Data — and on What Terms?

All three platforms are free, so the most important questions are what happens to the people who support you and what you may do with their data. Here iPetitions deserves credit: it says your collected signature lists belong to you, and you can download them from your dashboard — unlike Change.org, which never gives you signer email addresses at all. The differences are in the terms and the tools around that data. On iPetitions signers see one platform-wide privacy policy, there are no per-purpose consent choices, and iPetitions' terms restrict what you may do with the list.

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 and can export your whole signature list in Excel, PDF or HTML. Because you define the terms yourself, you can:

• Build an Independent Movement: Contact your supporters directly for future campaigns, without depending on any platform.
• 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 re-contacting your supporters.
• 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.

2. Who Gets the Donations?

To stay free, iPetitions shows advertising and asks the people who sign your petition to make optional donations. Those contributions fund iPetitions, not your campaign.

Petitions.com does not solicit donations from your signers on your behalf. The signing experience stays focused on your cause, not on fundraising for the platform.

3. Professional & Privacy Features

iPetitions is a simple, no-frills way to get a basic petition online quickly, and one of the longest-running petition sites. Petitions.com adds the tools that long-term or cross-border campaigns need:

• Multilingual Petitions: Run one petition in several languages that are cross-linked automatically and share a single signature list — ideal for international campaigns.
• Privacy Policy & Data Retention You Control: Every petition gets an automatically generated privacy policy based on your choices, and you decide how long signatories' personal data is stored.
• Team Collaboration: Grant different levels of access to translators, moderators, and co-organizers.
• AI Assistant & Rich Content: Let AI help draft your title, text and cover image, and tell your story with photos, video and formatted text — not just plain text.
• Offline & Online Integration: Collect signatures on paper at events and combine them with your online total for a single, unified count.

4. iPetitions vs Change.org: Which Free Platform Is Better?

Both are free, but they treat your supporter data very differently. iPetitions lets you download your signature lists from the dashboard; Change.org keeps signer email addresses hidden from you entirely. Change.org is the better-known name and prompts your signers to pay for promotion, while iPetitions is a lean, long-running tool funded by ads and optional donations. Neither offers per-petition privacy policies or per-purpose consent choices.

If your priority is your supporters and your data on your own terms, Petitions.com combines the best of both: full access to the contact details you collect, consent purposes you define, and professional features — free.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does iPetitions give me my signers' email addresses?

Yes, when your signing form collects them. iPetitions says the signature lists you collect belong to you and can be downloaded from your dashboard, though its terms restrict selling or sharing them. Change.org, by contrast, does not give you signer email addresses at all. On Petitions.com you also get full access to the contact details you collect, with consent purposes you define yourself.

Is iPetitions really free?

Yes, it is free to create a petition. iPetitions is funded by advertising and by asking your signers for optional donations, which go to iPetitions rather than to your cause. Petitions.com is also free to create and run, without soliciting your signers for donations.

Is iPetitions legit?

Yes. iPetitions is one of the oldest online petition sites, operating since 1999, and it is free to use. Like with any platform, read its privacy policy and terms before collecting signer data, since they define what you may do with your list.

Can I run one petition in several languages?

On Petitions.com you can run one petition in many languages that share a single signature list — useful for international campaigns. iPetitions does not advertise a comparable multilingual feature.

Which platform gives me better privacy tools?

Petitions.com generates a privacy policy for each petition, lets you set data retention periods, and asks signers to consent to each data purpose individually. iPetitions has one platform-wide privacy policy and does not offer per-purpose consent choices.

iPetitions vs Change.org — which should I choose?

The biggest difference is your data: iPetitions lets you download your signature lists, while Change.org keeps signer emails hidden from you. Change.org is the better-known name but pushes paid promotion; iPetitions is leaner and funded by ads and optional donations. If you also want per-purpose consent and per-petition privacy tools, Petitions.com is the alternative to both.