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With so many different data management solutions available, figuring out which is right for you is tough. You know you want to improve data accuracy and consistency by centralizing information and reducing manual data entry errors, enhancing administrative efficiency but need to figure out which tool is best. I've got you! In this post, I'll help make your choice easy, sharing my experience using dozens of different tools as a technical consultant and my exposure to data systems during my years as an assistant youth pastor, with my picks of the best church data management systems.

What are Church Data Management Systems?

Church data management systems refer to a type of software used to collect, store, organize, and analyze data related to various aspects of church operations and ministry. It serves as a centralized repository for managing information about church members, finances, events, ministries, and other relevant data points, enabling church leaders and administrators to make data-driven decisions and effectively manage church activities and resources.

Additionally, the system has reporting functionalities to manage donations, contributions, and budgets. This allows administrators to access real-time information and make informed decisions that help churches operate more effectively, minister more intentionally, and steward resources more responsibly.

Overviews Of The 10 Best Church Data Management Systems

Here’s a brief description of each church data management platform to showcase each tool’s best use case, some noteworthy features, and screenshots to give a snapshot of the user interface.

Church management system for data reporting, analytics, and insights

  • Free trial available
  • Pricing upon request

Realm is a cloud-based church management software that offers a wide range of integrated tools and services for ministries, administration, and pastoral care. The software’s robust membership management capabilities allow churches to maintain an up-to-date, accessible database of congregant information, including personal details, family connections, and involvement in church activities. This centralization of data facilitates efficient communication, helps organize events, and enhances overall pastoral care. 

Realm also has financial management features, providing churches with a comprehensive suite of tools for managing donations, pledges, and other forms of financial contributions. The platform offers financial tracking and reporting features, providing real-time visibility into financial health. It also allows for customizable dashboards that pull from its various databases to create overviews of key metrics. This reporting functionality allows church leaders to quickly access analytics to assess areas like attendance, financial contributions, and group engagement. 

Church management system for managing church attendance

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Rating: 3/5

ACS Suite is a church management software and church accounting software accessible online through a cloud-based OnDemand service or directly installed on a workstation. This ChMS has a membership management feature to record and manage membership information in a centralized membership database. Its ACS contributions feature lets you track the financial gifts of members and create IRS statements and tax receipts to ensure compliance with federal regulations.

The attendance of church members during events and activities is an excellent way to gauge the effectiveness of your ministry. ACS Suite has an attendance management feature that can help you do so. ACS Suite lets you track worship attendance not just on worship services but on Sunday classes, small groups, and discipleship programs. ACS Suite gives you the option to capture attendance using a barcode scanner to record attendance during events quickly. You can use ACS Suite to print attendance graphs for meetings so other members can easily understand attendance data.

Best for maintaining a database of online giving and contributions

  • 30-day free trial
  • From $50/month/account

Elvanto is a management software for churches of all sizes to streamline admin duties and serve members better. You can use it as a centralized system for maintaining records of members, contact information, reports, files, and other critical data. It has an attendance tracking feature to track and record attendance so you can communicate with members who may need ministering to. Elvanto has a volunteer management feature to maintain a record of volunteers for easier volunteer scheduling and communication.

Churches rely on the generosity of members and sponsors, and Elvanto can help you maintain a database of online giving and contributions to promote accountability. With an accurate record of donations and expenses, you can keep tabs on your church’s financial health. You can generate reports on pledges so you can send follow-up emails and provide donors with receipts or statements. Elvanto has an integrated giving app to accept payments and donations through debit or credit cards.

You can integrate Elvanto with other church management tools like Tithe.ly, SongSelect, PayPal, Pushpay, and Mogiv.

Church data management system for automating workflows

ChurchTeams is a church management software with different modules for managing your congregation like group management, event check-in, and volunteer management. It has an email marketing feature to help you promote fundraising activities to church members. ChurchTeams has a text-from-church functionality for sending notifications to church members to remind them of their group’s schedule or of classes they signed up for.

ChurchTeam’s workflow automation feature is what you need if administrative tasks take up too much time and if you want to devote more time ministering to your congregation. You can use it to automate simple admin tasks like sending a welcome email or text to new members or sending a reminder about upcoming worship services. You can also use it to automate sending schedules to volunteers, ensuring that everyone is aware of their schedules and responsibilities.

Church data management system for managing church resources

  • 30-day free trial
  • From $15.50/month/account

ChurchSuite is a church management software for managing different aspects of your church, including membership, donations, and worship planning. You can use ChurchSuite to create a member directory and send mass emails and text messages to church members. ChurchSuite is scalable, making it ideal for churches of any size. You can use the software to manage churches in different locations, making it ideal for multi-site congregations.

ChurchSuite is an excellent option if you need a church management system to manage your church’s resources. You can use the software to maintain a database of all your resources, including facilities, equipment, tools, and volunteers. ChurchSuite lets you check the availability of resources to help prevent double booking and avoid conflicts. It allows you to study data on usage patterns to know which resources are in demand and which ones are underutilized.

Church data management system with integrated form builder for data gathering

  • 10-day free trial
  • From $40/month

Faith Teams is an all-in-one church management system for creating a database of church members. You can use it to automate guest follow-ups to help you convert visitors to your church website or social media accounts. It has a donation management feature for easier fund accounting and to ensure donors and supporters of fundraising events that their donations went to their intended projects.

If you want to capture critical membership data, then Faith Teams is a fantastic option for your church because it has customizable forms and templates you can use for varied uses and events. You can use Faith Teams to create digital forms and embed them on your church website to make event registration easier. The software allows you to share forms on your social media accounts to reach more members. You can use your church’s font, colors, and logo to ensure branding on the forms you use.

Best for managing small churches & groups

  • Pricing is available upon request

Blackbaud Church Management is a church management software that allows church administration to manage church members, events, and ministries in one place. This church management solution has communication tools to help you stay connected with church members. It has a volunteer management feature to track requirements for volunteer positions and conduct and store background checks.

Small groups are critical for churches, and if you need church management software to manage small groups in your church, then Blackbaud Church Management is the best software for you. You can use it to maintain a database of the small groups in your church so you can provide support easily. Blackbaud has SMS and email features to communicate with small groups quickly. You can also use Blackbaud’s small group management feature to track the attendance of small groups to know which small groups church members find more engaging. Church leaders can customize group leader permissions giving them control over what group leaders can do.

Best for managing worship services

  • 30-day free trial
  • From $14/month/up to 75 group members

Planning Center is a church management software with different tools to help you organize the data you need to manage your church. It has built-in tools for tracking attendance, donations, volunteers, and resources. Planning Center has an engagement dashboard to help you study different metrics like attendance and donations to implement improvement plans as needed.

Excellent worship services draw more attendees, and Planning Center is an outstanding church data management system if you want to plan and hold successful worship services. You can use Planning Center to create a detailed blueprint of worship services to help employees and volunteers understand their roles. Planning Center lets you maintain a comprehensive song library and distribute music sheets to your volunteers and ministry.

Planning Center integrates with other church management tools like Thryve, ProPresenter, Mailchimp, and Checkr. More integrations can be unlocked using a paid plan through Zapier.

Free church data management system for accepting and managing donations

  • giving app is free, but the pricing for Tithe.ly All Access is $99/month.

Tithe.ly is a church management software solution to help you maintain a database of member records. It has SMS and email features to help you engage church members. You can use Tithe.ly to build a church mobile app enabling you to connect with a broader audience. It has an event management feature for event planning, event registration, and payment acceptance.

If you want to ensure that church members can donate to your church using their preferred donation method, then Tithe.ly is the best software for you because it allows members to contribute to your church using six different methods. Members can send their donations via text giving, online donations, direct deposits, checks, or gifts. You can also use this contribution management system to turn tablets into kiosks so you can accept donations during events.

Tithe.ly has a financial reporting feature to generate shareable giving summary reports for easier budget tracking.

Tithe.ly integrates with Engiven, STS Consulting, Boxcast, and others.

Church data management system for creating church websites

  • 30-day free trial
  • Pricing is available upon request

FellowshipOne is a church management software with a CRM module to help you manage your members and their data. It has a mobile app version that works on iOS and Android devices. FellowshipOne has an online giving platform to make donating more convenient for members so you can raise funds for your outreach programs. It has a worship planning feature to plan and execute in-person and live streaming events.

A church needs an excellent website to reach church members easily, and FellowshipOne is a superb church data management software if you want to create a church website that can serve all your church members’ needs. This SaaS provides you with a user-friendly website editing feature to help you customize your church website. You can use different templates to create a website that reflects your church and its ideals.

FellowshipOne integrates with Mailchimp, EasyTithe, Clover Sites, and others.

The 10 Best Church Data Management Systems Summary

Tools Price
Realm Pricing upon request
ACS No price details
Elvanto From $50/month/account
Churchteams No price details
ChurchSuite From $15.50/month/account
Faith Teams From $40/month
Blackbaud Pricing is available upon request
Planning Center From $14/month/up to 75 group members
Tithe.ly giving app is free, but the pricing for Tithe.ly All Access is $99/month.
Fellowship One Pricing is available upon request
Preview Image - <h2 class="c-block__title b-summary-table__title c-listicle__title h3" > Compare Software Specs Side by Side</h2>

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Comparison Criteria

What do I look for when I select the best church data management software solutions? Here’s a summary of my evaluation criteria: 

  1. User Interface (UI): Managing a church involves many administrative tasks, and a clean user interface will allow users to find the function they need quickly to save time. 
  2. Usability: Most churches count on volunteers, so I look for user-friendly software that anyone can easily use. 
  3. Integrations: Churches use different tools, so I look for software that will work with other church management tools. 
  4. Value for $: Churches rely on the generosity of members, so I look for software with many features and reasonable pricing. 

Church Data Management Solution: Key Features

  1. Member Directory: This feature allows churches to maintain a comprehensive directory of members. 
  2. Donation Management: This allows users to track and record the donations they receive
  3. Payment Management: Allows users to receive donations through text messaging, online giving, checks, bank deposits, credit cards, and others. 
  4. Communication Tools: Allows churches to keep in touch with members through text messaging, email, or a website chat feature. 
  5. Event Management: A feature that churches can use to plan and execute church events. 

What do you think about this list?

A church data management software is a critical tool to help you maintain an accurate record of your members, donations, resources, and events. It can help you manage your church effectively and improve engagement with members. 

On top of church data management software, your church can use other software to grow your church and minister to more members, and you can subscribe to The Lead Pastor if you want to know more about them.

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By Alexandria Schmidt

Lexie was born into a family of pastors and other church leaders. She was trained by her grandfather and worked as an assistant youth pastor in a megachurch in her twenties. Now she runs a peer support group and is the Technical Consultant for her current church, MCC Illiana. While she is no longer pastoring, she is staying active in other parts of the ministry.