> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.wegive.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Linking Donors Directly to a Portal Page in an Email

> WeGive Help Center article: which merge tags open a donor's portal to a specific page (Profile or Communications Preferences), and why Custom Fields can't be used to build this kind of link yourself.

## Overview

If you want an email to include a button or link that takes a
supporter straight into their donor portal — rather than just to your
organization's general portal login page — WeGive offers two merge
tags that do exactly this, each opening a different page.

| Tag | Where it takes the donor |
| - | - |
| `{{donor_portal_link}}` | Their **Profile** page |
| `{{donor_portal_preference_center_link}}` | Their **Communications Preferences** page |

Add either tag to a button or link in your email template, the same
way you'd use any other merge tag (see "Email Merge Tags Reference" for
the general mechanics). WeGive fills it in with a real, working link —
unique to that recipient and that send — when the email actually goes
out.

## There's currently no direct link to the Payment Methods page

The donor portal also has a Payment Methods page, but there isn't a
merge tag today that links a donor straight to it. A supporter can
still get there in a couple of clicks after landing on their Profile or
Communications Preferences page, just not via a single emailed link.

## Why you can't build this kind of link with a Custom Field instead

It might seem like you could create a Custom Field holding a portal
URL and merge that into your emails instead — but this doesn't work for
account-access links. A Custom Field stores one value per donor, set
once (or recalculated the same way every time, for a computed field).
A working portal link, on the other hand, needs a fresh, one-time
access credential built specifically for that email, for that
recipient, at the moment it's sent — something a Custom Field has no
way to generate. A link saved into a Custom Field would either have no
working credential attached (so it wouldn't actually log the donor in)
or would quickly stop working as that one-time credential expired.

**The short version: if you want a working, personalized "go to your
account" button, use `{{donor_portal_link}}` or
`{{donor_portal_preference_center_link}}` — not a Custom Field.** If
you need a different portal destination linked and these two tags
don't cover it, reach out to WeGive Support.

***

*Need a portal link that isn't covered here, or help setting one up in
your email template? Contact WeGive Support.*


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