Tithe.ly has become the go-to church giving platform for a simple reason: the free tier is genuinely free. Zero platform fee. Clean mobile app. And over the last few years, it’s expanded into church management, website building, and worship planning. If your church’s budget is tight (whose isn’t?), Tithe.ly often feels like the obvious starting point.
But there’s a $31/month gap between Tithe.ly’s full platform and a custom-built church app, and that gap contains the difference between renting a template and owning something built specifically for your ministry.
TL;DR
| Rehost | Tithe.ly | |
|---|---|---|
| Model | Custom-built church app you own | Giving platform with ChMS add-ons |
| Pricing | $250/mo flat | Free giving / $72–$119/mo full platform |
| Setup fee | $0 | $0 |
| Code ownership | ✅ Full GitHub repo + IP | ❌ No |
| Contract | Month-to-month | Month-to-month |
| Primary focus | Custom church engagement | Online giving + church management |
Bottom line: Tithe.ly is the best budget option for church giving. Rehost builds a custom engagement app you own, with giving included, for $31/month more than Tithe.ly’s All-Access plan.
Pricing: $31/mo Apart
Tithe.ly: Free–$119/mo
- Free Giving: $0/mo, unlimited donations, mobile app, online giving, recurring gifts, check scanning, event registration
- Giving + ChMS ($72/mo): Adds people management, volunteer scheduling, groups, calendar
- All-Access ($119/mo): Everything, custom church app, website builder, worship planning, email, text messaging (250/mo), automations
Processing fees on all plans:
- Credit/Debit: 2.9% + $0.30
- ACH: 1% + $0.30
- Amex: 3.5% + $0.30
Their “Cover the Fees” feature works, about 60% of donors opt to cover processing costs, meaningfully reducing what the church pays.
Rehost: $250/mo Flat
- No setup fee, no per-member pricing, no annual contract
- Custom church app (iOS + Android), sermons, giving, push notifications, small groups, events, prayer requests, devotionals, volunteer coordination
- 24/7 support with real engineers
- Full code ownership
The math: Tithe.ly All-Access is $119/mo. Rehost is $250/mo. A $131/month difference, $1,572/year, buys custom design, code ownership, and production engineering instead of a template.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Rehost | Tithe.ly |
|---|---|---|
| Custom branded app | ✅ Built from scratch | ✅ Template with branding (All-Access) |
| Online giving | ✅ | ✅ (free tier) |
| Recurring tithes | ✅ | ✅ |
| Text-to-give | ✅ | ✅ |
| Sermon streaming | ✅ | ✅ |
| Push notifications | ✅ | ✅ (All-Access) |
| Church management | Via integrations | ✅ ($72/mo+) |
| Worship planning | Via integrations | ✅ (All-Access) |
| Website builder | Creator plan ($35/mo) | ✅ (All-Access) |
| Email / SMS tools | Via integrations | ✅ (All-Access, 250 texts/mo) |
| Volunteer management | ✅ | ✅ ($72/mo+) |
| Event management | ✅ | ✅ |
| Daily devotionals | ✅ | Via content tools |
| Prayer requests | ✅ | Via content tools |
| Code ownership | ✅ Full | ❌ |
| 24/7 human support | ✅ Real engineers | Standard support |
| Custom features | ✅ Anything you need | ❌ Template limitations |
Where Tithe.ly Wins
- Free giving is free. Not “free with asterisks.” Actually free. Unlimited donations, recurring gifts, check scanning, $0/month. If all your church needs is online giving, stop reading. Use Tithe.ly.
- Budget-friendly full platform. $119/month for app + website + ChMS + worship planning. That’s aggressive pricing and real value.
- Cover the Fees. ~60% donor adoption means churches save meaningfully on processing. Smart feature, well executed.
- Built-in church management. People, groups, volunteers, calendar, one platform. No juggling integrations.
- Worship planning. Service planning and team coordination baked in.
- Instant time to value. Sign up, configure, start accepting donations. No waiting for a design cycle.
Where Rehost Wins
- Custom app design. Every element designed for YOUR ministry. Not a template wearing your logo.
- Code ownership. GitHub repository with IP rights and documentation.
- Custom features on demand. Need something the template can’t do? Rehost builds it.
- 24/7 engineer support. Real people, 15-minute critical response. Not a ticket queue.
- Native mobile quality. Custom React Native app, not a template shell.
- Engagement-first. Designed around daily congregational engagement, not giving as the primary touchpoint.
Giving-First vs. Engagement-First
Tithe.ly started as a giving platform and grew features outward from there. Giving is the core. Everything else is an extension of “how do we make it easier for people to donate.”
Rehost builds engagement platforms where giving is one feature among many. The app exists so your congregation has your ministry on their phone every day, sermons, devotionals, prayer, small groups, events. Giving works because people open the app daily, not because they received a text prompt to donate.
There’s a non-obvious business insight here: churches with high daily app engagement consistently see stronger giving numbers than churches with giving-only platforms. People give to communities they’re actively part of.
“Online giving used to be a link on our website nobody clicked. Now 60% of our congregation gives through the app. The recurring tithe feature alone has transformed our financial stability.”, Rachel Simmons, New Life Christian Fellowship, Nashville, TN
The $31/Month Question
If your church only needs giving, Tithe.ly Free is the right answer. No caveat, no “but.” It’s the best free giving platform for churches.
But most churches don’t only need giving. They need an app that keeps their congregation connected between Sundays. When you need the full stack:
Tithe.ly All-Access ($119/mo) + processing fees on $10,000/month in giving (~$290, reduced to ~$116 with 60% Cover the Fees adoption) = roughly $235/month total.
Rehost at $250/month flat includes a custom app with all engagement features, code ownership, and 24/7 engineer support.
The $31/month premium over Tithe.ly’s All-Access buys you: your own design, your own code, your own features, and engineers who pick up the phone. For $372/year, that’s an easy conversation for most church boards.
Who Should Choose Tithe.ly
- Budget is king and you need the lowest-cost giving solution
- You only need giving right now (the free tier is unbeatable)
- You want giving + ChMS in one budget-friendly platform ($72/mo)
- You need worship planning tools built in
- You prefer instant setup, no design process
- Template branding is fine, no need for custom features
- You’re fine with no code ownership
Who Should Choose Rehost
- Your app should feel like your ministry, not a template with your colors
- Code ownership matters, own the code, don’t rent the platform
- Engagement is the goal, not just giving, daily app usage, not just transaction prompts
- You need custom features beyond what the template offers
- 24/7 engineer support matters, real people, not tickets
- You want a digital asset that grows with your ministry
- The $31/month premium is worth it for custom quality and ownership
Frequently Asked Questions
Should we use Tithe.ly’s free giving AND Rehost?
That’s a legitimate option. Use Tithe.ly’s free giving for donation processing, Rehost for the engagement app. Rehost can integrate with Tithe.ly’s giving, or build giving directly into the custom app. Talk to Rehost’s team about which approach fits your ministry.
How do processing fees compare?
Tithe.ly charges 2.9% + $0.30 for credit/debit, 1% + $0.30 for ACH, 3.5% + $0.30 for Amex. Their Cover the Fees feature (about 60% adoption) effectively reduces the church’s costs. Rehost uses modern payment processors with comparable rates, exact structure depends on the processor selected for your church.
Can we switch from Tithe.ly to Rehost?
Yes. Tithe.ly is a closed platform, so app design and config won’t transfer. Rehost builds the new app from scratch, typically 2–4 weeks. Giving data and donor records usually can be migrated. Phased rollout keeps everything smooth for your congregation.
Is Tithe.ly’s “custom app” comparable to Rehost’s?
Tithe.ly’s app (All-Access at $119/month) is template-based with your church’s colors and logo applied. Rehost builds a fully custom app from scratch, unique design, unique features, unique navigation, built for how your ministry works. Template with branding vs. bespoke product.
What about Tithe.ly’s church management?
Tithe.ly’s ChMS ($72/mo tier) handles people management, groups, volunteers, and calendar. Rehost focuses on the member-facing engagement app and integrates with whatever ChMS your church already uses (Planning Center, Breeze, CCB). Need a custom internal management system? Rehost can build that too.
The Bottom Line
Tithe.ly is the best budget option for church giving and a solid all-in-one at $119/month. If cost is the primary factor and a template app gets the job done, Tithe.ly delivers.
Rehost, at $250/month, delivers a custom app designed specifically for your ministry, with code ownership, 24/7 engineer support, and engagement features that keep your congregation connected daily.
$131/month separates renting a template from owning a custom app. Most church boards, when they see both options side by side, find the answer pretty clear.
Already on Tithely? Here’s how to switch without disrupting giving.
The migration concern we hear most from Tithely churches: “What happens to our recurring donors during the switch?”
Answer: they stay recurring. We configure the new Rehost app with your existing Tithely Giving (or another processor, your call) so members never have to re-authorize. No missed Sundays, no dropped tithes.
- Recurring giving keeps running — configured during Week 2, live before switchover
- Tithely Giving history imports — donor records, donation history, annual statements intact
- Your new app ships what Tithely doesn’t — sermons, small groups, prayer wall, events, denomination-specific features
- Switch Guarantee — $0 until your new app is live
→ See the full Tithely migration plan
See what a custom church app looks like for your ministry. Get started with Rehost, $250/mo, no setup fee, code ownership, cancel anytime.
Comparing church platforms? See Rehost vs Pushpay, Rehost vs Subsplash, Rehost vs SecureGive, or the church app builder comparison.