What are the main ways to invest through crowdfunding, and how does each pay you back?

There are four main investment types, and each pays you differently:
- Loan-based (P2P lending): you lend to a business or a person and receive interest and repayments on a schedule.
- Debt securities: you buy bonds or notes issued by a company and receive interest, with the capital back at the end.
- Equity: you buy shares, usually in a startup, and earn through dividends or a gain if the company is sold or listed.
- Real estate: you either lend to a developer or hold a share in a property, and receive interest, rent or a share of the sale.
Donation and reward crowdfunding also exist, but they are not investments: backers do not expect a financial return.
In the EU, loan-based projects took the largest share of the money raised in 2024 (58%), followed by debt securities (23%) and equity (12%).
Whatever the type, the rate on an offer is what the project owner promises, not what investors end up receiving. Capital is at risk: crowdfunding investments are not covered by deposit guarantee schemes, can lose part or all of their value, and may be hard to sell before the end of their term.