Can I Use WooCommerce Subscriptions for Recurring Donations?

How It Works

A donation product is set up as a subscription product the same as any other, with the billing interval matching however often the donor wants to give (monthly is the most common). Since WooCommerce Subscriptions doesn't natively support a donor-chosen custom amount, that specific piece typically comes from a "name your price" or custom-amount plugin extension, layered on top of the subscription product.

Donation-Specific Details Worth Getting Right

Tax-deductible receipting. Many jurisdictions have specific requirements for donation receipts (a registered charity number, specific wording) that a standard WooCommerce order confirmation email doesn't include by default — this usually needs a customized email template.
No product "purchase" framing. Checkout copy, confirmation emails, and the product page itself read very differently for a donation than a commercial subscription — "Thank you for your gift" rather than "Your order is confirmed," which needs deliberate template customization rather than the defaults.
Cancellation policy tone. The same cancel/pause mechanics apply, but how they're presented to a donor (respecting that circumstances change, without being pushy about retention) is a different conversation than a typical commercial churn-reduction flow.
Reporting for organizational purposes, such as tracking total recurring monthly giving separately from one-time donations, which may need the same revenue-reporting distinction covered for commercial subscriptions.

Setting It Up Properly

Set up the donation as a subscription product, paired with a custom-amount extension if donors should choose their own recurring gift size.
Customize the receipt and confirmation emails to meet your jurisdiction's donation-receipt requirements and to read appropriately for a gift rather than a purchase.
Test the full donor journey — giving, updating payment details, and cancelling — with donation-appropriate messaging throughout.

See custom WooCommerce development for a recurring-donation setup with proper receipting and donor-facing messaging.