Brado or Excel?
A spreadsheet is cheap, flexible and enough for many small churches. Brado brings people, rotas, giving and the Word together, with role-based access.
Cheap, flexible and familiar
A spreadsheet is cheap, flexible and enough for many small churches. Getting started costs little or nothing.
Excel Costs little or nothing to start Read on 15 October 2026
Brado €29 a month up to 250 members
From spreadsheet to Brado
- One row per person. Links between people are made by hand, with columns or several sheets.
- You share the file. Google and Microsoft both say in their help pages that protecting a sheet is not a security measure.
- Google Sheets keeps a version history, but Google’s help warns that some changes, such as rows added or deleted, may not show up.
- No member app, online payments or rotas with confirmation.
- One record per person, linked to family, groups and journey.
- Role-based access: the treasurer, pastors and leaders see different parts.
- Import shows duplicates and errors row by row, and you can undo it for 24 hours. The activity log shows who did what.
- Donations with numbered receipts (and Modelo 25, the annual donations return, for churches in Portugal), rotas, automatic welcome messages and the Word with WAP, all in one place.
In short
| What we compare | Excel | Brado |
|---|---|---|
| Cost of starting | Anyone with a Google account can use Google Sheets; Excel depends on the licence you already have. Getting started costs little or nothing. | €29 a month up to 250 members; €69 a month up to 1,000. |
| People and families | One row per person. Links between people are made by hand, with columns or several sheets. | One record per person, linked to family, groups and journey. |
| Who sees what | You share the file. Google and Microsoft both say in their help pages that protecting a sheet is not a security measure. | Role-based access: the treasurer, pastors and leaders see different parts. |
| History and mistakes | Google Sheets keeps a version history, but Google’s help warns that some changes, such as rows added or deleted, may not show up. | Import shows duplicates and errors row by row, and you can undo it for 24 hours. The activity log shows who did what. |
| Beyond the list | A spreadsheet comes without a member app, online payments or rotas with confirmation. That takes other tools, or doing it by hand. | Donations with numbered receipts (and Modelo 25, the annual donations return, for churches in Portugal), rotas, automatic welcome messages and the Word with WAP, all in one place. |
Information read on public websites on 15 October 2026. Providers change prices and features: always check their site. We compare only what is published. Where we are not sure, we do not write it. Sources: https://support.google.com/docs/answer/1218656 https://support.google.com/docs/answer/190843 https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/Excel/protection-and-security-in-excel https://workspace.google.com/intl/pt-PT/products/sheets/
When each one fits better
When Excel is the better choice
- The church has a few dozen people and only one person looks after the list.
- You need a one-off analysis or a list to print.
- The team is not ready to change how it works yet.
When Brado makes more sense
- The list is now used by several people or teams.
- You want to link families, groups, attendance and giving.
- You need to control who sees what and record consents.
Brado
What Brado does differently
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The Word at the centre
The Word at the centre: Bible, reading plans and WAP, built in.
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Built for Portugal
Modelo 25 and GDPR designed for Portugal, with data in the European Union.
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Public pricing
Public pricing in euros, 0% commission on donations and no lock-in.
What to ask any provider
- How much a month when the church grows?
- Is there a lock-in or sign-up fee?
- How much do they keep from donations, on top of the payment processor’s fees?
- Where is the data stored and who handles it?
- Can I export everything if I want to leave?
Quick questions
Can I bring my spreadsheet into Brado?
Yes. Brado imports CSV and Excel (.xlsx) files, up to 20,000 rows per import, and shows duplicates and errors row by row before saving. You can undo the import for 24 hours.
Does Brado change my spreadsheet?
No. The file is read in your browser and is not stored. Once you have imported, archive the sheet and delete the stray copies.
See Brado working.
In 30 minutes you see Brado with your own church’s cases and compare it with what you use today.