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Software · head to head

ChurchTrac vs Planning Center

ChurchTrac logo

ChurchTrac

Software

Church management and member tracking software

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Planning Center logo

Planning Center

Software

Complete church management platform for services, volunteers, and giving

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Planning Center has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: ChurchTrac priced by how many people are tracked, in bands of 75, 125, 250, 500, 1,000 and unlimited names, so growth pushes a church up a tier; Planning Center free tier limited to 5 team members and 10 daily check-ins per product
  • They diverge on capability: ChurchTrac covers Member Management, Planning Center covers Service Planning.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which ChurchTrac and Planning Center actually diverge.

Attributes where ChurchTrac and Planning Center differ
AttributeChurchTracPlanning Center
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionfreemium
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Mobile-responsiveWeb, Mobile (Church Center app)
Founded20092003

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in ChurchTrac

  • Member Management
  • Attendance Tracking
  • Visitor Tracking
  • Payroll Systems
  • Payment Processors
  • Data Import/Export
  • Mobile-responsive support

Only in Planning Center

  • Service Planning
  • Volunteer Management
  • Check-in System
  • Accounting Software
  • PayPal
  • Stripe
  • Pushpay
  • IOS support

Both cover

  • Web support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

ChurchTrac

  • Church membership, giving and event management in one systemnot Planning Center
  • Fund accounting and contribution tracking for a congregationnot Planning Center

Planning Center

  • Integrated church management and schedulingnot ChurchTrac
  • Volunteer coordination and event managementnot ChurchTrac
  • Worship service planning and schedulingnot ChurchTrac
  • Online giving and donation trackingnot ChurchTrac

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

ChurchTrac

  • Priced by how many people are tracked, in bands of 75, 125, 250, 500, 1,000 and unlimited names, so growth pushes a church up a tier
  • The published figure is a starting price of $29 a month, with per band prices shown only in an on page calculator
  • Enhanced messaging is a $7 a month add on and includes 250 credits
  • Website and app setup starts at $477 and accounting setup at $399, both one off

Planning Center

  • Free tier limited to 5 team members and 10 daily check-ins per product
  • Pricing model requires customers to pay per product used; total cost scales with adoption
  • No monthly minimums but multiple product subscriptions can accumulate

Pricing, plan by plan

ChurchTrac

On request
  • Basic$29/month
    • Basic tracking
    • Up to 200 members
  • Professional$99/month
    • Full features
    • Unlimited members
    • Mobile app

Planning Center

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Planning Center review.

Which should you pick?

Choose ChurchTrac if

  • You need member management.
  • You work on Web, Mobile-responsive.
  • You also want attendance tracking.
ChurchTrac review

Choose Planning Center if

  • You need service planning.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Mobile (Church Center app).
  • You also want volunteer management.
Planning Center review

Questions people ask

Is ChurchTrac or Planning Center better?
Neither clearly leads. ChurchTrac starts at On request and Planning Center at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, ChurchTrac or Planning Center?
Planning Center has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for ChurchTrac and Free for Planning Center.
Does ChurchTrac or Planning Center run on more platforms?
ChurchTrac runs on Web, Mobile-responsive. Planning Center runs on Web, Mobile (Church Center app).
Can I use Planning Center for free?
Yes. Planning Center has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. ChurchTrac starts at On request.
What is ChurchTrac best used for?
ChurchTrac is most often used for church membership, giving and event management in one system, fund accounting and contribution tracking for a congregation. Of those, church membership, giving and event management in one system and fund accounting and contribution tracking for a congregation are not what Planning Center is typically brought in for.
What can ChurchTrac do that Planning Center cannot?
ChurchTrac covers Member Management, Attendance Tracking, Visitor Tracking, Payroll Systems. Planning Center covers Service Planning, Volunteer Management, Check-in System, Accounting Software. Both handle Web support.
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Related pages

More on ChurchTrac

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