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Searching for the best church giving app? If Tithe.ly caught your eye, you’re probably asking yourself if it’s worth the hype–or, more importantly– if it’s the best fit to align with your organization’s long-term strategic planning.
We’re here to help with comprehensive insights and evaluations of Tithe.ly, including its key features, pricing, advantages, drawbacks, and comparisons with other church-giving platforms. This guide breaks it down to help you make informed decisions based on user experiences and expert opinions.
If you're curious, you’ll have everything you need to make an informed decision, including some Tithe.ly alternatives. So, what do you say? Let’s help you decide if Tithe.ly is the tool your church has been looking for or not.
The full Tith.ely review
For many churches or religious nonprofits seeking fundraising solutions or a donor engagement platform, Tithe.ly is a popular contender. The platform (with a 4.7/5 overall Capterra rating) is known for making giving easy and offering the right features for meaningful engagement that matters so much for religious communities.
Tithe.ly has a ministry-first mindset and builds tools that help churches and nonprofits connect with their communities while streamlining daily tasks. Many organizations appreciate how Tithe.ly can deliver a seamless membership experience without requiring teams to spend much time maintaining it.
Tithe.ly’s acquisition of Breeze Church Management in 2021 enhanced functionality with more giving, engagement tools, and church management features.
So, is Tithe.ly the solution for you? How well does it really deliver against your goals? Let’s explore its features, then dive into some real user feedback to hear from those who’ve used Tithe.ly and can share some more authentic pros and cons.
“There is a tremendous ease in donating through Tithe.ly. It gives the admin the ability to customize the options for giving, which in turn helps the donors realize the financial opportunities of giving.” - Cameron B.
Donor communication
“We converted to Breeze/Thithe.ly two years prior to the COVID pandemic. Because we had this system in place we were able to easily communicate with our congregation via email and text during the early days when the pandemic was changing things daily. The fact that our congregation had two years of experience with the software meant we did not experience the slump or delay in giving during the pandemic like many other churches we know.” - Bryan P.
Feature availability
“Fairly simple to use. Even with lots of features, there are natural places to go and look for them. There are several extra features that I probably wouldn't have tried as a stand alone, but are really cool. We just implemented the credit card reader through Tithely Pay and it has been really helpful.” - Nathan C.
Tithely cons
Inconsistent user experience
“The software was frequently not working the way it should. Once they updated to Tithe.ly 2.0, I was unable to print or export PDFs of our monthly giving statements. This forced me to take screenshots of the webpage and then crop the image down, which is very annoying. On top of this, there were several other bugs that we had to work through. Tithe.ly is a very ambitious company that has taken on many new functions and acquired several other smaller companies. The result is what seems like a lot of usability and functionality but is actually dysfunctional, dated, and mismatched UX and UI.” - Nathaniel T.
Lacking donor engagement functionality
“The tithely side still needs a little work when it comes to giving anyone outside of a full admin access to the various areas. I am also looking forward to better stats in the communications area so we can see who is engaging (opening, clicking) and who isn't. I would also like to see the newsletter function from the website integrate into the communications area.” - Cameron B.
Customer experience
“I mostly disliked the constant bombardment of advertisements to upgrade or integrate with some new product they acquired while the ones they had were still running on Tithe.ly 1.0. The lack of support grew worse over time with the little bubble on the bottom right of the screen of Tithe.ly support was anything but helpful just offering up canned responses or links to outdated information or dead pages.” - Jana M.
Tithe.ly pricing structure
Tithely has a “value for money” rating of 4.7/5 on Capterra and offers a range of plans at various price points depending on what you need. It’s important to note that many features churches need to grow their communities and fully engage their donors will require a paid plan.
Also worth noting is that a transaction fee of 3.5% + $0.30 is automatically applied even with the free plan to budget in as you calculate the fundraising totals that will directly impact your mission. If you want to test drive Tithe.ly, there is a 30-day free trial of the paid plans listed below.
- $119/month platform fee
- Up to a 3.5% + $0.30 transaction fee
Giving + Church Management features +
- Text to give
- Websites
- Church apps
- Point of sale system
- Church media
- Worship tools
- Messaging and events management
Tithe.ly has a 4.6/5 customer service rating on Capterra, although several reviews do mention challenging experiences when trying to resolve larger issues. Tithe.ly breaks up its customer support into those already using the tool, those exploring it for their church, and those looking to make a gift to a church.
The main website offers a way to get quick answers through a chatbot and phone assistance between 5 am and 6 pm PT, Monday through Friday. Finding connection to a human support rep might require some wait time.
Features
Tithe.ly has a features rating of 4.5/5 on Capterra, offering a range of features tailored to churches. Here’s how these features can be practically applied in a nonprofit setting:
Online and mobile giving
Tithe.ly’s digital donation options include a mobile app and website forms, making it incredibly easy for donors to give on the go. Additionally, a text-to-give feature can help non-profits raise urgent funds during times of need, such as natural disasters or big giving days.
Donors can text a simple keyword before proceeding to complete their donation in seconds.
Branded app for donor engagement
While initially built for churches, the customizable app can be adapted for nonprofits to share updates, accept donations, post-event info, and feature stories from the field.
That might look like a church branding its app to showcase a new education program, sharing stories from students who’ve benefited, and a link to accept donations all in one place.
Communication tools
Tithe.ly’s built-in tools make staying in touch with your donor base simple without extra software. Organizations can use push notifications or SMS to remind donors about upcoming giving days or church events or respond to inquiries, while automated emails thank supporters and share the impact of their contributions.
Event management and ticketing
Whether hosting a fundraiser gala, volunteer orientation, or awareness event, Tithe.ly’s event registration features allow you to manage attendees and sell tickets. For example, a church nonprofit focused on finding peace in challenging times may host virtual workshops and use Tithe.ly to handle RSVPs and ticket payments, all while keeping participant data organized in one place.
Nonprofits can track donor history, generate year-end tax receipts, and easily pull reports to save admin teams valuable time. Tithe.ly’s admin dashboard can monitor giving trends, send customized thank-you notes, and identify top recurring donors for future stewardship.
Zeffy is the best Tithe.ly alternative and the only 100% free fundraising platform, covering even transaction fees. Built specifically for nonprofits, it offers everything churches need to manage campaigns, engage donors, and grow their mission—without the financial burden. With a 4.8/5 overall and a 4.9/5 “Value for Money” rating on Capterra, Zeffy proves that powerful doesn’t have to mean costly.
Pushpay is a platform for churches needing advanced online giving, donor engagement, and church management tools. Larger congregations enjoy Pushpay and are willing to pay for premium features with higher fees.
Pushpay's platform fees are customized based on your organization's specific needs and size and start at $149/month. For credit card transactions, Pushpay charges a processing fee of 2.9% plus $0.30 per transaction.
Pushpay’s features:
Mobile and online giving with customizable donation options
Subsplash helps churches connect with their communities through various online giving and donor management tools. It offers a unified solution for online giving, media streaming, and communication, which makes for a valuable resource that churches can use to enhance their digital presence.
Subsplash has a 4.2 /5 “Value for Money” rating on Capterra, and platform fees start at $99/month, and a processing fee of 2.3% plus $0.30.
Givelify is a giving platform designed to make digital donations simple and intuitive for donors and organizations alike. With a clean user interface and mobile-first design, Givelify helps churches and nonprofits increase giving by reducing friction in the donation process.
Givelify’s church tech has a 4.8 / 5 “Value for Money” rating on Capterra. There are no monthly subscription fees; the processing fee is 2.9% + $0.30 per donation.
Givelify’s features:
Mobile and online giving with a 3-tap donation process
Real-time donation tracking and analytics
Custom-giving links and QR codes
Donor management tools and personalized giving insights
Yes, Tithe.ly is a legitimate church giving platform for online giving, event management, and giving engagement. Since 2015, Tithe.ly has built a strong reputation and is considered a secure solution.
Tithe.ly offers a range of pricing plans designed to accommodate churches of various sizes and budgets. Understanding your nonprofit’s budget will help you evaluate whether Tithe.ly’s pricing is worth it.
Tithe.ly is highly secure and takes the safety of its users' data seriously to verify each transaction and data transfer. The platform employs advanced encryption technologies and complies with Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS) to ensure the secure processing of financial transactions.
If you ever encounter an issue, such as a delayed verification, you may see a message like "Verification successful, waiting." In these cases, you can reference your Ray ID ([insert Ray ID]) when reaching out to Tithe.ly’s security team for assistance.
Tithe.ly is considered a strong church platform; however, whether it’s the "best" depends on your church's specific needs, budget, and goals. Zeffy is an excellent alternative to Tithe.ly for church fundraising because it’s 100% free—there are no platform or transaction fees, so churches keep every dollar donated. Instead of charging fees, Zeffy allows donors to leave a voluntary tip to support the platform.
