Software profile
Paxton Church & Charity Accounting Software
UK accounting software for churches and charities, with separate fund accounts, donations, Gift Aid and Charity Commission reports.
30-second answer
What to know before you open the full record
- What it is
- UK accounting software for churches and charities, with separate fund accounts, donations, Gift Aid and Charity Commission reports.
- Contexts worth testing
- Churches and charities needing multi-fund accounting, Treasurers choosing between receipts-and-payments and accruals accounting, UK organisations that need Gift Aid and Charity Commission reporting workflows
- Published starting price
- £50 / month
- Relevant UK checks
- UK-specific evidence · UK registered · Gift Aid: Yes
- Shortlist when
- UK churches that need charity-specific fund accounting and Gift Aid workflows
- Check first
- Use the free trial to test fund reports, Gift Aid, bank reconciliation, permissions and year-end workflow with representative church data
- Evidence date
- Sources checked 25 July 2026
This is an evidence-led starting point, not a ranking or hands-on verdict. Supplier sources establish what they publish; your church should test material workflows and resolve the questions below.
Five-minute assessment
Assess the likely fit and trade-offs
Directory assessment
Paxton is a clearly UK-based charity-accounting option with current public prices, church-oriented accounting workflows and a desktop alternative to its online service. Its Standard and Advanced split makes the first procurement question practical: whether the church needs receipts-and-payments accounting or the additional sales, project and foreign-currency capability. A treasurer should test reports, migration, permissions, bank reconciliation and year-end work with the actual accounts before changing system.
Decision framing
Shortlist when, then check first
- Shortlist when
- UK churches seeking charity-specific multi-fund accounting
- Test in a real workflow
- Published monthly pricing with both online and Windows desktop deployment
- Settle before buying
- Use the free trial to test fund reports, Gift Aid, bank reconciliation, permissions and year-end workflow with representative church data
Decision evidence
Published details for a shortlist
These details are traced to the source shown. Supplier material establishes what the supplier publishes; it is not hands-on testing.
- UK purchasing availability
- Supplier sourceSupplier terms state that the online service and website goods and services are available only to customers in the United Kingdom unless approved otherwise.Source: Recorded evidence · checked 25 July 2026
- GBP pricing
- Supplier sourceStandard is published at £50/month plus VAT and Advanced at £75/month plus VAT, paid by monthly direct debit.Source: Recorded evidence · checked 25 July 2026
- Hosting and location
- Supplier sourceSupplier states that Paxton Charities Online is hosted in a secure UK-based data centre and has 14 days of backups.Source: Recorded evidence · checked 25 July 2026
- Export formats
- Supplier sourceTransaction import; Local backup from the cloud service, according to supplier termsSource: Paxton terms and conditions · checked 25 July 2026
Best suited to
- UK churches that need charity-specific fund accounting and Gift Aid workflows
- Treasurers who value published monthly pricing and a desktop option
- Churches that need to compare receipts-and-payments and accruals workflows
Evidence-backed strengths
- Named active UK operator and published UK-only availability
- Published GBP pricing and a 30-day trial
- Supplier documents multi-fund accounting, Gift Aid and Charity Commission reporting
- Online and Windows desktop options
Limitations and questions
- Supplier's security and UK-hosting statements are not an independent assurance assessment
- The reviewed public terms do not provide a current full data-processing agreement, sub-processor list or exit-data procedure
- The Advanced version supports accruals accounting only
- Check migration, reporting and independent-examination requirements against the church's actual accounts
What the supplier publishes
- Multi-fund accounting
- Donations and Gift Aid claims
- Charity Commission and SORP reporting
- Purchase ledger and budgets
- Transaction import
- VAT processing for Making Tax Digital
- Online and Windows desktop options
What does the supplier currently publish?
Pricing and trial
Paxton publishes monthly direct-debit prices of £50 plus VAT for Standard and £75 plus VAT for Advanced. The subscriptions include helpdesk support, maintenance, new features and updates.
| Tier or starting point | Published price | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | £50/month plus VAT | Online and desktop; includes multi-fund accounting, donations, Gift Aid, Charity Commission reports and transaction import. |
| Advanced | £75/month plus VAT | Online and desktop; adds sales ledger, invoicing, foreign-currency processing and project analysis. |
Free trial: Yes — The supplier offers a 30-day free trial.
Full due diligence
Evidence, operations and source record
Use this full record to test practical details, retain source links and take specific gaps to the supplier.
Published operations and support details
- Data hosting
- The supplier states that Paxton Charities Online is hosted in a secure UK-based data centre and that 14 days of backups are available.
- Data protection information
- The reviewed terms describe UK hosting and supplier access for support or maintenance. Ask for the current data-processing agreement, security information, sub-processor list, retention terms and export process before procurement.
- Import and export
- Transaction import, Local backup from the cloud service, according to supplier terms
- Support
- Telephone and email support, Monthly subscription includes helpdesk support, maintenance, new features and updates
Sources reviewed
Sources support only the fields named beneath each link. Supplier material is not independent testing; external review material is included as a limited signal rather than a verdict.
- Paxton Church & Charity Accounting Software
Reviewed 25 July 2026 · Supports: Church and charity accounting scope, Core features, Published Standard and Advanced prices, Online and desktop availability - Paxton pricing
Reviewed 25 July 2026 · Supports: Current monthly GBP pricing, Subscription inclusions, Free-trial route - Paxton terms and conditions
Reviewed 25 July 2026 · Supports: UK company identity, UK-only availability, UK hosting statement, Backup statement, Supplier access for support or maintenance
