specification: FinOps Framework
specificationVersion: '1.0'
schema: https://www.finops.org/framework/
provider: Tithe.ly
providerId: tithely
created: '2026-07-03'
modified: '2026-07-03'
reconciled: false
tags:
- Church Giving
- Payments
- Nonprofit
- ChMS
- FinOps
- Cost Management
- FOCUS
description: >-
  FinOps view of Tithe.ly spend. Tithe.ly is a payment-facilitator and
  church-technology platform, so cost is driven primarily by per-donation
  processing fees (percentage + fixed per transaction, varying by card / ACH /
  Amex) rather than by API call volume. On top of processing, optional monthly
  software subscriptions (church management, branded app, website, worship tools)
  add fixed recurring cost. The developer API itself carries no separate metered
  price. A distinctive lever is donor fee coverage - a large share of donors opt
  to cover the processing fee, which materially reduces the church's net cost.
notes: >-
  Per-unit processing rates and subscription prices are those publicly reported
  as of the review date; reconcile against get.tithe.ly/pricing. The dominant
  cost driver for API integrators is transaction processing fees on giving
  volume, not API usage.
sources:
- https://get.tithe.ly/pricing
- https://help.tithe.ly/hc/en-us/articles/7442621160087-Tithely-Transaction-Fees-and-Subscription-Pricing
- https://focus.finops.org/focus-specification/v1-3/
alignedWith:
  framework: FinOps Foundation Framework
  frameworkUrl: https://www.finops.org/framework/
  dataSpec: FOCUS
  dataSpecVersion: '1.3'
  dataSpecUrl: https://focus.finops.org/focus-specification/v1-3/
publisherName: Tithe.ly
serviceCategory: Payments and Fundraising
billingModel:
  pricingCategory: Usage-Based
  billingFrequency: Monthly
  billingCurrency: USD
  chargeCategories:
  - Usage
  - Purchase
  - Adjustment
focusColumns:
  ServiceName: Tithe.ly Giving
  ServiceCategory: Payments and Fundraising
  ProviderName: Tithe.ly
  PublisherName: Tithe.ly
  InvoiceIssuerName: Tithe.ly
  BillingCurrency: USD
  ChargeCategory: Usage
  PricingCategory: Usage-Based
meters:
- name: card_transaction_fee
  description: Percentage + fixed fee on each card donation (~2.9% + $0.30).
  unit: transactions
  aggregation: sum
  dimensions:
  - organization
  - payment_category
- name: ach_transaction_fee
  description: Percentage + fixed fee on each ACH donation (~1% + $0.30).
  unit: transactions
  aggregation: sum
  dimensions:
  - organization
  - payment_category
- name: amex_transaction_fee
  description: Percentage + fixed fee on each American Express donation (~3.5% + $0.30).
  unit: transactions
  aggregation: sum
  dimensions:
  - organization
  - payment_category
- name: software_subscription
  description: Fixed monthly subscription for ChMS / All-Access bundles.
  unit: months
  aggregation: sum
  dimensions:
  - organization
  - plan
principles:
- name: Visibility
  description: Track processing fees per organization and giving fund, separating card, ACH, and Amex mix, plus fixed monthly subscription cost.
- name: Allocation
  description: Attribute fees to funds (payment categories) and ministries so giving cost maps to programs.
- name: Optimization
  description: Encourage ACH over card where possible (lower fee), enable donor fee coverage, and right-size the software bundle to what is actually used.
- name: Accountability
  description: Assign an owner to review monthly processing fees and subscription spend against giving volume and budget.
maintainers:
- FN: Kin Lane
  email: kin@apievangelist.com