The step up, when your church is ready for it.
ChurchTrac is honestly inexpensive — starting at a published $9/month — and covers the basics well. GLAD is the platform tier above it: presentation on the projector, screens that advance together live, real double-entry books with payroll, and a member app with live chat.
Why churches move up from ChurchTrac
ChurchTrac's published pricing starts at $9/month, scaled by how many people you track, with accounting at +$15/month and enhanced messaging at +$7/month per 250 credits (July 2026). For the price of a couple of coffees, it genuinely replaces the spreadsheet.
What it doesn't publish is the Sunday layer: presentation on the projector, a confidence monitor, screens that sync live, payroll, or a member portal with real-time chat. That's the tier GLAD occupies — the platform your volunteers and congregation actually touch, not just the office records.
To their credit: the core platform includes a lot at that price — people, check-in, worship planning, giving, a website, and the Church Connect app. Prices shown are ChurchTrac's published pricing, July 2026.
People, presentation with live multi-screen sync, giving with real double-entry accounting and payroll, check-in, your website, a member app with live chat, compliant texting, AI — every module on every tier.
Plans from $59/mo billed annually — see pricingWhat the platform tier adds
If ChurchTrac's price is the deciding factor, it's a fine choice. Here's exactly what you'd be deferring.
From worship planning to worship screens
ChurchTrac plans the service; GLAD also runs it: lyrics, scripture, custom slides, and countdowns on the projector, a private confidence monitor for the speaker, and a one-tap advance that moves every screen together in real time.
No presentation or projection features appear on ChurchTrac's published pages.
From fund balances to real books — payroll included
ChurchTrac's +$15/mo accounting add-on tracks budgets and fund balances. GLAD ships true double-entry books on every tier: journal entries with balanced-post enforcement, bank statement import with auto-matching, budget forecasts, and payroll runs with PDF pay stubs.
Payroll isn't published on ChurchTrac at any price.
A member app that's alive
GLAD's portal installs to the home screen like an app — giving, event RSVP, group browsing, parent-initiated kids check-in, and live group chat. Your congregation participates from their phones instead of just reading.
Live chat isn't on ChurchTrac's published feature list.
AI in the workflow, not on a roadmap
AI scripture detection queues the verse the moment it's spoken, pending operator approval. Volunteer burnout early-warning flags over-scheduled people before they quietly disappear — with AI-powered prediction on top.
AI credits are included in every tier.
GLAD vs. ChurchTrac, feature by feature
Where a row says "not published," that feature doesn't appear on ChurchTrac's published pricing or feature pages (July 2026).
Counts are tallied from the 14 rows below — same list, both columns.
| Feature | ChurchTrac | GLAD |
|---|---|---|
| People & ministry | ||
| People & families database | Included | |
| Check-in & attendance | Included | |
| Volunteer scheduling | Included | |
| Workflow automations | Included | |
| Worship & presentation | ||
| Worship service planning & song library | Included | |
| Presentation suite — lyrics, scripture, slides, projector, prompter | Not published | |
| Real-time multi-screen sync + stage tablets | Not published | |
| Money | ||
| Online giving | Included | |
| Double-entry ledger, budgets & per-fund giving ledgers | Accounting add-on — +$15/mo published | |
| Payroll runs & PDF pay stubs | Not published | |
| Communication, app & AI | ||
| Congregation texting with STOP/HELP compliance built in | Enhanced Messaging — +$7/mo per 250 credits | |
| Church website & member app | Included — Church Connect | |
| Live group chat in the member portal | Not published | |
| AI — scripture detection, burnout prediction | Not published |
Verified against ChurchTrac's published pricing and feature pages (churchtrac.com, July 2026). Every GLAD tier includes every row.
An honest word about ChurchTrac
ChurchTrac might be the best value in church software: starting at a published $9/month, it covers people, check-in, worship planning, giving, a website, and a member app — with human support. If price is the deciding factor for your church right now, it's a fine choice, and we mean that.
GLAD's bet is on your next season: when the projector, the books, payroll, and a live congregation app start to matter, you'll want them in one product rather than bolted on later. That's the platform tier, and it's what GLAD's price buys.
Switching from ChurchTrac is easier than you think
Most churches are fully migrated and live on GLAD in under a day.
- Export your people, families, and giving history from ChurchTrac (CSV).
- Import into GLAD in a few clicks — families, groups, and donor histories come across intact.
- Rebuild your service plan once — from then on, slides, schedules, and the bulletin generate themselves.
Questions about migrating? [email protected] — we respond within 24 hours.
Frequently asked questions
Ready for your next season?
Start free — no credit card required. Most churches are live in under a day.
