Church accounting

Free church accounting software, fund by fund.

Budgets by fund, an income and expense register, bank file import and printable checks, in the same free system that holds your giving.

Fund budgets vs actual OFX, QFX and CSV import Printable checks Admin-only editing
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1 Fund accounting for a church, without another subscription

Churches track money differently from a business: gifts come in by fund, budgets are set per ministry, and the board wants to see what was spent against what was planned. Free Church ChMS includes accounting built for that, in the same system as your giving records.

2 What is included

Budgets by fundSet a budget per year, per fund and category, then see budget against actual.
Income and expense registerRecord expenses and other income with date, category, fund, payee, method and check number. Mark items reconciled.
Bank file importUpload an OFX or QFX file from your bank, or a CSV. Duplicates are skipped using the bank's own transaction ID. No bank login needed.
Printable checksPrint a check with the amount written out in words and a MICR-style line.
Giving in the same placeGifts you record automatically feed the overview next to expenses and budgets.
Administrator-only editingOnly administrators can change the books. Others cannot.

See it on the accounting feature page or read the accounting article.

3 What it is not

We would rather be clear. This is fund accounting for tracking and reporting, not a full double-entry bookkeeping package, and it does not file taxes or run payroll. Many churches use it to run the day-to-day books and hand an export to their accountant. If your auditor requires a specific accounting package, keep using it and use this for budgets and reporting.

4 Getting your books in

  1. Create your funds and set the year's budget under Giving, Accounting, Budgets.
  2. Import last month's bank file from Register, Import bank file.
  3. Categorize and reconcile as you go.
  4. Use the Overview for the board: giving and other income, expenses, budget and net.

Common questions

Is there really free church accounting software?

Yes. Free Church ChMS includes fund budgets, an income and expense register, bank file import and printable checks. It is free for every church, with no tiers.

Can it import my bank transactions?

Yes. Upload an OFX or QFX file, or a CSV with date, description and amount. Duplicates are skipped automatically, and you do not have to connect your bank login.

Is it a replacement for QuickBooks?

Not for everyone. It is built for church fund accounting, budgets and reporting. It is not a full double-entry package and does not run payroll or taxes, so some churches keep their accountant's tool alongside it.

Who can edit the financial records?

Only administrators can edit the books. Other staff cannot change the register or budgets.

Free for every church, forever

No trial, no tier, no credit card. Ask for your copy, and we will prepare it for your church and send it to you. Everything given freely, so your money can go to the people God has put in front of you.

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