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ChurchGeniusPro vs Planning Center

Planning Center is a set of separate church products — People, Giving, Check-Ins, Groups, Services, Calendar, and more — each priced on its own. ChurchGeniusPro is one system with three plans that include accounting. This page compares the two using each provider’s official public information.

Last verified October 10, 2026 from official public sources.

✓ offered as a built-in feature (for ChurchGeniusPro, on at least one plan — see Pricing). — not found as a built-in feature in the provider’s official public website, pricing pages, and documentation as of the verified date; it may be available through integrations or may have changed since. Text notes describe a partial form, a specific plan or product, an add-on, or the scope stated.

Pricing

How each one is priced

ChurchGeniusPro

Free plan at $0 (up to 50 people); Standard $20/month (up to 100 people, accounting with bank sync for up to 3 accounts, check-in, worship planning, volunteer scheduling); Pro $40/month (unlimited people, payroll, check scanning, and the advanced AI assistant). Application setup is free, and every feature can be tried free for 2 months with no credit card.

See full pricing

Planning Center

People (the church database) is free. Other products are subscribed to individually and priced by usage, each with a free level; paid levels for Giving, Check-Ins, Groups, Services, and Registrations start at $15/month. Card processing in Giving is 2.15% + $0.30 (US).

Official pricing page (opens in a new tab)

Where Planning Center is stronger

  • À la carte: People is free, and each other product has its own free level, so a church can pay only for the products it uses. Source (opens in a new tab)
  • Native apps in the App Store and Google Play, including Church Center, Services, Check-Ins, and Music Stand. Source (opens in a new tab)
  • A dedicated service-planning product (Services) with a Music Stand add-on for worship teams. Source (opens in a new tab)
  • A connector that lets AI assistants such as ChatGPT and Claude read data from several Planning Center products. Source (opens in a new tab)

Where ChurchGeniusPro differs

  • Accounting is part of the Standard and Pro plans — income, expenses, fund reports, pledges, and bank sync — so gifts post to the books in the same system. Planning Center’s official materials describe CSV export rather than an accounting ledger.
  • Payroll is included in Pro: employee records, payroll runs, a payroll register with tax liability, and a year-end W-2 export.
  • One plan price covers people, giving, check-in, worship planning, and communication, instead of separate per-product subscriptions.
  • On Pro, a built-in assistant takes typed or spoken requests and reads photographed checks and documents into entries.

Planning Center may suit you if…

You want to start with a free database and add individual products over time, you rely on native iPhone and Android apps, or your worship team wants a dedicated service-planning product.

ChurchGeniusPro may suit you if…

You want church management, giving, and accounting — including payroll on Pro — in one system and one monthly price, with an AI assistant that does data entry.

Questions

ChurchGeniusPro vs Planning Center: FAQ

Planning Center’s official Giving page says it does not have a QuickBooks integration and offers CSV exports. We did not find an income-and-expense ledger in its official materials as of October 10, 2026.

More comparisons

About this comparison. This page was prepared by ChurchGeniusPro and last verified on October 10, 2026, based on information published on Planning Center’s official website, pricing pages, and public documentation as of that date, linked beside each entry. Products change frequently, and features, plans, and prices may have been added, removed, or modified since our review. Please consult each provider’s own website for the most current information before making a purchasing decision. If you believe anything on this page is inaccurate or out of date, please contact us and we will review and correct it promptly.

Trademarks. Planning Center and all other third-party product names, brands, and trademarks referenced on this page are the property of their respective owners. They are used here only to identify the products being compared. Their use does not imply — and should not be interpreted as implying — any affiliation with, sponsorship of, partnership with, or endorsement of ChurchGeniusPro by those companies, or of those companies by ChurchGeniusPro. This page intentionally uses no third-party logos, screenshots, or other content.

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