The problem
Three ways it goes wrong.
Underpaying out of guilt or fear.
Nobody wants to look like the church that overpays. So the number stays low, and it stays low for years, and eventually the pastor leaves or burns out — and everyone acts surprised.
Overpaying without seeing the risk.
The number felt right when giving was strong. Nobody modeled what happens if it isn't.
No formal review process at all.
Set once, never revisited. No benchmark. No cadence. Just a number somebody said out loud in a meeting once, that nobody has been willing to reopen since.
The pastor can't raise it — asking looks like self-interest. The board won't raise it — nobody wants to be the one. So it sits.
The framework
Three metrics. Together, not separately.
Revenue-based metric
Compensation as a percentage of total revenue — and separately, as a percentage of total staff payroll. The second number is the one most churches have never looked at, and it's usually the one that's out of line.
Attendance-based benchmarking
What churches of your attendance size actually pay, adjusted for your region. Not a national average. Not what the church down the road does. Comparable size, comparable market.
Sustainability metric
Payroll limits and operating reserves. Does the number hold if giving softens for two quarters? If the answer is no, it isn't a compensation package — it's a bet.
What you get
- A benchmarked compensation range for every pastoral role
- Staff cost as a percentage of revenue, measured against comparable churches
- A sustainability test — what happens to this number if giving drops
- A written recommendation your board can act on
- An annual review cadence, so it never goes another six years untouched
And the part that matters most
Somebody who isn't on your board says the number out loud.
That's most of the value. The math isn't hard. The conversation is. We're not a member, we're not staff, we don't have a stake — which is exactly what makes the recommendation usable.
How it works
Questions people ask
Frequently asked questions
- How much should a church pay its pastor?
- There's no universal number. It depends on what the church can sustain, what comparable churches pay, and whether it survives a downturn.
- What percentage of a church budget should go to staff?
- It varies by size and model — which is why we benchmark against comparable churches rather than quoting a rule of thumb.
- Who should decide pastoral compensation?
- The board decides. An outside party should bring the benchmark, so the decision isn't a negotiation between people who see each other on Sunday.
- How often should pastor compensation be reviewed?
- Annually. Most churches review it once and then never again — that's the actual problem.
- Is it wrong for a pastor to be well paid?
- That's a theological question, not a financial one. Our job is to tell you what comparable churches pay and whether your number is sustainable. What you do with that is yours.