Rakefet Online vs ShulHub (2026)
Two synagogue management options compared on verified pricing, Jewish-specific workflows, billing depth, communications, migration and independent evidence.
Quick answer
- Price: Rakefet Online: RakefetOnline-CRM Annual - NEW USERS (year 1) $149/mo; RakefetOnline-CRM Annual - EXISTING USERS $90/mo. ShulHub: Standard $99/mo; Professional ('Most Popular') $150/mo; Enterprise $180/mo. For a 150-household congregation that is roughly $1,080 vs $1,800 per year before processing and setup fees.
- Jewish-specific workflows: Rakefet Online leads (14.0 vs 9.0 of 20 points).
- Membership, dues and money: Rakefet Online leads (16.5 vs 10.5 of 20 points).
- Communications and engagement: ShulHub leads (9.5 vs 14.0 of 15 points).
- School and events: Rakefet Online leads (10.0 vs 7.5 of 10 points).
- Data portability and migration: Rakefet Online leads (8.0 vs 5.5 of 10 points).
- Independent customer evidence: Rakefet Online leads (5 vs 1 of 10 points).
- Overall: Rakefet Online 78.0/100 · ShulHub 62.5/100
Pricing side by side
Rakefet Online
- RakefetOnline-CRM Annual - NEW USERS (year 1): $149/mo · not stated ('Unlimited seats for members, donors, admins and office') · Basic data migration (import/classify members, family relationships, donors, events, yahrzeits, journal entries, chart of accounts and opening balances); billed annually; 'On Year 2 Upgraded to an Existing User'
- RakefetOnline-CRM Annual - EXISTING USERS: $90/mo · not stated · Current RakefetOnline user plan; billed annually; 'Existing User Deal Options Available'
Setup: Homepage says sign-up involves a 'one-time setup fee & subscription' but no amount is published; the pricing page lists none. Basic data migration is included in the new-user plan.. Processing: Credit card and ACH processing with recurring payments via Member Portal; integrations named: Stripe, PayPal, PayQuiq, Venmo (two versions of the page list different ones). Processor fees not stated.. Source: vendor page, 2026-10-12 (vendor-page).
ShulHub
- Standard: $99/mo · Unlimited members, users & subscribers · Mobile-friendly website builder, hosting, SEO, calendar & zmanim widget, CMS, premium themes, forms, Google Analytics, social integration, user permissions, member management (CRM), member directory, accept donations, event management, automation system, email & SMS campaigns (SMS needs add-on), SMS keywords, visitor messages, ShulBoard.
- Professional ('Most Popular'): $150/mo · Unlimited · Everything in Standard plus multi-language support, ShulShmooze (ShmoozeBoard & WhatsApp), online member payments, resource booking, billing system, accounting software integration, financial & member reporting, gabbai management, kibbudim management, yahrzeit management.
- Enterprise: $180/mo · Unlimited · Everything in Professional plus ShulGift gift campaigns, event seating management, Rabbi Workspace (pastoral care).
Setup: 'No Setup Fees, No Contracts, and No Surprises' (pricing page).. Processing: Not stated on the pricing page; terms refer to an unnamed third-party payment processor. SMS and email 'at our low rates' with no figures.. Source: vendor page, 2026-10-12 (vendor-page).
Feature by feature
| Capability | Rakefet Online | ShulHub |
|---|---|---|
| Membership & household records | Yes Members, children, family relationships, committees, notes, attachments, profile pictures, new member/renewal forms. | Yes Member Management (CRM), directory, custom fields; all tiers. |
| Yahrzeit tracking & reminders | Yes Yahrzeits, mourners, memorial plaques, yizkor book reports, printed/emailed notices mixing Jewish and Gregorian dates. | Partial Yahrzeit Management is Professional and Enterprise only (not Standard). |
| Hebrew calendar integration | Yes Automatic Hebrew date conversion, weekly Torah portions and Haftarot, Google Calendar integration. | Partial Calendar & zmanim widget in all tiers; a full Hebrew-date engine is not described. |
| Dues, billing & receivables | Yes Member/donor billing, global billing, recurring payments, member ledgers, receivables reports, printed or emailed statements. | Partial Billing system and invoicing from Professional up; automatic invoices and reminders per accounting page. |
| Online payments | Yes Credit card and ACH, recurring payments via Member Portal; Stripe/PayPal/PayQuiq/Venmo named. | Partial Online member payments from Professional up; donations accepted in all tiers. Processor and fees not published. |
| Donations, pledges & campaigns | Partial Donation payment forms and donor giving tracking; 'School and Fundraising' listed on rakefetonline.com. Pledges not explicitly mentioned. | Partial Accept donations in all tiers; DAF integrations mentioned on homepage; Fundraising Campaigns is a paid add-on; ShulGift is Enterprise. |
| General ledger / fund accounting | Yes Full AR/AP, general ledger with restricted funds, check writing, journal entries, bank reconciliation, budgeting, P&L/balance sheet/trial balance/audit reports. | No Syncs to external accounting software; no native GL described. |
| QuickBooks integration | Not verified Not mentioned on current vendor pages; UJA 2018 guide noted some customers pair Rakefet with QuickBooks or Sage. | Partial Real-time sync with QuickBooks, Zoho Books, FreshBooks; Professional and Enterprise only. |
| Religious school management | Yes 'School Management' listed; religious school classes tracked in the database. | Partial ShulSchool is a paid add-on on any plan. |
| Events & registration | Yes Form builder for events and registrations; special event tracking. | Yes Advanced event management in all tiers. |
| High Holiday seating | Partial rakefetonline.com lists 'seating' among tracked data and 'High Holy Day planning' is cited; no dedicated seating-chart module described. | Partial Event seating management is Enterprise only. |
| Honors, aliyot & gabbai tools | Partial 'Aliyot' tracked in the database per rakefetonline.com; no gabbai workflow described. | Partial Gabbai and kibbudim management from Professional up. |
| Cemetery management | Not verified Not mentioned on vendor pages checked. | Not verified Not mentioned anywhere on the site pages read. |
| Website / CMS | No No website builder; donation/payment forms embed in an existing website and API access is offered for external sites. | Yes Website builder, CMS, hosting, SEO, 100+ premium themes in every tier — the platform's foundation. |
| Email & newsletters | Yes Email templates, quick messages, scheduled emails, contact lists. | Yes Email campaigns and segmentation in all tiers; rates not published. |
| SMS / texting | Yes SMS templates and quick messages via Twilio integration. | Partial SMS campaigns and keywords require the SMS Messaging add-on (own textable number); price not published. |
| Member self-service portal | Yes Members/donors view commitments, set up recurring payments, download receipts. | Yes Payments, donations, seat reservations, profile updates. |
| Mobile app | No Described as 'mobile friendly'; no dedicated app mentioned. | Yes Separate iOS/Android admin and member apps per homepage and compare page. |
| API / data export | Yes Import/export and API access for external processes or websites. | Partial Compare page claims export 'at any time without restrictions'; no API or export tool described; terms do not describe an export process. |
| Automation & workflows | Partial Scheduled emails and recurring billing; no general workflow engine described. | Yes Advanced automation system / lifecycle journeys in all tiers. |
Evidence links for every cell are on the individual review pages: Rakefet Online, ShulHub.
Rubric scores
| Group | Rakefet Online | ShulHub | Max |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jewish-specific workflows | 14.0 | 9.0 | 20 |
| Membership, dues and money | 16.5 | 10.5 | 20 |
| Communications and engagement | 9.5 | 14.0 | 15 |
| School and events | 10.0 | 7.5 | 10 |
| Data portability and migration | 8.0 | 5.5 | 10 |
| Pricing transparency | 15 | 15 | 15 |
| Independent customer evidence | 5 | 1 | 10 |
| Total | 78.0 | 62.5 | 100 |
Rakefet Online: strengths / limitations
- Built-in full double-entry accounting (AR/AP/GL, restricted funds, bank rec) rather than relying on QuickBooks
- Integrated Jewish calendar with Torah portions and Google Calendar sync
- API plus import/export; unlimited users
- Published pricing; basic data migration included for new customers
- Live US-based phone support with published hours
- Year-1 price ($149/mo) is substantially above the renewal price ($90/mo); both billed annually
- No website CMS; no dedicated mobile app
- Cemetery, QuickBooks integration and dedicated seating module not evidenced on current pages
- No independent review-site presence found
- Company location and ownership details not published
ShulHub: strengths / limitations
- Lowest entry price of the tiered vendors ($99/mo) with no setup fee and unlimited members/users in every tier.
- Website builder with many themes, email, automation, member and admin mobile apps included from the base tier.
- Professional tier at $150/mo includes billing, online payments, accounting sync (QuickBooks/Zoho/FreshBooks), gabbai/kibbudim and yahrzeits.
- Published security page and multilingual UI.
- Standard tier is essentially a website + CRM: no billing, online member payments, yahrzeits, gabbai tools or accounting sync.
- School management, fundraising campaigns and SMS are unpriced add-ons; event seating and pastoral workspace need Enterprise.
- 'No contracts' on the pricing page sits alongside auto-renewal, no-partial-refund and 30-day-notice language in the Terms.
- No cemetery module described; no independent user reviews found anywhere.
- Payment processor and processing fees not published.
Full reviews: Rakefet Online · ShulHub · all comparisons