Planning Center for Church Plants: 1 Year Free, Plus Free Giving During a Contract (2026)
Verified nonprofit programConfidence: mediumLast verified October 21, 2026
Free for 1 year for church plants; Giving free while another provider's contract runs
Free for one year for church plants only (definition not published), or Giving free for up to 12 months for a church still under contract with another giving provider. Afterwards paid tiers apply unless usage fits the free tiers.
- Provider
- Planning Center
- Category
- Church software
- Who qualifies
- Church plant (for the 1-year free offer; Planning Center does not publish its definition); Any church may apply for free Giving while under contract with another provider (eligibility verified by Planning Center)
- Where
- Not stated for the free-year offers; Giving processes in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand
- Limits
- Free tiers have usage caps per product (e.g. Services 5 team members, Groups 15 members)
- Billing
- Monthly per-product subscriptions; upgrade, downgrade or cancel any time without fees. New subscriptions show first 30 days free.
Standard vs. nonprofit pricing
| Plan | Type | Price | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free tiers (any church) People: free unlimited database and reporting; Calendar: 1 room; Services: 5 team members; Registrations: 5 attendees; Giving: 10 monthly donations; Check-Ins: 10 daily check-ins; Groups: 15 group members; Church Center app free. Paid tiers are priced per product by usage in an interactive calculator. | Standard | $0/mo | Official |
| Paid product tiers Not captured: paid tier prices are only in the interactive calculator and were not in the page text. Music Stand add-on $5/month. Giving processing: 2.15% + $0.30 per card, $0.30 per ACH (US). | Standard | Varies | Unverified |
| Church plants: 1 year free 'Planning Center is free for all church plants for 1 year.' Request via 'Request your free year'. What counts as a church plant is not defined on the page. | Nonprofit | Free | Official |
| Giving free for up to 12 months (churches under contract elsewhere) 'Stuck in a contract? Use Giving free until it ends... (up to 1 year).' Any church can apply; Planning Center decides how many free months. Covers the Giving subscription, not card processing fees. | Nonprofit | Free | Official |
Prices in USD as published on the date verified. Vendors change pricing; always confirm before purchasing.
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How to apply
- Church plants: use 'Request your free year' on the church planters page
- Giving offer: fill out the form on the Giving free page
- Planning Center verifies eligibility
- You receive an email with next steps
Catches and limitations
- Church-only product; not for other nonprofits
- Church-plant free year lasts 1 year, then regular pricing
- Free Giving months are capped at 12 and set case by case; processing fees still apply
- Free tiers have tight caps (Services 5 team members, Giving 10 donations/month, Check-Ins 10/day, Groups 15 members)
- Paid tier prices were not readable from the calculator, so savings can't be computed
Switching: Import member/donor data into People and Giving; set up services, groups and check-ins. Planning Center publishes a guide for moving Giving from another system.
Sources
- Planning Center pricing (accessed 2026-10-21)
- Planning Center for Church Planters (accessed 2026-10-21)
- Planning Center: Use Giving free for up to 12 months (accessed 2026-10-21)
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