Church Windows vs Tithe.ly

ChurchTrac

Realm

ChurchTrac is a church management software with features for membership management, donation tracking, accounting, reporting and attendance management

Tithe.ly

Tithe.ly is a web & mobile based donation platform providing digital giving tools & event management features for ministries & churches of all sizes

Realm by ACS Technologies is a church management system with an emphasis on online community

Church Admin and Design

The customer support is amazingly helpful.

Parish Secretary

Wonderful experience with them.    Whenever you need support  they get back to you in a very good timely manner

Church Windows is a church management software for modern churches to manage memberships, donations, church receipts, budget and employee payroll

Accounting

Accounting Integration

Accounts Payable

Accounts Receivable

Activity Dashboard

Asset Tracking

Attendance Management

Attendance Tracking

Bank Reconciliation

Billing & Invoicing

Budgeting/Forecasting

Built-in Accounting

Check Printing

Child Check-in

Contact Database

Customizable Branding

Customizable Reports

Customizable Templates

Data Import/Export

Donation Management

Email Management

Event Management

Expense Tracking

Financial Analysis

Financial Management

Financial Reporting

For Religious Organizations

Fund Accounting

General Ledger

Invoice Management

Invoice Processing

Member Directory

Member Portal

Membership Management

Multi-Location

Online Calendar

Online Giving

Payroll Management

Pledge Management

Reporting & Statistics

Role-Based Permissions

Small Group Management

Transaction History

Visitor Tracking

Volunteer Management

Website Management

Reviewers indicate that Church Windows is affordable and offers good value for non-profits, and some users say it is less expensive than alternatives. However, some reviewers feel certain features and updates incur high or unexpected costs.

Value for money

By industry, Church Windows reviewers are most commonly professionals in religious institutions (76%). The most frequent use case for Church Windows cited by reviewers is church management (88% of reviewers).

Church Windows

Web-based

Windows

ShelbyNext Membership

FellowshipOne

1 Module

2 Modules

3 Modules

4 Modules

Cumbersome printing process

58% of reviewers feel negative about Church Windows’ printing functionality. Reviewers indicate that printing reports, labels, and directories often requires navigating through multiple screens and prompts, making the process time-consuming and frustrating. They say formatting issues can result in illegible or poorly aligned printouts, and customizing print options is challenging. Users report difficulties in printing specific information, such as tax forms or directories, and mention wasted paper and resources due to trial and error. Many find the process inefficient, especially when frequent printing is required.

Difficult membership management

51% of reviewers feel negative about Church Windows’ membership module. Users report that the membership area is not intuitive, with a complex layout and cumbersome navigation. They say entering or updating member information involves too many steps, and managing duplicate or terminated members is challenging. Reviewers mention difficulties in customizing fields, retrieving past information, and handling permissions. Some users find the module’s updates have made it harder to use, and express concerns about data loss or inability to edit certain records. The learning curve for new users is frequently cited as steep.

Challenging error resolution

55% of reviewers feel negative about Church Windows’ handling of bugs and issues. Users report that resolving errors or correcting mistakes can be confusing and time-consuming, often requiring assistance from customer support. They say the help resources are sometimes insufficient or difficult to navigate, making it hard to find solutions independently. Reviewers mention that technical problems, such as error messages or system crashes, occasionally disrupt their workflow. Some users express frustration with the complexity of fixing issues and the perceived lack of proactive communication about known problems or available patches.

Disruptive and frequent updates

51% of reviewers feel negative about Church Windows’ update process. Reviewers indicate that frequent software updates often introduce significant changes, requiring users to relearn procedures and adapt to new layouts. They say updates can cause confusion, disrupt established workflows, and sometimes introduce glitches or remove useful features. Users mention that installing updates on multiple computers is time-consuming, and the lack of clear communication or training about changes adds to the frustration. Many find the ongoing learning curve and adjustment period after each update to be burdensome.

Complex report generation

50% of reviewers feel negative about Church Windows’ reporting features. Reviewers indicate that generating, customizing, and printing reports is often complicated and unintuitive. They say finding the right fields, setting up custom reports, and saving report parameters can be difficult, requiring multiple steps and trial and error. Users report that some default reports are not useful, and the system lacks flexibility for specific reporting needs. Exporting data to other formats, such as Excel, often requires additional manual adjustments. Many users find the reporting process time-consuming and confusing.

Comprehensive attendance management

100% of reviewers feel positive about Church Windows’ attendance tracking. Reviewers indicate the software makes it easy to record and monitor attendance for members and visitors, with customizable fields and tags to distinguish between different attendee types. They say the centralized repository helps track attendance trends, identify changes in participation, and support timely intervention when needed. Some users report the ability to link attendance with other modules, such as donations and payroll, streamlining church administration. They appreciate the intuitive entry process and the flexibility to tailor attendance features to their specific needs.

Seamless module integration

97% of reviewers feel positive about Church Windows’ integrations. Users appreciate that accounting, donations, payroll, and membership modules are fully integrated, allowing them to manage all aspects of church operations in one place. They find the seamless data flow between modules saves time and reduces errors, making daily tasks more efficient. Reviewers indicate the integrated approach is particularly valuable for fund accounting and financial tracking, which are unique to churches. They also mention that the unified system eliminates the need for multiple software solutions and simplifies reporting and information retrieval.

Specialized church accounting

95% of reviewers feel positive about Church Windows’ church accounting capabilities. Reviewers say the software supports true fund accounting, allowing for detailed tracking of designated donations, budgets, and spending. They find it easy to manage bookkeeping, payroll, and contributions, even for users without formal accounting training. Users appreciate the ability to generate clear financial statements and reports tailored to church needs, and value the affordability compared to general accounting software. They note that the accounting module helps maintain transparency and accountability, which is essential for church administration.

Helpful and patient staff

90% of reviewers feel positive about Church Windows’ staff support. Users report that the support staff is consistently helpful, knowledgeable, and patient, assisting with everything from technical issues to training. They appreciate the promptness of responses and the willingness of staff to walk them through complex tasks or problems. Reviewers indicate that the staff listens to feedback and is open to suggestions for improvements. Some users say the support team’s friendliness and expertise make transitions, updates, and daily operations smoother for church staff.

Responsive customer assistance

91% of reviewers feel positive about Church Windows’ customer support. Reviewers appreciate the knowledgeable and patient support team, noting that help is readily available when issues arise. They say customer service is a key reason for their continued use of the software, with support staff providing clear guidance and quick responses to questions. Users mention that the support team is helpful during onboarding, troubleshooting, and updates, making the learning curve more manageable. Many users highlight the value of being able to speak directly with support representatives.

Treasurer

I can figure out how to get things done and their support people are super-helpful, but relative to Quickbooks and Aplos the Church Windows program falls short with regards to ease of use and user experience.  

Does not handle fund accounting well at all.  

Communicator

Overall, Church Windows is a well-designed software program that provides a comprehensive set of tools for managing the financial aspects of a church.

I love the option of one time payments. Although we do pay monthly for certain services, it's so nice to know if we needed to cut back on the monthly options, we would still have a working product for running the church financials.  

Singer Songwriter

The management area is well done with a lot of options to upgrade if need be and its easy to see all the activities for daily, monthly and yearly.

moderator

It really meets the needs of our church, The ease of data entry in donations and accounting works are especially nice.

Program Director 

Church Windows solved some of the issues we had in separating our nonprofit from our church services.

Office Manager

Church Windows is a fully integrated program that deals with Membership, Donations, Accounting, Scheduling, and Payroll.  

Office Administrator

The fact that you can only save the data on Windows not on cloud, is a bit of a turn off.

What I like are the different modules they offer that we can use to track everything financially.  

Senior Pastor

Church Windows makes it easy to capture information about church members and visitors.

Finance Admin

I am usually sensitive to messes created by conversions but this ongoing issue is affecting my church and my job.  

Also the pricing may be very steep for most churches in South Africa who don't make much income.

Some times the software became unresponsive and slow, and technical support was not always easy to access.

It truly gives value for money and it is easy to find the past information stored in the software.

Financial Secretary- Adm. Asst.

We moved from a spreadsheet reporting method to Church Windows for recording church members into a data base that offers many uses.  

can't sort vendors and reoccurring transactions alphabetically.

Team Lead

Learning the system takes time and can be difficult for those who are not computer literate.

Its by far one of the easiest church management software I have used.

In a variety of ways, Church Windows has aided our church's operations.

The experience is nothing short of easy to work with software.

Some of the other reports are a bit more complicated, but not this one.

Pastor

It has enabled us to anticipate attendance in light of past trends which has been invaluable this past year.

Church Coordinator

I belong to a Facebook group consisting of other church financial secretaries and have found others that also use this program so we also exchange ideas.

We have used Church Windows for about decade at our church and chose to renew our usage this past December by purchasing an update.

It has been especially helpful in tracking attendance trends and member giving.

Administrative Assistant

There are lots of options for categories and data collection points.

The software contains all the features that I would need to do my job effectively.

For our money, I often wonder if we could be using something simpler that's marketed only for churches.

Their support and information regarding the Payroll Protection Program grant has been spot on!

Our version is very 'dated' in its appearance.

Administrative Director

We have had multiple users and used most of the modules.  

The only limitation may just be how much you want to learn about it.  

I have been using CW for 20+ years, have learned most of the modules and have been very impressed at the power of this program.  

This is the best customer service ever!!!

Church Management

Church Accounting

Technical Support

Modules

Customer Support

Data Management

Training and Learning Curve

Updates

Small Business

Freelancers

Mid-size Business

Large Enterprises

Computer Helper Publishing

DonorPerfect

DonorPerfect helps nonprofits of every size streamline fundraising and centralize donor data in one flexible, all-in-one platform.
A CRM that empowers teams to collaborate, stay organized, and make data-driven decisions from anywhere, so your mission keeps moving forward.

Givebutter

Givebutter is a cloud-based, all-in-one fundraising platform for student organizations, sports teams, companies, and nonprofits which offers a range of tools for collecting donations online, running social peer-to-peer fundraising campaigns, selling tickets to fundraising events, and more

Zeffy

Zeffy is the first and only zero-free fundraising platform. Sell tickets for your fundraising events, create donation and peer-to-peer campaigns, and manage donors and even memberships from an intuitive all-inclusive fundraising platform.

President

Customer service is not very accessible, sometimes messages are not answered

Individual

There is no Customer support number, and when I opened a chat, I waited 2 hours and when no one came to help me I gave up.

Finance Team Member Electronic Giving

The customer service is top notch. If you find yourself needing help with the website or any of their products, the service you receive is always fast and friendly!

Church Windows vs Tithe.ly Comparison (2026)

Church Windows

Tithe.ly

Overview

Video & Screenshots

Pricing

User reviews

Key features

Integrations

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