How much should a church spend on communications?

A reasonable guideline is 3% to 5% of your church's operating budget for communications, not counting a full-time salary, or 8% to 12% if a communications staff member or outside partner is part of the line. For a church of 200 with a $400,000 budget, that's about $12,000 to $20,000 a year for the work itself. There's no published church-wide standard, so this article shows where those numbers come from and how to adjust them for your church.

I run a fractional communications studio, so I have a stake in churches spending something here. I've tried to be straight about the benchmarks anyway, including the ones that say "it depends."

What the church budget benchmarks say

Most church budget guides split spending into staff, facilities, ministry, missions, and savings. Communications rarely gets its own line, which is part of why it's hard to budget for.

• Vanderbloemen suggests staff at 45% to 55% of the budget, facilities at 20% to 30%, ministries and outreach at 10% to 15%, missions at 10% to 15%, and savings at 5% to 10%. Communications isn't listed, so it has to come out of staff, ministries, or outreach.
• Tithely puts staff at 33% to 50%, with about 40% for ministry and operations, and cites a Vanderbloemen finding that the average church spends 52% on staff.
• XPastor published one larger church's actual budget, where "worship, IT, and communications" together came to 9.3%.
• The business rule of thumb, quoted by United Methodist Communications and others, is about 5% of revenue to maintain and 10% to grow. The U.S. Small Business Administration suggests 7% to 8%. Those are for businesses selling something, so churches usually land lower.
• Technology guides often suggest 3% to 5% of the operating budget for church software, website, streaming, and email tools, which overlaps with communications.

Put together, those sources point to a range. Churches that take communications seriously tend to spend somewhere between 3% and 10% of their budget on it, depending on whether a salary is included. Many churches spend far less, but that's usually because the work is being done, unpaid, by the pastor or a volunteer.

A simple guideline by church size

Church budgets usually run about $1,700 to $2,800 per regular attender each year, according to figures from Aplos and Church Salary. Here's what 3% to 5% looks like at a few sizes, using the lower end of that range so the numbers stay conservative:

Budgets are estimates from per-attender giving averages. Your church may be well above or below them. The percentage is the useful part.

Notice that at every size, 3% to 5% is enough to pay for the work, as long as you don't try to fund a full-time salary with benefits inside it. A full-time communications director costs a church roughly $43,000 to $109,000 a year with payroll taxes and benefits, which is why most churches under 800 either hire part-time, bring in an outside partner, or stay with a volunteer. I ran those numbers in church communications director salary: what the role pays and costs.

What belongs in the communications line

The line is more than a salary. When you build it, include:

• People. A staff member's salary and payroll taxes, a freelancer's project fees, or a monthly partner fee.
• Tools. Website hosting and platform fees, the email tool, Canva or Adobe, a social scheduler, stock photos and music, and video software. For most churches this runs $1,500 to $5,000 a year. Canva offers a free nonprofit plan that many churches qualify for.
• Print. Bulletins or worship guides, invite cards, banners, signage, and mailers.
• Seasonal campaigns. Easter, Christmas, fall kickoff, and any outreach events. Many churches budget these inside the event instead, which hides the real total.
• Advertising. Boosted posts and local ads, if you use them. Churches that qualify can also apply for a Google Ad Grant, which covers search ads at no cost.
• Equipment. A camera, lights, a microphone, and a computer that can edit video, spread over their useful life.

If you've never totaled this before, do it now. Most churches find they already spend 1% to 2% on tools, print, and ads without calling it communications, with the labor sitting on top as unpaid hours.

Three ways to spend the same budget

Say your church has 250 people and a $450,000 budget. Four percent is $18,000 a year. Here's what that buys three different ways:

At 5% ($22,500), the fractional option moves close to the Partner package ($22,800 a year), which adds the weekly email, filmed stories, event campaigns, and a monthly visit. You can see everything each package includes on the services and pricing page, and I compared the three approaches in more depth in how to outsource church communications.

When to spend more, and when to spend less

Spend toward the high end if

• Your church is new, growing, or in a new building, so most of your neighbors don't know you yet
• You've just rebranded or changed your name
• Your website is more than five years old, or guests say they couldn't find basic information
• Easter and Christmas invitations have started the week before for several years running

Spend toward the low end if

• Your church is stable, well known in town, and mostly reaching its own members
• You have a gifted volunteer with a brand kit and templates to work from
• You're already paying staff for this work inside another salary, and it's getting done

One thing I'd avoid at any size is spending on ads before the basics are in place. A boosted post that sends people to an outdated website doesn't help. Fix the website, the Sunday experience, and the weekly rhythm first.

How to present it to your board or finance team

1. Total what you already spend. Pull the website, email, software, print, and ad costs out of the lines they're hiding in. Add the hours staff and volunteers spend each week.
2. Name the problem it solves. Guests who can't find service times, a volunteer who's burning out, or a Christmas push that starts too late. Use one real example.
3. Propose a percentage, not just a number. "Four percent of our budget" is easier to defend and easier to keep as giving changes.
4. Show what it buys. A plan for each quarter, slides and social posts every week, series art, the email, and someone who owns it.
5. Suggest a 90-day trial. Boards are more comfortable with a trial than a permanent line. Pick two or three things to measure, like website visits, email opens, and first-time guests.

Common questions about church communications budgets

What percentage of a church budget should go to communications?

A reasonable guideline is 3% to 5% of the operating budget for communications work, tools, and print, not counting a full-time salary, or 8% to 12% if a staff member or outside partner is inside the line. There is no published church-wide standard, so treat these as a starting point.

How much does the average church spend on communications?

There is no reliable average, because most churches don't track it as one line. Many spend 1% to 2% on tools, print, and ads without calling it communications, with the labor done by the pastor or a volunteer. Churches with a communications staff member usually spend 5% to 10% once the salary is included.

Is 5% of the budget too much for a small church?

Not usually. At a church of 100 with a $200,000 budget, 5% is $10,000 a year, which covers tools, a brand kit and templates, and some part-time or outside help. If giving is tight, start at 3% and add to it as the basics are in place.

Should the communications budget include the website?

Yes. Hosting, platform fees, and a redesign every five to seven years belong in the communications line. If a redesign is a large one-time cost, budget it separately but keep it with communications so the total is honest.

What should a church budget for communications tools?

Most churches spend $1,500 to $5,000 a year on tools: website hosting, an email platform, Canva or Adobe, a social scheduler, stock images and music, and video software. Canva offers a free nonprofit plan that many churches qualify for.

Is a fractional communications partner within a normal church budget?

Usually. Grayhaven's packages are $12,000, $22,800, and $38,400 a year. For a church of 200 with a $400,000 budget, Essentials is 3% and Partner is about 5.7%. For a church of 500 with a $900,000 budget, Director is about 4.3%.

Sources

• Vanderbloemen: Smart church budget percentages for healthy growth
• Tithely: Healthy budget percentage guide for a thriving church
• XPastor: Percentages of budget by ministry area
• United Methodist Communications: How much should your church spend on marketing?
• Christian Leader Update: How much should you spend on marketing? (SBA and CMO Survey figures)
• Digital Church: Church technology budgeting guide for 2026
• Aplos: Average church budget by attendance (about $1,700 per person a year)
• Vanco: Church giving statistics (Church Salary average of $2,848 per person a year)

Benchmarks were checked on October 24, 2026. The 3% to 5% guideline is my recommendation, drawn from those sources, not an industry standard. Grayhaven prices are the published rates as of October 2026.