Overview: MosesTab vs ChurchSoft
ChurchSoft has been a fixture in UK church treasury for decades — a robust desktop tool that does the core accounting and Gift Aid spreadsheet work churches have always needed. For treasurers who like offline software and don't need member-facing features, it still works.
The downside is everything that desktop software can't do: there's no donor-facing giving page, no Bacs Direct Debit, no automated HMRC Charities Online CSV submission, no live data sharing across the team, and the records aren't backed up off-site.
MosesTab is the cloud-native UK alternative. It includes everything ChurchSoft does on the finance side, plus Direct Debit collection, member management, Electoral Roll, PCC governance, and a modern donor-facing giving page.
Key Differences
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
See how MosesTab's 16 features compare to ChurchSoft. MosesTab provides all features in one integrated platform.
| Feature | MosesTab | ChurchSoft |
|---|---|---|
| Member Management | Partial: Basic contacts; not a relational ChMS | |
| Groups & Ministries | ||
| Church Events | ||
| Church Forms | ||
| Attendance Tracking | ||
| Child Check-In | ||
| Online Giving & Text-to-Give | Partial: Manual entry + Gift Aid spreadsheets | |
| Text-to-Give | ||
| Facilities Booking | ||
| Church Accounting & Finance Reports | ||
| AI Media Studio | ||
| Stage Timer | ||
| Worship Planning | ||
| Live Polling | ||
| Social Media Scheduler | ||
| Communications | ||
| Mass Texting & 2-Way SMS | ||
| Workflow Automation | ||
| Virtual Meetings | ||
| Volunteer Management | ||
| Visitor Management | ||
| Church CRM | ||
| Church Website Builder | ||
| Church Accounting & Budgeting |
Pricing Comparison
Compare the cost of MosesTab vs ChurchSoft at different plan levels.
| Plan Level | MosesTab | ChurchSoft |
|---|---|---|
| Desktop licence | Free (cloud, up to 50 members) | One-off licence + annual support |
| Growing church | £39/month | Variable per-licence + support |
Which Platform Is Right for You?
ChurchSoft is best for:
- Established UK churches still using desktop accounting
- Treasurers who prefer offline tools
MosesTab is best for:
- Churches moving accounting and member data into the cloud
- Treasurers who want HMRC Gift Aid CSV generated automatically
- Churches needing Bacs Direct Debit, Electoral Roll, PCC in one place
Honest Assessment of ChurchSoft
What ChurchSoft Does Well
- Familiar to long-serving UK treasurers
- Strong basic accounting and Gift Aid workflow
- Works fully offline
- One-off licence model preferred by some churches
ChurchSoft Limitations
- Desktop-only — no mobile or remote access
- No donor-facing giving page
- No Bacs Direct Debit collection
- No member management beyond basic contacts
- No Electoral Roll, PCC governance, or GDPR workflows
- Backups depend on the treasurer remembering to run them
Switching from ChurchSoft?
Migrating to MosesTab is straightforward. Here's what the process looks like:
Frequently Asked Questions
Will moving to MosesTab from ChurchSoft change how Gift Aid claims work?
Yes — for the better. Instead of maintaining a Gift Aid spreadsheet by hand, MosesTab tracks each donor's active declaration and produces a CSV in HMRC's Charities Online schedule format on demand. You upload it through the Government Gateway and HMRC processes it the same way.
Can MosesTab replace ChurchSoft's accounting features?
MosesTab handles donations, Gift Aid, Direct Debit, and treasurer-facing reports. For full nominal-ledger accounting, churches typically pair MosesTab with a generic SME accounting tool (Xero, QuickBooks). The advantage is donations flow into MosesTab automatically rather than being keyed in.
Is the data secure in the cloud?
MosesTab runs on cloud infrastructure with encrypted-at-rest data, regular backups, and UK GDPR-aligned data handling. Compared to a desktop file on one treasurer's laptop, cloud storage is meaningfully safer for most churches.