DonorSearch
DonorSearch is a comprehensive prospect research and wealth screening platform that uses high-quality data and machine learning to help your nonprofit identify, vet, and prioritize top potential donors.
Planning Center
Planning Center is a comprehensive church management software suite providing modular tools for attendance tracking, donation processing, volunteer scheduling, and worship service coordination to help ministries stay organized.
Quick Comparison
| Feature | DonorSearch | Planning Center |
|---|---|---|
| Website | donorsearch.net | planningcenter.com |
| Pricing Model | Custom | Freemium |
| Starting Price | Custom Pricing | Free |
| FREE Trial | ✓ 0 days free trial | ✓ 30 days free trial |
| Free Plan | ✘ No free plan | ✓ Has free plan |
| Product Demo | ✓ Request demo here | ✓ Request demo here |
| Deployment | ||
| Integrations | ||
| Target Users | ||
| Target Industries | ||
| Customer Count | 0 | 0 |
| Founded Year | 2007 | 2006 |
| Headquarters | Marriottsville, USA | Carlsbad, USA |
Overview
DonorSearch
DonorSearch helps you take the guesswork out of fundraising by providing deep insights into your donors' wealth and philanthropic history. You can screen your entire database to identify individuals with the greatest capacity and inclination to give, allowing your team to focus their energy on the most promising major gift prospects. The platform aggregates data from dozens of public and proprietary sources to give you a clear picture of a donor's previous giving to other organizations.
You can also use the platform to find new prospects through its vast database of philanthropic gifts and real estate records. By integrating these insights directly into your existing CRM, you keep your workflows centralized and your data actionable. Whether you are running a capital campaign or looking to grow your annual fund, these tools help you build more meaningful relationships with the right supporters.
Planning Center
Planning Center is a modular software suite designed to help you manage every aspect of your church's daily operations. Instead of a rigid, all-in-one system, you can choose specific applications for check-ins, giving, registrations, and worship planning. This flexibility allows you to build a custom toolkit that fits your ministry's unique size and specific workflow requirements without paying for features you don't use.
You can track member engagement, coordinate complex volunteer schedules, and process digital donations through a unified interface. The platform simplifies communication with your congregation through automated emails and a dedicated mobile app. Whether you are a small plant or a multi-site campus, you can scale your tools as your community grows while keeping your data synchronized across all departments.
Overview
DonorSearch Features
- Wealth Screening Screen your entire database to identify high-net-worth individuals and prioritize your outreach based on verified assets and gift history.
- Philanthropic Records Access a massive database of charitable giving to see which other causes your donors support and how much they typically give.
- Predictive Modeling Use machine learning to predict which donors are most likely to make a major gift or join a planned giving program.
- Prospect Generator Find new potential donors outside your current database by searching for individuals who give to similar organizations in your region.
- Executive Analysis Get a high-level view of your donor pool's total giving potential to help your leadership set realistic and ambitious fundraising goals.
- CRM Integration Sync your research data directly with your existing donor management system to keep all your prospect notes in one central location.
Planning Center Features
- Services & Scheduling. Plan your worship sets and schedule volunteers with automated requests so your weekend services run without a hitch.
- People Database. Organize your member information in one central hub and track engagement levels to ensure no one falls through the cracks.
- Online Giving. Accept donations via credit card, ACH, or text-to-give and automatically generate year-end tax statements for your donors.
- Secure Check-Ins. Keep your children's ministry safe with fast label printing and secure pickup codes that give parents peace of mind.
- Event Registrations. Create custom sign-up forms for camps or conferences and process payments directly through your church website.
- Church Center App. Give your congregation a mobile home where they can join groups, register for events, and manage their own profiles.
Pricing Comparison
DonorSearch Pricing
Planning Center Pricing
- Free versions of all apps
- Up to 5 Service members
- Up to 15 Check-ins/month
- Up to 10 Registration signups
- Unlimited People profiles
- Community support access
- Everything in Free, plus:
- Up to 25 Service members
- Unlimited service plans
- File storage for charts
- Volunteer scheduling tools
- Rehearsal pack integration
Pros & Cons
DonorSearch
Pros
- Extensive database of philanthropic giving history
- Accurate wealth markers including real estate data
- Seamless integration with major nonprofit CRMs
- Helpful customer support and training resources
Cons
- Interface can feel dated and complex
- Manual verification of data is sometimes required
- Pricing can be high for very small nonprofits
Planning Center
Pros
- Modular approach lets you pay only for needed features
- Highly intuitive interface requires very little staff training
- Excellent mobile app for both staff and congregation
- Seamless data syncing between different ministry modules
- Regular feature updates based on direct user feedback
Cons
- Costs can add up quickly when using multiple modules
- Limited customization for some automated email templates
- Reporting features can be basic for complex data needs