Artificial intelligence is no longer a futuristic concept for churches—it’s a present-day reality that’s transforming how ministry happens. According to the 2025 State of AI in the Church Survey Report by Exponential AI NEXT and Church Tech Today, 91% of church leaders now support using AI in ministry to some degree, and 61% are using AI tools on a weekly or daily basis. That’s up from 43% in 2024.
The goal isn’t to replace the human elements of ministry. It’s to free up time for what matters most: shepherding your congregation, building relationships, and sharing the Gospel. From sermon preparation to social media content, the right AI tools can help your staff focus on people rather than paperwork.
This guide covers the best AI tools for churches heading into 2026, organized by category to help you find exactly what you need.
AI Assistants & Chatbots
These versatile tools serve as your all-purpose digital assistants, capable of helping with research, writing, brainstorming, and countless ministry tasks.
ChatGPT
As the most widely used generative AI tool among church leaders, ChatGPT remains the go-to for sparking ideas and getting things done fast. Nearly two-thirds of pastors who write sermons now use AI tools in preparation, with ChatGPT leading the pack at 26% adoption.
Best for: Sermon research, drafting announcements, brainstorming sermon series titles, creating discussion questions, and general content creation.
Website: chat.openai.com
Claude
Claude, developed by Anthropic, excels at handling long documents and is praised for its creative writing capabilities. It can provide detailed summaries and insights, making it valuable for research and administrative tasks. Many users find Claude particularly helpful for nuanced theological discussions and longer-form content creation.
Best for: Long-form content, detailed research, creative writing, and working with lengthy documents.
Website: claude.ai
Google Gemini
Google’s AI assistant is a powerful tool for research, generating content, and answering questions. Its integration with Google’s ecosystem makes it particularly useful for churches already using Google Workspace for email, documents, and calendars.
Best for: Research, content generation, and integration with Google services.
Website: gemini.google.com
Perplexity
Perplexity is an AI search engine that provides direct answers with sources cited. This makes it invaluable for research and fact-checking, ensuring the information in your sermons and teachings is accurate and verifiable.
Best for: Research verification, finding sources, and fact-checking sermon content.
Website: perplexity.ai
Sermon Preparation Tools
These specialized tools are designed specifically for pastors and preachers, helping streamline the sermon preparation process while maintaining theological integrity.
SermonAI
Described as “the next generation of biblical software for pastors,” SermonAI specializes in curating and refining data specifically for Christian pastors. All insights are filtered through a biblical lens, ensuring theological accuracy. Features include a Research Assistant powered by trillions of data points, 50+ sermon templates (exegetical, topical, expository), custom persona creation to chat with your favorite pastors’ styles, and one-click conversion of sermons into youth messages, outlines, and studies.
Best for: Comprehensive sermon research and writing with theological guardrails.
Website: sermonai.com
SermonSpark
A free suite of AI-powered tools created by pastors, for pastors. SermonSpark helps across the entire sermon preparation process, from finding inspiration and writing title ideas to searching for elusive verses and building outlines based on themes. It even helps craft social posts to extend sermon reach.
Best for: Quick sermon inspiration and preparation assistance at no cost.
Website: ai-for-churches.com/sermonspark
Sermonly
An all-in-one sermon writing platform that lets you write, research, plan, and share sermons from a centralized location. Sermonly’s AI integration simplifies research by generating outlines, character studies, and modern-day examples of biblical topics. The Snippets feature allows pastors to collect and organize information from multiple digital sources.
Best for: Organized sermon writing and research across multiple devices.
Website: sermon.ly
Ministry AI
The official AI platform of The Christian & Missionary Alliance, serving over 1,900 churches nationwide. The Ministry Pack includes 20+ specialized tools covering sermon prep, Bible study, event planning, and administrative work. Created by Dr. Bill Giovannetti, who brings 40+ years of ministry experience and MECLABS Senior AI Engineer certification.
Best for: Comprehensive ministry support with denominational backing.
Pricing: $39/month or $390/year
Website: ministryai.ai
Google NotebookLM
An AI-powered notebook that helps organize and analyze information from all your sources in one place. Particularly excellent for pastors who want to keep sermon research and notes perfectly organized. It can generate FAQs, glossaries, and even podcast-style audio overviews from your uploaded documents.
Best for: Organizing sermon research and generating study materials from your notes.
Website: notebooklm.google.com
Design & Graphics Tools
Create professional-looking graphics for sermon series, social media, events, and announcements without needing a dedicated designer.
Canva + Magic AI Tools
Canva has been a go-to for church graphics for years, and the Magic AI tools make it even more powerful. AI suggests layouts and designs based on your text, generates matching visuals and backgrounds, resizes designs instantly for different platforms, and even assists with language translation for multilingual congregations. Eligible nonprofits can apply for Canva for Nonprofits to access Pro features for free.
Best for: Quick, professional graphics for social media, sermon slides, and event flyers.
Website: canva.com
ChurchCanvas.ai
Purpose-built for churches, ChurchCanvas.ai focuses specifically on creating sermon graphics, social media posts, event announcements, and church-specific content. The platform understands church contexts and provides templates designed for ministry needs.
Best for: Churches wanting a design tool built specifically for ministry contexts.
Website: churchcanvas.ai
Adobe Express
Adobe’s template-driven design tool brings professional-grade features to an accessible platform. It integrates with other Adobe products like Firefly (generative AI), Adobe Fonts, and Adobe Stock. Churches can apply for Adobe’s nonprofit program to access premium features.
Best for: Churches already using Adobe products or wanting professional-grade design capabilities.
Website: adobe.com/express
DALL-E & MidJourney
These AI image generators create unique visuals from text descriptions. Perfect for generating custom artwork for sermon series, presentations, or social media when stock photos just won’t cut it. DALL-E integrates with ChatGPT, while MidJourney creates stunning artistic images through Discord.
Best for: Creating unique, custom visuals when you can’t find the right stock image.
Video & Content Repurposing Tools
Turn your sermons into multiple pieces of shareable content. These tools help extend your message beyond Sunday and reach people where they already are—on social media.
Opus Clip
Marketed as the #1 AI video clipping tool for churches, Opus Clip transforms long sermon videos into short, viral-ready clips for TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and Instagram Reels. Simply paste a YouTube link, and the AI automatically identifies the most engaging moments, adds captions, and applies motion tracking. Each clip receives a “virality score” indicating its potential for engagement.
Best for: Quick, automated sermon clip creation with minimal editing experience required.
Website: opus.pro
Pulpit AI
Pulpit AI turns one sermon into over 20 pieces of content—video clips, discussion questions, devotionals, blogs, newsletters, and more. What sets it apart is everything stays in your voice. You can browse auto-generated clips or create custom clips from any quote in the transcript. Additional features include customizable caption styles, group study guides, and 5-day devotionals with timestamped links back to sermon moments.
Best for: Comprehensive content repurposing with sermon-based discipleship resources.
Website: pulpitai.com
Sermon Shots
Helps churches turn sermons into bite-sized, engaging content for various platforms. Beyond just video clips, Sermon Shots creates sermon reels, social media posts, and blog content to ensure your message reaches fresh audiences in relevant ways.
Best for: Churches wanting a full-service approach to sermon content repurposing.
Website: sermonshots.com
Pastors.ai
Enter a YouTube link of your church service and get AI-generated resources within 30 minutes. Includes captioned clips with music and your logo, sermon-based Bible studies, 5-day devotionals, discussion questions, and even a custom chatbot trained only on your church’s sermons and website. Each sermon gets its own editable, shareable page branded with your logo.
Best for: Churches wanting automated, comprehensive sermon resources with custom branding.
Website: pastors.ai
Communication & Administrative Tools
Streamline the behind-the-scenes work that keeps your church running smoothly.
Grammarly
Your personal writing coach for clearer, more concise, error-free communications. As the second most popular AI tool among church leaders, Grammarly is perfect for polishing emails, newsletters, blog posts, and church communications. It helps ensure your team produces high-quality written materials without the hassle of extensive proofreading.
Best for: Polishing all church written communications.
Website: grammarly.com
Fyxer
An AI-powered executive assistant that transforms email and meeting management. Every morning, your inbox arrives pre-sorted with labeled categories and draft responses written in your voice. It integrates with Gmail and Outlook, learning how you write and respond. The smart meeting notetaker joins your Zoom or Google Meet calls (with permission), takes notes, and drafts follow-up emails automatically.
Best for: Pastors drowning in email and meetings who need an AI chief of staff.
Website: fyxer.ai
Fathom Video
A free AI-powered meeting assistant that automatically records, transcribes, and summarizes Zoom, Google Meet, or Microsoft Teams calls. Focus on your conversations without the distraction of notetaking. Perfect for elder meetings, staff meetings, and pastoral counseling sessions where you need accurate records.
Best for: Automatic meeting transcription and summaries.
Website: fathom.video
Lindy
Think of Lindy as your AI chief of staff that doesn’t need PTO. It schedules meetings, drafts emails in your tone, filters requests, and keeps you from drowning in admin work. Particularly valuable for senior pastors or executive pastors managing complex schedules.
Best for: Comprehensive administrative automation for busy leaders.
Website: lindy.ai
Tally.so
A modern form builder that’s what Google Forms wishes it was—clean, quick, and easy enough for your deacon board and youth team to use. Perfect for guest follow-up, prayer requests, volunteer signups, and new member intake forms.
Best for: Beautiful, easy-to-use forms for church processes.
Website: tally.so
Social Media Management
Tools designed specifically for churches to manage their social media presence efficiently.
ChurchSocial.ai
A comprehensive platform built specifically for churches that combines a graphics studio, AI content generation from sermon transcripts, and a drag-and-drop content calendar. Plan, schedule, and post your content all from a single, unified platform. It can generate social posts, blogs, and video Reels directly from your sermon transcripts.
Best for: All-in-one church social media management with AI content creation.
Website: churchsocial.ai
Gamma.app
One of the best AI presentation design tools available. Copy/paste text and it automatically picks the best slide layout, charts, and AI-generated images. Great for creating sermon series presentations, ministry reports, and training materials. You can easily change layouts, fonts, colors, chart types, or generate new images right in the app.
Best for: Quick, professional presentations for sermons and ministry reports.
Website: gamma.app
Worship Planning Tools
AI-enhanced tools to help worship teams plan and prepare for services.
Planning Center Music Stand
A feature-rich app that lets worship teams access digital sheet music, organize set lists, and track revisions. It highlights song arrangements based on past services, helping teams stay organized and consistent.
Best for: Worship teams wanting digital music management with historical insights.
Website: planningcenter.com
OnSong
Perfect for musicians, OnSong uses AI to suggest chord transpositions, manage lyric sheets, and sync with other devices during live performances. A longtime favorite among worship leaders for its robust feature set.
Best for: Musicians needing on-the-fly chord transposition and multi-device sync.
Website: onsong.com
Congregation Engagement & Discipleship
Tools that help extend ministry beyond Sunday and deepen discipleship.
Tapos
An AI-powered platform that transforms sermon content into interactive resources, allowing congregants to access and apply biblical teachings after they’re preached. Helps turn passive Sunday listeners into active participants in their faith journey.
Best for: Creating interactive, ongoing engagement with sermon content.
Getting Started with AI in Your Church
Feeling overwhelmed? Here’s a practical approach to adopting AI in your ministry:
- Start with what you already have. If you use ChatGPT, explore it more deeply before adding new tools. Many church leaders use less than 20% of AI capabilities.
- Identify your biggest pain point. Is it sermon prep taking too long? Social media feeling neglected? Admin overwhelming your week? Pick one area first.
- Try free tiers first. Most tools offer generous free plans. Test before committing budget.
- Invest in training. Consider resources like ChatGPT for Churches (ChatGPTforChurches.com) or join the AI For Church Leaders Facebook Group for peer learning.
- Establish ethical guidelines. Develop a policy for AI use in your church. Be transparent with your congregation about how AI supports (not replaces) ministry.
A Word of Wisdom
AI can gather information, but it cannot yield illumination. It can mimic theological insight, but it cannot see the glory of Christ in the text. It can help organize your thoughts, but it cannot stir the soul.
Think of AI as an intelligent, capable ministry intern at your disposal. It reduces administrative burdens, allowing you to focus on higher-value, people-centered ministry. But just as you wouldn’t outsource pastoral care to an intern, you shouldn’t use AI as a shortcut for spiritual leadership.
The best strategy for an AI-powered future isn’t just adopting technology—it’s doubling down on what makes the church irreplaceable: authentic relationships, transformative teaching, and Spirit-led ministry. AI is here, but it’s not the main character. The people are.
Used wisely, AI can amplify outreach, streamline operations, and enhance discipleship. The core of ministry remains unchanged: real people, real relationships, and a real God at work.