If you're comparing church management platforms right now, you're probably overwhelmed. There are at least a dozen options, the pricing is confusing, and every vendor's website makes their product sound perfect.

I've been deep in this space for the past few months, both as a user (I help run tech and small groups at my church) and as a builder (I'm developing Pews, a new church management platform). Here's an honest breakdown of what's out there and what to actually look for.

The Big Players

Planning Center

The industry standard for a reason. Beautiful design, excellent mobile apps, and a module system (People, Giving, Services, Check-Ins, Groups, Registrations, Publishing) that lets you pick what you need.

  • Pricing: $0-1,466/month depending on modules. Most churches end up at $200-400.
  • Best for: Churches 200+ members with budget for proper software.
  • Watch out for: Costs add up fast when you need 4-5 modules. No built-in communication tools.

Breeze ChMS

The "simple and affordable" option that a lot of smaller churches land on. Clean interface, reasonable pricing, gets the basics right.

  • Pricing: $72-115/month based on church size.
  • Best for: Churches under 200 that want something simple.
  • Watch out for: No service planning module. Check-in features are limited compared to Planning Center.

Tithely (Church Center + Tithely Giving)

Started as a giving platform and expanded into a full ChMS. The giving side is excellent. The management side is still catching up.

  • Pricing: Free tier available. Full platform $49-149/month.
  • Best for: Churches that prioritize online giving above everything else.
  • Watch out for: The ChMS features feel like add-ons, not core product. Two separate apps can confuse users.

Church Community Builder (CCB)

The enterprise option. Deep customization, complex workflows, steep learning curve.

  • Pricing: Quote-based, typically $100+/month.
  • Best for: Large churches with dedicated admin staff.
  • Watch out for: Overkill for small churches. The interface feels dated. Onboarding takes weeks.

The Newer Options

Pews

Full disclosure: I'm building this one. But I'm including it because it fills a gap I genuinely see in the market.

Pews dashboard showing church metrics, upcoming events, and engagement scoring
  • Pricing: $100/month flat. Everything included.
  • Best for: Churches 50-500 members that want Planning Center functionality at half the cost.
  • Includes: People management, giving (Stripe Connect), services, check-ins, groups, volunteer teams, communication, engagement scoring, dark mode.
  • Watch out for: It's new. No mobile app yet. Smaller user base means less community support.

Live demo: demo.pews.app (demo-church / demo@pews.app / demo1234)

Subsplash / Pushpay

Both focus heavily on the mobile app experience and giving. Good if mobile engagement is your top priority, but the ChMS features are secondary.

How to Actually Decide

Forget feature comparison spreadsheets. Here are the three questions that actually matter:

1. What's your church size and budget?

  • Under 50 members: Honestly, Google Sheets and a giving app might be fine. Don't over-engineer it.
  • 50-200 members: This is where dedicated software pays for itself. Look at Breeze, Tithely's free tier, or Pews.
  • 200-500 members: You need the full suite. Planning Center or Pews.
  • 500+ members: Planning Center. Maybe CCB if you need deep customization.

2. What's your biggest pain point right now?

If it's giving, start there. Tithely or Stripe-based options (like Pews) will have the biggest immediate impact. If it's volunteer coordination, you need service planning. If it's pastoral care, you need engagement tracking and follow-up workflows.

3. Who's going to use it?

If your admin is technical, any of these will work. If they're a volunteer who's not particularly tech-savvy, simplicity wins. Have them try the demo before you commit.

My Recommendation

For most small churches reading this blog, I'd say:

  • Try Pews (free demo, see if it fits)
  • If you need proven and polished, go Planning Center
  • If budget is the #1 constraint, start with Tithely's free giving and grow from there
  • Whatever you pick, don't wait. The hidden cost of manual processes is real.

I'll be writing more detailed comparisons for specific use cases (giving platforms, check-in systems, service planning tools) in upcoming posts. Subscribe if you want those in your inbox.

Lessons Learned

  • No platform is perfect. Every option has trade-offs. Pick the one whose trade-offs you can live with.
  • The switching cost is real. Migrating member data, giving history, and service archives is painful. Choose carefully upfront.
  • Free trials tell the truth. Marketing pages lie. Actually use the demo with your real workflow.
  • Ask other churches. The best recommendation is from a church your size that's been using the platform for 6+ months.
  • Start with one module. Don't try to adopt everything at once. Get giving working, then add people management, then services.