Compare
ChurchBright vs Planning Center
Planning Center is a real product used by real churches. This page shows what ChurchBright includes, so you can hold it up against Planning Center, or any other church software, with the same questions.
| Capability | ChurchBright | Ask Planning Center |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | ||
| Free plan | Every feature, up to 50 people | Is there a free plan, and what does it include? |
| How plans differ | Only by size limits: people, branches, team accounts, SMS units, AI credits and storage | Are any features reserved for higher plans? |
| Prices in local currencies | 8 currencies on the pricing page | Which currencies are prices shown and billed in? |
| Giving & finance | ||
| Payment providers | Four built in; connect your own account | Which payment providers can our church use? |
| Local payment methods | Cards, bank transfer, USSD and mobile money, depending on the provider | Are mobile money and bank transfer supported in our country? |
| Who holds the money | Gifts are paid into your church’s own provider account | Do gifts pass through the vendor before reaching us? |
| Branch remittances to headquarters | Built in | Can branches report and remit to a head office? |
| Gift Aid records | Built in for UK churches | Is Gift Aid handled for UK charities? |
| Communication | ||
| SMS, WhatsApp, voice and email | All four, plus app notifications | Which channels are included, and which cost extra? |
| Member app | Included; installs from the browser | Is a branded member app included? |
| Church website | Included, with themes and your own domain | Is a website builder included? |
| Media & church life | ||
| Sermons, podcasts and livestream | Included | Are sermons and livestreams included? |
| First-timer follow-up | Pathways with tasks and reminders | How are first-timers followed up? |
| Groups and cells | Included, with meeting reports | Are cell-group reports supported? |
| Service planning and rotas | Included | Is service planning included? |
| AI assistant | Included, with monthly credits | Is there an AI assistant, and what does it cost? |
| Structure & data | ||
| Multi-branch | Branches with branch-level access and reports | How are multiple campuses or branches handled? |
| Offline attendance capture | Keep recording when the network drops | Can attendance be taken without a connection? |
| Data export | Everything as CSV, at any time | Can we export all our data? |
We have not listed Planning Center prices or features, because they change and you should see the current ones from the source. Check Planning Center on its own website, then try ChurchBright free and compare for yourself.
Moving from Planning Center?
Export your members from your current system as a spreadsheet, import them into ChurchBright in minutes, and run both side by side until your team is comfortable.