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Church Financial Statements: Templates for the Statement of Activities, Financial Position and Giving Report
Last updated: October 17, 2026 · Independent guide · We do not sell rankings or coverage.
Church financial statements are the statement of financial position (the balance sheet), the statement of activities (income and expenses), a fund activity report for designated and restricted money, and a plain-language giving report for the congregation. If your church follows US GAAP, the first two statements must separate net assets with donor restrictions from net assets without donor restrictions, and board-designated reserves sit inside the unrestricted column. The templates below give you each statement with tied-out illustrative figures, a reporting calendar for monthly and annual reports, and the reports that common church accounting systems use to produce them.
How to use this template
The page holds four tables you can copy into a spreadsheet: the statement of financial position, the statement of activities, the fund activity report and the monthly giving report. All four describe one invented congregation and tie to each other. Replace the line names with your chart of accounts, feed each cell from your trial balance by formula, and keep the tie-out checks. Every figure is an illustration, not a benchmark.
Template 1: Statement of financial position
Table 1: Statement of financial position as of December 31 (illustration).
| Line item | Amount | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Assets | ||
| Cash and cash equivalents | $412,000 | Reconciled bank balances, all funds combined |
| Investments | $260,000 | Brokerage or denominational foundation statements |
| Contributions receivable (building pledges) | $45,000 | Unpaid pledges the church expects to collect |
| Prepaid expenses | $18,000 | Insurance and service contracts paid in advance |
| Property and equipment, net | $2,260,000 | Fixed asset register less accumulated depreciation |
| Total assets | $2,995,000 | |
| Liabilities | ||
| Accounts payable and accrued expenses | $41,000 | Unpaid bills at month end |
| Payroll liabilities | $12,000 | Withholding and benefits not yet remitted |
| Mortgage note payable | $438,000 | Lender statement |
| Total liabilities | $491,000 | |
| Net assets | ||
| Without donor restrictions: undesignated | $233,000 | Operating (general) fund balance |
| Without donor restrictions: board-designated operating reserve | $150,000 | Board resolution |
| Without donor restrictions: board-designated building maintenance reserve | $70,000 | Board resolution |
| Without donor restrictions: invested in property, net of debt | $1,822,000 | Property, net, less mortgage |
| Total net assets without donor restrictions | $2,275,000 | Ties to Table 2 |
| With donor restrictions: building fund | $132,000 | Fund activity report (Table 3) |
| With donor restrictions: missions fund | $61,000 | Fund activity report (Table 3) |
| With donor restrictions: benevolence fund | $36,000 | Fund activity report (Table 3) |
| Total net assets with donor restrictions | $229,000 | Ties to Tables 2 and 3 |
| Total net assets | $2,504,000 | |
| Total liabilities and net assets | $2,995,000 | Must equal total assets |
Template 2: Statement of activities
Table 2: Statement of activities for the year ended December 31 (illustration). The format follows the columnar layout explained in our statement of activities guide, adapted for a congregation.
| Line item | Without donor restrictions | With donor restrictions | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue and support | |||
| Tithes and offerings (undesignated) | $1,120,000 | $0 | $1,120,000 |
| Gifts restricted by donors (building, missions, benevolence) | $0 | $310,000 | $310,000 |
| Facility use and other income | $36,000 | $0 | $36,000 |
| Investment return, net | $9,000 | $4,000 | $13,000 |
| Net assets released from restrictions | $265,000 | ($265,000) | $0 |
| Total revenue and support | $1,430,000 | $49,000 | $1,479,000 |
| Expenses | |||
| Program: worship and congregational ministries | $610,000 | $0 | $610,000 |
| Program: missions and benevolence | $230,000 | $0 | $230,000 |
| Supporting: management and general | $400,000 | $0 | $400,000 |
| Supporting: fundraising | $15,000 | $0 | $15,000 |
| Total expenses | $1,255,000 | $0 | $1,255,000 |
| Change in net assets | $175,000 | $49,000 | $224,000 |
| Net assets, beginning of year | $2,100,000 | $180,000 | $2,280,000 |
| Net assets, end of year | $2,275,000 | $229,000 | $2,504,000 |
Template 3: Fund activity report for designated and restricted funds
Table 3: Restricted fund activity for the year ended December 31 (illustration). Add a column for each fund. Board-designated reserves can go in a second copy of this table labeled “without donor restrictions.”
| Line | Building fund | Missions fund | Benevolence fund |
|---|---|---|---|
| Net asset class | With donor restrictions | With donor restrictions | With donor restrictions |
| Opening balance, January 1 | $108,000 | $56,000 | $16,000 |
| Gifts received and pledged | $140,000 | $125,000 | $45,000 |
| Investment return | $4,000 | $0 | $0 |
| Released (spent for the stated purpose) | ($120,000) | ($120,000) | ($25,000) |
| Closing balance, December 31 | $132,000 | $61,000 | $36,000 |
The three closing balances add to $229,000, the restricted column in Tables 1 and 2. The releases add to $265,000, the release line in Table 2.
Template 4: Monthly giving report for the congregation
Table 4: Giving and spending report, month of October (illustration). This is the page most members read. Keep it to one screen or one bulletin insert.
| Line | This month | Year to date | Year-to-date budget |
|---|---|---|---|
| General fund giving (tithes and offerings) | $91,000 | $925,000 | $950,000 |
| General fund spending | $97,000 | $958,000 | $975,000 |
| General fund giving less spending | ($6,000) | ($33,000) | ($25,000) |
| Building fund gifts | $9,500 | $112,000 | Not budgeted |
| Missions fund gifts | $8,000 | $104,000 | $100,000 |
| Benevolence fund gifts | $3,000 | $38,000 | Not budgeted |
Monthly vs annual reports: who gets what
| Report | Audience | How often | What it includes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Giving report (Table 4) | Congregation, through the bulletin, website or members’ meeting | Monthly or quarterly | General fund giving and spending against budget, gifts to each designated fund |
| Finance packet | Finance committee and governing board | Monthly | Tables 1 to 3, budget versus actual by line, bank reconciliations, aged bills |
| Annual financial report | Congregation at the annual meeting | Annually | Tables 1 to 3 with prior-year comparison, budget results and a short narrative |
| Year-end statements with notes | Board, lender, denomination or outside accountant | Annually | Full statements, expense analysis by function and nature, liquidity and board designation notes |
Our church budget template supplies the budget column for the giving report and the line-by-line budget versus actual page in the finance packet.
Walking through each part of the template
Statement of financial position
This statement shows what the church owns and owes on one date. Since FASB’s ASU 2016-14, US GAAP uses two net asset classes, with donor restrictions and without donor restrictions, in place of the old unrestricted, temporarily restricted and permanently restricted classes (Journal of Accountancy, December 5, 2018). The standard also requires you to disclose the amounts and purposes of board designations (Kreischer Miller, April 3, 2018), which is why Table 1 lists each reserve by name.
Cash appears once, even when one account holds money for several funds. The split by fund belongs in the net asset section.
Designated versus restricted funds
The word “designated” causes most church reporting errors. ECFA states that “unlike donors, governing boards cannot restrict gifts or remove gift restrictions” (ECFA, no date shown). A gift a donor gives for the new roof is donor-restricted and goes in the restricted column. A reserve the board sets aside from general money is board-designated, stays without donor restrictions, and can be undone by another vote.
Discipleship Ministries adds that restricted balances can make a church’s statements look healthier than they are, because that money cannot be used for everyday expenses (Discipleship Ministries, September 16, 2025). Showing the undesignated balance on its own line in Table 1 tells members how much the church can actually spend.
Statement of activities
Restricted gifts enter the restricted column when received. When the church spends them for the stated purpose, a release moves the amount to the unrestricted column, where the expense is recorded, so the release line nets to zero in the total column. In Table 2, the $265,000 release covers $120,000 of missions support, $25,000 of benevolence and the $120,000 roof replacement once the new roof was placed in service. The roof is capitalized and depreciated, so it is not a single expense line.
ASU 2016-14 also requires an analysis of expenses by function and by nature in one place: the face of this statement, a separate statement or the notes (Journal of Accountancy, December 5, 2018). Table 2 shows only the functional totals.
Fund activity report
Members who gave to the building or missions fund want to see their fund’s balance, not a net asset class. Table 3 gives each fund an opening balance, gifts, spending and a closing balance, and it ties to the restricted column. Group small funds on the congregational version and keep the full list in the finance packet.
Giving report
The giving report compares general fund giving and spending with the year-to-date budget, not the annual budget, because giving is seasonal. Show designated fund gifts on separate lines so that a strong building campaign does not hide a general fund shortfall. Never publish individual giving amounts. Donors receive those in their own year-end statements, covered in our year-end giving statement template.
Common mistakes
- Recording restricted gifts as general income. The general fund looks strong until the restricted money is spent on operations, which the board has no authority to do.
- Putting board-designated reserves in the restricted column. This overstates restrictions and hides money the board can release.
- Releasing restrictions in only one column. A nonzero total on the release line means the entry was posted to one class only.
- Comparing year-to-date giving with the full annual budget. The congregation sees a large shortfall in spring that is not real.
- Ending net assets that do not match the balance sheet. Check that the last line of Table 2 equals the net asset totals in Table 1 every month.
- Using the pre-2018 class names. Unrestricted, temporarily restricted and permanently restricted were replaced by ASU 2016-14 for GAAP statements.
How church accounting software produces these statements
A spreadsheet works for a church with a few funds and one bookkeeper. With several designated funds, online giving and more than one person posting entries, fund accounting software keeps fund balances tied to the ledger and produces Tables 1 to 3 directly. Our guide to fund accounting software for churches compares requirements and published pricing.
ACS Technologies Realm Accounting lists a Statement of Financial Position, a Statement of Activities with actual, budget and budget-variance columns, a Statement of Activities by Restriction and a Summary of Restricted Net Assets, with filters for funds and departments (ACS Technologies help, updated March 3, 2026). It is the closest match here to the GAAP layout in Tables 1 and 2.
Aplos runs an Income Statement by Fund for one fund or a consolidated set, a balance sheet for each fund, and a Fund Activity Summary that resembles Table 3 (Aplos help, updated October 28, 2025). Aplos says it tracks net asset classifications automatically (Aplos, updated June 16, 2025), but its help pages we reviewed do not describe a statement laid out in two class columns, so confirm that layout in a demo.
PowerChurch Plus includes an income and expense statement, a balance sheet and restricted fund accounts (PowerChurch, no date shown, checked October 17, 2026). Its product page does not mention net asset classes, so you would map funds to classes yourself.
ChurchTrac offers a Balance Sheet with fund balances in columns, an Income Statement and Budget vs Actual reports (ChurchTrac help, no date shown, checked October 17, 2026). Its help page does not list a statement of activities by restriction, so the GAAP version would be finished in a spreadsheet.
QuickBooks Online shows a Statement of Activity and a Statement of Financial Position once the tax form is set to a nonprofit form (Intuit, updated August 5, 2026). Intuit does not document class columns by restriction, so churches usually build funds with classes and adjust the layout outside the software.
Do churches have to prepare GAAP statements?
Churches are excepted from filing Form 990 (IRS, last reviewed June 27, 2026), so no federal return forces a particular format. GAAP statements become necessary when a lender, denomination or accreditation body requires them. ECFA’s published threshold statement for members calls for a CPA compilation at $2 million of annual revenue or less, a review between $2 million and $3 million and an audit at $3 million or more (ECFA, no date shown). If you report to the congregation on a cash basis, say so on the report.
How we researched this
We read the FASB’s ASU 2016-14, summaries of it from the Journal of Accountancy and Kreischer Miller, the IRS filing requirements page, ECFA guidance, and Discipleship Ministries’ guidance on designated and restricted gifts. We reviewed the pages that rank for this term from Tithely, Vanco, ChMeetings and Grain Ledger, all of which sell church software or payments. They describe the statements but give few copyable layouts with tie-outs, little on board-designated versus donor-restricted presentation, and one still uses the pre-2018 three-class terms. We checked each product claim against vendor help pages on October 17, 2026. All figures in the tables are an illustration.
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
What financial statements should a church have?
A church should have a statement of financial position, a statement of activities and a report of each designated and restricted fund. GAAP statements also include a statement of cash flows and an analysis of expenses by function and nature. For the congregation, add a short monthly or quarterly giving report.
How often should a church give financial reports to the congregation?
Most churches share a short giving report monthly or quarterly and a full annual report at the annual meeting. The finance committee should see the complete statements every month. Give members enough to see whether giving covers the budget and how designated funds are used.
Where do designated funds go on a church balance sheet?
It depends who set the purpose. Board-designated reserves sit in net assets without donor restrictions, listed by name. Gifts a donor gave for a specific purpose sit in net assets with donor restrictions until they are spent for that purpose.
Can a church use QuickBooks for its financial statements?
Yes, for simple cases. QuickBooks Online provides a Statement of Activity and a Statement of Financial Position when set up as a nonprofit, but it does not document columns by restriction, so churches with many restricted funds often move to fund accounting software.
Sources
- FASB, ASU 2016-14, Presentation of Financial Statements of Not-for-Profit Entities, August 2016.
- Journal of Accountancy, FASB not-for-profit financial reporting standard, December 5, 2018.
- Kreischer Miller (CPA firm), Not-for-profit industry alert: net asset classification requirements, April 3, 2018.
- Internal Revenue Service, Annual exempt organization return: Who must file, last reviewed or updated June 27, 2026.
- ECFA, Can Boards Restrict Gifts?, no date shown, checked October 17, 2026.
- ECFA, Financial statement threshold statement, no date shown, checked October 17, 2026.
- Discipleship Ministries, Be Cautious with Designated and Restricted Gifts, September 16, 2025.
- ACS Technologies help (vendor), Realm Accounting: Accounting Reports, updated March 3, 2026.
- Aplos help (vendor), Fund Transfers in Aplos, updated October 28, 2025.
- Aplos (vendor), Net asset classification, updated June 16, 2025.
- PowerChurch (vendor), PowerChurch Plus fund accounting, no date shown, checked October 17, 2026.
- ChurchTrac help (vendor), Accounting reports, no date shown, checked October 17, 2026.
- Intuit (vendor), Configure an account for a nonprofit organization in QuickBooks, updated August 5, 2026.
- Tithely (sells church software), What is a Church Financial Statement?, April 13, 2024.
- Vanco (sells church payments, Matt Strelecki), Church Financial Report Guide with Free Templates, January 21, 2025.
- ChMeetings (sells church software, Samir Nagieb), How to Prepare Church Financial Statements, last modified April 27, 2026.
- Grain Ledger (sells church accounting software, Gibson Brueher), Church Financial Statements: Reports and Examples, January 8, 2026.
Sherman Hsieh
Independent analysis of enterprise software — ERP, CRM and more
