5 Reasons Your Church Needs a Website

Caleb Stevens • 10/5/2025

Being one of the techie members at the churches I have attended, there were many times that I would witness frustrations, pain points, and misunderstandings about the online world. Sometimes it was from older leadership that were not versed in the World Wide Web, others from lack of time to maintain something like a WordPress website.

These experiences made it clear to me why so many churches out there have a dated or incomplete website, if they even have one at all. If you are wondering why your church needs a website, I have prepared 5 reasons that will make the effort seem worth it — and even a recommendation to make it as easy as possible.

1. Visibility Where People Actually Search

These days, nobody goes anywhere without first Googling the place. According to recent SEO statistics from SEOPROFY, 72% use Google to look for local businesses. If your church receives 10 new visitors on a Sunday, there is a good chance that at least seven of them Googled you first. If your church doesn't have a website, there's a good chance only three new visitor would have shown up that Sunday.

Having a website for your church allows people to find who otherwise would never have known your church existed. Additionally, if someone hears about you from a billboard, a friend, or just driving by your building, a website will allow them to find your church again.

2. Upfront Communication About Your Church — Before A Visit

A huge advantage of the internet is the ability to make decisions more informed than ever before. This doesn't stop at shopping for cars, finding a university, or buying new running shoes. Someone who visits your church's website should be able to find information that helps them understand exactly what your church is about.

A church website is a perfect place to publicly share ministries, missions, beliefs, and everything else that makes your church a great decision.

3. Keeping Your Church Family in the Loop

A church's website is not just a digital booklet for visitors. It's also a handy tool to keep your congregation informed on day-to-day updates. A church website empowers your members to be able to stay connected in the middle of the week or late at night.

A young family trying to pack for youth camp might want to triple check what time the bus leaves. A student with a long Sunday commute might want to know if the weather has cancelled this morning's service. An email or a piece of paper with the information on it can get lost in time and space, but a quick visit to the church website is always a stable place where members can be assured that information is accurate and available.

4. Complete Control of the Message

It's tempting to just throw up a church Facebook page for updates or only upload sermons to YouTube. The problem we all have come to face with these solutions is volatility and censorship. With your own website you are fully in control of deciding what is published, endorsed, or shown to your visitors.

There will never be a day that your content is inexplicably taken down or your church page disabled for violating a new rule that was published the night before. Your content is 100% owned and managed by your church — and your church only.

5. Full Access to Online Technologies

A website is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what's possible when bringing your church into the digital realm. This might be the strongest reason to consider getting your church online.

While it's perfectly fine to stay with a standard information site, there's a plethora of optional tools that can raise the quality of life when it comes to managing certain church work. Here are a few examples:

Online Tithing

Having an easily accessible method of paying tithes to your church offers a huge advantage in an age where cash and checks are becoming increasingly less common.

Prayer Requests

Giving your church family a way to request prayer online means leadership will be able to stay more informed about the life of their church family throughout the week.

Contact Forms

Having something even as simple as a contact form allows visitors and curious people to ask questions without the friction of trying to find time to setup a meeting with a church they've never visited.

Conclusion

Websites are powerful tools for churches in the modern age. You can bring your church to the forefront of where people actually search. Your ability to communicate without your church and new visitors is exponentially increased. You have total control over what is said and shown.

The investment into a website will be one of the most useful assets available to your church leadership and body.

Are you ready to bring your church online? I created the ChurchNook website building platform to offer the absolute easiest hassle-free way to create a website for your church.