Cru

What Cru does

Cru (legally Campus Crusade for Christ) is a Christian non-profit ministry founded in 1951 by Bill and Vonette Bright at UCLA and headquartered in Orlando, Florida. The organization operates in 190 countries with 16,000+ full and part-time team members and delivers evangelism, discipleship, and humanitarian programming through a portfolio of specialized ministry brands including Athletes in Action, FamilyLife, Jesus Film Project, Sightline, Unto, Cru Military, Cru Inner City, Cru City, Campus Ministry, and the Faith and Law Around the Globe (FLAG) legal-professionals network. Core content resources include the 10 Basic Steps to Christian Maturity discipleship curriculum, Bible studies, devotionals, articles, audio/video libraries, and language resources, with Jesus Film Project content translated into more than 2,000 languages.

The underlying platform is a digital ministry stack centered on cru.org, with self-serve content delivery, multimedia distribution, online giving portals (give.cru.org), and community connection tools supporting both U.S. local faith communities and international national leadership teams. Recent product initiatives include the "Victory Beyond the Cup" outreach for the 2026 FIFA Games and digital series such as #isitworthit that have generated 70,000+ follow-up contacts.

Cru is funded primarily through donations from individuals, with revenue mechanics spanning one-time and recurring online gifts, mail/phone contributions, stock and non-cash gifts, donor-advised funds, and planned giving via the Cru Foundation. Distribution is direct-to-consumer via the website, with audience-segmented programming as the go-to-market motion and a 2025-era U.S. rebrand from "Campus Crusade for Christ" to "Cru" while retaining the legacy name internationally.

Name

Cru

Legal name

Campus Crusade for Christ

Website

https://cru.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1951

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cru is a Christian non-profit ministry founded in 1951, operating in 190 countries with 16,000+ staff, delivering evangelism, discipleship, and humanitarian programs through specialized brands and digital content platforms funded by individual donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Orlando

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Giving: Cru operates as a Christian ministry funded primarily through donations from individuals. The website features a giving portal (give.cru.org) where supporters can make new gifts, manage their giving, give by mail or phone, donate stock and non-cash gifts, and contribute through donor-advised funds. Planned giving options are available through the Cru Foundation.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Cru is a global Christian ministry that provides free faith-based educational resources (articles, audio, video, Bible studies, devotionals, quizzes) and the structured 10 Basic Steps to Christian Maturity discipleship curriculum through its website cru.org. It also operates an integrated ecosystem of specialized sub-brand ministries — Athletes in Action, FamilyLife, Jesus Film Project, Sightline, Unto, Cru City, Cru Inner City, Cru Military, Campus Ministry, and FLAG — serving distinct audience segments with evangelism, discipleship, family support, sports ministry, humanitarian aid, and faith-at-work programming across 190 countries.

Product overview

Cru (formerly Campus Crusade for Christ in the U.S.) is a Christian ministry organization offering a comprehensive portfolio of faith-based resources and programs. The core offering includes the 10 Basic Steps to Christian Maturity curriculum and various spiritual growth resources (articles, audio, Bible studies, devotionals, video, quizzes, and assessments). Cru operates multiple specialized ministry brands including Athletes in Action, FamilyLife, Jesus Film Project, Sightline, and Unto, each serving specific audiences with targeted resources. Additional ministry programs include Campus Ministry, Cru City, Cru Inner City, Cru Military, and Faith and Law Around the Globe (FLAG). The organization also operates Cru Store for books and merchandise. These offerings are primarily content-based resources focused on evangelism, discipleship, and spiritual growth rather than technology products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• 10 Basic Steps to Christian Maturity A comprehensive discipleship curriculum comprising 10 sequential lessons covering foundational Christian topics including the uniqueness of Jesus, the Christian adventure, the abundant life, the Holy Spirit, prayer, the Bible, obedience, witnessing, giving, and exploring the Old and New Testaments. Designed for individual or group study by Christians seeking structured spiritual growth.
• Athletes in Action A sports ministry sub-brand that helps athletes grow physically, mentally, and spiritually through mentorship, chaplaincy engagement, and faith resources. Serves athletes across competitive, collegiate, and Olympic levels and has operated for over 50 years.
• FamilyLife A ministry sub-brand focused on helping families grow together through resources for marriage (including Weekend to Remember), parenting, and family relationships. Serves married couples and parents seeking faith-based family formation.
• Jesus Film Project A media and evangelism ministry providing tools, training, and resources with content translated into more than 2,000 languages to support global evangelism. Distributes Jesus Film content worldwide through digital channels.
• Sightline A media ministry that delivers messages bringing clarity, conviction, confidence, and connection to those seeking meaning and purpose. Targets individuals exploring faith and spiritual questions.
• Unto A humanitarian aid ministry that partners to relieve suffering, restore dignity, and reveal hope to people in over 25 countries, with programs focused on food and agriculture, clean water, and critical aid.
• Campus Ministry A campus-focused ministry sub-brand helping college and university students and faculty find spiritual growth, genuine friendships, and opportunities to lead and make a lasting impact through faith communities on campus.
• Cru City A ministry sub-brand focused on uniquely restoring communities and helping everyone find their place in their local community through faith, wherever they are.
• Cru Inner City A ministry sub-brand partnering with local churches to minister to the whole person — body, mind, and spirit — bringing hope and transformation to urban communities.
• Cru Military A ministry sub-brand supporting individuals, churches, and chaplains in spiritually building up the military community by meeting their deepest needs with the love of Christ.
• Faith and Law Around the Globe (FLAG) A global, volunteer-led movement of lawyers dedicated to challenging legal professionals to develop their personal, professional, and spiritual lives through biweekly virtual groups. Serves the legal professional community.
• Cru Store An online store offering books, faith-based merchandise, and ministry resources for purchase, supporting the broader Cru ministry ecosystem.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100,000 believers equipped to share the Gospel at 2026 FIFA Games
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles8 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Catholic Relief Services: CRS is the international humanitarian agency of the US Catholic community, operating in 100+ countries with a multi-channel donation model. Comparable to Cru/Unto in global humanitarian scale and faith-rooted fundraising, though oriented to Catholic rather than evangelical donors.
• World Vision: World Vision is one of the largest Christian humanitarian organizations globally, with sponsorship programs operating in 100+ countries. It is comparable in scale and donor-funded model to Cru's global footprint and humanitarian arm (Unto), though broader in scope (child sponsorship, disaster relief).
• Compassion International: Compassion International is a large Christian child-sponsorship organization operating in 25+ countries, raising over $1B annually from individual donors. It is comparable to Cru/Unto in donation-funded international humanitarian model, with overlapping evangelical donor base.
• Samaritan's Purse: Samaritan's Purse is a Franklin Graham-led evangelical humanitarian organization providing disaster relief, medical care, and Christian outreach globally. Comparable to Cru in evangelical donor base, donation model, and integration of humanitarian work with evangelism (similar to Unto).
• Billy Graham Evangelistic Association: BGEA conducts large-scale evangelistic crusades and media ministry, sharing Cru's donation-funded model and evangelical mass-outreach approach (comparable to Jesus Film Project and Sightline sub-brands).
• Habitat for Humanity International: Habitat for Humanity is a global faith-based housing non-profit operating in 70+ countries with a volunteer-driven, donation-supported model. While denominational scope is broader, it overlaps with Cru in mobilizing faith-motivated volunteers and donors for international service work.

Direct peers

• Young Life: Young Life is a non-denominational Christian ministry focused on reaching middle school, high school, and college students with the gospel, mirroring Cru's campus and youth-focused outreach. Both organizations mobilize volunteer leaders for relational ministry and operate donation-funded models with local chapters.
• InterVarsity Christian Fellowship: InterVarsity is a campus-focused evangelical ministry serving students and faculty at colleges and universities, directly overlapping Cru's Campus Ministry sub-brand. Both rely on student-led Bible studies, conferences, and donation-funded staff support at universities.
• The Navigators: The Navigators is a global Christian ministry emphasizing one-on-one discipleship and Bible study, with presence on university campuses and in over 100 countries. Cru and Navigators overlap heavily in college ministry, discipleship curriculum, and donation-funded operations.
• Focus on the Family: Focus on the Family is a Christian organization providing marriage, parenting, and family resources, directly comparable to Cru's FamilyLife sub-brand. Both produce multimedia content, host events (e.g., marriage conferences), and rely on donations from evangelical households.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/crutweets
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/CruCampusCrusade
• Facebookfacebook.com/CruGlobal
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cru-global
• Instagraminstagram.com/cruorg

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Subsidiaries9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cru