# ShelbyNext Financials Reviews 2026. Verified Reviews, Pros & Cons | Capterra > Is ShelbyNext Financials the right Church Accounting solution for you? Explore 163 verified user reviews from people in industries like yours to make a confident choice. Source: https://www.capterra.com/p/224954/ShelbyNext-Financials/reviews --- ShelbyNext Financials 4 (163) [View alternatives](https://www.capterra.com/p/224954/ShelbyNext-Financials/alternatives/) Provider data verified by our Software Research team, and reviews moderated by our Reviews Verification team. [Learn more](https://www.capterra.com/our-story/) * * * Last updated March 13th, 2026 # Reviews of ShelbyNext Financials Ease of use 3.8 Customer Service 4.0 ## Pros and Cons in Reviews Quick onboarding and ease of use 82% positive reviews out of 28 Most users report training and learning curve is manageable, with intuitive design and helpful support resources. Limited and inflexible reporting 56% negative reviews out of 36 Some reviewers find reports difficult to customize, lacking flexibility, and challenging to generate or interpret. Remote work and device flexibility 93% positive reviews out of 28 Most reviewers describe cloud access as essential, enabling work from any location or device with internet. ## Showing most helpful reviews Showing 1-25 of 163 Reviews Sort by: Most Helpful Rating Company Size Reviewer's Role Length of Use Frequency of Use Trevor C. Connection Pastor Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "A great product with lots of room for growth. " May 24, 2018 4.0 I love the overall accessibility and the potential going forward for an amazing product if this is properly developed. Pros Fairly easy to learn and use. System makes all financials easy to track and look up reports. Also great for year end financials. Pairs great with online forms for registrations for events. Cons Some minor glitches that never seem to get fixed. Often the support takes forever to get and sometimes don't even have a solution. Review Source SG Shawn G. Finance Director Religious Institutions Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Great All in One for Churches" April 15, 2021 4.0 Shelby is a great system for a church looking for a one stop shop for a financial system. While some of the software is cumbersome and not intuitive, it still offers everything you would need in one stop. Pros While it was definitely a step back from QBO, what I admired the most about Shelby is that offers so many services in one without having to bounce back and forth between various platforms. I have everything working together right there in one service. It is relatively easy to pick up and learn all the tasks you would need to know. Having the PO Management system has been one of the most cost beneficial additions to our organization. Cons There are several features that are less than intuitive. I will say the biggest area that is lacking in Shelby is a better credit card management system. I would love to have organization users be able to submit and code their own expenses. Their often times where updates don’t get made properly because of the excessive amount of click throughout. Alternatives considered [QuickBooks Online Advanced](https://www.capterra.com/p/189398/QuickBooks-Online/) Reason for choosing ShelbyNext Financials The fact we could have everything we needed in one area. Switched from [QuickBooks Online Advanced](https://www.capterra.com/p/189398/QuickBooks-Online/) We were looking for something that could eliminate the various programs we were working with at the time. Review Source Response from Ministry Brands May 22, 2021 Thank you for taking the time to submit your review. Your feedback is critical. We will be sure to share this with our product leaders. JM James M. Treasurer Religious Institutions Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Run away, run far far away" October 3, 2024 1.0 The worst ever. Do not, under any circumstances, sign up with them. Pros Not a single thing. Was terrible from the start. Cons When you call support, they tell you they can't help you. You call to talk to an account manager and they say send an email, but no one responds. They say leave a voice mail and never return your call. Review Source LS Larry S. Accounting Religious Institutions Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Shelby Financials Overall Viewpoint" August 21, 2019 4.0 Overall, as stated previously, it's a solid product and is light years ahead of our old software. There was a learning curve, but---it was well worth the effort. Pros The software is easy to use. I love some of the "short cuts" it offers when referenced against our old software package. (i.e.--the ease of voiding a check for example). It's pretty user friendly. I can usually find what I need by just looking through the menu options. Additionally, I was initially concerned/skeptical about a web based platform for our financial software (our previous setup was in house stand alone installation. No web interaction needed) But, it's been a very pleasant surprise! I have had few, if any, issues with this setup. Plus, being web based, I can get a quick view of every check or giving batch I ever enter---all on one page. Again, this was not available on our old package. Overall, a solid product. Cons Just a few little things. The initial setup for check printing was horrid. A lot of trial and effort went into that process. A second little thing that really annoys me. There is a set "time out" feature that the user cannot change. Meaning...I may be sitting at my computer but just not, at that moment, using the financial module of Shelby. If I don't access it in (what seems to be 2-5 minutes) I have to log back in again. As stated, this is just an annoyance. It would seem to me that the end user should be able to alter, or even disable, the automatic log off feature. Reason for choosing ShelbyNext Financials Pricing was a consideration plus Shelby offered both a payable financial package along with the membership/giving package that integrated perfectly. We didn't have to purchase two standalone packages and try to make them work together. Review Source NH Norm H. Director of Finance Religious Institutions Used the software for: 2+ years ### "It's Been Around a Long Time - Still Serves Its Purpose" December 2, 2021 5.0 Guess I should have written here first than listed pros and cons separately. See above. Pros Lots of capability to manipulate record track church financial activity. Not so easy to use as it does have a steep learning curve. Customer support is nearly always sterling and most reps know their software. Lot's of features if you want the, but you do pay for what you get. Cons Module sales approach. "Oh, you want that feature, then you need to get the xxxx module too." Deployment can be a bit ion a challenge. Alternatives considered [Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT](https://www.capterra.com/p/27468/Financial-Edge-NXT/)[Servant Keeper](https://www.capterra.com/p/276838/Servant-Keeper/)[QuickBooks Desktop](https://www.capterra.com/p/212058/QuickBooks-Desktop-Pro/)[ACS](https://www.capterra.com/p/2668/ACS/) Reason for choosing ShelbyNext Financials We were previous V5 users, so in the end, it made most sense to stick with the product. Review Source AS Anna S. Business Manager Non-Profit Organization Management Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "ShelbyNext Financials " August 19, 2019 4.0 The wait time on support calls is very long. It takes 20+ minutes before speaking with a person. One of the last times I spoke with support, the person was incredibly rude, instead of helping me seek out the answer to my issue, they believed I did not understand how a payroll itself worked and multiple times attempted to explain it to me when told that wasn't the issue. When we converted the trainer assigned to us did not correctly set up our chart of accounts. Accounts from other churches were being placed in our COA. We required an on-site visit from a Shelby trainer to clear this up and continue using the software as intended. The software itself is working well, now that the COA is cleaned up. For the most part there is help available either through a support call, or through the Help function in each module. I recently received notice of the new online training MPOWER. I am looking forward to implementing and utilizing this feature. Pros The software is user friendly with clear modules, and help within each section. Cons I would like to see more personalization options with reporting, and the ability to save a set of reports from period to period; a "one-click" option for a commonly used set of reports. Alternatives considered [Elexio Church Accounting](https://www.capterra.com/p/150005/Elexio-Church-Financials/) Reason for choosing ShelbyNext Financials We are a fairly large church and growing (600+ members currently). We were looking for software to grow with our needs, that would not require a huge conversion to a new product. That if necessary could be done with little impact to the congregation. Switched from [Logos Fund Accounting](https://www.capterra.com/p/119512/Logos-Fund-Accounting/) Our previous software was 1.) no longer meeting our needs 2.) going away, a forced conversion was ahead Review Source JW Jennifer W. Controller Religious Institutions Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Great value and easy to learn" August 17, 2019 4.0 Overall, switching to Shelby has simplified many processes in our office. Our old billing systems had become very slow and required a lot of work from management to roll over from year to year. Now the workload for those rollover procedures can be done by the benefits team, and billing takes much less time and effort than it used to. Pros The system is easy to learn and navigate. It covers all our basic needs, including billing systems for our pension and insurance invoices. I love that it is cloud-based and easily accessible from anywhere. Cons New releases seem to introduce bugs into the system. They are usually resolved relatively quickly with a patch, but more in-depth testing before releases would be more helpful. I've had to spend a lot of time fixing things which is very frustrating. Detail reporting for more than one year gets time-consuming because you have to switch back and forth and adjust filters and dates each time. Alternatives considered [Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT](https://www.capterra.com/p/27468/Financial-Edge-NXT/) Reason for choosing ShelbyNext Financials The price was right and we liked how the billing systems were really geared toward our organization. It felt like a good fit. Review Source ID Ivela D. Finance Director Religious Institutions Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "ShelbyNext Financials" September 3, 2019 4.0 Pros We transitioned from Shelby v5 and it was a very smooth transition. ShelbyNext Financials is very similar to Shelby v5 so we were able to pick right up and keep working. I like the task bar that allows me to easily switch from one thing the the next without having to close and open different modules. It is also very easy to run reports. Cons I had a hard time figuring out how to get all the various totals we needed on our balance sheet and income statement. I was able to get everything in place with the help of their support staff, but it was definitely not intuitive. Alternatives considered [Realm](https://www.capterra.com/p/146265/Realm/) Reason for choosing ShelbyNext Financials Since we were already on Shelby v5, we were able to transfer 100% of our financial data. If we had gone with another vendor, we would have lost all our history. Review Source JM James M. Director of Technology Religious Institutions Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Solid, Church-focused Financials" August 16, 2019 4.0 Being web-based was a huge need for us. With employees being mobile these days, we needed a solution that could go any where and be used on any platform. Pros The software is regularly updated to improve functionality and adjust for changes in financial regulations. Support is responsive and typically willing to help, including remote screen sharing. Cons It can be a little cumbersome for those who don't use it everyday, but you can subscribe to reports you need and get to them fairly quickly if you take the time to do that from the start. Alternatives considered [QuickBooks Enterprise](https://www.capterra.com/p/174984/QuickBooks-Enterprise/) Reason for choosing ShelbyNext Financials ShelbyNext Financials integrates seamlessly with our church management system Review Source Jeffrey G. CEO & Chief Consultant Financial Services Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Shelby Next - not for small staff church" March 9, 2019 2.0 My overall experience is that the financials section had too many shortfalls. I will be submitting a second review on the membership piece. v5 had it's limitations but was very disappointed in ShelbyNext | Financials. Pros I liked the ability to add departments and funds easily. We were sold on the complete financials, giving, and membership solution. Cons Our church is a good sized church, almost 2k members, but the accounting staff is small and the remainder of our support is overworked volunteers. After coming from Shelby v5 we were thinking that this was more robust. After trying to implement over a year, we pulled the went with another membership solution and went back with Shelby v5. It didnt integrate well with the giving piece, funds coming in electronically, nor membership, which is where the membership sits. Review Source MS Martha S. Financial Administrator Religious Institutions Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "A solid package that meets the needs, though it has it's limitations." September 9, 2019 3.0 Pros The training and help line have been extremely responsive and that's my favorite part of working with Shelby; I know the help will be there when I need it! The system is in the cloud, so I can access it anywhere I am. I like the fact that I can drill down into financial statements to research numbers. Cons The accounts receivable segment is extremely cumbersome and limited. Doesn't speak to ShelbyNext Membership OR User setup, so you have input every customer 3 times. Customers can't set up scheduled payments (and I've taken a lot of heat for that!). No mass edit/invoice feature so you can't bill all customers or correct a large group of invoices for the same thing without entering every record. Can't email invoices! No good way to track memorial contributions so that you can send acknowledgements. Generally, inputting requires A LOT of clicking, because the system doesn't search for account by name (we call it the Shelby Shuffle!). Chart of accounts process is very convoluted. Reason for choosing ShelbyNext Financials We had experience with ShelbyV and knew that system, so less learning curve. The help line has always been extremely responsive. Review Source KS Kay S. Bookkeeper Religious Institutions Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Shelby Financials Review" August 19, 2019 5.0 We use Shelby Financials for our Accounts Payables and Credit Card statements. We have found it to be very reliable. The customer service support has been excellent. The techs know their stuff and will work to the very end to come up with a solution for us. Pros I like the ease of the software. It's fairly easy to navigate and meets our needs as a church. I like the cues when I am on the wrong account number or I did not put the right amount in the que. It has a great in balance/out of balance feature that prevents a lot of error. And, when there are errors, it's pretty easy to make corrections. Cons Some of the drop downs seem to move quickly before I can make a selection, such as choosing a category on the drop down on the Posted Journals. I can't seem to be able to click fast enough before it disappears. Review Source LD Laura D. Director Religious Institutions Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Review" August 16, 2019 4.0 Pros I like being able to see the transaction inquiry...to view by invoice or by payment. I like to be able to see how the payment was applied, especially when it is applied to multiple invoices. I also like being able to pre-populate our charges. Cons I hate that this "world" doesn't connect to the Shelby Membership "world". Having to input demographic information into both is such a time-consuming thing. Because we are a preschool, I have to enter the parent(s) and the child(ren) in both places. Review Source LP Lisa P. Financial Administrator Religious Institutions Used the software for: 2+ years ### "I’d recommend to others" February 26, 2021 5.0 I switched from a company using Blackbaud. The difference is night and day!! I’d never go back! Pros Their customer service is top notch. Not only is the wait time minimal, they take a personal interest in getting it right for you. Cons Sometimes it feels like there are too many steps to go through. However, these are probably for the users protection. Switched from [Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT](https://www.capterra.com/p/27468/Financial-Edge-NXT/) Changed companies Review Source EQ Emily Q. Business Associate Religious Institutions Used the software for: 2+ years ### "ShelbyNext Review" August 16, 2019 4.0 I like it overall. I really like the over lap between Shelby and Arena. For a church our size it helps with keeping track of individuals information. I am not an accountant by trade so I appreciate the user friendliness of this software. For me, it was very easy to pick up and learn. Pros I like the user friendliness of the software overall. I like that it helps guide you in the correct accounting procedures. Cons The glitchiness of it. Sometimes it does not work properly and I have to go back and un-post transactions. Reason for choosing ShelbyNext Financials We chose this software because we were already using Arena and we knew this would overlap and link with arena. For us, it has been very easy to use both together. It has helped streamline our procedures. Review Source JS Janice S. Director of Finance Religious Institutions Used the software for: 2+ years ### "ShelbyNext Financials-Good Experience" August 26, 2019 5.0 We operate a preschool and medium size church with the Financials. The software supports multiple companies, multiple funds and multiple fiscal year ends. It is very user friendly and intuitive. Pros Financials has been easy to adapt to and easy to teach others on staff. It integrates smoothly with SN Membership. The Shelby support team has been great to work with and always responsive. Cons When we hosted the software on our server, we never seemed to have the latest updates. Once we moved to hosted operations, we are always up to date and have the latest fixes. Reason for choosing ShelbyNext Financials We converted from Shelby v5 to Shelby Financials. Review Source KC Kathy C. Administrator Religious Institutions Used the software for: 2+ years ### "ShelbyNext/Financials" August 30, 2019 4.0 The benefits to ShelbyNext/Financials is accountability for the user. You have a paper trail (so to speak) for each entry that you do in the financials module which is key. Not all financial software has this requirement. Pros I like the fact that ShelbyNext follows GAAP policy and procedures to bookkeeping as well as it's ease of use. Cons The cost. I think it is a shame that smaller churches cannot afford to take advantage of Shelby's programs for financial oversight. Reason for choosing ShelbyNext Financials The security of our financial information in addition to the accountability that it offers. Review Source PB Peter B. Pastor of Youth and Adult Ministries Religious Institutions Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Not for non-accountants" February 6, 2020 3.0 We use ShelbyNext Financials for maintaining our budgets, submitting expenses, and approving expenses. Nothing overly complicated. It works, and does accomplish what we want, just with a few more steps or a little more confusion than we want. Pros ShelbyNext does make it easy to see a quick snapshot of how spending is going in various categories verses what has been budgeted. This is convenient for any main user to check in on, and not have to make requests of the accountant directly. Cons Overall, it feels like it's only made for accountants-it hasn't been fine-tuned or made quick, clear, and easy like other programs we use regularly. Perhaps this is the general problem with accounting software, but as ShelbyNext is meant to have many non-accountants involved, submitting expenses, checking budgets, etc, it could be much more streamlined to make this work. We use the system to not only submit our expenses, but to check on what other leaders/volunteers spend in our areas, but this, too, isn't smoothly designed. When there are errors in expense reports, fixing them always takes a few extra steps that could easily be streamlined. It just overall takes more time than any of us who use it like to spend. Review Source GW Gordon W. Receivables/Database Coordinator Religious Institutions Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Common User Funcionality" September 9, 2019 5.0 Pros I believe the product is very good, limited by my own lack of knowledge on the capabilities. I utilize the Bank Account Management to process cash receipts and that works well. The other primary usage is posting to the General Ledge. Cons Understanding what type of reports and functions can be challenging, requiring me to run trial reports from the menu of reports for set-up. It would be helpful to be able to access a sample from the actual list of reports, for example scroll down "Report" under the ledger and right click "detail report," to have a viewable sample report. In the General Ledger I find it very difficult to find a detail batch that was posted, viewable format as carried over from Arena would be ideal verse having to add lines and expanding each reporting month. Review Source MM Marlene M. Executive Director of Finance Non-Profit Organization Management Used the software for: 2+ years ### "ShelbyNext Review" August 23, 2019 4.0 ShelbyNext helps us to generate customized financial statements to provide a complete summary report. Creating special reports is easy to do. Pros ShelbyNext is an easy to use program that has good safeguards to ensure tracking of all transactions. Cons There are some updates that need to be made to the Accounts Payable module so that you can enter ACH invoices so they appear in your Accounts Payable balance and then you can record the payment. Review Source BN Becky N. Assistant to John Bernard Religious Institutions Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Make it more use friendly" August 16, 2019 3.0 Pros ShelbyNext is connected to our Arena database Cons Why do you need to type in the exact title to search for a vendor? Could it give suggestions? Also, is there a way to send a reminder email to the approver when a po or check request has aged? During the approval process, if an error is made on an account entry, PO vs check request, or date, why can't the approver made the correction? Review Source LC Lollita C. Finance Specialist Religious Institutions Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Still Mastering the software" August 16, 2019 5.0 We have been able to provide better reports and statistical data as necessary. Pros The software is easy to use and highly functional for my day to job function. Cons Some options seem repetitive while other's don't exist that seem essential to function. Sometimes this seems to make task that were easier in our previous software with Shelby V.5 more user friendly. Then again hard to say because we used it for so long we were very familiar with the software and we are still mastering all available options in Shelby Next Financials. I also which financials and membership worked more cohesively. Reason for choosing ShelbyNext Financials N/A Review Source MM Marty M. Director of Operations Non-Profit Organization Management Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Awful -- wish there were a negative 10 rating for customer support" June 14, 2018 1.0 none -- we just lost money on it Pros Nothing to like - I guess that you have to submit a certain number of characters in this box to get your review accepted, so I will say that, compared to the functions that never worked, we preferred those that worked after an enormous amount of wasted time with the clunky interface Cons Difficult to configure, difficult and time consuming to use, patched together modules that are not integrated (to the point where you actually have 3 different websites to go to), absolutely no customer support. We never got it fully implemented and had to dump it after a year of trying -- lost several thousand dollars in "setup and training" fees for services which were never performed. Review Source NA Nancy A. Human Resource Non-Profit Organization Management Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "ShelbyNext Financials" August 31, 2019 4.0 I love the help desk. The ease of transferring to the new was remarkable. We lost no data. Pros Being able to attach forms is helpful on the Human resource side. The reporting aspects are strong and easy to use. Cons I wish the tabs could be combined. Address, phone, email, demographic could be on one page. Having to hit the accept button is frustrating. Sometimes I get interrupted in the office with other issues and lose all my input because the program cuts you off the software. Needs to allow you to stay on longer. Review Source LD Laura D. Executive Assistant Religious Institutions Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Recurring Payments" August 30, 2019 4.0 Super easy to use. You can set several levels of approval on check requests. Easy process to reconcile credit card statements. Pros I love how I can set up recurring payments weekly or monthly! Cons It times me out quickly. Is this something I can change? Switched from [Shelby Arena](https://www.capterra.com/p/175655/Arena/) We were looking for a web based program. Review Source Similar Products Featured ## Related categories [Church Accounting](https://www.capterra.com/church-accounting-software/)[Fund Accounting](https://www.capterra.com/fund-accounting-software/)[Nonprofit](https://www.capterra.com/nonprofit-software/) ## Send me user reviews about this product ### Fill out the form and we'll send a list of the top-rated software based on real user reviews directly to your inbox.