Once upon a time, the Sunday collection basket and the small but heartfelt acts of charity from your congregants might’ve been enough to keep your ministry running smoothly. However, even the smallest churches will quickly find that it takes a bit more legwork and out-of-the-box thinking to effectively support your community and create a real impact in the world.
From funding far-flung mission trips to maintaining local outreach programs for the homeless, there’s no shortage of work that needs to be done in the world, and there’s only so much money at your disposal to do it.
Fortunately, fundraising is one of the most effective and impactful ways that your church can raise money and support—and there are countless easy, profitable, and downright amazing church fundraising ideas for you to try out! To help you generate revenue for your congregation and become a champion of change in your community, we’ve compiled these top church fundraisers:
- Our Top Church Fundraising Idea
- Our Favorite Church Fundraiser Ideas
- Easy Church Fundraising Ideas
- Virtual Church Fundraiser Ideas for COVID-19
- Youth Group Fundraising Ideas
- Family-Friendly Church Fundraiser Ideas
- Mission Trip Fundraising Ideas
Big or small, all churches can find the right fundraising solution to fit their needs among our master-list of the best fundraising ideas for churches!
Our Top Church Fundraising Idea
Matching Gifts Fundraising for Churches
Learn More About Our Recommendation, Double the Donation
Our Favorite Church Fundraising Ideas
1. Fundraising Web Store
Learn More About Our Recommendation, ABC Fundraising
2. Church Fundraising Consulting
Consulting is a way for churches and other religious organizations to receive strategic guidance on cultivating faith-filled generosity. The right professional consultant firm can effectively assess your church’s financial situation, design a campaign that will succeed at your church, and help you grow your revenue.
That way, you can effectively fund new or growing facilities and ministries while also inspiring faithful charity!
3. Online Giving for Church Fundraising
Online giving is an affordable and easy way for churches to collect offerings and tithes 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. With an online giving page, your church can just as easily accept offerings on a Tuesday night as you could on a Sunday morning.
There are any number of online giving solutions for your church to look into. Some also provide mobile giving options! Just remember to keep your church’s budget in mind and properly promote your online giving page to your congregation!
4. Crowdfunding
Crowdfunding is a relatively quick and easy church fundraising idea that’s perfect for those who don’t currently have the resources to host an event.
All you need to get up and running is a crowdfunding platform. Once you pay the small processing and usage fee, you’ll make a fundraising page, set your goal, and encourage congregants to donate and share the page with family, friends, and anyone they think will chip in to support your church!
5. Text-to-Tithe Fundraising
Text-to-tithe (known as “text-to-give” outside the church fundraising world) is a revolutionary way to collect offerings and tithes during a church service. Instead of passing around a collection plate and accepting cash and check offerings, churches can implement text-to-tithe so that congregants can give right from their phones!
To get started with text-to-tithe, all you’ll need to do is choose a text-to-tithe provider, set things up, and instruct your congregation how to start giving.
6. Popcorn Sale for Church Fundraising
A popcorn fundraiser is a tried-and-true favorite fundraising idea for churches. After all, who doesn’t love snacking on this delicious treat? The best part about this fundraiser is that, with the right provider, you can take your fundraiser to the next level by offering unique flavors like dill pickle or strawberry shortcake. Your congregation will love stocking up on their familiar favorites and sampling new and unique flavors!
The sale can either be completed online with a custom-built web store or in-person with pre-made catalog forms.
7. Peer-to-Peer Fundraising for Churches
Peer-to-peer fundraisers involve your church’s supporters setting up their own personal donation pages on your ministry’s behalf. Through social media, email, and a variety of other online channels, supporters share their fundraising pages with friends, family, coworkers, and fellow community members to ask for donations that will go directly to your church’s (online) coffers.
The key is to find the right peer-to-peer platform and keep your supporters informed and excited, since they’ll be the ones carrying the torch for this church fundraiser.
8. T-Shirts for Church Fundraising
With t-shirt sales, churches can design and produce special t-shirts for their congregation. These can be sold at fundraising events, at your church’s store, or online to eager supporters wanting to contribute to your congregation.
All you need to do is find the right t-shirt sale platform, set up your transaction page, and start promoting your t-shirts to your congregation!
9. Silent Auctions for Churches
Silent auctions are a fun way for your congregants to get together to bid on unique items and experiences. A silent auction involves your church acquiring items and experiences from local businesses or individuals. At your event, guests can place bids on paper sheets or via mobile phones for a chance to take home an item.
The most important component of silent auction planning is obtaining the right items. Save money and ask local businesses or individuals to contribute items or experiences that your congregants would want to bid on!
10. Shoe Drive Fundraising for Churches
A shoe drive is a low-cost, low-effort fundraiser where congregants donate gently-worn shoes to your church. Your church then sends these shoes off to a shoe drive facilitator, after which you receive a check in the mail for your contributions. This is a great fundraising idea for churches since everyone, even those who can’t give very much, typically has some shoes laying around.
Advertise your shoe drive in your church newsletter and remind congregants to donate their shoes every Sunday. Soon enough, you’ll have plenty of shoes to send off!
Use our top fundraising idea to raise money right now.
Easy Church Fundraising Ideas
11. Pancake Breakfast
A church pancake breakfast is a delicious fundraising idea that any member of your community will love. Simply select a location, such as a dining hall inside of your church, then set up a delectable menu for your attendees and start selling tickets!
You can prepare the food yourself or even partner with a local business to have the event catered.
12. Cookie Dough Fundraiser
Everyone loves cookies! Your church can capitalize on that craving by selling cookie dough to your congregants and members of your community.
You can sell cookie dough directly to your congregants, or they can sell the dough to their friends, family members, and coworkers.
13. Trivia Night
Quiz your supporters on the Bible, history, or any number of topics with an effortless trivia night fundraiser. You can host the event on church property or partner with a local restaurant to host your church fundraiser.
Attendees will pay a small entry fee to play, with winning teams receiving a special prize and bragging rights for their trivia victory.
14. Church Speed Dating Fundraiser
Host a Christian speed dating event at your church for congregants looking for love. Your church can set up a simple potluck dinner or an elegant catered mixer for hopeful lovebirds.
Ticket sales to your event can be used to raise money for your congregation.
15. Easter Egg Hunt
Plan an Easter egg hunt at your church for a fun event that the whole family can enjoy. Hold a contest and award whoever finds the most eggs a special prize.
Your church can sell tickets to this event or seek sponsorship from a local business to raise money.
16. Engraved Bricks
Your church can sell engraved bricks to help fund your next construction project. Your congregants can write personal messages on their bricks, or you can engrave the donors’ names on them.
These bricks can then be used in your project and create lasting memories.
Virtual Church Fundraiser Ideas for COVID-19
17. Custom Church Website
Creating a sleek, customized church website is not only a great marketing tool and a platform for your congregants to get further involved in your programs, but it can also be an effective way to collect online donations. Be sure to make it as easy as possible to navigate to your online donation page.
You can even use a dedicated CMS, such as Morweb, to create an easily navigable and beautiful church website.
18. Virtual Concert
Rock out and raise money at the same time with a fun virtual concert! Ask local Christian artists to donate live streams of their performances to share with your fundraiser’s virtual attendees. Once donors pay for their virtual tickets, they will be sent a link to your concert’s stream.
To make your virtual concert even more engaging, you can take song requests and invite the bands and artists to chat with your supporters.
19. Online Shopping Fundraiser
Online shopping fundraisers are incredibly easy fundraising programs that allow your congregation to contribute to your church as they make their everyday purchases online. When they make a purchase through your online shopping program, a percentage of their sales total will be contributed to your church at no additional cost!
Simply partner with an online shopping program (like ShopRaise!), instruct your congregants to download the shopping app or browser extension, and start fundraising!
20. Online Bake Sale
Bakes sales are a timeless fundraiser that can perform just as well (if not better!) when administered through an online format. You no longer need to set up a table and panhandle passersby to buy your sweet treats—just post pictures of your baked goods online, share links to your online store, and encourage your congregants to submit their orders!
You can deliver these orders yourself or partner with a bakery or product fundraising service to make and deliver the orders for you.
21. Virtual Painting Class
Even members of your congregation who aren’t artistically inclined will enjoy the chance to paint, chat, and learn new skills through a convenient virtual format. Hire a local artist, an art teacher, or an artistic member of your church to lead the class. You can also sell small canvases and art supplies that people will use for the class.
Participants should pay a small class fee to attend, after which you will email out the live stream link to the course.
22. Virtual Book Club
Your congregation is sure to have its fair share of book worms, and a book club is a great way to engage these individuals while raising money for your church! Hold your book club on a recurring basis, charging its members a small annual fee to join.
You can leave the book choices up to club members, or suggest novels or nonfiction books that relate to religion, inspirational stories, or other fitting subjects for your congregants.
Youth Group Fundraising Ideas
23. 50/50 Raffles
With a 50/50 raffle, you won’t have to worry about finding a cool item to present. The winner receives half of the funds raised instead of a traditional prize.
You can combine your raffle with another fundraiser to raise even more funds for a youth group field trip or community project.
24. Holiday Decoration Service
You can have young congregants create holiday decorations and provide decorating services. You can have volunteers set up and take down decorations for holidays throughout the year.
Congregants can pay a fee per holiday for teens to set up their decorations, and they can sell them new decorations as well!
25. Discount Card Fundraiser
Discount cards are small cards that list valuable coupons, discounts, and deals that your congregants can use to save money at popular retailers, restaurants, and businesses in your area. You can sell these flashy discount cards for anywhere between $10 to $20.
To kick-off your discount card fundraiser, partner with a fundraising service that provides this product, like ABC Fundraising.
26. Candles Product Fundraiser
Candles are the perfect year-round product for your church to sell. Look for high-quality candles that fall within your church’s price range.
Then, you can sell the candles directly to your congregants or have them sell them to their friends and family members. You can even set up an online storefront to sell the candles online.
27. Envelope Fundraiser
In an envelope fundraiser, you will share colorful, numbered envelopes with youth group members and they (or their parents) will give whatever number is on the front. You will be surprised at what you can raise from this easy church fundraiser!
With 100 envelopes you can raise $5,050, and that number only goes up when you increase the number of envelopes you use.
28. Appreciation Grams
For an appreciation gram fundraiser, you can charge your congregants a fee to send a customized letter acknowledging friends.
You can send your notes with a piece of candy or another small gift for an additional price.
Family-Friendly Church Fundraiser Ideas
29. Movie Night
There’s nothing quite like curling up with a bowl of popcorn and watching a good movie with friends and family. Pick out a kid-friendly movie that family members of all ages can enjoy, promote your event across your church’s marketing channels, and charge admission fees for attendees to join in on the festivities.
Sell food, drinks, and other concessions to boost your revenue!
30. Carnival
A community carnival may take a bit of foresight and investment, but when pulled off successfully, this can be an incredibly lucrative and engaging church fundraising event.
Set up booths full of games like ring toss or bobbing-for-apples and be sure to sell plenty of sweet treats, snacks, and drinks at your concession stands.
31. Family Picture Day
Your congregation has no doubt been in touch with photographers to promote your ministry and its various events and programs. Enlist their help once again to host a picture day for your congregation’s families!
Participants will be charged a fee to have professional photos taken, which you can sell as high-quality photo prints or sell as designs on mugs, shirts, and other merchandise.
32. Field Day Fundraiser
Encourage fitness and gather your entire community together with a field day fundraiser! Charge an entrance fee or sell tickets to your events and let families run wild as they play everything from potato sack races to tug-of-war.
Recruit as many volunteers as you can to help run your field day’s many activities!
33. Car Wash Fundraiser
Car wash fundraisers are an easy way to raise money for your church while also engaging your supporters and performing a valuable community service. Collect plenty of soap, sponges, and eager volunteers to wash cars.
For a modest fee, community members can have their vehicles scrubbed while giving their money to a worthy cause.
34. Hike Day
Is your church within driving (or walking) distance of beautiful forests, rivers, or other natural wonders? If so, consider taking your church community out on a gorgeous hiking fundraiser! For a small fee, participants can be guided through nature and enjoy a day of fresh air.
To cover all of your bases, consider asking hike participants to sign a waiver before setting off on your outdoor adventure.
35. Water Balloon Fight
Who doesn’t love a water balloon fight? Families from all over your community will be eager to join in on this fun church fundraiser! Charge a small entry fee, prepare as many water balloons as you can, and set teams against each other in a friendly water balloon war.
Be sure to market your fundraiser on social media with pictures of smiling faces from water balloon fights and water play days of years past!
36. Game Night
Game nights are a flexible church fundraising idea that can be hosted on a small or large scale for churches of any size. For smaller ministries, all you have to do is break out some board games and card decks and invite your congregants to a night of friendly competition.
You can offer a prize for the winner of each game tournament and sell snacks and merchandise to bring in a bit of extra cash from the fundraiser.
37. Church Read-a-Thon
Easy and effective, read-a-thons are one of the most popular fundraising ideas for schools—and they can easily be applied to your church to raise big funds!
Participants simply share their donation pages and bring in donations for your mission for every hour they read.
Mission Trip Fundraising Ideas
38. Swap Shop
The swap shop fundraiser is similar to a garage sale, but instead of selling items for cash, your congregants can trade items and services.
Your church can charge an admission fee to the sale to raise money.
39. Walk-a-Thon
A walkathon can be a small affair for your church, or a larger-scale event that can take months to prepare. However you structure your event, the right tools will ensure that your church hosts a successful walkathon, engages its supporters, and raises some extra money.
Congregants can set up a P2P page and start fundraising!
40. Angel Festival
An Angel Festival is similar to a carnival and usually occurs around Christmas. For the event, your artistic congregants can create angels out of any materials they want.
On the big day, you can showcase all the angels with a bowl beside each one so that congregants can place contributions to vote for their favorites.
41. Family Fun Day
A family fun day is a great way to get your congregation involved in raising funds for your cause. For your family fun day, you can set up games, food and drinks, and a donation table.
It’s an opportunity for your congregants to bond, welcome new members, and enjoy a few family-friendly games.
42. Make the Grade Fundraiser
If students in your congregation are looking for a way to pay for a mission trip, look no further than a Make the Grade fundraiser.
The students will set goals for the GPA or grades they will maintain throughout the semester, and if they meet their goals, their family or other members of the congregation will chip in for the travel costs.
43. Themed Youth Group Parties
Holding a themed youth group party is a great way to get young people excited about your church! You can sell tickets to these events as a way to fundraise, or even auction off prizes to attendees.
The proceeds of these parties can go back into your congregation’s youth group program.
Use our top fundraising idea to raise money right now.
Additional Church Fundraising Resources
Church Fundraising Ideas
Looking for even more church fundraising ideas for your congregation’s next big fundraising event? We’ve got you covered.
Visit Fundly to learn more church fundraising ideas that your congregation can try out for your next big fundraiser!
Guide to Fundraising
If you don’t have a background in fundraising, it can be difficult to ask people for money to help your church accomplish its mission.
We’ve got the tips and tricks you need. Check out Double the Donation’s guide to learn more about how you can fundraise effectively!
Church Fundraising Software
You likely need to manage data about your congregants. What better way to stay organized than with membership management software?
We’ve selected our top picks for church membership management software. Take a look at our list!
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