As an experienced webmaster who has helped build over a hundred church websites over the past 15 years, I‘m often asked – what‘s the best website builder for churches today?
It‘s a great question. The right church website platform can help you easily create an effective online presence to engage your congregation and community.
But with so many options out there, how do you decide?
In this complete guide, I‘ll compare the top church website builders of 2024 to help you make the perfect choice for your church‘s needs and budget.
Contents
Why Does Your Church Website Platform Matter?
Let‘s first look at why your church website builder is such an important decision.
According to recent surveys, nearly 75% of churches in America now have a website. But around 25% of those find their current church website ineffective at achieving their ministry goals.
Clearly, not all church website platforms are created equal. Picking the right one can help you:
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Share your gospel message – Your site allows you to share sermons, services, prayers, and more to anyone online.
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Engage your community – With things like event calendars, announcements, registration, and member logins.
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Accept online donations – Over 30% of donations now happen digitally, so you need a giving solution.
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Attract new members – A modern, welcoming website draws in new visitors to your church.
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Manage content easier – Publishing sermons, blog posts, videos, events, etc. should be simple.
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Leverage design – Your site‘s design, images, branding, etc. should reflect your church‘s identity.
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Fit your budget – Church budgets are often tight, so an affordable website platform is key.
But with hundreds of options on the market, how do you pick the right church website builder for your needs?
I‘ll compare the pros, cons, features, and pricing to help you decide.
9 Best Church Website Builders Compared
Let‘s dive into the details on 9 top contenders…
1. WordPress
WordPress is by far the world‘s most popular website platform, used by over 60% of all sites.
Pros:
- 100% free open-source software
- Powers over 40% of church websites
- Massive theme/plugin ecosystem
- Extremely customizable
- Easy integration with church tools
- Great for blogs/multimedia content
- Very affordable (just pay for hosting)
- Managed hosting solutions available
Cons:
- Steeper learning curve
- Need to handle updates/security
- Not a beginner-friendly site builder
When It‘s a Fit: WordPress is great if you want total customization and control to build any kind of church website you can dream up. With some effort invested to learn the platform, you can build a beautiful church site on a budget.
Pricing: Free software, hosting from $5-10/month
2. Wix
With over 200 million users, Wix is the world‘s most popular website builder. It makes it incredibly easy to create a beautiful church website.
Pros:
- Extremely user-friendly drag and drop editor
- 500+ customizable templates
- Mobile responsive designs
- Built-in forms, galleries, blogs
- SEO tools included
- Accept donations through Wix Stores
- Quality free fonts and images
Cons:
- Limited compared to full WordPress
- Need to pay annually for a custom domain
- Cannot migrate your site away from Wix
When It‘s a Fit: Wix is a great choice if you want to get a polished mobile-friendly church website up and running quickly and easily. It‘s beginner friendly.
Pricing: Free basic plan. Premium plans from $14/month.
3. Squarespace
Squarespace is another very popular website builder used by over a million sites. It has powerful features specifically for accepting online donations.
Pros:
- Beautiful modern templates
- Intuitive editor and site builder
- Built-in donation and ecommerce capabilities
- Scheduling and events integrations
- Email marketing and social media tools
- 24/7 customer support
Cons:
- Few church-specific templates
- Only 2 editable roles in lower plans
- Limited free plan options
When It‘s a Fit: Squarespace is great if you want an elegant church website and need built-in tools for taking online donations. Just be prepared to work within their templates.
Pricing: Personal plan $12/month. Business plan $18/month.
4. Webflow
Webflow offers a highly visual, drag and drop website builder for creating fully custom responsive church websites without needing to code them.
Pros:
- Customizable drag and drop builder
- Animated elements and interactions
- Clean, modern designs
- Built-in forms, CMS, and ecommerce
- Detailed tutorials and documentation
- Integrates with church management systems
Cons:
- Steeper learning curve
- No free plans available
When It‘s a Fit: Webflow is perfect if you want complete creative control and a modern, interactive church website design without coding it yourself.
Pricing: Basic plan starts at $12/month annually.
5. Thinkific
Thinkific specializes in building online courses, membership sites, and premium content – ideal for churches with video sermons or study material behind a login.
Pros:
- Easy course and membership site creation
- Built-in access control and drip content
- Tools to upload videos, podcasts, PDFs
- Email marketing integrations
- Analytics to track engagement
Cons:
- Site builder not as deep as others
- No free plans available
When It‘s a Fit: If your church plans to host video sermons, online courses, or any kind of premium member content, Thinkific is an excellent pick.
Pricing: Starter plan $49/month annually.
6. BoldGrid
BoldGrid offers a WordPress-specific drag and drop builder plugin for creating WordPress sites more easily.
Pros:
- Intuitive drag and drop WordPress builder
- 100+ professional themes with church options
- Built-in forms, content blocks, etc.
- Free basic version available
- Great for WordPress beginners
Cons:
- Need hosting for WordPress site
- Premium version capabilities limited
When It‘s a Fit: BoldGrid gives WordPress beginners an easier UI. It‘s a good pick if you want WordPress but don‘t want to mess with code.
Pricing: Free version. Premium $99/year.
7. Colorlib
Colorlib provides free WordPress themes and plugins, including options designed for churches you can use to build a site.
Pros:
- Hundreds of free WordPress themes
- Themes like Churchilit and Grace for churches
- Free plugins for events, sermons, giving, etc.
- Well-coded and documented
Cons:
- Limited customization vs. premium themes
- Less support than paid themes
- Need WordPress hosting
When It‘s a Fit: If you want to use WordPress but have a limited budget, Colorlib‘s free church themes and plugins allow you to DIY a site very affordably.
Pricing: 100% free themes and plugins. Just pay for hosting.
8. Network Solutions
Network Solutions is a long-standing web hosting company that offers an easy website builder solution ideal for basic church sites.
Pros:
- Inexpensive hosting + site builder plans
- Easy to use drag and drop builder
- Modern templates to start from
- 24/7 customer support
Cons:
- Limited design customization
- Few church-specific templates
- Cannot migrate your site away
When It‘s a Fit: Network Solutions is great if you want reliable, affordable hosting with a website builder included for a basic church presence.
Pricing: Starts at $5.99/month.
9. Weebly
Weebly is a very user-friendly drag and drop website builder with powerful built-in ecommerce features.
Pros:
- Extremely easy to use editor
- Hundreds of templates to choose from
- Built-in online store capabilities
- SEO tools and site analytics
- App Center to extend functionality
Cons:
- Not many church-specific templates
- Transaction fees for donations
- Cannot migrate away from Weebly
When It‘s a Fit: Weebly makes it super simple to create a good-looking church website. Just watch out for their donation transaction fees.
Pricing: Free plan. Pro plans starting at $12/month.
Expert Recommendation: WordPress is the Best Church Website Builder
With so many great options, which church website builder should you choose?
In my 15 years of experience building church websites, I recommend WordPress as the overall best church website platform.
WordPress simply gives you the most flexibility to create any kind of church website you can imagine.
The core software is 100% free and open source. You get thousands of designs, features, and tools at your fingertips through plugins and themes.
With a bit of effort invested to learn, you can use WordPress to build a truly stunning church website exactly how you want.
And since you fully own your website, you‘re never locked into someone else‘s platform.
WordPress also scales up easily as your church and needs grow over time. Plus, it can be very affordable since you just pay for hosting.
The only downside is the learning curve can be steeper than some other builders at first. But the long-term payoff is worth it.
Alternatively, if you prioritize the absolute easiest site builder, try options like Wix, Squarespace, or Webflow. They trade some flexibility for faster setup. Thinkific is also great if you specifically want to host video sermons or premium church content.
The most important thing is to choose the church website builder that best aligns with your church‘s budget, needs, and goals.
Now that you know your top options, you can find the perfect platform to create the online presence your church deserves.
I hope this complete guide helps you make the right choice to spread your gospel further through your church‘s website. Let me know if you have any other questions!
