FAQs

General

What are the benefits of an online survey vs. the paper product?

The online survey is a "living document." Participants add data throughout the year as schedules permit and as salaries change. Salary data is trended forward (see below), so reports generated from the system are always current. With payment by credit card, access to the online survey is immediate—no waiting for reports to be delivered.

How many churches have submitted data for the survey?

The number of active participants varies due to the evergreen nature of the survey. Please contact us at info@thechurchnetwork.com for the current number of survey participants.

Is it too late to participate?

No. The MinistryPay.com Online National Church Staff Compensation Survey is updated continuously. The survey reports are updated immediately as new participants submit their data. Register today to submit your church's data and purchase the survey results at a significant discount. Your one-year subscription to the online reports will begin at the time payment is received.

How is the report data segmented?

  • Faith Group (Denomination)
  • Church Affiliation (Willow Creek Assn., Leadership Network, Purpose Driven, etc.)
  • Operating Budget
  • Staff Size
  • Weekly Attendance
  • Region
  • State
  • Metro Code
  • Years in Position
  • Gender
  • Ordained/Not Ordained Minister

Accessing MinistryPay.com

We are very excited to announce that thechurchnetwork.com and MinistryPay.com websites are now integrated. Your thechurchnetwork.com username and password work on both sites.

I don’t remember my Username and Password. How do I get them?

You can get them from either thechurchnetwork.com or MinistryPay.com.

  • On www.thechurchnetwork.com, click on Sign In located on the top of the page. On the Sign in page, click the “Forgot Password?” link. Enter your email address and you will be sent an email with your username and a new password.
  • On MinistryPay.com, click on Sign In and you will see “Forgot my password or my username.”

How do I change my Username and Password?

You may change either or both by logging into thechurchnetwork.com or MinistryPay.com. • Once logged in, click on “Hi” and your name at the top of the page to access your account information. • Then click “Change password and/or username”. • You may also change other information by clicking on the small pencil icons located in the sections of your account information.

How do I find out if I am in The Church Network database?

  • From either thechurchnetwork.com or MinistryPay.com, try resetting your password using the instructions above. If the system accepts your email address, then you know you are in our database.
  • Also, you may send an email to info@thechurchnetwork.com.

I am not in The Church Network database. How do I enter myself?

  • From www.thechurchnetwork.com, click on Create Account at the top of the page. There is a substantial discount on the price of a MinistryPay subscription for members. • From MinistryPay.com click on Sign In and then click Create a new account. I created a new account for myself. Now what? • Once you are signed in to MinistryPay.com you will see your name at the top of the page just to the right of the Sign Out box. Click on My Account and then look at your Status. Every individual must be linked to a Church/Parent record. If you are not linked, email info@thechurchnetwork.com. • Once you become linked, you will see this if your church has participated in the survey before or if they have never participated in the survey and do not have a subscription. • Click “participate” if you want to enter your church’s data. (Note: This also means a discount for your church’s subscription.) • Click “subscribe” if you want to purchase a subscription. You must participate prior to subscribing if you want to take advantage of the discount for participating.

Participating in the Salary Survey

My church is not a member of The Church Network. Can I still participate?

Yes. Membership in The Church Network is not required, although members do receive a substantial discount. To learn more about joining The Church Network, go to Membership Benefits
(thechurchnetwork.com).

Does my church receive a discount for participating in the salary survey?

Yes, all participants (regardless of membership status) receive a discount for participation in the survey.

Who can see my church’s data?

Only approved users will be able to view/modify your church’s data. The first person from your church to participate or subscribe to the survey will become the first approved user. That person will then be able to approve or add other users. Each approved user can then approve or add other users. Likewise, any approved user will be able to un-approve/remove access for other users.

Using the Online Survey

How long is salary data stored in the database?

Data is only considered valid and current if it has been submitted in the past 18 months. If you submitted data more than 18 months ago, you would need to resubmit. If you are a survey participant, you will receive a reminder to update your church's information prior to the expiration date.

How often is the survey database updated?

Salary data is entered by survey participants throughout the year. When a participant submits new data and it meets acceptable tolerance levels, it will be immediately included in the report output.

What is the minimum number of churches that need to submit before it will be included in the survey?

There is a minimum of five (5) participants required before any salary data is displayed for both the mean and median values. A minimum of seven (7) respondents is needed for the 10th, 25th, 75th and 90th percentiles.

How should I enter data for part-time positions?

When completing the survey, you will check the part-time box or full-time box for each position entered.

How do I remove a position from our job data?

Remove the check mark from the box by the position you would like to remove, then click continue or submit. You can also check the box that says, “Delete Position Data”.

How do I enter data if I have multiple individuals in the same position?

You will need to average the amounts for all positions. For example, if you have three full-time employees in a given position, and they make $25,000, $30,000, and $40,000 respectively, you will enter an average salary of $31,667 ((25,000+30,000+40,000)/3)

Purchasing Salary Survey Reports and Subscriptions

What payment methods are accepted?

Payment can be made online with a credit card for immediate access to the reports.

What is the price for the salary survey?

Prices shown below for online access to the salary survey are for a term of one year.

  • Member of The Church Network, Participates in the Survey: FREE
  • Member of The Church Network: $149
  • Non-Member of The Church Network, Participates in the Survey: $100
  • Non-Member of The Church Network: $249
  • **Participants receive a $149 discount. **

I am purchasing the survey, and I am not a member of The Church Network, but someone else from my church is a member. Will I receive the member discount?

Yes, if anyone from your church is a member of The Church Network, the purchaser of the survey from the church will receive the member discount if their record is linked to the Member Church.

When does my subscription start and end?

Access to reports starts immediately with your purchase. All subscription terms will start on the first day of a month and will end on the last day of a month. (This is a change from our previous practice of ending a subscription 365 days after purchase.) If you subscribe before the 16th of the month, your subscription will end at the end of the previous month twelve months in the future. If you subscribe after the 15th of the month, your subscription will end at the end of the same month twelve months in the future. For example, subscribe on October 10, 2023, and your subscription end date will be September 30, 2024. If you subscribe on October 20, 2023, then your end date will be October 31, 2024.

Is there an additional fee to allow others within my church to access the online reports?

No, there is no additional charge to allow multiple individuals from the same church to access the reports.

I received an e-mail notification that my survey data is about to expire. What should I do?

Simply log in to the survey website and enter current compensation data for the positions that you employ.