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Questions to ask a synagogue software vendor

Grouped by who on the committee should ask them.

Updated 2026-10-12 · Synagogue Software Reviews editorial team

For the treasurer

  1. Is the system the book of record for receivables, or does it feed QuickBooks? Show me the hand-off.
  2. Can I produce an aged receivables report by family and by fund? Show me.
  3. How are partial payments, overpayments and write-offs recorded, and how do they appear on the statement?
  4. Can a family's statement combine dues, school tuition, building fund and seats on one page?
  5. What are the card and ACH processing rates, who is the processor, and can we bring our own?
  6. How are refunds and chargebacks handled and recorded?
  7. Can I close a fiscal year and lock prior periods?
  8. What does the year-end tax acknowledgment letter look like, and does it exclude non-deductible amounts correctly?

For the administrator

  1. Walk me through entering a new family with a child, a non-member grandparent and a yahrzeit for a deceased parent.
  2. How are Hebrew dates stored, and what happens in a leap year for Adar yahrzeits?
  3. Show me the yahrzeit reminder letter and email, and how far in advance they go out.
  4. How do I handle a divorce: two households, shared children, separate billing?
  5. Can I search by Hebrew name?
  6. How are deceased members handled across yahrzeits, mailings and the directory?
  7. What is the bulk email sending limit, and is email reputation shared with other customers?
  8. Can a volunteer have access to only the honors list or only the school?

For the gabbai and ritual committee

  1. How are honors tracked and rotated, and can I see who has not had an aliyah this year?
  2. Does seating handle assigned seats, families who sit together, and multiple services?
  3. Can I print a Shabbat sheet with yahrzeits, honors and announcements from the system?

For the school director

  1. Can parents enroll and pay online, and does tuition land on the family statement?
  2. Can I manage classes, teachers, attendance and emergency contacts?
  3. Does the school calendar show Hebrew dates and holidays?

For whoever owns the website

  1. Is the website included, and can we use our own domain and design?
  2. Can we keep an external website and use only the member portal?
  3. Who maintains the website templates, and can we export the pages?

For the board and the lawyer

  1. What is the total three-year cost with our household count, modules, onboarding and processing included?
  2. What happens to the price when we cross a household or user threshold?
  3. What is the contract term, the renewal mechanism and the notice period?
  4. Where is our data hosted, who can access it, and what is your breach notification commitment?
  5. Can we export all our data at any time, in what formats, and does it include attachments and notes?
  6. What happens to our data at termination, and for how long is the account readable?
  7. Who owns the company, how long has it been operating, and how many congregations use the product?
  8. May we speak to any two customers of our choosing from your customer list?

For support

  1. What are the support hours, channels and response targets, and are they in the contract?
  2. Is there a surcharge for support in August and September?
  3. Is training included, and for how many staff?
  4. How often are releases shipped, and can we see the release notes?
  5. Is there an API, and is it documented publicly?
  6. Which third-party systems do you integrate with today, and which are planned?
  7. What is the one thing your customers most often wish they had asked before buying?