MyShul vs Rakefet Online (2026)
Two synagogue management options compared on verified pricing, Jewish-specific workflows, billing depth, communications, migration and independent evidence.
Quick answer
- Price: MyShul: Standard $179/mo; Premium $310/mo; Enterprise ('most popular') $460/mo. Rakefet Online: RakefetOnline-CRM Annual - NEW USERS (year 1) $149/mo; RakefetOnline-CRM Annual - EXISTING USERS $90/mo. For a 150-household congregation that is roughly $3,048 vs $1,080 per year before processing and setup fees.
- Jewish-specific workflows: Rakefet Online leads (8.0 vs 14.0 of 20 points).
- Membership, dues and money: MyShul leads (18.5 vs 16.5 of 20 points).
- School and events: Rakefet Online leads (5.0 vs 10.0 of 10 points).
- Independent customer evidence: MyShul leads (10 vs 5 of 10 points).
- Overall: MyShul 75.0/100 · Rakefet Online 78.0/100
Pricing side by side
MyShul
- Standard: $179/mo · Unlimited contacts; 5 custom fields, 2 role permissions, 5 sponsorships, 5 tickets/store items, 2 seating maps, manual transaction entry up to $20k/mo (column mapping inferred from order) · 'All Core Features': CRM, donations, invoices, statements, schedules, zmanim, app, TV, fundraising tools, sponsorships, tickets/store, recurring payments, tax receipts
- Premium: $310/mo · Unlimited custom fields/permissions/sponsorships/seating maps; manual entry up to $40k/mo (inferred) · Standard + memberships, bulk invoicing, QuickBooks sync, accounting reports, Smart Forms with dynamic pricing, custom website + hosting + domain, payment terminal, bulk email
- Enterprise ('most popular'): $460/mo · Unlimited; unlimited manual transaction entry · Everything in Premium; eligible for Multi-Bank Payout add-on
- Add-ons: · Custom Website $44/mo ($36/mo annual); API & SQL Access $120/mo ($98/mo annual); Multi-Bank Payout $191/mo ($230/mo annual as printed; Enterprise only, up to 10 banks)
- Terms-of-service fee model (free tier): · 'Shuls have no subscription fees'; 1% platform fee on processed funds; 3% on raffle transactions; Stripe fees additional
Setup: Not stated. 'Small Shul Discount' available on request (no figure).. Processing: Stripe ('processed entirely by Stripe'); card/ACH rates not stated. Terms add a 1% platform fee on processed funds and 3% on raffles.. Source: vendor page, 2026-10-12 (vendor-page).
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).
Feature by feature
| Capability | MyShul | Rakefet Online |
|---|---|---|
| Membership & household records | Yes CRM with unlimited contacts; 'Memberships' on Premium+; households not explicitly described. | Yes Members, children, family relationships, committees, notes, attachments, profile pictures, new member/renewal forms. |
| Yahrzeit tracking & reminders | Not verified Not mentioned on pages read; a third-party roundup (wifitalents.com) lists 'yahrzeit tracking', unverified. | Yes Yahrzeits, mourners, memorial plaques, yizkor book reports, printed/emailed notices mixing Jewish and Gregorian dates. |
| Hebrew calendar integration | Yes Schedules and zmanim in Core. | Yes Automatic Hebrew date conversion, weekly Torah portions and Haftarot, Google Calendar integration. |
| Dues, billing & receivables | Yes Invoices, statements, recurring payments; bulk invoicing on Premium+; payment reminders. | Yes Member/donor billing, global billing, recurring payments, member ledgers, receivables reports, printed or emailed statements. |
| Online payments | Yes Stripe; app and web payments; payment terminal on Premium+. | Yes Credit card and ACH, recurring payments via Member Portal; Stripe/PayPal/PayQuiq/Venmo named. |
| Donations, pledges & campaigns | Yes Donations, fundraising tools, sponsorships, raffles (3% fee per Terms). | Partial Donation payment forms and donor giving tracking; 'School and Fundraising' listed on rakefetonline.com. Pledges not explicitly mentioned. |
| General ledger / fund accounting | Partial 'Accounting reports', up to 10 banks / multi-bank payout; not a GL. | Yes Full AR/AP, general ledger with restricted funds, check writing, journal entries, bank reconciliation, budgeting, P&L/balance sheet/trial balance/audit reports. |
| QuickBooks integration | Yes 'QuickBooks sync' on Premium and Enterprise. | Not verified Not mentioned on current vendor pages; UJA 2018 guide noted some customers pair Rakefet with QuickBooks or Sage. |
| Religious school management | Not verified Not mentioned on any vendor page read 2026-10-12. | Yes 'School Management' listed; religious school classes tracked in the database. |
| Events & registration | Yes Tickets & Store (5 on Standard, unlimited above). | Yes Form builder for events and registrations; special event tracking. |
| High Holiday seating | Yes 'Seating Map' (2 on Standard, unlimited above); homepage lists seat maps. | Partial rakefetonline.com lists 'seating' among tracked data and 'High Holy Day planning' is cited; no dedicated seating-chart module described. |
| Honors, aliyot & gabbai tools | Not verified Not mentioned on any vendor page read 2026-10-12. | Partial 'Aliyot' tracked in the database per rakefetonline.com; no gabbai workflow described. |
| Cemetery management | Not verified Not mentioned on any vendor page read 2026-10-12. | Not verified Not mentioned on vendor pages checked. |
| Website / CMS | Yes Custom website with hosting, support and templates: included on Premium+ or $44/mo add-on. | No No website builder; donation/payment forms embed in an existing website and API access is offered for external sites. |
| Email & newsletters | Yes 'Bulk email' on Premium+. | Yes Email templates, quick messages, scheduled emails, contact lists. |
| SMS / texting | Not verified Not mentioned on any vendor page read 2026-10-12. | Yes SMS templates and quick messages via Twilio integration. |
| Member self-service portal | Partial Member-facing app pays invoices, donates, views schedules; a web portal is not described. | Yes Members/donors view commitments, set up recurring payments, download receipts. |
| Mobile app | Yes iOS 'MyShul.com' v3.1 (2025-11-04) and Android 'com.myshul.app'; single app for users and admins. | No Described as 'mobile friendly'; no dedicated app mentioned. |
| API / data export | Yes 'API & SQL Access' add-on $120/mo. | Yes Import/export and API access for external processes or websites. |
| Automation & workflows | Partial 'Automates repetitive tasks'; Smart Forms with dynamic pricing; payment reminders. | Partial Scheduled emails and recurring billing; no general workflow engine described. |
Evidence links for every cell are on the individual review pages: MyShul, Rakefet Online.
Rubric scores
| Group | MyShul | Rakefet Online | Max |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jewish-specific workflows | 8.0 | 14.0 | 20 |
| Membership, dues and money | 18.5 | 16.5 | 20 |
| Communications and engagement | 10.5 | 9.5 | 15 |
| School and events | 5.0 | 10.0 | 10 |
| Data portability and migration | 8.0 | 8.0 | 10 |
| Pricing transparency | 15 | 15 | 15 |
| Independent customer evidence | 10 | 5 | 10 |
| Total | 75.0 | 78.0 | 100 |
MyShul: strengths / limitations
- Published tier pricing and add-on prices
- Native member app, kiosk/TV displays, seating maps and raffles aimed at Orthodox shuls
- QuickBooks sync and API/SQL access available
- Pricing page and Terms describe two different fee models (subscription vs 1% platform fee)
- Terms assert MyShul owns all data entered and allow a temporary fee increase of up to 100%
- Yahrzeit, honors, school, cemetery, SMS not evidenced
- Self-published '11 compared' article and unsourced '#1 / 4.9' claim
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
Full reviews: MyShul · Rakefet Online · all comparisons