{"id":13421,"date":"2025-07-17T14:46:51","date_gmt":"2025-07-17T18:46:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/christnewstoday\/?p=13421"},"modified":"2025-07-17T14:46:51","modified_gmt":"2025-07-17T18:46:51","slug":"churches-still-rely-on-in-person-giving-according-to-new-study","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/christnewstoday\/2025\/07\/churches-still-rely-on-in-person-giving-according-to-new-study.html","title":{"rendered":"Churches Still Rely on In-Person Giving According to New Study"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Despite the growth of online giving within churches, a recent study<\/a> found that the majority of US churches still rely on in-person giving. The survey was conducted through phone surveys of 1,003 Protestant pastors from Aug. 8 \u2013 Sept. 3, 2024. According to Lifeway Research, the most recognizable way of collecting church offering by passing a plate or some sort of object for physical collections, remains the top method for collecting funds. Sixty-four percent of pastors stated they collect tithe by passing around a plate or basket, with the practice being more common in churches with congregations of 50 to 99 (68%) over churches with 250 or more (56%). Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research, stated that the preference for passing something around at smaller churches was not a surprise. \u201cIf reluctance to pass the plate relates to the time it takes or the volunteers required, it\u2019s not surprising smaller churches don\u2019t see a problem,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The second most used option was that of collection boxes for parishioners to give their offerings either upon arriving to church or leaving. Forty percent of churches stated they used such a method. The practice is more popular in bigger churches, with about 65% of churches with congregations over 250 offering such a method. The appeal of the method for some lies in its anonymity. \u201cCollection boxes can\u2019t see if you give or not. While some churches use the boxes in addition to other methods to make sure everyone has the chance to give, others use them exclusively to minimize guilt or pressure to give,\u201d stated McConnell.<\/p>\n

A 2022 Lifeway study found that while online giving is increasing in churches, it still lags behind physical giving. This may be partly because 53% of churchgoers prefer to pay their offerings in cash and 30% prefer to pay by check, with neither method being easily accessible by online methods. 62% of churchgoers stated they didn\u2019t use any electronic methods for their giving, while 35% stated they used at least one. Another appeal of in-person giving that McConnell noted was that such giving doesn\u2019t charge the church the fee, unlock many online programs that do. And, while many churches offer a variety of giving methods, it is far more likely they will leave out the digital option over the physical option, McConnell noted. \u201cWhile many churches offer digital giving options, only 1% of churches say they don\u2019t provide an opportunity to give an offering in person at their worship services,\u201d he said. \u201cThe variety of methods for taking the collection reflects the wide variety of styles when it comes to practicing any element of worship.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Despite the growth of online giving within churches, a recent study found that the majority of US churches still rely on in-person giving. The survey was conducted through phone surveys of 1,003 Protestant pastors from Aug. 8 \u2013 Sept. 3, 2024. According to Lifeway Research, the most recognizable way of collecting church offering by passing…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":516,"featured_media":13424,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13421","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nChurches Still Rely on In-Person Giving According to New Study<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Despite digital trends, most U.S. churches still rely on passing the plate\u2014showing that traditional giving remains strong today.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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