Church payroll management

Q: Why is church payroll important?

Church employees are the backbone of your ministry. A coordinated payroll system ensures they get paid on time. It takes the guesswork out of calculating tax rates and compliance. QuickBooks helps you stay organized and see who you’ve paid, what you’ve paid, and when you paid it.

Manage church payroll with the #1 payroll provider for small businesses.¹

Payroll overview page showing payday approaching in 4 days.

Cards showing enrollment in Guideline 401(k) and health benefits.

Benefits of payroll

Churches have different priorities than traditional businesses but similar financial responsibilities. QuickBooks Payroll has you covered with tools and services that help you pay your employees and file payroll taxes automatically.**

Save time

Run payroll in less than 5 minutes and spend more time on your mission and with your congregation.²

Stay compliant

Get peace of mind knowing your federal, state, and local payroll taxes are calculated, filed, and paid automatically.**

Keep your employees happy

Offer affordable health benefits from Simply Insured and employee services from Mineral, Inc. Manage it all from your Payroll account.**

All the features you need to manage payroll

Tax penalty protection Auto Payroll Direct deposit Customer support Expert setup Time tracking Powerful payroll reports

Tax penalty protection

Tax penalty protection means we’ll resolve filing errors and pay penalties up to $25,000. That’s coverage that you can’t find anywhere else.

Tax penalty protection

Tax penalty protection means we’ll resolve filing errors and pay penalties up to $25,000. That’s coverage that you can’t find anywhere else.

Auto Payroll

Set up your church payroll to run automatically. Auto Payroll makes it easy to save time and stay in control with clear alerts and notifications.**

Direct deposit

Direct deposit

With same-day or next-day direct deposit, you can run payroll as many times as you need each month at no extra cost.**

Explore direct deposit

Customer support

Get step-by-step help, troubleshooting assistance, tips, and resources from our Payroll support experts. We’re here when you need us via phone or online chat.**

Expert setup

With expert setup and review, you can avoid errors and have confidence that your payroll setup is right. Changing payroll providers? We’ll make sure everything transfers over correctly.**

Time tracking

Time tracking flows right into QuickBooks, so you can approve timesheets and run payroll anywhere, on any device. Enter hours yourself or give clergy and employees permission to enter their own time.**

Learn more about time tracking

Powerful payroll reports

Turn numbers into knowledge. Generate and download reports to view payroll history, bank transactions, tax payments, and more. Track your financials and make informed decisions to grow your ministry.

Payroll services for churches

From basic to advanced features, it’s easy to find a payroll system that works for your church. All plans come with full-service payroll and include automated taxes and forms.**

Payroll Core gives you the tools you need to pay clergy, access employee benefits, and get expert product support.**

Payroll Premium offers powerful tools, including same-day direct deposit, employee time tracking, and help with HR compliance.**

Payroll Elite comes with expert setup, a personal HR advisor, tax penalty protection, and 24/7 support.**

See plans & pricing

Confidence you’re compliant

Business compliance is an important part of running any church ministry. QuickBooks makes staying compliant simple with HR support, powered by Mineral, Inc. Learn best practices on hiring and termination, and stay on top of state and federal wage and overtime laws and requirements. Then let QuickBooks calculate and file your payroll taxes to stay compliant with the IRS.

Frequently asked questions

Why choose QuickBooks as your freelance payroll provider?

With powerful features and financial tools to help you grow, there are plenty of reasons to choose QuickBooks for church payroll and beyond.

Automate your payroll. And when you use QuickBooks Time tracking, you can save 5% on payroll costs, on average.³ That’s easy, affordable payroll for your ministry.
Empower employees to access pay stubs and W-2s and view PTO balances and withholdings in the workforce portal.**
Get help with church accounting and bookkeeping through QuickBooks Online. Want hands-on help? QuickBooks Live Bookkeeping offers real-time assistance with recurring bookkeeping tasks. Whatever your needs, you can easily manage your finances in one place.

Why is church payroll important?

How do I set up QuickBooks Payroll for my church?

QuickBooks offers three payroll plans that make setup simple, whether you’re the do-it-yourself type or happy to let the pros help you out.

Setting up QuickBooks Payroll for your church and clergy means gathering a lot of tax and financial documents upfront. Documents include church bank account information and the types of compensation and benefits you offer. You’ll need IRS tax forms for all employees and clergy members and their bank account details for direct deposit. You’ll also need tax information so that you can manage payroll taxes and prior payrolls and liabilities.

How can we help?

Talk to sales 1-877-202-0537

Monday - Friday, 5 AM to 6 PM PT

Get product support

Visit support page

Important offers, pricing details and disclaimers

Money movement services are provided by Intuit Payments Inc., licensed as a Money Transmitter by the New York State Department of Financial Services. For more information about Intuit Payments' money transmission licenses, please visit https://www.intuit.com/legal/licenses/payment-licenses/.

Guarantee

QuickBooks Online Payroll – Tax penalty protection: Only QuickBooks Online Payroll Elite users are eligible to receive the tax penalty protection. If you receive a tax notice and send it to us within 15 days of the tax notice, we will cover the payroll tax penalty up to $25,000. Intuit cannot help resolve notices for customers in Collections with the IRS because IRS Collections will only work with businesses directly. Additional conditions and restrictions apply. Learn more about tax penalty protection.

*Offer terms

QuickBooks Online Payroll Discount Offer Terms: Discount applied to the monthly price for QuickBooks Online Payroll Core, Premium, or Elite (“Payroll”) (collectively, “QuickBooks”) is for the first 3 months of service, starting from the date of enrollment, followed by the then-current monthly list price. Your account will be charged automatically on a monthly basis until you cancel. Each employee is an additional $6/month for Core, $8/month for Premium, and $10/month for Elite. Contractor payments via direct deposit are $6/month for Core, $8/month for Premium, and $10/month for Elite. Payroll service is optimized for up to 50 employees or contractors and capped at 150. The Payroll service includes one state filing. If you file taxes in more than one state, each additional state is $12/month for only Core and Premium. There is no additional charge for additional state tax filings in Elite. The discounts do not apply to additional employees and state tax filing fees. If you add or remove services, your service fees will be adjusted accordingly. Sales tax may be applied where applicable. To be eligible for this offer, you must be a new QuickBooks customer and sign up for the monthly plan using the “Buy Now” option. This offer can’t be combined with any other QuickBooks offers. Offer available for a limited time only. To cancel your subscription at any time go to Account & Settings in QuickBooks and select “Cancel.” Your QuickBooks cancellation will become effective at the end of the monthly billing period. You will not receive a pro-rated refund; your access and subscription benefits will continue for the remainder of the billing period. Terms, conditions, pricing, special features, and service and support options are subject to change without notice.

Money movement services are brought to you by Intuit Payments Inc., licensed as a Money Transmitter by the New York State Department of Financial Services, subject to eligibility criteria, credit and application approval.

**Features

Automated tax payments and filings: Automated tax payments and filing are available only for state and federal taxes. Enrollment in e-services is required. Local taxes require the user to print the forms and upload them to the necessary local sites. QuickBooks Online Payroll Core does not offer local tax payments and filings. Automatic filings for state new hire paperwork are available in QuickBooks Online Payroll Premium and Elite only.

Health benefits: Health Insurance benefits are provided by Intuit Insurance Services Inc., a licensed insurance broker, through a partnership with Allstate Health Solutions. Requires acceptance of Allstate's Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Intuit Insurance Services is owned and operated by Intuit Inc. and is paid a percentage fee of insurance policy premiums by Allstate Health Solutions in connection with the services described on this page.

HR services: HR support is provided by experts at Mineral, Inc. See Mineral’s privacy policy and Terms of Use. The HR Support Center is available only to QuickBooks Online Premium and Elite subscriptions. HR Advisor support only available in QuickBooks Online Payroll Elite. HR support is not available to accountants who are calling on behalf of their clients.

Auto Payroll: Available if the setup for employees and the company is complete, all employees are salaried employees, all employees are set up on direct deposit, bank verification and e-services are enabled, the account has not been on hold in the last 6 months, and the first payroll has been run successfully.

Next-day direct deposit: Payroll processed before 5 PM PT the day before shall arrive the next business day (excluding weekends and holidays). Requires setup of direct deposit and bank verification. May be subject to eligibility criteria. Deposit delays may occur because of third party delays, risk reviews, or issues beyond Intuit’s control. Available for contractors for an additional fee.

Expert review: Available upon request for QuickBooks Online Payroll Premium and Elite.

Expert product support: Included with your paid subscription to QuickBooks Online Payroll. Chat support available 24/7. U.S.-based phone support is available Monday through Friday, 6 AM to 6 PM PT, and Saturday from 6 AM to 3 PM PT. Your subscription must be current. Intuit reserves the right to limit the length of the call. Terms conditions, features, pricing, service, and support are subject to change without notice. Contact support.

QuickBooks Time tracking: Additional fees may apply. Time tracking included in the QuickBooks Online Payroll Premium and Elite subscription services. Features vary. The QuickBooks Time mobile app works with iPhones, iPads, and Android phones and tablets. Devices sold separately; data plan required. Not all features are available on the mobile app and mobile browser. QuickBooks Time mobile access is included with your QuickBooks Online Payroll Premium and Elite subscription at no additional cost. Data access is subject to cellular/internet provider network availability and occasional downtime due to system and server maintenance and events beyond your control. Product registration required.

Customized setup: Available to QuickBooks Online Payroll Elite users only.

Same-day direct deposit: Available to QuickBooks Online Payroll Premium and Elite users. Payroll processed before 7 AM PT shall arrive the same business day (excluding weekends and holidays). Requires setup of direct deposit and bank verification. Same-day direct deposit may be subject to eligibility criteria. Deposit delays may vary because of third-party delays, risk reviews, or issues beyond Intuit’s control. Same-day direct deposit is available only for employees.

** Product information

QuickBooks Workforce is available for employees: Requires an Intuit Account and acceptance of the Intuit Terms of Service and Privacy Statement.

QuickBooks Online Payroll mobile app: The QuickBooks Online Payroll mobile app works with iPhones, iPads, and Android phones and tablets. Devices sold separately; data plan required. Not all features are available on the mobile app and mobile browser. QuickBooks Online Payroll mobile access is included with your QuickBooks Online Payroll subscription at no additional cost. Data access is subject to cellular/internet provider network availability and occasional downtime due to system and server maintenance and events beyond your control. Product registration required.

Cancellation policy: You’re free to switch plans or cancel anytime.

#Claims

1. QuickBooks Payroll is the No. 1 payroll provider for small businesses: Based on the overall number of customers for QuickBooks Payroll products as of June 2020.

2. Run payroll in less than 5 minutes: Median time for QuickBooks Payroll customers to view and approve payroll is less than 5 minutes, as of June 2020.

3. Save 5% on payroll costs: QuickBooks Time surveyed 4,906 customers in the U.S. in December 2019. On average, businesses that report gross payroll costs savings save 5.14%.

Terms, conditions, pricing, special features, and service and support options are subject to change without notice.