Best Church Giving Software for New Churches

Online giving isn't optional anymore. Even for a church plant meeting in someone's living room, people expect to be able to give from their phones. The question isn't whether to set up digital giving — it's which platform to use without getting buried in fees or technical headaches.

This guide compares the three giving platforms most relevant to new churches: Tithe.ly, Donorbox, and Givebutter. We'll look at actual fees, ease of setup, and which platform to choose based on your situation.

What to Look For in Church Giving Software

As a church plant, your giving platform checklist should be short:

• Low fees — transaction costs compound fast at scale
• Quick setup — you need this working this week, not next month
• Recurring giving — the financial backbone of a church
• Donor-covered fees — the ability to ask donors to cover processing costs
• Giving statements — required for donors claiming tax deductions
• Mobile-friendly — most people give from their phones

The Fees Breakdown

Fees are where the real differences live. Here's what you'll pay per transaction on each platform (US, credit/debit card):

Platform	Monthly Fee	Platform Fee	Card Processing Fee	ACH Fee	Donor-Covered Fees?
Tithe.ly	$0	None	2.9% + $0.30	1% + $0.30	Yes ("Cover the Fees")
Donorbox	$0 (Standard)	2.95% (Standard)	2.2% + $0.30 (nonprofit Stripe)	Capped at $25	Yes
Givebutter	$0	0% (tips on) / 3% (tips off)	2.9% + $0.30	1.9% + $0.30	Yes (via tips or fee coverage)

Real-world note: Donorbox's fee structure looks complicated because they separate the platform fee from the payment processing fee. On the Standard (free) plan, you're paying Donorbox 2.95% plus Stripe's nonprofit rate of 2.2% + $0.30. Total effective rate for a $100 donation: approximately $5.45 in fees before any donor coverage.

Tithe.ly: Built for Churches

Tithe.ly was built specifically for churches — and it shows. The interface is clean, setup takes about 15 minutes, and it integrates natively with their ChMS platform if you're already using (or planning to use) Tithe.ly for people management.

Fees

The giving platform itself is free. Transaction fees are 2.9% + $0.30 for credit/debit, 1% + $0.30 for ACH. American Express runs 3.5% + $0.30. Their "Cover the Fees" feature is shown to donors at checkout; Tithe.ly reports roughly 60% of donors opt in, which meaningfully reduces your effective rate.

Setup

Create an account, connect your bank account, verify your church (usually takes 1–2 business days), and you're live. The process is straightforward; their support is responsive during setup.

Key Features

• Online giving forms, text giving ($19/mo add-on), and in-app giving
• Recurring giving with flexible scheduling (weekly, bi-weekly, monthly)
• Year-end giving statements generated automatically
• Donor-facing giving portal for managing their own recurring gifts
• Multi-fund giving (general, missions, building fund)
• ChMS integration — giving records flow directly into people profiles

Pros

• Purpose-built for churches — everything is in church language
• Familiar to many donors who give to other churches using Tithe.ly
• Tightly integrated with their broader platform if you expand later

Cons

• Transaction fees aren't the lowest in this comparison
• Text giving costs extra ($19/month)
• Less useful for fundraising campaigns beyond standard giving

Donorbox: The Feature-Rich Fundraiser

Donorbox was built for nonprofits more broadly — not churches specifically — but it works well for churches, particularly those that run fundraising campaigns, events, or peer-to-peer fundraising alongside regular giving.

Fees

On the free Standard plan, Donorbox charges 2.95% per transaction as a platform fee. You also pay Stripe's nonprofit rate (2.2% + $0.30) separately. For a $100 donation, that's roughly $5.45 in total fees. On the Pro plan ($139/month), the platform fee drops to 1.75%, making it cost-effective for churches processing higher volumes. ACH donations are capped at $25 in fees, regardless of donation size — which is excellent for large gifts.

Setup

Setup is straightforward. Connect Stripe (or PayPal), customize your giving form, embed it on your website, and share the link. Their UI is intuitive and most people can be live within an hour of signing up.

Key Features

• Recurring giving with pause functionality (donors can pause instead of cancel)
• Fundraising campaigns, peer-to-peer fundraising, event ticketing
• Embeds on any website (Squarespace, WordPress, etc.)
• Donor management database included
• Year-end receipts and tax statements
• Donor-covered fees option
• ACH bank transfers with $25 fee cap — great for large donations

Pros

• Extremely versatile — regular giving plus campaigns, events, and peer-to-peer
• ACH fee cap is excellent for churches with major donors
• Embeds cleanly on any website
• Pro plan becomes cost-effective at higher donation volumes

Cons

• Fee structure is genuinely confusing — platform fee plus processor fee takes effort to understand
• Not built specifically for churches — language and UX feel more generic
• Less church-specific integration compared to Tithe.ly

Givebutter: The Boldest Pricing Model

Givebutter operates on an unusual model: when you leave optional donor tips enabled, your church pays zero platform fees and zero processing fees. Givebutter makes money from the voluntary tips donors leave. If donors don't tip, Givebutter absorbs the fees anyway — this is their "Givebutter Guarantee."

If you turn tips off, a flat 3% platform fee applies, plus standard processing fees (2.9% + $0.30 for cards).

Fees

With tips enabled: $0 in fees to your church. Givebutter covers what donors don't. With tips disabled: 3% + 2.9% + $0.30 per card transaction — effectively the most expensive option. Most churches leave tips enabled, making Givebutter potentially the lowest-cost option in practice.

Setup

Givebutter is fast to set up — often faster than the others. Create an account, verify your nonprofit status, set up your giving page, and share the link. Their campaign and event tools are particularly polished.

Key Features

• Fundraising pages, campaigns, event ticketing, peer-to-peer fundraising
• Live event fundraising tools (auction, leaderboards)
• Donor management CRM included
• Recurring giving
• Text-to-give capability
• Highly customizable giving pages
• Donor-covered fees (tips model)

Pros

• Zero platform fees with tips enabled — no other platform offers this
• Excellent for fundraising events and capital campaigns
• Modern, attractive giving UI — donors find it intuitive
• Robust free plan with no arbitrary limits

Cons

• The tip prompt can feel uncomfortable to some church donors — they may feel pressured
• Not built specifically for churches; lacks church-specific terminology and workflows
• Less integration with church management systems
• If tips are disabled, fees are higher than Tithe.ly or Donorbox

Recommendation by Scenario

You want the simplest church-specific setup

Choose Tithe.ly. It's purpose-built for churches, donors recognize it, setup is fast, and it integrates with their ChMS if you're using that too. The "Cover the Fees" option keeps costs manageable.

You run campaigns, events, or peer-to-peer fundraising

Choose Givebutter. For capital campaigns, Easter giving drives, or mission trip fundraisers, Givebutter's campaign tools are exceptional. The zero-fee model (with tips on) makes it a compelling default choice.

You have major donors giving large ACH gifts

Choose Donorbox. The ACH fee cap at $25 means a $5,000 gift costs you $25 in fees rather than $50. At high volumes, the Pro plan's lower platform fee also makes economic sense.

You want to integrate giving with your broader church management system

Choose Tithe.ly if you're already on (or plan to use) Tithe.ly ChMS, or choose Planning Center Giving if you're using Planning Center (not compared here in depth, but their 2.15% + $0.30 rate is the lowest of any major platform).

The Bottom Line

For most church plants, Tithe.ly is the default recommendation — it's purpose-built for churches, fast to set up, and donors are already familiar with it. If your church will run active fundraising campaigns or events, add Givebutter for those campaigns while keeping Tithe.ly for regular giving. Don't let the decision delay your launch — any of these three platforms is better than a cash box and a prayer.

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