20 Fall Fundraiser Ideas for Schools, Churches and Nonprofits

Fall is the fundraising season that sells itself. Families are back from summer, the weather is good for one more outdoor event and the harvest theme decorates the field for free. The fundraisers that work are the ones with a clear way to charge: a punch card for a midway of fall booths, a ticket per ride on a Mechanical Pumpkin, a buy-in for a casino night, an entry fee for a pumpkin carving contest. Each idea below comes with the rental that runs it and the pricing model that makes it pay.

Here are 20 fall fundraiser ideas organized by format: harvest carnival fundraisers, casino night fundraisers, ticketed rides and attractions, contest and auction fundraisers, and night-out events. Every one of them is built on a rental from the carnival and picnic games collection at Perfect Parties USA, with a planning tip on how to price it, whether your organization is in Boston, Springfield or Providence.

Harvest Carnival Fundraisers

The midway is the oldest fall fundraiser there is, and a punch card is the easiest way to run it.

1. A Punch Card Harvest Midway

Fall Carnival Stalls (5): Five striped fall booths run as a loop, with a punch card sold at the gate and a prize for a full card. Planning Tip: Price the card at five to ten dollars and the five booths pay for themselves by mid-afternoon. Rent the Fall Carnival Stalls package.

2. Pay-per-Roll Pumpkin Bowling

Halloween Pumpkin Bowling: A full bowling lane where players roll a real or foam pumpkin at the seasonal pins. Planning Tip: One ticket per roll and a strike prize; a lane attendant resets in seconds so the tickets keep coming. Rent Halloween Pumpkin Bowling.

3. Pay-per-Race Bobbing for Apples

Bobbing for Apples: Two contestants in bungee harnesses race to fill their buckets with foam apples before the cord pulls them back. Planning Tip: Two tickets per race, and put the teacher and pastor heats on the schedule; those sell out. Rent Bobbing for Apples.

4. A Prize Wheel Finale

Prize Wheel: A spin-to-win wheel where every slice pays out something, with the donated prizes on the big slices. Planning Tip: Sell spins separately from the punch card and stock the wheel with local business gift cards. Rent the Prize Wheel.

5. A Giant Plinko Prize Drop

Giant Plinko: Drop a puck from the top and the slot decides the prize, from candy to a donated gift basket. Planning Tip: One ticket per drop, and load the baskets into the outside slots so the crowd stays to watch. Rent the Giant Plinko.

Casino Night Fundraisers

The adult fundraiser that raises the most per guest, run with funny money and a prize auction so no real gambling takes place.

6. A Classic Casino Night

Classic Casino (category): Blackjack, roulette, craps and poker tables with dealers, funny money at the door and a prize auction at the end of the night. Planning Tip: Sell a ticket that includes the first chip stack, and sell extra chips all night for the bar fund. Rent the Classic Casino (category).

7. A Charity Poker Tournament

Texas Hold ‘Em Table: Texas Hold Em tables with dealers, run as a tournament with a buy-in and a prize table for the final table. Planning Tip: Cap it at 40 players for one night and sell the spots in advance. Rent the Texas Hold ‘Em Table.

8. Blackjack for a Cause

Black Jack: Blackjack tables with dealers, the tables that fill first at any casino night. Planning Tip: Two tables for every 50 guests keeps the seats turning and the chip sales up. Rent the Black Jack.

9. A Glow Casino Night

Glow Casino (category): Glow-in-the-dark casino tables with dealers for a younger crowd or a venue with the lights down. Planning Tip: Pair it with a black light photo booth and sell the photos too. Rent the Glow Casino (category).

Ticketed Ride and Attraction Fundraisers

Rides sell tickets all afternoon, and one headline attraction covers its own cost.

10. Pay-per-Ride Mechanical Pumpkin

Mechanical Pumpkin: The mechanical bull dressed as a pumpkin, with an operator controlling every ride. Planning Tip: Two tickets per ride and a leaderboard for the longest, and the crowd watching the finals buys the concessions. Rent the Mechanical Pumpkin.

11. Pay-per-Ride Carnival Bumper Cars

Carnival Bumper Cars: Five bumper cars in an enclosed arena with an operator, about 45 riders an hour. Planning Tip: Sell a ride wristband for the afternoon and a single ticket for walk-ups. Rent the Carnival Bumper Cars.

12. A Ticketed Corn Maze

Corn Maze Inflatable: A 35 by 40 foot inflatable corn maze that runs more than 150 people an hour. Planning Tip: One ticket per run, and make the exit a punch card stamp so the maze sells the midway too. Rent the Corn Maze Inflatable.

13. Train Rides Around the Grounds

Trackless Train: A trackless train that carries up to 18 passengers per trip. Planning Tip: One ticket per rider and a continuous loop; it is the ride grandparents pay for twice. Rent the Trackless Train.

14. Sponsored Pig Races

Human Pig Racer: Guests in inflatable pig suits race a short course while the crowd cheers. Planning Tip: Sell each pig suit to a sponsor for the day and put the sponsor’s name on the heat sheet. Rent the Human Pig Racer.

Contest and Auction Fundraisers

The fundraisers with an entry fee and something to bid on at the end.

15. A Pumpkin Carving Contest

Pumpkin Carving Station: A supervised carving station with tools and templates, run as a contest by age group with an entry fee. Planning Tip: Charge per entry, judge by sticker vote at a dollar a sticker and auction the winners. Rent the Pumpkin Carving Station.

16. A Logo Pumpkin to Auction

Live Pumpkin Sculptor: A sculptor carving an oversized pumpkin with your organization’s logo in front of the crowd. Planning Tip: Auction the finished pumpkin at the end of the day and sell photos with it all afternoon. Book the Live Pumpkin Sculptor.

17. A Corn Hole Tournament

Corn Hole: Full-size boards and a bracket on a whiteboard. Planning Tip: Charge a team entry fee, sell sponsorships for each board and play the final on the stage. Rent the Corn Hole set.

Night-Out Fundraisers

The evening events that sell tickets in advance.

18. A Game Show Night

Deluxe Game Show – Survey Says: A hosted Family Feud style show with buzzers and a scoreboard, with teams sponsored by local businesses. Planning Tip: Sell team entries to businesses and audience tickets to everyone else. Rent the Deluxe Game Show – Survey Says.

19. A Bowl-a-Thon

The Lucky Pin Mobile Bowling Lanes: Portable bowling lanes that set up in a gym or a function hall, for a pledge-per-pin bowl-a-thon. Planning Tip: Each bowler collects pledges per pin knocked down, and the lanes run all evening. Rent The Lucky Pin Mobile Bowling Lanes.

20. A Movie Night on the Lawn

Drive-In-Movie: An inflatable drive-in movie screen for a family movie night with tickets sold in advance. Planning Tip: Sell the tickets by the car or the blanket, and add a hot chocolate line for the second revenue stream. Rent the Drive-In-Movie.

How to Choose a Fall Fundraiser for Your Organization

Start with who is giving. A school or PTA raises the most from families at a harvest carnival with a punch card and a ticketed ride, and the best carnival games for fundraisers guide covers the game-by-game pricing. A church raises steadily at a family festival with the midway, the train and the movie night, and the church fall festival ideas guide has the full lineup. A nonprofit with adult donors raises the most per guest at a casino night or a poker tournament, and the casino night rentals in Boston and New England guide covers the setup, the funny money and the prize auction. For more formats beyond the fall, the creative fundraising event ideas post has the rest of the year.

As a rule of thumb, plan for one game booth per 25 to 50 guests and one ticketed headliner per 150 to 200, price every rental to cover its cost in the first two hours and book six to eight weeks ahead, because October weekends across Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire fill first. If you are on the North Shore, the carnival game rentals in Peabody, MA page shows what is available locally.

Rent Fall Fundraiser Attractions From Perfect Parties USA

Perfect Parties USA is based in Peabody, Massachusetts and owns hundreds of attractions, including every rentable item on this list, so the games you book are the games that arrive, maintained and ready to play. Every rental includes delivery, professional setup, trained attendants and prizes for staffed games, and complete teardown. We are fully insured, with a certificate of insurance available for venues and schools, and we have produced events of every size across New England and the Northeast for decades, from Massachusetts, Boston, Connecticut and Rhode Island to New Hampshire and New York.

Ready to get this party started? Contact Perfect Parties USA to talk to one of our Party Pros. Request a Quote.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the best fall fundraiser ideas for a school?

The best school fall fundraiser ideas are a harvest carnival with the five-booth fall midway sold by punch card, pay-per-roll pumpkin bowling, a ticketed ride such as the Mechanical Pumpkin or the Carnival Bumper Cars, a pumpkin carving contest with an entry fee and a Corn Hole tournament with team fees. Perfect Parties USA runs those for PTAs across New England.

What fall fundraiser ideas work for a church?

A church raises steadily at a family fall festival: a punch card midway of fall booths, train rides by the ticket, a ticketed Corn Maze Inflatable, a pumpkin painting station priced per pumpkin and a movie night on the lawn with tickets sold in advance. Keep the bounces free for the youngest members and the paid pieces cover the rentals.

How much money can a fall carnival fundraiser make?

A fall carnival fundraiser makes its money on tickets, so the math is headcount times spend: a punch card at five to ten dollars, two tickets per ride and a prize wheel at a dollar a spin. Price every rental to cover its cost in the first two hours, and a festival of 300 families clears the rental costs by mid-afternoon.

Can a nonprofit run a casino night fundraiser?

A casino night fundraiser runs on funny money and a prize auction rather than real gambling: guests buy a ticket that includes a chip stack, play blackjack, roulette, craps and poker with dealers, and bid their winnings on donated prizes at the end. Perfect Parties USA supplies the tables and the dealers across Massachusetts and New England.

Does Perfect Parties USA deliver fundraiser rentals in Massachusetts and New England?

Yes, Perfect Parties USA delivers fundraiser rentals across Massachusetts, including Boston and the North Shore, and throughout Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire and New York. The company is based in Peabody, Massachusetts, owns its inventory and provides a certificate of insurance for schools, churches and venues on request.

Which fall fundraiser attractions pay for themselves fastest?

The attractions that pay for themselves fastest are the ones with a crowd built in: pay-per-ride Mechanical Pumpkin and bumper cars, pay-per-race Bobbing for Apples and a punch card midway. Each sells tickets continuously for an afternoon, and the spectators they draw buy concessions while they wait.

How far in advance should you book fall fundraiser rentals?

Book fall fundraiser rentals six to eight weeks ahead, and earlier for the Mechanical Pumpkin, the Carnival Bumper Cars and the casino tables with dealers, which are reserved first for October weekends and Friday nights. Booking early with Perfect Parties USA also leaves time to set ticket prices with a Party Pro.