Buy Me a Coffee

Last updated
Buy Me a Coffee
Buy Me a Coffee Logo.svg
Buy Me a Coffee Screenshot.png
A Buy Me a Coffee page from October 6, 2021
Type of site
Membership and Creator Support
Available inEnglish
Headquarters,
U.S.
Created byJijo Sunny
URL buymeacoffee.com
RegistrationOptional
Users 300,000
Launched2017;7 years ago (2017)
Current statusActive

Buy Me a Coffee is an American crowdfunding company based in San Francisco, California, United States. [1] [2] [3] It allows creators, artists, and other content creators to receive support and financial contributions from their fans and followers. It's similar in concept to other crowdfunding and patronage platforms like Patreon or Ko-fi. [4]

Contents

History

The company was founded in 2018 by Jijo Sunny, Joseph Sunny, and Aleesha John. [5] The idea behind Buy Me a Coffee was to provide a user-friendly and simple way for creators to receive support from their fans and followers. The concept of receiving small contributions, often equated to the price of a coffee, was meant to make it easy for supporters to show their appreciation for creators' work. [6]

In May 2023, the platform removed dozens of accounts associated with QAnon and far-right figures, in response to a report from Media Matters for America detailing the figures' use of crowdfunding platforms such as Buy Me a Coffee. [7] [8]

As of 2023, it has been reported that approximately 44,800 active websites have integrated the Buy Me A Coffee platform for receiving support from their audiences. Additionally, an estimated 32,948 websites have historically utilized Buy Me A Coffee for similar purposes. [9]

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References

  1. "What the "Creator Economy" Promises—and What It Actually Does". The New Yorker. July 17, 2021.
  2. "How do social media's virtual tip jar features compare?". The Daily Dot. August 5, 2021.
  3. Naceva, Nadica (2021-04-05). "Buy Me a Coffee". Influencer Marketing Hub. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
  4. "Buy Me a Coffee Alternatives". Alternativeto. 23 August 2023.
  5. Miller, Theo. "This Startup Wants To Make It Much Easier For Creators To Get Paid". Forbes. Retrieved 2021-10-06.
  6. Tonia, Shane (13 February 2022). "Why Are We Doing Buy Me A Coffee".
  7. Binder, Matt (2023-05-15). "Crowdfunding platform Buy Me a Coffee removes far-right influencers and QAnon accounts". Mashable. Retrieved 2024-01-15.
  8. "Buy Me a Coffee: The crowdfunding platform that QAnon figures have used to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars". Media Matters for America. 2023-05-12. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
  9. "Buy Me A Coffee Usage Statistics". Builtwith. 26 June 2023.