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Religion · head to head

Planning Center Services vs Quelea

Planning Center Services logo

Planning Center Services

Religion

Digital worship planning and service execution platform

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Q

Quelea

Religion

Simple free presentation software for churches and worship

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Quelea has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Planning Center Services the free tier of Services stops at 5 team members; Quelea quelea is 100% free open source software with no paid tier or vendor support contract
  • They diverge on capability: Planning Center Services covers Service Planning, Quelea covers Lyric Display.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Planning Center Services and Quelea actually diverge.

Attributes where Planning Center Services and Quelea differ
AttributePlanning Center ServicesQuelea
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionopen-source
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, IOS, AndroidWindows, Mac, Linux
Founded20062011

Identical on both: 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 Planning Center Services

  • Service Planning
  • Volunteer Scheduling
  • Song Setlists
  • Planning Center Giving
  • Music Database
  • Calendar Systems
  • Web support
  • IOS support

Only in Quelea

  • Lyric Display
  • Bible Verses
  • Theme Support
  • Song Library
  • OpenLyrics Format
  • Web Remote
  • Theme Editor
  • Plugin Support

What people use each for

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

Planning Center Services

  • Member management
  • Donation tracking
  • Event planning
  • Volunteer scheduling
  • Communication

Quelea

  • Member management
  • Donation tracking
  • Event planning
  • Volunteer scheduling
  • Communication

Both are used for member management, donation tracking, event planning, volunteer scheduling, communication, on those jobs the choice comes down to price and fit rather than capability.

Where each one falls short

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

Planning Center Services

  • The free tier of Services stops at 5 team members
  • Each Planning Center product is billed separately, so Registrations, Giving, Check-ins, Groups and Calendar each carry their own free cap and their own subscription
  • The Music Stand add-on is a further $5 a month
  • Text messaging costs $5 a month for a toll-free number plus $0.02 per message
  • Card payments are charged at 2.15 percent plus $0.30 per transaction, with a further 1.5 percent on international cards

Quelea

  • Quelea is 100% free open source software with no paid tier or vendor support contract

Pricing, plan by plan

Planning Center Services

On request
  • Basic$49/month
    • Service planning
    • Basic volunteer scheduling
  • Plus$99/month
    • All features
    • Advanced scheduling
    • Mobile app

Quelea

Free
  • Community EditionFree
    • All features
    • No cost
    • Community development

Which should you pick?

Choose Planning Center Services if

  • You need service planning.
  • You work on Web, IOS, Android.
  • You also want volunteer scheduling.
Planning Center Services review

Choose Quelea if

  • You need lyric display.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, Mac, Linux.
  • You also want bible verses.
Quelea review

Questions people ask

Is Planning Center Services or Quelea better?
Neither clearly leads. Planning Center Services starts at On request and Quelea at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Planning Center Services or Quelea?
Quelea has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Planning Center Services and Free for Quelea.
Does Planning Center Services or Quelea run on more platforms?
Planning Center Services runs on Web, IOS, Android. Quelea runs on Windows, Mac, Linux.
Can I use Quelea for free?
Yes. Quelea has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Planning Center Services starts at On request.
What is Planning Center Services best used for?
Planning Center Services is most often used for member management, donation tracking, event planning, volunteer scheduling.
What can Planning Center Services do that Quelea cannot?
Planning Center Services covers Service Planning, Volunteer Scheduling, Song Setlists, Planning Center Giving. Quelea covers Lyric Display, Bible Verses, Theme Support, Song Library.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Planning Center Services: How much does Planning Center Services cost?

Planning Center Services pricing is not publicly available. The pricing page requires account authentication and redirects to the login portal. Contact Planning Center sales directly for rate information.

Source
Quelea: Is Quelea free?

Yes, Quelea is completely free church projection software with no paid tiers or premium features. It is 100% free and open source.

Source
Planning Center Services: Does Planning Center Services offer a free plan or trial?

No public information about free plans or trial availability is accessible without logging in. Contact Planning Center directly to inquire about trial options.

Source
Quelea: Are there any costs associated with using Quelea?

There are no costs, subscription fees, or feature limitations based on payment. All features including stage view, video backgrounds, mobile lyrics view, multilingual support, and Bible integration are free.

Source
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