Do churches have to file a Form 990?

No. Churches are exempt from filing Form 990 with the IRS, so most members never see their church's finances unless the church chooses to share them.

How much do Americans give to religion?

Giving USA 2025 reports $146.54 billion given to religion in 2024, the largest share of U.S. charitable giving.

What is the CAN Pledge?

A short public commitment with five vows on each side. Members pledge to ask to see the books, give with open eyes, test teaching against Scripture, raise concerns kindly and protect the vulnerable. Churches pledge to publish an independently reviewed financial statement every year, disclose senior leaders' total compensation, keep an independent board, answer good-faith questions on the record and report abuse.

What is the Sunday Scorecard?

A tool at mysundayscorecard.com that checks every claim in a sermon against Scripture, scores it by the church's own statement of faith and by the wider church, and screens for high-control language.

Church Accountability Network

The church is the hope of the world. It should be the easiest place to trust.

Americans give more to religion than to any other cause, and churches are the one kind of charity that never has to show the public its books. We think the bride of Christ should lead in integrity, transparency and accountability, so that light dispels darkness and many come to know Him.

Take the Pledge Follow the money

The business of religion

Follow the money

Faith in America is also one of its largest economies. Most of it is generous and good. Very little of it is open to the people who fund it.

$146.5B

given to religion in 2024, the largest share of all US charitable giving.

Giving USA 2025¹

public financial filings required of a church. Churches have never had to file the IRS Form 990 that other charities do.

IRS²

$7.4M

median annual income of America's roughly 1,850 megachurches; the mean is $11.2M.

Hartford Institute, 2026³

33%

of Americans have confidence in the church, down from 68% in 1975 and two points off the all-time low.

Gallup via Lifeway, 2026⁴

What a member usually can't see

The church's audited financial statementsOn request, if at all
What the senior pastor is paid, including housingRarely disclosed
Who sits on the board that sets that payOften staff
Where the building fund and the missions offering wentUnreported
How complaints about leaders are handledNo standard

None of this is illegal, and many churches handle money with real care. 82% of megachurches say an independent CPA prepares their statements each year.³ Groups like the ECFA set standards for sharing them on written request.⁵

But "on request" only works if members ask. Watchdogs that grade the largest ministries still find many they can't recommend: 168 of the 1,000 that MinistryWatch rates land on its "withhold giving" list.⁶

Paul took up collections and still arranged for others to see them handled, "for we aim at what is honorable not only in the Lord's sight but also in the sight of man" (2 Corinthians 8:21).

The Pledge

Ask with love. Give with open eyes.

The Pledge is a simple promise from the pew and from the pulpit: to keep the church's money, teaching and leadership open to the people it serves.

signed so far

As a member, I will

Ask to see the booksRequest my church's annual financial statement, kindly and every year.
Give with open eyesGive generously, where I can see how the gift is used, never under pressure or guilt.
Listen with an open BibleCheck what I'm taught against Scripture, like the Bereans did with Paul.
Speak up, and stay kindRaise concerns through the right channels first, and refuse gossip and contempt.
Protect the vulnerableNever stay silent about abuse, and report it to the authorities when it's a crime.

"Test everything; hold fast what is good." 1 Thessalonians 5:21

The tools

Tools that make asking easier

mysundayscorecard.com

Sunday Scorecard

Paste a sermon link and get every claim checked against Scripture, scored twice, and screened for high-control patterns.

Score a sermon →

For study

Digital Concordance

Trace a teaching back to its source, through the divine council, the creeds, the councils and the splits.

Open the Concordance →

For pastors

My Sermon Scorecard

Run a message before Sunday and fix what won't hold while there's still time. Private to you.

Opening soon

Sources

Giving USA 2025, "U.S. charitable giving grew to $592.50 billion in 2024" (religion: $146.54 billion). givingusa.org
IRS, "Filing requirements for churches and religious organizations." irs.gov
Warren Bird and Scott Thumma, "Megachurch Resurgence" (Hartford Institute for Religion Research, 2026). hirr.hartfordinternational.edu
Lifeway Research, "Americans' Confidence in the Church Falls Back Near Record-Low" (Gallup data, July 2026). research.lifeway.com
ECFA Standard 5, Transparency. ecfa.org
MinistryWatch 1000 Database, July 2025 Withhold Giving List. ministrywatch.com