Chabad Suite vs Shluchim (Donarius Synagogue Edition) (2026)
Two synagogue management options compared on verified pricing, Jewish-specific workflows, billing depth, communications, migration and independent evidence.
Quick answer
- Price: Chabad Suite: Basic (CRM only) $165/mo; Basic + (CRM only) $350/mo; Upstart (Full Suite) $255/mo; Grow (Full Suite) $355/mo; Professional (Full Suite) $499/mo. Shluchim (Donarius Synagogue Edition): Flat one-time.
- Jewish-specific workflows: Shluchim (Donarius Synagogue Edition) leads (10.0 vs 14.0 of 20 points).
- Membership, dues and money: Chabad Suite leads (16.0 vs 13.5 of 20 points).
- Communications and engagement: Chabad Suite leads (14.0 vs 3.5 of 15 points).
- School and events: Chabad Suite leads (5.0 vs 0.0 of 10 points).
- Pricing transparency: Chabad Suite leads (15 vs 5 of 15 points).
- Independent customer evidence: Shluchim (Donarius Synagogue Edition) leads (0 vs 3 of 10 points).
- Overall: Chabad Suite 68.0/100 · Shluchim (Donarius Synagogue Edition) 46.5/100
Pricing side by side
Chabad Suite
- Basic (CRM only): $165/mo · 10 admins; 3.5k contacts; 8k emails/mo · Contributions, invoicing, yahrzeit/Hebrew birthday tracking, events, mass email, intake forms, mobile web app, support; 1-page site; campaign rate 1.49%
- Basic + (CRM only): $350/mo · 20 admins; 40k contacts; 60k emails/mo · Same as Basic with higher limits; campaign rate 1.49%
- Upstart (Full Suite): $255/mo · 3 admins; 2k contacts; 6k emails/mo · Full website builder, donate page, 50 Chai Partners, $150 campaign credit ($10,000 raised free), 1.49% campaign rate, birthday/yahrzeit automation, member user logins
- Grow (Full Suite): $355/mo · 10 admins; 15k contacts; 30k emails/mo · 100 Chai Partners, $300 credit ($25,000 raised free), 1.19% campaign rate
- Professional (Full Suite): $499/mo · 20 admins; 40k contacts; 60k emails/mo · Unlimited Chai Partners, $350 credit ($35,000 raised free), 0.99% campaign rate
Setup: Not stated. Processing: Fundraising campaign platform rate 1.49%/1.19%/0.99% by plan (annual campaign credit on Full Suite); processors Authorize.net, Stripe, PayPal; processor fees not stated. Source: vendor page, 2026-10-12 (vendor-page).
Shluchim (Donarius Synagogue Edition)
- Shluchim Unlimited: · Unlimited active donors · Base program; one-time $63.97 US ($67.97 CDN)
- Shluchim for Small Synagogues/Non-profits: · 100 active donors per year · Same as Unlimited; one-time $47.98 US ($50.98 CDN), 25% off
- Add-on modules: · $16.50 US ($18.00 CDN) each (25% off on small version): Pledge Tracking; Gifts in Kind; Pre-authorized Deposits (ACH)/Online Donations; Customized Tax Receipts; Letters/Emails/Messages; Relationships & Families; Photo Directory
Setup: None; CD shipping +$10. Processing: Online donations/ACH module via PayPal-based checkout for purchase; donation processing fees not stated. Source: vendor page, 2026-10-12 (vendor-page).
Feature by feature
| Capability | Chabad Suite | Shluchim (Donarius Synagogue Edition) |
|---|---|---|
| Membership & household records | Yes Households/organizations, relationships, membership sign-up forms and renewal reminders | Yes Members, individual and family dues, group membership, family pictures |
| Yahrzeit tracking & reminders | Yes 'Automated Yahrzeits' emails to mourners; yahrzeit tracking & reporting on all plans | Yes Yahrtzeit letters by Hebrew day/month |
| Hebrew calendar integration | Yes 'Hebrew date converter'; 'Hebrew calendar integration' (about page) | Yes Dates in Gregorian or Hebrew format, transliterated or Hebrew characters |
| Dues, billing & receivables | Yes Invoicing on all plans; membership management | Yes Membership dues, pledges, quarterly statements |
| Online payments | Yes Authorize.net, Stripe, PayPal; Apple Pay & Google Pay (help center) | Partial 'Pre-authorized Deposits (A.C.H.) / Online Donations' module |
| Donations, pledges & campaigns | Yes Donate page, matching campaigns with teams/bonus rounds, Partners recurring platform; pledges not named | Yes Offerings by name/envelope, pledges, tax receipts |
| General ledger / fund accounting | No Not an accounting system | No Capterra listing notes no accounting/payroll |
| QuickBooks integration | Partial 'Create and export accounting batches to upload to quickbooks' | Not verified Third-party listing mentions QuickBooks export; not on vendor page fetched |
| Religious school management | Not verified Not stated on the pages fetched. | Not verified Not stated on the pages fetched. |
| Events & registration | Yes Event forms, registration, payments, reminders | Not verified Not stated on the pages fetched. |
| High Holiday seating | Not verified Not stated on the pages fetched. | Yes 'Keep track of seating in the synagogue' |
| Honors, aliyot & gabbai tools | Not verified Not stated on the pages fetched. | Not verified Not stated on the pages fetched. |
| Cemetery management | Not verified Not stated on the pages fetched. | Not verified Not stated on the pages fetched. |
| Website / CMS | Yes Site builder (Full Suite); CRM-only plans get 1 page | No |
| Email & newsletters | Yes Mass email with open/click tracking, A/B testing, template builder | Partial Letters/Emails/Messages module |
| SMS / texting | Yes 'Easily send SMS to individual contacts or groups' | Partial 'Messages (with app)' in Letters module |
| Member self-service portal | Yes Member login and dashboard (Full Suite plans) | No |
| Mobile app | Partial 'Mobile web application'; help article 'Chabad Suite Mobile' | Partial 'messages (with app)' mentioned |
| API / data export | Yes 'Export all your data at any time'; help article 'CRM REST API' | Partial Data import supported; export not described |
| Automation & workflows | Yes Automated reminders, smart groups, automated report delivery, workflow management | Not verified Not stated on the pages fetched. |
Evidence links for every cell are on the individual review pages: Chabad Suite, Shluchim (Donarius Synagogue Edition).
Rubric scores
| Group | Chabad Suite | Shluchim (Donarius Synagogue Edition) | Max |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jewish-specific workflows | 10.0 | 14.0 | 20 |
| Membership, dues and money | 16.0 | 13.5 | 20 |
| Communications and engagement | 14.0 | 3.5 | 15 |
| School and events | 5.0 | 0.0 | 10 |
| Data portability and migration | 8.0 | 7.5 | 10 |
| Pricing transparency | 15 | 5 | 15 |
| Independent customer evidence | 0 | 3 | 10 |
| Total | 68.0 | 46.5 | 100 |
Chabad Suite: strengths / limitations
- Transparent public pricing with explicit limits
- Open-source CiviCRM core; data export and REST API
- Website, fundraising and CRM synced
- Highest entry price of the three Chabad CRMs
- Site pages are served through meta-refresh redirects; content invisible to simple fetchers
- Processor fees and setup fees not stated
Shluchim (Donarius Synagogue Edition): strengths / limitations
- Very low one-time cost
- Hebrew-date yahrzeit letters and seating built in
- Desktop software, not cloud; modular add-ons priced separately
- Essentially one review in a decade
- Not an open-source project despite directory confusion
Full reviews: Chabad Suite · Shluchim (Donarius Synagogue Edition) · all comparisons