How we make this list: we compare pricing pages, product documentation and public user reviews. Rankite is independent; if a vendor ever pays for a featured spot, that listing is clearly labeled Partner.
Key takeaways
- Planning Center is the best fit for churches that live and die by service planning, with modular products you buy only as needed.
- Tithe.ly offers the most complete all-in-one bundle, with giving, management, apps and websites under one $119/month roof.
- ChurchTrac is the value pick for small and midsize churches, packing accounting and worship planning into plans from $29/month.
- Giving processing fees deserve as much attention as subscription prices: a "cheap" platform with high per-transaction rates can cost more than a pricier one.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Best for | Starting price | Free plan |
|---|
 Planning Center | Service planning and volunteer scheduling | See website | See website |
 Tithe.ly | All-in-one giving, management and engagement | $119/month | Limited |
 ChurchTrac | Affordable all-in-one administration for smaller churches | $29/month | See website |
 Elvanto | Volunteer-heavy churches and worship team coordination | See website | See website |
 Pushpay | Growing generosity with donor analytics | See website | See website |
 Subsplash | Church apps, media and sermon content distribution | See website | Limited |
 FellowshipOne | Large churches needing deep, centralized member data | See website | See website |
 Realm | Whole-church management with integrated accounting | See website | See website |
 ChurchSuite | Modular administration for churches of any size | See website | See website |
Is your product missing or out of date?
We review this list regularly. Vendors can request a listing, send updated pricing or ask about featured placement.
The best church administration software
Starting priceSee website
Free planSee website
Planning Center grew up around the worship service itself, and its Services product remains the gold standard for planning: build service plans, schedule volunteers and musicians, coordinate rehearsals, annotate music in real time and assign every role so Sunday runs without guesswork. Around that core sits a modular system covering check-in, giving, groups, registrations and people management, each priced separately so a small church pays only for what it uses. The Church Center app gives the congregation one place for giving, sign-ups and directories.
Modularity cuts both ways. A church using five or six products can end up paying more than an all-in-one bundle, and data lives across modules that need deliberate setup to report together. Giving processing is transparently priced, with low card and ACH rates published on the site. For churches where the weekend service is the organizing center of ministry life, nothing plans it better.
What we like- Best-in-class Services module for planning worship
- Modular pricing means you buy only what you need
- Church Center app connects the congregation free
Watch out for- Costs add up as you enable more modules
- Giving and check-in are separate products
- Reporting across modules takes setup
#2
Tithe.ly
Best for: All-in-one giving, management and engagement
Visit tithe.ly
Starting price$119/month
Free planLimited
Tithe.ly's pitch is consolidation: one vendor for giving, church management, custom mobile apps, websites, worship planning and messaging. The All Access bundle puts the whole suite at $119/month, which undercuts buying equivalent tools separately, while standalone digital giving carries no monthly fee at all, just transparent per-transaction rates. With Breeze, the longtime simple church database, now folded into the Tithe.ly family, the company covers everything from church plants to large ministries.
Breadth brings some sprawl. The suite grew partly by acquisition, so moving between products does not always feel like one system, and churches that need only two or three pieces may find the bundle more than they want. Still, for leadership teams tired of stitching five vendors together, Tithe.ly's one-invoice, one-support-team model is the simplest path to a modern stack.
What we like- All Access bundle covers giving, ChMS, apps and websites for one price
- Digital giving has no monthly fee
- Serves over 53,000 churches
Watch out for- Individual products add up if bought separately
- Interface spans many acquired products
- Advanced needs may still need add-ons
#3
ChurchTrac
Best for: Affordable all-in-one administration for smaller churches
Visit churchtrac.com
Starting price$29/month
Free planSee website
ChurchTrac has served churches since 2002 with a stubbornly simple proposition: every feature on every plan, with pricing that scales only on the number of people tracked, starting at $29/month. That includes member management, online and text giving, church accounting, worship planning, volunteer scheduling, events, check-in, messaging and a member-facing website and app. Free data import and one-on-one onboarding come standard, and support ratings are consistently among the highest in the category.
The interface prioritizes function over beauty, and churches with complex multisite structures or advanced customization needs will feel the ceiling sooner. But the value math is hard to argue with: ChurchTrac estimates most churches replace several paid tools with it alone. For small and midsize churches watching every dollar, it is the most features-per-dollar option on this list.
What we like- Plans from $29/month with the same features at every tier
- Includes accounting, worship planning and messaging
- Highly rated support and onboarding
Watch out for- Design feels utilitarian next to pricier rivals
- Advanced multisite needs are basic
- No free tier for ongoing use
#4
Elvanto
Best for: Volunteer-heavy churches and worship team coordination
Visit elvanto.com
Starting priceSee website
Free planSee website
Elvanto takes the opposite approach from modular pricing: one plan with everything included, no add-on modules and no extra charges. Its strengths cluster around people-intensive ministry: worship planning with run sheets, volunteer scheduling and a song database with lyrics and chords; children and youth check-in with privacy and safety controls; and pastoral care workflows that make sure no member gets missed. Financial tools track giving and pledges alongside online giving integrations.
The main friction is pricing transparency: costs are quote-based, which makes comparison shopping slower. The community and third-party integration ecosystem is also smaller than Planning Center's. For churches that want one predictable price covering the full volunteer-to-service pipeline, Elvanto's all-inclusive model is appealing.
What we like- All features included with no add-on modules
- Strong worship planning with song database and chords
- Check-in built for children and youth safety
Watch out for- Pricing is quote-based rather than published
- Smaller user community
- Reporting depth trails enterprise rivals
Starting priceSee website
Free planSee website
Pushpay built its name on digital giving and has expanded into a full engagement platform. Its giving flow is engineered for conversion, with donors completing gifts in seconds without account creation, plus proprietary technology that recovers failed transactions and missed gifts. The newer ChMS layer adds AI-powered people search, profile summaries that brief pastors on a member's full history, and automated follow-up workflows. Additions like stock and crypto giving and live streaming through Resi round out the suite.
This is premium software with premium, quote-based pricing, aimed at churches serious about growing generosity rather than just processing it. Smaller congregations may not need the analytics depth or justify the cost. For midsize and large churches where giving trends drive the budget conversation, Pushpay's donor intelligence is the deepest in the category.
What we like- Giving-first platform with donation recovery technology
- AI-assisted people search and profile summaries
- Trusted by 14,000+ churches
Watch out for- Premium positioning with quote-based pricing
- Full value needs the broader suite
- Smaller churches may find it more than they need
Starting priceSee website
Free planLimited
Subsplash approaches church software from the engagement side: custom-branded mobile and TV apps, websites, media hosting and giving unified so a sermon flows everywhere from one upload. Its Pulpit AI generates clips, graphics and discipleship material from each sermon automatically, multiplying one message across the week. Digital giving starts at $0/month with negotiated processing rates, and the management tools cover check-in, volunteers, service planning and messaging. Over 20,000 churches and ministries use the platform.
The trade-off is emphasis. Churches whose priority is back-office administration, accounting depth or complex membership workflows may find admin-first tools a better fit. Pricing for the full platform is quote-based. But for churches that think of Sunday as content to be distributed all week, Subsplash's publish-once model is unmatched.
What we like- Custom mobile and TV apps plus websites in one platform
- Pulpit AI turns sermons into clips and content
- Digital giving starts at $0/month
Watch out for- Quote-based pricing for the full platform
- App-centric model suits media-heavy churches best
- ChMS depth trails admin-first rivals
Starting priceSee website
Free planSee website
FellowshipOne is the veteran enterprise option, with sixteen years in church management and a database-centric design that large churches rely on: every member's contact information, communications, giving and activity history in one searchable record. With over 4,000 churches served and $3.1 billion in charitable contributions processed, it has the scale story for multisite and megachurch operations, backed by a large support staff and an active customer community.
It is not the nimble choice. Implementation is a genuine project, the interface reflects its long history, and pricing sits at the enterprise end. But for large churches where data integrity across campuses, complex reporting and proven reliability matter more than a pretty dashboard, FellowshipOne's depth remains difficult to replace.
What we like- Comprehensive member records with full history in one place
- Serves 4,000+ churches with 250,000+ monthly users
- Strong support organization
Watch out for- Interface shows its age in places
- Implementation takes real effort
- Pricing is quote-based and enterprise-leaning
Starting priceSee website
Free planSee website
Realm, from ACS Technologies, is built for churches that want administration and accounting under one roof. Plans scale from Inform for staff operations through Connect, which extends to the whole congregation with the mobile app, up to Multiply for multisite administration. Because ACS Technologies has served churches since 1978, the financial side is unusually deep: fund accounting, payroll, budgeting and donation management alongside member, volunteer, group and event tools.
Pricing depends on weekly attendance and requires a conversation, which slows down comparison. The interface is functional rather than flashy. But churches that currently run separate accounting software alongside a ChMS should price Realm carefully: consolidating both into one system with one database often beats the combined cost and eliminates double entry.
What we like- Tiered plans from staff-only to multisite
- Accounting, payroll and giving in one system
- Congregant-facing Connect app included
Watch out for- Pricing varies by attendance and needs a quote
- Interface less modern than newer rivals
- Best value at larger sizes
Starting priceSee website
Free planSee website
ChurchSuite is the modular organizer: churches pick the modules they need, from newcomer follow-up flows and room bookings to volunteer rotas, event planning, children’s check-in, service run sheets, small groups and donations with Gift Aid handling. The same system serves church plants and large multisite churches, scaling as the congregation grows. One app serves admins, leaders and members with appropriate views for each.
Its UK origins show in places: American churches should confirm US-specific needs like particular giving integrations before committing, and support hours skew toward UK time zones. Pricing is not published. For churches that want to start small and switch on capability as they grow, without migrating systems, ChurchSuite's modular path is well designed.
What we like- Modular design adapts from church plants to multisite
- Covers rotas, rooms, donations with Gift Aid, and check-in
- Strong small-church following
Watch out for- UK roots mean some US-specific features lag
- Pricing not published
- Smaller North American support presence
How we chose
We looked for software that exists today and handles the core of church administration: people records, giving, groups, check-in, volunteers and communication. We excluded Breeze as a standalone pick because it has been absorbed into Tithe.ly, replacing it with ChurchSuite to keep the comparison complete. We weighed each tool on breadth of features, pricing transparency, giving costs, ease of use for volunteers, and fit for different church sizes. Pricing comes from vendor pages where published.
The modules that matter: what to compare beyond the demo
Every vendor demo looks good, so compare the modules that decide daily life. Start with the people database: can you segment members, track pastoral notes, and manage permissions so volunteers see only what they need? Next, giving: not just online donations but pledge tracking, donor statements and fund designations. Check-in matters enormously for children's ministry, where speed and security labels are non-negotiable on Sunday mornings.
Then look at the workflow tools: volunteer scheduling and rota management, room and resource booking, event registration with payments, and email or text messaging with sensible limits. Worship planning deserves its own evaluation if music is central to your services. Finally, ask about the congregation-facing side: a member app or portal where people update their details, register and give reduces office workload more than any admin feature. Score each candidate on these modules, not on the slideware.
Giving fees: the hidden line item
Church software pricing has two parts and most buyers only compare one. The subscription is visible; the giving processing fees are where the real money moves. A church receiving $20,000 a month in digital gifts pays about $580 a month in card processing at typical rates, which can dwarf the software subscription itself. Small differences in rates, or the availability of low-cost ACH bank transfer options, compound into thousands per year.
When comparing, ask each vendor for three numbers: the card rate, the ACH rate, and whether donors can cover the fee. Planning Center and Tithe.ly publish theirs; others will share on a call. Also check whether giving can stand alone: Tithe.ly and Subsplash offer giving with no monthly fee, which lets a church start digital donations before committing to a full platform. The cheapest subscription with expensive processing is rarely the cheapest system.
Frequently asked questions
What is church administration software?
Church administration software, often called a ChMS (church management system), centralizes the operational life of a church: member records, donations, groups, volunteer scheduling, children’s check-in, event registration and communication. Instead of spreadsheets and disconnected apps, staff and volunteers work from one database.
How much does church administration software cost?
It ranges widely. ChurchTrac starts at $29/month with all features included. Tithe.ly's full bundle is $119/month. Planning Center, Pushpay, FellowshipOne, Realm and others price by modules, attendance or quote. Remember to add giving processing fees, which often exceed the subscription for churches with significant digital donations.
What happened to Breeze church software?
Breeze, the longtime simple church management tool, has been absorbed into Tithe.ly. Its website now directs visitors to Tithe.ly's platform. Churches that liked Breeze's simplicity should look at Tithe.ly's church management offering or at ChurchTrac, which occupies a similar simple-and-affordable position.
Do we need a church app, or is a website enough?
It depends on engagement goals. A website handles visitors and information; an app puts giving, groups, check-in and communication in members' pockets all week. Platforms like Subsplash, Tithe.ly and Pushpay make the app the engagement hub. Smaller churches often do fine starting with a strong website and adding an app later.
Can church software handle our accounting too?
Some can. ChurchTrac includes church accounting, and Realm offers deep fund accounting and payroll through ACS Technologies. Planning Center, Elvanto and FellowshipOne focus on people and ministry operations and typically integrate with dedicated accounting tools. If consolidating accounting matters, shortlist the tools that include it natively.
Sources we checked (9)
- https://planning.center/
- https://tithe.ly/
- https://churchtrac.com/
- https://www.elvanto.com
- https://pushpay.com
- https://subsplash.com/
- https://www.fellowshipone.com
- https://www.acstechnologies.com/realm/
- https://churchsuite.com
Is your product missing or out of date?
We review this list regularly. Vendors can request a listing, send updated pricing or ask about featured placement.
Shihab Mia · Founder, Rankite
Shihab has spent more than a decade helping SaaS and e-commerce brands grow through search. He writes Rankite's software buying guides from pricing pages, documentation and public user reviews. More about Shihab.