By Kent E. Fillinger
I’ve encountered many lead ministers who don’t want to know much, if anything, about their church’s budget or financial situation. But if we’re ministering in the world, we’ll have to deal with money. Even Jesus had a treasurer (John 13:29).
While a minister may not want to know what individuals in their church give, it’s wise for them to know about the annual budget, the average weekly or monthly giving, how much debt, if any, the church has, and what percentage of the budget is being spent to service the debt. Money is neither good nor bad. It’s a tool for getting things done and money fuels a church’s vision and ministry initiatives.
Our annual church survey asks several finance related questions to help us identify the financial health and trends in our churches. Here’s a detailed snapshot from our 2024 survey.
Church giving was flat.
In the last three fiscal years, just over three-fourths of churches (78 percent) have consistently reported that their annual giving has either met or exceeded their budget. The total reported giving for the last fiscal year for the 241 churches that responded to our survey was $434.6M and the overall average total giving per church was $1.8M, which was virtually identical to 2023.
The chart below shows the average weekly giving for each church size category based on giving units and on combined and in-person-only average worship attendance. Average giving was the strongest in our large churches and the weakest in our megachurches in 2024.
| Average Weekly Giving per Giving Unit Based on Average Total Giving | Average Weekly Giving per Person Based on Combined Attendance | Average Weekly Giving per Person Based on In-Person Attendance Only | |
| Megachurches | $73.72 | $22.39 | $30.81 |
| Emerging Megachurches | $59.19 | $39.29 | $49.93 |
| Large | $95.28 | $43.77 | $53.34 |
| Medium | $85.70 | $43.22 | $49.67 |
| Small | $86.69 | $42.20 | $48.35 |
| Very Small | $61.45 | $42.19 | $46.18 |
| Overall | $69.87 | $29.63 | $39.08 |
Baptisms cost more.
One way to gauge your ministry efficiency and effectiveness is to determine how much money your church spent for each baptism (divide your total annual giving by the total number of baptisms).
Overall, the average church last year spent $17,269 for each baptism. This was an eight percent increase in cost from 2023. Megachurches consistently spend the least per baptism on average ($12,189) while having the best baptism ratio (the number of baptisms per 100 people in attendance). Last year, large churches (500-999 in total average worship attendance) spent the most per baptism on average ($34,381).
Cash reserves decreased.
Our 2024 church survey asked, “Approximately how many weeks’ worth of operating expenses does your church currently have on hand in cash reserves?” Overall, the 240 churches that answered this question reported they had an average of 22 weeks of cash reserves, down from 30 weeks in 2023. By comparison, churches in The Unstuck Church Q1 2025 Report reported having 32 weeks of cash reserves.
Very small churches in our survey once again had the most weeks of cash reserves (an average of 33 weeks) while emerging megachurches had the fewest weeks (an average of 16 weeks). Financial experts recommend churches keep 13 weeks of cash reserves to provide the margin needed to handle financial challenges or giving shortfalls. Overall, 43 percent of the churches in our survey reported having 12 weeks or less of cash reserves, which was up from 30 percent last year.
There are several reasons why churches need to maintain good cash reserves. Cash reserves level out the ebb and flow of revenue and expenses, they provide a financial buffer for unplanned events like an HVAC unit failing, and they provide the financial platform to take advantage of potential ministry opportunities that emerge, like hiring a staff member or purchasing needed property.
Church leadership should clearly communicate the purpose of cash reserves to the congregation by saying something like, “As good stewards of God’s resources, our church maintains the equivalent of three months’ funding of the annual budget for unexpected contingencies and ministry opportunities.”
Debt loads decreased.
Overall, 58 percent of the churches surveyed were debt-free in 2024, up from 50% in 2023. The total indebtedness for the 42 percent of churches was $381,053,232, an average debt load of $3,772,804 per church, which was two percent less than the year prior. Emerging megachurches were the most likely to report having debt (83 percent). Very small churches had the smallest percentage of churches with debt (21 percent). The spectrum of total indebtedness for individual churches ranged from $15,000 to over $27 million.
When calculating average debt per worship attendee (in-person and online) for each size category of churches, large churches had the smallest average per-person debt: $1,935 of debt per attendee. Very small churches once again had the largest average per-person debt: $6,594 of debt per attendee.
Financial crimes have exploded.
In 2020, church crime amounted to $67 billion around the world. Today, that number has jumped to $92 billion and is expected to reach almost $400 billion by 2050. Those crimes happen globally and here in the U.S.
A 2022 Lifeway Research study found one in 13 (eight percent) U.S. Protestant churches have had someone embezzle money from their church. More than nine in 10 pastors (92 percent ) say they are not aware of any past instances. The rate is statistically unchanged from 2016 when nine percent reported previous embezzlement and 91 percent were unaware of any.
Highly concerning is the Lifeway report that found Restoration Movement pastors twice as likely than the national average to report having experienced someone embezzling funds in their church (16 percent).
The digital age offers more opportunities for tech-savvy individuals to steal more church funds and cover their tracks in ways that weren’t possible before. Your church’s governing board and senior pastor have a fiduciary and legal responsibility to ensure that your church is mitigating the risk of fraud. Fiduciary responsibility means an obligation to act in the best interests of an organization. Your governing board has the fiduciary responsibility of ensuring that the proper processes are in place for financial security.
In their Church Financial Field Guide, CapinCrouse shared these steps you can take to prevent the likelihood of fraud.
Trust but verify. Ignoring vulnerabilities or believing that fraud won’t happen in your church is not the answer. It’s vital to trust, but always use technology and internal controls to verify everything related to your church’s funds.
Assess your controls. Ensure that your church has a solid plan to reduce the risk of fraud. Confirm the proper segregation of duties, including separation between recording, safekeeping, and authorizing. Develop a policy to review the segregation of duties of key staff or volunteers at least annually and whenever duties change or are reassigned. Implement best practices related to general ledger disbursements, bank reconciliations, journal entries at the close of each month, receipting and contributions, payroll, credit cards and expense reports, and accounts payable/cash disbursements. Create a written month-end close process that notes specific individuals assigned to tasks and responsibilities and incorporates a review process. Plan for how you will respond to fraud if it occurs. The plan should include steps to take and questions to ask.
To learn more about safeguarding your church, go to the ECFA website (ecfa.org) and search for 9 Essentials of Avoiding Church Fraud.
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