Overview

ChurchSoftware.com Groups is a group-management tool within a broader church platform, rather than a standalone group app. It is best suited to eligible churches and faith-based organizations that want to coordinate groups alongside core church administration. Its strongest case is breadth at no cost; organizations outside the eligibility rules or seeking a dedicated group-only product may prefer another fit.

Administrators can create groups, assign leaders, add members, and sort groups by age, interest, ministry area, or purpose. That structure can help churches manage varied ministries and study groups in one place, while leaders have tools to manage members and follow up.

Groups sits alongside people and volunteer management, online giving, check-in, event registration and forms, a sermon library, a mobile app, custom reports, and customer support. That breadth makes it more compelling for organizations consolidating operations than for those who only need group coordination.

Churches comparing dedicated group tools can browse Small Group Management Software.

Key features

Group records: Attendance, events, and notes can be tracked for each group, giving administrators and leaders a shared record of group activity.
Focused messaging: Group messages avoid reply-all conversations, a practical advantage when communicating with members without generating an unwieldy group thread.
Leader permissions and follow-up: Leaders can manage members and follow up with them. This distributes some group-level work beyond administrators, though the product details do not establish how finely permissions can be customized.
Mobile access: The iOS and Android apps provide access to events, groups, giving, check-ins, announcements, and sermons or media. This extends the wider platform to members and leaders on mobile devices.
Integrations: Facebook integrations support automated posts and event syncing; SongSelect and PraiseCharts provide worship-planning resources.
Support and security: Support is available by email, with typical replies within 1–2 business days. The privacy policy says reasonable security measures are used, but does not promise absolute security; it also says personal identification information is not sold, traded, or rented.

Pricing

Your Church Plan — 0.00 USD per free, billed free forever, with no fees or trials for eligible 501(c)(3) organizations. It includes core church management tools, including group management, people and volunteer management, online giving, check-in, event registration and forms, a sermon library, mobile app, custom reports, and customer support. Attendance tracking, a member directory, group messaging, and leader permissions are included, with no attendance-based feature caps stated.

This is an unusually broad free option for eligible organizations that want group tools within a wider church-management plan. There is no trial because the platform is free forever for qualifying 501(c)(3) organizations. Organizations that do not meet that eligibility requirement should not assume they can use the plan on the same terms.

Platforms

Groups is available on web, Android, and iOS. The mobile apps cover several wider church functions as well as groups, making the platform relevant to organizations whose members and leaders use phones for church activities.

Who it's for

ChurchSoftware.com says it serves churches, faith-based nonprofits, and parachurch organizations, from church plants to multi-site churches. The free plan is most attractive to eligible 501(c)(3) organizations that want group coordination together with broader administrative tools. A group-only buyer may find the wider platform unnecessary, while organizations outside the stated eligibility should consider alternatives with free plans not described as limited to eligible 501(c)(3)s.

Pros and cons

Pros

Broad free church-management bundle: Group management comes with people, volunteer, giving, check-in, event, sermon, reporting, mobile, and support tools at no cost for eligible 501(c)(3) organizations.
Useful group-level records: Attendance, events, and notes can be tracked per group, while groups can be segmented by age, interest, ministry area, or purpose.
Communication without reply-all: Focused group messaging avoids the reply-all pattern that can clutter group communication.

Cons

Eligibility narrows the free offer: The free-forever terms are for eligible 501(c)(3) organizations, so other organizations should not treat the $0 plan as assured.
Email support is not immediate: Typical replies take 1–2 business days, which may not suit organizations needing faster support.
No absolute security guarantee: The company describes reasonable security measures but does not guarantee absolute security.

Alternatives

Planning Center is worth considering for churches that want a free plan with a trial and modular options: Calendar is free for one room, People is free with an unlimited database and reporting, and Services is free for five team members.
RollCall may suit a smaller group program: its free plan covers up to 30 members in one group, with unlimited leaders and check-in and kiosk mode.
TimelyChurch offers a free plan for up to 100 people and 500 MB of storage, while its Growth plan costs 49.00 USD per month; consider it if those stated people and storage limits suit your needs.
GroupVitals is a web-based option for churches managing five or fewer groups that can do without text messaging on the free plan; 6–25 groups costs 49.00 USD per month.
HolyJot is a free alternative for individuals and churches seeking journaling, FaithAI conversations, and community features rather than a broader church-management plan.
ChurchTrac is a paid alternative with a free trial; its 75-people plan costs 29.00 USD per month and its 125-people plan costs 39.00 USD per month.
Flock may be a fit for web-based group management: its free Starter plan covers up to 100 members and five leader accounts, with attendance tracking and a basic dashboard.
Ministry Planner offers free tools, including one free tool per church account.

For adjacent church software categories, see Church Background Check Software and Church Scheduling Software.

Verdict

ChurchSoftware.com Groups is a strong choice for an eligible 501(c)(3) organization that wants group records, focused messaging, and leader follow-up within a broad church-management platform at no cost. Its central limitation is eligibility, and its wider feature set may be more than a group-only buyer needs. Choose it for consolidated, free church operations; look elsewhere if your organization does not qualify or needs a narrower tool.

	ChurchSoftware.com Groups	FMX
Free plan	Yes	No
Free trial	No	No
Paid from	Free	—
Open source	No	No
Platforms	Android, iOS, Web	Web, iOS, Android
Free plan	Yes	No
Mobile access	both	—

ChurchSoftware.com Groups vs FMX

ChurchSoftware.com Groups

FMX