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Religion · head to head

Ecclesia vs Ministry Brands

Ecclesia logo

Ecclesia

Religion

Church management and member app built in Chennai for Indian congregations and diaspora churches

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Ministry Brands logo

Ministry Brands

Religion

A church software holding company whose current product is the Amplify module suite

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Ecclesia pricing is not published anywhere, so a small church cannot budget without a sales conversation, which is a poor fit for the volunteer treasurers who typically make this decision.; Ministry Brands the legacy acquired brands and Amplify are different software, so a church buying Shelby or Fellowship One today is buying a product line that is not receiving the development investment.
  • They diverge on capability: Ecclesia covers Member and family records, Ministry Brands covers Amplify People.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Ecclesia and Ministry Brands actually diverge.

Attributes where Ecclesia and Ministry Brands differ
AttributeEcclesiaMinistry Brands

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), platforms (Web, iOS, Android), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Religion).

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 Ecclesia

  • Member and family records
  • Contribution recording
  • Church accounting
  • Member mobile app
  • Event and service scheduling
  • Group communication

Only in Ministry Brands

  • Amplify People
  • Amplify Giving
  • Amplify Accounting
  • Amplify Websites and Streaming
  • Background screening
  • Amplify Service Planning

What people use each for

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

Ecclesia

  • An Indian parish moving membership registers and offering books off paper for the first timenot Ministry Brands
  • A denominational body wanting consistent member records across several parishes under one administrationnot Ministry Brands
  • A diaspora congregation whose giving and record-keeping conventions do not fit US-built church softwarenot Ministry Brands
  • A church that needs a member app for notices and prayer requests without commissioning custom developmentnot Ministry Brands

Ministry Brands

  • A church that wants member records, giving, website and streaming from one vendor with one loginnot Ecclesia
  • A congregation needing fund accounting that understands restricted funds rather than a general ledger adapted from business softwarenot Ecclesia
  • Running volunteer background checks under a child protection policy without a separate screening vendornot Ecclesia
  • A denominational office standardising several congregations on one records and giving platformnot Ecclesia

Where each one falls short

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

Ecclesia

  • Pricing is not published anywhere, so a small church cannot budget without a sales conversation, which is a poor fit for the volunteer treasurers who typically make this decision.
  • The installed base is small and concentrated in India, so there is little peer community, few third-party consultants and limited evidence of long-term product viability.
  • There are no published integrations with accounting packages, payment gateways or presentation software, so data tends to stay inside the system.
  • Support runs on Indian business hours from a single small vendor, which is a real constraint for diaspora congregations in other time zones.
  • Feature depth is well behind established church platforms on areas such as child check-in, volunteer scheduling and multi-site campus management, so growing churches will outgrow it.

Ministry Brands

  • The legacy acquired brands and Amplify are different software, so a church buying Shelby or Fellowship One today is buying a product line that is not receiving the development investment.
  • Nothing is publicly priced at any level, so churches cannot compare modules against single-purpose competitors without running a full sales process.
  • Ministry Brands processes the giving, so the transaction rate is a large and negotiable part of the cost that is easy to overlook while comparing module subscriptions.
  • Module count creates upsell pressure, and churches often sign for a bundle then use three or four modules while paying for the rest.
  • Moving from a legacy brand onto Amplify is a full data migration with its own cost and risk, which weakens the argument that staying inside the family is the low-effort choice.

Pricing, plan by plan

Ecclesia

On request
  • Ecclesia$undefined/year
    • Church management web application
    • Member mobile app
    • Membership, giving and accounting modules

Ministry Brands

On request
  • Amplify$undefined/year
    • Modules bought individually or bundled
    • Priced by church size and modules selected
    • Giving processed by Ministry Brands at a negotiated transaction rate
  • Legacy products$undefined/year
    • Shelby Systems, Elexio, Fellowship One, easyTithe and others
    • Supported for existing customers
    • Not the go-forward investment line

Which should you pick?

Choose Ecclesia if

  • You need member and family records.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want contribution recording.
Ecclesia review

Choose Ministry Brands if

  • You need amplify people.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want amplify giving.
Ministry Brands review

Questions people ask

Is Ecclesia or Ministry Brands better?
Neither clearly leads. Ecclesia starts at On request and Ministry Brands at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Ecclesia or Ministry Brands?
Ecclesia starts at On request and Ministry Brands at On request.
Does Ecclesia or Ministry Brands run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, iOS, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is Ecclesia best used for?
Ecclesia is most often used for an indian parish moving membership registers and offering books off paper for the first time, a denominational body wanting consistent member records across several parishes under one administration, a diaspora congregation whose giving and record-keeping conventions do not fit us-built church software, a church that needs a member app for notices and prayer requests without commissioning custom development. Of those, an indian parish moving membership registers and offering books off paper for the first time and a denominational body wanting consistent member records across several parishes under one administration are not what Ministry Brands is typically brought in for.
What can Ecclesia do that Ministry Brands cannot?
Ecclesia covers Member and family records, Contribution recording, Church accounting, Member mobile app. Ministry Brands covers Amplify People, Amplify Giving, Amplify Accounting, Amplify Websites and Streaming.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Ecclesia: Is Ecclesia a real, buyable product?

Yes. It is sold by EinNel Technologies of Chennai and is listed on the major software directories, though its footprint is small and concentrated in India.

Ministry Brands: What do I actually buy from Ministry Brands?

Amplify, sold as modules. The older acquired brands are still supported but are not what new customers are sold.

Ecclesia: Does it publish pricing?

No. Pricing is quoted by congregation size.

Ministry Brands: Is pricing published?

No. Everything is quoted by church size and module selection, and the giving transaction rate is negotiated separately.

Ecclesia: Does it handle online giving?

It records contributions and generates receipts. Card and UPI collection depends on what the vendor configures for you rather than a published processor relationship.

Ministry Brands: Are Shelby and Fellowship One discontinued?

They are supported but not the go-forward line. Ask for written end-of-support commitments before renewing.

Ecclesia: Should a US or UK church consider it?

No. Established platforms in those markets have deeper features and larger support ecosystems.

Ministry Brands: Is Amplify Equip the same as Faithlife Equip?

No. Amplify Equip is an AI sermon preparation module. Faithlife Equip was a separate product that has been discontinued.

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