We want to help you get to know the best church accounting software in 2025. And we’re not talking about just any single program. We’ve scoured the web to find the very best options that are available now. Really, it’s software designed for churches, non-profit organizations, and basically anyone else. It has a lot of features for keeping track of finances and donations. The company behind it is dedicated to developing only the best finance software for churches since 1999.
Let me tell you a secret. There are actually two secrets. The first one is that software can bring a lot of value to your church, and the second one is that choosing the best software for software for church financial record keeping purposes isn’t as easy as it sounds.
Aplos
Aplos church accounting software was founded in 2009 by the executive pastor of a church in California. While Aplos started as a web-based church accounting system, it has evolved to include event registration, church marketing, fundraising, website builder, and more.
The accounting system offers integrated payroll, tithe tracking, automated donations, and more.
- Aplos starts at $59/month
- For $79/month, churches can add text-to-give
- Customized systems with advanced accounting (project and fund budgeting, fixed asset management, automation) start at $159/month.
Aplos offers a 50% discount for the first six months for new users who subscribe during their 15-day free trial, and a 10% discount for an annual commitment.
CahabaWorks
CahabaWorks launched as an Alabama-based church management system in 2006. Along with standard church management features like membership and small group management and child check-in, CahabaWorks also covers all church accounting needs, from donation management to financial reporting and payroll. CahabaWorks is locally installed, meaning that users can download the software onto their system and use it without an internet connection (though there is an option for off-site backup).
- CahabaWorks offers a free version of their software with limited features and no customer support
- For $350/year, the standard edition adds child check-in, cloud backup, online giving integration, and customer support (30-day onboarding, technical assistance, free updates)
- For $650/year, customers can add payroll and priority support
- For $1,500/year, the premier edition adds multiple administrative users on the local network
Customers can renew for $300/year (standard support) or $600/year (priority support).
ChurchTrac
ChurchTrac, founded in 2002 in a Florida church, includes features for membership management, donations, check-in, worship planning, event planning, website management, and of course, fund-based church accounting. In addition to all of the standard church accounting features, ChurchTrac also offers check printing, recurring transactions, advanced search, and more.
- ChurchTrac offers a free plan for up to 75 members, which includes membership management, imports and backups, and free tech support
- The Standard plan includes everything in the free plan plus track giving and pledges, online donations, child check-in, and more for $5/month
- The Plus plan, which starts at $15/month, includes advanced scheduling, worship planning, song library, and more
Prices increase based on the number of members, and churches can get two months free with an annual commitment.
Church Windows
Church Windows is the signature product of Columbus, Ohio-based Computer Helper Publishing, which has been publishing church management software since 1987. Church Windows is available as an installed desktop version, or as a cloud based software. The accounting features include fund accounting, recurring transactions, custom check-printing, and automated budgeting.
- Church Windows desktop version starts at $379 per module (accounting, donations, membership/scheduling, or payroll) with six months of updates and customer support
- After the initial purchase, updates and support start at $115/year
- The web version starts at $58/month after initial purchase and a 30-day free trial
There are discounts for multiple modules, and multi-module packages designed for small churches with limited needs.
IconCMO
PROS
- Comprehensive church management features
- Childcare security add-on (separate fee required)
- Affordable for small and medium churches
- Includes unlimited users
CONS
- No fixed-asset tracking
- Expensive for larger churches
- Event registration feature requires an additional fee
- Can’t use Icon Check-in without an internet connection
Our Expert Opinion
We consider IconCMO our top pick because of its extensive list of accounting and church management features, including fund accounting, event registration, and online donation management. For an additional $15 per month, it offers a child check-in system (Icon Check-in), which is extremely helpful if your church runs a child care program. As a feature-rich church accounting software, it’s complicated to use. It requires more than basic bookkeeping training and experience. But once you get comfortable with it, IconCMO becomes a powerful tool for your church. If your church has paid staff, you can add payroll for unlimited employees for only $25 per month.
Pricing
IconCMO’s prices depend on the number of families your organization serves:
- 1 to 100 families: $35 per month
- 101 to 250 families: $49 per month
- 251 to 500 families: $59 month
- 501 to 750 families: $74 month
- 751 to 1,000 families: $84 per month
- 1,001 to 3,000 families: $94 month
- 3,000-plus families: $124 month
Available add-ons include:
- Icon Check-in add-on: $15 per month
- Icon Payroll add-on: $25 per month
- Event registration add-on: $15 per month
You can try IconCMO for free for 30 days with no credit card required.
Aplos
PROS
- Includes church management software
- Full suite of accounting functions and reports
- Track giving and create statements
- Integrates with Gusto Payroll (separate fee required)
CONS
- Base price includes only two users
- Base price doesn’t include donations by text
- Could be difficult to find an external accountant who is familiar with the program to assist you
- Invoices are not customizable
Our Expert Opinion
Aplos has served thousands of nonprofits with its easy-to-use and affordable accounting software. It is an excellent alternative to IconCMO, especially for churches with inexperienced bookkeepers. For only $59, you can perform a wide range of church accounting and management duties, such as tracking donors, managing donations, and allocating income and expenses. A unique feature is its website builder. If your church doesn’t need unlimited users or customized invoices, Aplos is for you. To simplify your payroll duties, we recommend integrating Gusto with Aplos.
Pricing
The standard Aplos suite costs $59 per month with key features like fund accounting, donation tracking, and event registration. For text donations, you need the Text To Give add-on. If you need advanced bookkeeping features, such as recurring transactions, fixed asset tracking, and income and expense allocations, you need the Aplos Suite + Advanced Accounting package.
- Aplos Suite: $59 per month
- Aplos Suite + Text To Give: $79 per month
- Aplos Suite + Advanced Accounting: $179 per month
You can try Aplos for free for 15 days with no credit card required.
Powerchurch Plus
PROS
- Choice of desktop software or online program
- Integrated payroll with no additional fees
- Includes fixed-asset management and tracking
- Desktop software includes unlimited users and installations
CONS
- Payroll tax schedules must be maintained by users
- Online version supports only four concurrent users
- Cannot prepare budgets of income and expense
- No mobile app and its mobile web lacks accounting features
Overall Score3.53OUT OF5
RATING CRITERIA | PRICING | 3.84 | OUT OF | 5 |
EASE OF USE | 1.75 | OUT OF | 5 | |
GENERAL FEATURES | 3.75 | OUT OF | 5 | |
CHURCH FEATURES | 4.44 | OUT OF | 5 | |
EXPERT ANALYSIS | 3.25 | OUT OF | 5 |
Our Expert Opinion
For churches with only a few employees to pay, we recommend Powerchurch Plus as your next church accounting software. If you feel stuck between online or offline accounting, PowerChurch Plus lets you choose between its desktop or cloud-based program. This software tracks donations and pledges, processes unlimited payroll transactions, and manages your church funds. As a low-cost accounting system, it comes with several trade-offs, such as the lack of telephone customer support and no assisted bookkeeping service.
Pricing
PowerChurch Plus can be purchased as a downloadable copy for $395 or on a CD for $415. Prices for its online version, PowerChurch Online, start at $39.95 per month:
- Downloadable: $395 for new users and $159 for upgrades
- Physical Media: $415 for new users and $179 for upgrades
- PowerChurch Online: $39.95 for two concurrent users and $64.95 for four concurrent users
PowerChurch Plus offers a free demo version with sample data so that you can explore the program before buying.
QuickBooks Online
PROS
- Leading small business accounting software
- Share books continuously with a QuickBooks ProAdvisor for assistance
- Unlimited free customer support
- Monthly price includes multiple users except for Simple Start
CONS
- Expensive after adding third-party church management software
- Complicated to track income and expenses by fund
- Price includes books for only one organization
Overall Score3.52OUT OF5
RATING CRITERIA | PRICING | 3.70 | OUT OF | 5 |
EASE OF USE | 4 | OUT OF | 5 | |
GENERAL FEATURES | 5 | OUT OF | 5 | |
CHURCH FEATURES | 2.19 | OUT OF | 5 | |
EXPERT ANALYSIS | 4.88 | OUT OF | 5 |
Our Expert Opinion
QuickBooks is designed to serve a wide variety of industries, including churches and religious organizations. The QuickBooks Online software isn’t purpose-built for churches, but it’s our top pick among our best six accounting software for small businesses. Also, it integrates with plenty of third-party tools to perform various church administration tasks like donation management, event registration, and member communication. On the downside, because it’s not a full-featured church accounting system, it potentially can be expensive after integration with other software. Nonetheless, QuickBooks Online offers what you need on a user-friendly platform, and we recommend it especially for churches that send a lot of invoices.
Pricing
QuickBooks Online is available in four plans with prices ranging from $25 to $150 per month, depending on the number of users and features you need. We recommend the Class tracking feature of the Plus version if you need to track multiple funds for your organization:
- Simple Start: $25 per month (one user)
- Essentials: $50 per month (three users)
- Plus: $80 per month (five users)
- Advanced: $180 per month (25 users)
You can also add payroll for $45 plus $4 per employee.
QuickBooks currently offers a 50% discount for the first three months or a 30-day free trial.
Conclusion:
Jot down notes and keep track of important details with this software. Easy to use, feature rich and very affordable. All church accounting software have the ability to track donations, send invoices and track accounts receivables using special features within the software. Whether you are a small or large church or organization the above listed innovative applications will meet your needs. Some are even workable on a PC!