Directory / Bold.org
Bold.org
Bold.org is a free scholarship platform for United States high school, college and graduate students. Donors create awards that are hosted only on Bold, and each award page shows the amount, deadline and eligibility. Browsing needs no account, but applying requires a free Bold profile that asks for detailed personal information.
Best for: US high school, college and graduate students willing to build a full profile and apply to many smaller donor-funded awards hosted on Bold.
Limitation: Search has no state or need filter; those are browsed through category pages, and state pages still include awards limited to one high school.
Our rating
3.2out of 5
What our research found
Matching Power (3.0 / 5)
- Category pages cover state, major, need, merit and some colleges.
- Search adds keyword, education level, category and sort options.
- State pages still include awards limited to one high school.
- Sponsored no essay giveaways sit at the top of lists.
Scholarship Quality (4.5 / 5)
- Awards Bold runs show the donor, amount, dated deadline and eligibility.
- Some past-deadline awards are still listed, including one from 2024.
- Partner award cards carry far less detail than Bold-run awards.
Ease of Use (3.0 / 5)
- Filters work without an account, and award details are one click away.
- Applying requires creating a Bold account.
- On phones, a sticky widget covers the screen and blocks taps.
Privacy & Marketing (1.5 / 5)
- The default award list alternates with sponsored sweepstakes and partner offers.
- Sign-up requires phone, street address, birthday and citizenship.
- Marketing texts are bundled into the privacy agreement with no separate opt-out.
- Sensitive profile sections default to private, and accounts can be deleted.
How we rate
Matching Power
How well it helps you find the scholarships it lists, by filtering on location, need, merit, major, college and high school.
A 5 means you can narrow the list by where you live, need, merit, major, college or high school, and a big site brings the best fits to the top. A 1 means little or no way to narrow, and in the middle some filters work but many results still do not fit.
Scholarship Quality
How complete, current and traceable its scholarship listings are.
A 5 means nearly every listing is current, links to the real sponsor and gives enough detail to act on. A 1 means most are out of date, incomplete or do not lead to the sponsor, and in the middle you will need to double check a fair share.
Ease of Use
How easily you can understand the controls and reach actionable scholarship information.
A 5 means clear controls and a quick path from the list to a scholarship and its sponsor, including on a phone. A 1 means walls, confusing steps or a broken phone view keep getting in the way, and the middle is workable with some tradeoffs.
Privacy & Marketing
What data it asks for, how much advertising or sign-up pressure gets in the way, and how much control you have.
A 5 means the site asks only for what it needs, says why, keeps ads and partner offers out of the way and leaves you in control. A 1 means heavy data requests, sign-up pressure, loan offers or sweepstakes get in the way, and the middle has some of that pressure but it stays manageable.
Our ratings are our opinion of each site, not an endorsement or a prediction that you'll win.