Choose a platform
Church management software and a community platform do different jobs
Church management software keeps the records: giving, children's check-in, volunteer schedules, and accounts. A community platform is where members talk, take classes, and see the calendar between Sundays.
What church management software usually does
Church management software, often called ChMS, combines a people database with online giving, children's check-in, volunteer scheduling, service planning, groups, events, and email or text messages. Some products also keep the church accounts.
What Tithely, Planning Center, and Church Online Platform include
- Tithely Church Management lists Church Management at $72 a month and says that price covers giving, a people database, volunteer management, kids and events check-in, email and text messaging, service planning, and groups. Tithely offers a 30-day free trial and says you can cancel without a long-term contract. It also lists $119 a month for service planning plus a custom church website and app.
- Planning Center sells separate products. It lists the member database with reporting and communication as always free, Calendar for as many events as you want (room management is the paid part), and the base Church Center app as free. For giving in the United States it lists 2.15% plus $0.30 per card payment. An ACH bank transfer is listed at $0.30.
- Church Online Platform is free. It runs a live or recorded service online, with public and private chat, prayer, hosts, a custom domain, and no cap on services or attenders. It also lists volunteer tools for hosting that online service. It does not list giving, children's check-in, or church accounting.
What a community platform does
A community platform is the congregation's place to talk and learn between Sundays: announcements that stay findable, discussion in categories, classes, a sermon archive, and a calendar.
On Lockers, that is the feed, the classroom, the member directory, direct messages, and events. A church can run announcements, small groups, and a sermon archive beside the church calendar, under one login. A private group chat holds people from the same Locker, and a category can be limited to staff for announcements.
Match each church job to a tool
Write down the jobs you need done and find each one in this list. When your list includes jobs for both kinds of software, plan on two tools and give each one its own jobs.
- Collecting and tracking giving points to church management software.
- Checking children in safely points to church management software.
- Scheduling volunteers and worship teams points to church management software.
- Keeping church accounts points to church management software or to accounting software.
- Broadcasting the service points to a streaming tool or to Church Online Platform.
- A place for members to talk between Sundays points to a community platform.
- Teaching classes or keeping a sermon archive points to a community platform.
- One login for the feed, the classes, and the calendar points to a community platform.
Using both tools
Keep church management software as the record of giving, check-in, and scheduling. Use the community platform for conversation and teaching. They do not have to be connected when you start. A new member can join from an invite link while the official record stays in the other tool.
When you want another tool to receive Lockers activity, Pro includes an API and signed webhooks for moments such as a member joining or finishing a course. The other tool has to call the API or receive the webhook.
Questions to ask before you pay
- Who on the team will use it every week?
- Does the price change by person, by product, or stay one flat amount?
- Can you export the data if you leave?
- What does support look like, and is there a person to call?
- Does it do the one job you are buying it for?
A free plan for the community side
Lockers Free includes unlimited members and unlimited courses, and it does not ask for a card. Pro is $49 a month or $470 a year per Locker. Pro adds your own domain, quizzes, certificates, and the API.
Build the smallest useful version of your community.
Start with a feed, classroom, calendar, messages, and member list. No card required.
Start a community