The Best Small Group Management Software in 2026
We researched small group management software from official websites, including pricing pages, plan tables, and product documentation. Products are ranked on their core job, value for money, and verified features for organizing church groups, supporting leaders, tracking participation, and coordinating communication.
Our top picks
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Top ranked
Planning Center#1 of 399.4/10A connected church operations suite with strong group management and a free entry tier.
Free plan · 30-day trial
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Runner-up
ChurchRaise#2 of 399.0/10A free web platform that brings group management and wider church operations together.
Free plan
-
Top-ranked free plan
GroupVitals#4 of 398.8/10A web-based hub for group discovery, attendance, messaging, health metrics, and oversight.
Free plan
Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.
The full ranking 39 tools, best first
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Best forEstablished churches needing broad group operations
A connected church operations suite with strong group management and a free entry tier.
Free plan · 30-day trial Our Planning Center verdict → See Planning CenterFor vendors Sponsor this spot · #1 · $149/mo →9.4/10★★★★★See Planning Center -
Best forChurches wanting a free all-in-one platform
A free web platform that brings group management and wider church operations together.
9.0/10★★★★☆Visit ChurchRaise -
Best forChurches needing structured group administration
A structured church group platform with attendance, permissions, reporting, and Planning Center sync.
- Church software sync
- Leader permissions
- Member directory
9.0/10★★★★☆Visit SG360 -
Best forChurches managing many groups and campuses
A web-based hub for group discovery, attendance, messaging, health metrics, and oversight.
- Church software sync
- Leader permissions
- Attendance tracking
8.8/10★★★★☆Visit GroupVitals -
Best forDiscipleship-focused churches and networks
A broad church-focused platform for groups, discipleship, attendance, and engagement.
- Member directory
- Attendance tracking
- Group messaging
8.7/10★★★★☆Visit Disciply -
Best forChurches needing basic group administration
A free church-focused group management feature with messaging, attendance, and mobile tools.
- Leader permissions
- Member directory
- Attendance tracking
8.6/10★★★★☆Visit site -
Best forChurches wanting group care and communication tools
A church-focused toolkit for organizing groups, communication, attendance, and pastoral follow-up.
- Member directory
- Attendance tracking
- Group messaging
8.5/10★★★★☆Visit Trellis -
Best forSmall churches needing simple group engagement
A focused web tool for church rosters, attendance, engagement signals, and group chat.
- Member directory
- Attendance tracking
- Group messaging
8.4/10★★★★☆Visit The 99 -
Best forTechnical churches wanting open-source group management
A broad, free open-source church system for technical teams managing groups and people.
- Leader permissions
- Member directory
- Attendance tracking
8.3/10★★★★☆Visit B1 Admin -
Best forChurches focused on care and church health
A focused church care system for attendance, pastoral follow-up and leadership visibility.
- Church software sync
- Member directory
- Attendance tracking
8.2/10★★★★☆Visit My12 -
Best forFree Bible-study group discipleship
A free web platform for Bible-study groups, reading plans, and discipleship progress.
- Church software sync
- Leader permissions
- Group messaging
8.1/10★★★★☆Try Start Discipling -
Best forMobile-first leaders running structured groups
A focused mobile platform for organizing church groups, studies, messaging, and attendance.
- Attendance tracking
- Group messaging
8.0/10★★★★☆Visit Synodo -
Best forChurches centered on events and attendance
A church management platform with strong event and attendance tools, but a broader category focus.
7.9/10★★★★☆Visit Gathrik -
Best forHierarchical churches tracking cells and attendance
A focused choice for churches organizing hierarchical groups and attendance.
- Leader permissions
- Member directory
- Attendance tracking
7.8/10★★★★☆Visit Church Stack -
Best forChurches needing groups, texting, and check-in
A broad church operations platform for groups, messaging, check-in, and volunteers.
7.6/10★★★★☆Visit Churchteams -
Best forSmall churches wanting a complete management suite
A broad church management suite for small churches that need more than group tracking.
7.5/10★★★★☆Visit ChurchSuite -
Best forChurches needing groups plus accounting depth
A broad church platform that pairs group tools with giving, accounting, and operations.
7.4/10★★★★☆Visit ChurchTrac -
Best forMature churches wanting a full management suite
A mature, broad church management suite for groups and wider ministry operations.
7.3/10★★★★☆Visit Realm -
Best forChurches wanting group directories and messaging
A church-focused group directory and messaging tool with attendance and approvals.
- Church software sync
- Leader permissions
- Member directory
7.2/10★★★★☆Visit Tithely Groups -
Best forTechnical teams wanting free, extensible church software
A self-hosted church system with groups, attendance, check-in, volunteers, and extensibility.
7.1/10★★★★☆Visit ChurchCRM -
Best forOpen-source churches wanting broad functionality
A broad church platform for teams that want open-source flexibility or supported hosting.
7.0/10★★★★☆Visit ChurchCMS -
Best forChurches combining groups with event operations
A broad church operations platform with free group tools and paid event features.
6.9/10★★★☆☆Visit TimelyChurch -
Best forChurches needing broad attendance infrastructure
A broad church operations platform with attendance tools and multi-branch reporting.
6.8/10★★★☆☆Visit site -
Best forChurches needing member records and messaging
A broad church management system for member records, messaging, attendance, and giving.
6.7/10★★★☆☆Visit WatuChurch -
Best forChurches combining events with member tools
A broad church management suite with strong event tools and limited verified small-group depth.
6.6/10★★★☆☆Visit Elvanto -
Best forChurches needing straightforward group administration
A focused web-based system for churches managing groups, people and attendance.
- Leader permissions
- Member directory
- Attendance tracking
6.5/10★★★☆☆Visit ChurchHub -
Best forOrganizations needing rich group messaging
A controlled church communication platform with strong group messaging and oversight.
- Church software sync
- Leader permissions
- Group messaging
6.4/10★★★☆☆Visit Jovo -
Best forChurches wanting self-hosted group records
A broad church group-management system with self-hosted and managed hosting options.
6.3/10★★★☆☆Visit Sundeo -
Best forSmall groups needing simple attendance tools
A focused attendance tool for small groups that need simple check-in and member records.
- Church software sync
- Leader permissions
- Member directory
6.2/10★★★☆☆Visit RollCall -
Best forMobile discipleship and accountability groups
A mobile discipleship app with free member access and paid leader tools.
- Member directory
- Group messaging
6.1/10★★★☆☆Visit Arbor -
Best forChurches focused on group discovery and pathways
A church-focused web platform connecting group discovery, follow-up, and leader development.
- Attendance tracking
6.0/10★★★☆☆Visit MeshNearby -
Best forChurches focused on child check-in and follow-up
A focused church platform for child check-in, visitor follow-up, and engagement tracking.
6.0/10★★★☆☆Visit Passport -
Best forChurches coordinating services and volunteers
A focused church planning hub with a useful free scheduler and tiered collaboration tools.
6.0/10★★★☆☆Try Ministry Planner -
Best forFree volunteer-centered ministry coordination
A free church platform for organizing volunteers, schedules, teams, and ministry roles.
6.0/10★★★☆☆Visit HolyJot -
Best forFree volunteer scheduling for church teams
A free church volunteer platform with scheduling, reminders, swaps, and event integrations.
6.0/10★★★☆☆Visit site -
Best forOpen-source churches tracking attendance and membership
A free church management system covering membership, attendance, facilities, and finances.
6.0/10★★★☆☆Visit ACTS -
Best forWorship teams needing service and check-in tools
A worship-focused church platform with check-in and attendance tools.
6.0/10★★★☆☆Visit MosesTab -
Best forChurches prioritizing finance over group management
A finance-led church platform with giving, accounting, and broad operational coverage.
6.0/10★★★☆☆Visit One Church -
Best forChurches needing basic group and finance records
A focused church management system with records, attendance, groups and finances.
- Leader permissions
- Member directory
- Attendance tracking
4.9/10★★☆☆☆Visit IglesiaERP
No tools match those filters.
Compare at a glance
| # | Tool | Free plan | Paid from | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Planning Center | Yes | $15/unit/mo | 9.4 |
| 2 | ChurchRaise | Yes | Free | 9.0 |
| 3 | SG360 | No | $29/mo | 9.0 |
| 4 | GroupVitals | Yes | $49/mo | 8.8 |
| 5 | Disciply | Yes | 8.7 | |
| 6 | ChurchSoftware.com Groups | Yes | 8.6 | |
| 7 | Trellis | Yes | $35/mo | 8.5 |
| 8 | The 99 | Yes | $9/mo | 8.4 |
| 9 | B1 Admin | Yes | Free | 8.3 |
| 10 | My12 | No | £29/mo | 8.2 |
| 11 | Start Discipling | Yes | Free | 8.1 |
| 12 | Synodo | No | $49/mo | 8.0 |
| 13 | Gathrik | Yes | 7.9 | |
| 14 | Flock | Yes | 7.8 | |
| 15 | Churchteams | No | 7.6 | |
| 16 | ChurchSuite | 7.5 | ||
| 17 | ChurchTrac | No | $29/mo | 7.4 |
| 18 | Realm | No | 7.3 | |
| 19 | Tithely Groups | No | $72/mo | 7.2 |
| 20 | ChurchCRM | Yes | Free | 7.1 |
| 21 | ChurchCMS | Yes | $290/yr | 7.0 |
| 22 | TimelyChurch | Yes | $488/yr | 6.9 |
| 23 | Church Central Cloud | Yes | 6.8 | |
| 24 | WatuChurch | No | $20/mo | 6.7 |
| 25 | Elvanto | No | $19/mo | 6.6 |
| 26 | ChurchHub | No | £290/yr | 6.5 |
| 27 | Jovo | No | $69/mo | 6.4 |
| 28 | Sundeo | No | $15/mo | 6.3 |
| 29 | RollCall | Yes | $107.89/yr | 6.2 |
| 30 | Arbor | Yes | $69.99/yr | 6.1 |
| 31 | MeshNearby | 6.0 | ||
| 32 | Passport | No | $5.60/mo | 6.0 |
| 33 | Ministry Planner | Yes | $39/mo | 6.0 |
| 34 | HolyJot | Yes | Free | 6.0 |
| 35 | ChurchSoftware.com Volunteer Management | Yes | 6.0 | |
| 36 | ACTS | Yes | Free | 6.0 |
| 37 | MosesTab Worship Planning | Yes | $39/mo | 6.0 |
| 38 | One Church Software | No | $36/mo | 6.0 |
| 39 | IglesiaERP | No | 650 HNL/mo | 4.9 |
Head-to-head All 28 comparisons →
- Planning Center vs ChurchRaise
- Planning Center vs SG360
- Planning Center vs GroupVitals
- Planning Center vs Disciply
- Planning Center vs ChurchSoftware.com Groups
- Planning Center vs Trellis
- Planning Center vs The 99
- ChurchRaise vs SG360
- ChurchRaise vs GroupVitals
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How we rank small group management software
Every tool on this page was researched by iTechGuides Editors from its official website — pricing pages, plan tables and product documentation. We rank on how well each one does this category's core job, what the free or entry plan includes, and where it falls short. Where we have enough verified facts, the score out of 10 is a rubric — job fit, value and how much we could verify — shown with its breakdown on every tool's page; a tool we have not verified enough to score yet shows its rank without a number. Scores are re-checked when a product changes its plans. Read the full editorial policy, or submit a tool we missed.
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
Last updated · How we research and update