ChurchFinanceChurchFinance
§The Planning Issue

Plan the year.
Track every month.

Church budgeting software with fund accounting built in. Annual budgets that track against actuals month by month, restricted gifts kept restricted, and a chart of accounts that fits your church.

See fund accounting

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2026 Budget
Year-to-date · all funds
May
Budget YTD
$120,830
Actual YTD
$114,520
Variance
+$6,310
Budget vs Actual
Top categories
PersonnelOperating
$52,400 / $56,000$-3,600
FacilitiesOperating
$17,850 / $18,200$-350
ProgramsOperating
$14,080 / $12,400+$1,680
MissionsMissions
$16,100 / $18,000$-1,900
HospitalityOperating
$3,850 / $4,200$-350
Programs is 14% over
$1,680 over budget · click to review
I.BudgetsII.FundsIII.CategoriesIV.Multi-Ministry
§ I.Budgets

An annual plan, tracked every month.

Set a number for each category and fund. As transactions post, see budget vs actual vs variance month by month. The board sees one report; the treasurer sees every line.

  • Per-category, per-fund
    A line for Personnel out of Operating, another for Missions out of Missions — total clarity on where every dollar plans to go.
  • Live variance
    Variance updates the moment a transaction posts. No end-of-quarter scramble.
  • Copy last year
    Start a new year from prior actuals or prior budget — adjust line by line, keep what works.
  • Over-budget alerts
    Get a notification when a category crosses 100% or 120% of plan, so surprises stop being surprises.
Budget editor
FY 2026 · Operating
Saved
Personnel
$56,000
+$4,800 (+9.4%)
Facilities
$18,200
+$800 (+4.6%)
Programs
$12,400
+$600 (+5.1%)
Hospitality
$4,200
$200 (-4.5%)
Office Supplies
$3,000
+$200 (+7.1%)
5 of 18 categoriesTotal: $93,800 +$6,200
Funds
Restricted & unrestricted balances
New Fund
Operating
$28,420
$124,800$96,380
Building
Restricted
$87,400
$14,200$0
Missions
Restricted
$9,820
$18,600$8,780
Benevolence
Restricted
$3,450
$5,200$1,750
§ II.Funds

Restricted dollars, stay restricted.

When someone gives to the Building Fund, that gift can only fund the building. ChurchFinance enforces fund boundaries so you never accidentally spend a restricted dollar on the wrong purpose.

  • Restricted vs unrestricted
    Mark a fund restricted and the balance is walled off — visible separately on reports.
  • Inter-fund transfers
    Move money between funds with a proper transfer that records on both sides.
  • Per-fund income & expense
    See which fund each gift goes into, and which fund covers each expense, with a balance forward.
§ III.Categories

A chart of accounts that fits your church.

Income and expense categories you actually use — Tithes, Special Offerings, Hospitality, Personnel, Children's Ministry. Rename, nest, or hide as the ministry evolves.

Income
How money comes in
Tithes & Offerings142 txns
— Sunday Offering52 txns
— Online Giving86 txns
Special Gifts18 txns
Building Fund Gifts12 txns
Mission Pledges28 txns
Other Income6 txns
Expense
Where money goes
Personnel24 txns
Facilities38 txns
— Utilities16 txns
— Maintenance14 txns
— Insurance4 txns
Programs42 txns
Hospitality18 txns
Office Supplies12 txns
Nest sub-categories
Group Utilities under Facilities. Reports roll up automatically.
Bank rules tag for you
Pair categories with patterns so imports come in pre-tagged.
Hide without losing history
Archive an unused category — past transactions stay categorized.
§ IV.Multi-MinistryMinistry

Each ministry, its own books.

Youth, Worship, Outreach, Children — each ministry runs its own budget and transaction history while still rolling up to the church's overall books. Available on the Ministry tier.

  • Per-ministry budgets
    Each ministry leader sees their own number and their own spend, without seeing the whole church.
  • Scoped permissions
    Ministry leaders only edit their own books. The treasurer sees everything.
  • Rolls up to one balance
    All ministry activity flows into the consolidated income statement and board packet.
Ministries
FY 2026 · per-ministry budgets
Add
Youth
Led by Pastor J.
$8,420
/ $12,000
Worship
Led by Worship Lead
$7,960
/ $8,400
Outreach
Led by Missions Dir.
$14,280
/ $18,000
Children's Ministry
Led by Children Dir.
$9,920
/ $9,600
3.3% over budget

What we actually do, said plainly.

Restricted = restricted

Marking a fund restricted enforces the rule at the data layer. The balance is walled off from operating dollars.

Live variance

Every transaction posts to its category and fund. Budget vs actual is calculated from those records — no manual reconciliation between systems.

Audit log

Edits to a budget, category, or fund are recorded with the user, action, and timestamp. Reviewable from the dashboard.

Questions

What treasurers ask first.

Set an annual budget by category and fund. As transactions post, each category shows budgeted vs actual vs variance, month by month. The Budget vs Actual report rolls everything up for board review.

Plan the year ahead.

Set a budget, define your funds, build a chart of accounts. Try every feature for seven days. No credit card.

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