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Religion · head to head

Planning Center vs Vanco

Planning Center logo

Planning Center

Religion

Complete church management platform for services, volunteers, and giving

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Vanco logo

Vanco

Religion

Electronic giving and ACH payment solutions for churches

From
On request
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: Planning Center free tier limited to 5 team members and 10 daily check-ins per product; Vanco gROW tier charges 2.90% plus $0.45 per debit or credit card transaction, and American Express is charged separately at 3.99% on both tiers
  • They diverge on capability: Planning Center covers Service Planning, Vanco covers ACH Giving.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

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

Attributes where Planning Center and Vanco differ
AttributePlanning CenterVanco
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelfreemiumtransaction
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Mobile (Church Center app)Web, Mobile app
Founded20031990

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

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

Only in Vanco

  • ACH Giving
  • Credit Card Processing
  • Text-to-Give
  • Church Management Systems
  • Fund Accounting
  • Mobile app support

Both cover

  • Accounting Software
  • Web support

What people use each for

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

Planning Center

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

Vanco

  • Online and mobile giving processing for churches and nonprofitsnot Planning Center

Where each one falls short

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

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

Vanco

  • GROW tier charges 2.90% plus $0.45 per debit or credit card transaction, and American Express is charged separately at 3.99% on both tiers
  • PCI non-compliance fee of $23.95 per month applies if a merchant does not maintain compliance, and Giving Insights costs an additional $75 per month on top of the base plan

Pricing, plan by plan

Planning Center

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Planning Center review.

Vanco

On request
  • StandardFree
    • Payment processing
    • ACH payments (1.0% + $0.25)
  • Premium$149/month
    • Advanced tools
    • Dedicated support
    • Custom reporting

Which should you pick?

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

Choose Vanco if

  • You need ach giving.
  • You work on Web, Mobile app.
  • You also want credit card processing.
Vanco review

Questions people ask

Is Planning Center or Vanco better?
Neither clearly leads. Planning Center starts at Free and Vanco at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Planning Center or Vanco?
Planning Center has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Planning Center and On request for Vanco.
Does Planning Center or Vanco run on more platforms?
Planning Center runs on Web, Mobile (Church Center app). Vanco runs on Web, Mobile app.
Can I use Planning Center for free?
Yes. Planning Center has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Vanco starts at On request.
What is Planning Center best used for?
Planning Center is most often used for integrated church management and scheduling, volunteer coordination and event management, worship service planning and scheduling, online giving and donation tracking. Of those, integrated church management and scheduling and volunteer coordination and event management are not what Vanco is typically brought in for.
What can Planning Center do that Vanco cannot?
Planning Center covers Service Planning, Volunteer Management, Check-in System, PayPal. Vanco covers ACH Giving, Credit Card Processing, Text-to-Give, Church Management Systems. Both handle Accounting Software, Web support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Vanco: Is there a monthly fee to use Vanco's online giving platform?

No monthly fee is required for the GROW plan, which is free. The THRIVE plan costs $54/month and includes lower transaction fees and additional features.

Source
Vanco: What are the processing fees on Vanco's THRIVE plan?

THRIVE plan charges 2.65% plus $0.39 per transaction for debit/credit cards, and 0.90% plus $0.39 per transaction for ACH transfers.

Source
Vanco: Are there any contracts or cancellation fees with Vanco?

No contracts or cancellation fees apply to either the GROW or THRIVE plans.

Source
Vanco: What happens if a church on the GROW plan doesn't go live within 30 days?

A $10 monthly fee is charged if the organization does not go live within 30 days on the GROW plan.

Source
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