Church directory: a template to copy, privacy rules and what the software costs
What to put in a church directory and what to leave out, a consent form to copy, a free maker that prints a photo directory from a spreadsheet, and prices for two directory services read October 13, 2026.
Every price here was read off the vendor's own page on October 13, 2026.
On this page
A church directory lists each household’s names, address, phone number and email, often with a family photograph, so that members can reach one another. Before you print one or open one in an app, settle three things: what each entry shows, how each household gives its consent, and who may have a copy.
What goes in each entry
| Field | Put it in? | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Last name, then the adults’ first names | Yes | Use the names the household goes by |
| Children’s first names | With the parents’ consent | Leave out ages, birth dates and schools |
| Home address | With consent | Some households will want a phone number only |
| Phone number | With consent | Ask which number to print |
| With consent | One address for the household is enough | |
| Family photograph | With the consent of each adult in it and of the children’s parents | Use a photograph the family has seen |
| Adults’ birthdays and anniversaries | With consent | Print the month and day, and leave out the year |
Add one page at the front for the pastors, elders, deacons and staff, with the church office’s phone number and email.
Leave these out of every directory: birth years, giving, health and prayer notes, and any household that has asked not to be listed.
A sample entry
This entry is made up, and it carries only what the household agreed to show.
A consent form to copy
Ask every household once a year, on paper or on a form, and keep the answers. A household may change its answer at any time.
| Part | Wording |
|---|---|
| Opening | Please list our household in the Grace Baptist Church directory. We understand that the directory goes to members of the church and to no one else. |
| What to show | Show our address. Show our phone number. Show our email. Show our children’s first names. Show our photograph. Show the adults’ birthdays and our anniversary, by month and day. Each line has a box for yes and a box for no. |
| Leaving out | Leave our household out of the directory. |
| Signature | The name and signature of each adult in the household, and the date |
A household that returns no form stays out of the directory until someone asks them.
Who may have a copy
- Give the directory to members, and to no one outside the church.
- Print “For members of Grace Baptist Church only” on the cover, with your own church’s name.
- Keep the file off the public website, and send it by email only to members who ask.
- Put an online or app directory behind a sign-in that the church office approves.
- Collect or shred old copies when the new one comes out.
The church office holds more about each household than the directory shows. If your church’s records are in software, set who can see each kind of record there.
| Record | Members | Group leaders | Staff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Names | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Phone and email | If the household agreed | For the people in their own group | Yes |
| Home address | If the household agreed | If the household agreed | Yes |
| Children’s names | If the parents agreed | For the children in their own class | Yes |
| Birth dates, notes and giving | No | No | Only the staff who need them |
A household’s consent covers what members see. Group leaders and staff use the other details for the church’s work, such as calling a family or checking a child in, and they do not pass them on to anyone.
When a household has to be left out
A member may tell the office about a protective order, a custody dispute or a person who is looking for them. Leave that whole household out of every copy, printed and online, and do not mark the gap. Keep their record in the office with a note that only staff can read, and tell whoever prints the directory and whoever runs the church’s app. Check the list of left-out households again before each printing. Removing an entry does nothing about copies already handed out, so tell the household which earlier directories listed them and ask members to return or shred those copies.
Print one with the free directory maker
The free directory maker, made by Hamilton Holdings LLC and published on Church Posting, takes a spreadsheet with one household to a row, and family photographs if you have them, and lays out a photo directory or a plain list. It prints as letter pages or as a booklet folded in the middle. You can open any household to edit it or leave it out, and the names, addresses and photographs stay on your computer. Type one family below and the entry appears, then open the tool and the family is already at the top of your list.
Free tool you can try here
Make a directory page
Type one family and see its entry. The real tool opens with that family at the top of your list.
This free tool is made by Hamilton Holdings LLC, the company behind Covenant OS, and published on Church Posting.
Cedar Hill Baptist Church
Church directory
Brooks
Michael and Hannah
Ella, Sam
(417) 555-0191
The maker is free and keeps your list and photos in your browser.
What directory software costs
Both prices were read on the companies’ own pages on October 13, 2026.
| Service | What it does | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Instant Church Directory | Makes a directory you can print from a PDF file, and gives members a mobile app and a members’ website | $9.99 a month or $99.80 a year for a Standard membership, $14.99 a month or $154.88 a year for Premium, at one rate for any size of church, after a 30-day free trial |
| Planning Center People | A free membership database, with a church-wide directory in its Church Center app where members update their own profiles | $0 |
If your church already uses church management software, look for a directory in it before you buy another one. Our guide to choosing church management software compares the prices.
Ask these questions of any directory app.
| Question | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Can each household choose which fields show? | Consent differs from one household to the next |
| Can the office hide a household completely? | A household at risk has to disappear from every screen |
| Is the directory behind a sign-in the office approves? | A link anyone can open is a public directory |
| Can a member download the whole list? | A downloaded list leaves the church’s control |
| Can you export every record? | You will need the records if you change software |
Pages cited
- Simple pricing with one low rate no matter your church size. | Instant Church Directory, Instant Church Directory. Read October 13, 2026.
- Instant Church Directory, Instant Church Directory. Read October 13, 2026.
- Planning Center People, Planning Center. Read October 13, 2026.
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