Synodo and Church Center: how they compare for small groups

Checked 2026-10-19

The short answer: Church Center is the app a Planning Center church gives its whole congregation: find a group, sign up for events, give, check children in, and chat with a group. Synodo is built for what happens inside each group week to week — the study, leaders-only meeting guides, attendance follow-up and the group’s conversation — and sits alongside Planning Center rather than replacing it.

	Synodo	Church Center
Built for	Running each small group week to week: the study, the meeting and the conversation in between.	Connecting the whole congregation with the church: groups, events, giving, check-ins, volunteering and media.
Finding a group	Members of the church can browse the groups their church lists and join or ask to join. Not a public website finder.	A group finder people can search by stage of life, day or location, including confidential groups.
Meeting content	A Member Guide and a leaders-only Leader Guide for every meeting, written once and copied to every group.	Leaders can share resources with their group.
Attendance and care	Attendance on a phone, and anyone who misses two meetings or goes quiet appears in “To check on” with the reason.	Leaders can take attendance.
Group conversation	One thread per group with polls, sign-ups, RSVPs, prayer requests, “Seen by” and scheduled messages. Push notifications.	Group messaging between meetings.
Giving, check-ins, volunteers	Not part of Synodo.	Built in: giving, children’s check-in and volunteer scheduling.

Can a church use both?

Yes. Church Center stays the front door — where someone new finds a group, signs up for an event and gives — and Planning Center stays the database. Synodo is where the group meets during the week. Groups come across from Planning Center by your own tags, and a Synodo group can be sent back.

When is Church Center enough on its own?

When a church already runs Planning Center and its groups mostly need to be found, joined and messaged, with each leader running the meeting in their own way. Church Center comes with Planning Center, so there is little reason to add anything for that.

When does Synodo help?

Every group works through the same study, and leaders need preparation for each meeting that members never see.
Leaders want this week’s meeting, the homework and the conversation in one place.
Leaders want the people who need a call put in front of them each week, with the reason.
Mentoring pairs, discipleship cohorts or short courses need more than a group list and a chat.

What does Synodo not do that Church Center does?

Online giving, children’s check-in, volunteer scheduling, livestreams and sermon notes.
A public group finder on the church’s website.
The church’s main people database — Planning Center keeps that.

See how it works in Synodo

Sources, checked 2026-10-19: Church Center, Planning Center Groups