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Church & Religious · head to head

ParishSOFT vs Planning Center

ParishSOFT logo

ParishSOFT

Church & Religious

Catholic parish management and sacramental records system

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Planning Center logo

Planning Center

Church & Religious

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: ParishSOFT parishSOFT publishes no pricing for its named product suite (Family Suite, Giving, Accounting, Diocesan Accounting, Diocesan CRM) on its own site; the only purchase path offered is Contact Us, with no figures anywhere on the page.; Planning Center free tier limited to 5 team members and 10 daily check-ins per product
  • They diverge on capability: ParishSOFT covers Sacramental Records, Planning Center covers Service Planning.

Where they differ

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

Attributes where ParishSOFT and Planning Center differ
AttributeParishSOFTPlanning Center
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionfreemium
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Mobile-responsiveWeb, Mobile (Church Center app)
Founded19882003

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Church & Religious).

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 ParishSOFT

  • Sacramental Records
  • RCIA Management
  • Parish Accounting
  • Member Directory
  • Diocese Systems
  • Email Integration
  • Report Generation
  • Mobile-responsive support

Only in Planning Center

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

Both cover

  • Accounting Software
  • Web support

What people use each for

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

ParishSOFT

  • Member managementnot Planning Center
  • Donation trackingnot Planning Center
  • Event planningnot Planning Center
  • Volunteer schedulingnot Planning Center
  • Communicationnot Planning Center

Planning Center

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

Where each one falls short

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

ParishSOFT

  • ParishSOFT publishes no pricing for its named product suite (Family Suite, Giving, Accounting, Diocesan Accounting, Diocesan CRM) on its own site; the only purchase path offered is Contact Us, with no figures anywhere on the page.

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

ParishSOFT

On request
  • Standard$179/month
    • Core modules
    • Basic records
  • Complete$399/month
    • All features
    • Full sacramental records
    • Advanced reporting

Planning Center

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Planning Center review.

Which should you pick?

Choose ParishSOFT if

  • You need sacramental records.
  • You work on Web, Mobile-responsive.
  • You also want rcia management.
ParishSOFT 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 ParishSOFT or Planning Center better?
Neither clearly leads. ParishSOFT 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, ParishSOFT or Planning Center?
Planning Center has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for ParishSOFT and Free for Planning Center.
Does ParishSOFT or Planning Center run on more platforms?
ParishSOFT 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. ParishSOFT starts at On request.
What is ParishSOFT best used for?
ParishSOFT is most often used for member management, donation tracking, event planning, volunteer scheduling. Of those, member management and donation tracking are not what Planning Center is typically brought in for.
What can ParishSOFT do that Planning Center cannot?
ParishSOFT covers Sacramental Records, RCIA Management, Parish Accounting, Member Directory. Planning Center covers Service Planning, Volunteer Management, Check-in System, PayPal. Both handle Accounting Software, Web support.
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Related pages

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