Church of the Nazarene

What Church of the Nazarene does

The Church of the Nazarene is a global Protestant Christian denomination and the largest body in the classical Wesleyan-Holiness tradition, organized in 1908 and legally incorporated as The Church of the Nazarene, Inc. under Missouri law. It is governed by its General Assembly, Board of General Superintendents, and General Board, with day-to-day operations managed from the Global Ministry Center in Lenexa, Kansas, where 51-100 staff are employed. The denomination serves approximately 2,724,006 members across roughly 30,747 local congregations in 165 world areas, organized into six global regions (USA/Canada, Africa, Asia-Pacific, Eurasia, MesoAmerica, South America). Its distinguishing doctrinal position is entire sanctification, and the denomination operates a portfolio of wholly-owned ministry subsidiaries covering compassionate outreach (Nazarene Compassionate Ministries/NCM), discipleship (NDI), youth (NYI), global missions (NMI), clergy benefits (NBUSA), planned giving (Nazarene Foundation), education, film evangelism (JESUS Film Harvest Partners), and clergy/stewardship development.

The denomination's revenue is generated entirely from voluntary donations, with no commercial products or services sold. Primary streams include local church tithes and offerings (typically 10% of member income), the centralized World Evangelism Fund (target contribution of 5.5% of local church income minus special mission offerings, established 1923 and renamed 1997), planned giving and estate gifts administered through the Nazarene Foundation, and non-cash asset donations including appreciated securities, real estate, Bitcoin, and mineral rights. Funds are distributed through Global Treasury Services to missionaries, six world regions, and global ministries. Distribution is highly decentralized: ~30,747 local congregations serve as the primary delivery nodes, supplemented by digital channels (multi-language nazarene.org, FundingtheMission.org, weekly Nazarene News email, Facebook/Instagram, and quadrennial General Assembly, Nazarene Youth Conference, and PALCON events). The Church of the Nazarene does not operate proprietary technology platforms; its digital infrastructure is limited to content publishing, online donations, and standard social media. The entity is an independent non-profit with no parent company, no external investors, and no funding rounds.

Name

Church of the Nazarene

Legal name

The Church of the Nazarene, Inc.

Website

https://nazarene.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1908

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Church of the Nazarene is a global Wesleyan-Holiness Protestant denomination serving 2.7 million members across 30,747 churches in 165 world areas, funded by member tithes, offerings, and the centralized World Evangelism Fund administered from its Lenexa, Kansas Global Ministry Center.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Religious Denomination Services

NAICS

Religious Organizations (81311), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Religious Organizations (8131)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Denominational & Ecclesiastical Governance Bodies (Dioceses, Synods, Conferences) (BPAGAJAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Local Congregations & Worship Communities (Churches, Mosques, Temples, Synagogues) (BPAGAJAA), Christian Colleges with Theological Programs (EDAHAKAG)

Keywords

• Religious denomination
• Christian worship services
• Global missions
• Discipleship programs
• Humanitarian aid

Headquarters

HQ city

Lenexa

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. World Evangelism Fund (WEF): Centralized donation system that supports global Nazarene missions and ministries. Established in 1923 (originally called General Budget), renamed in 1997. Distributes funds to six world regions, missionaries, and global ministries. Target contribution for local churches is 5.5% of total annual income minus special mission offerings. Donations flow through Global Treasury Services to worldwide operations.
2. Local Church Tithes and Offerings: Cash gifts in the form of regular tithes (typically 10% of income) fund local church operations including pastor salaries, worship facilities, and local ministry programs. Additional offerings include Easter Offering and Thanksgiving Offering (received annually for over 100 years).
3. Planned Giving and Estate Gifts: Bequests in estate plans, beneficiary designations on retirement/bank accounts, real estate, life insurance policies. Charitable gift annuities and donor-advised funds provide income to donors while supporting the church. Administered through Nazarene Foundation.
4. Non-Cash Asset Donations: Appreciated assets including stocks, bonds, mutual funds, Bitcoin, real estate, farm crops, cattle, oil, silver, gold, and mineral rights can be donated to provide churches with monthly income or lump sums for major projects.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Church of the Nazarene is the largest denomination in the classical Wesleyan-Holiness tradition, organized in 1908, providing Christian worship, discipleship, global missions, and compassionate ministry services through more than 30,000 local congregations across 165 world areas. It operates a centralized funding system (the World Evangelism Fund) that distributes member donations to missionaries, world regions, and global ministries, alongside education, clergy development, youth programs, and planned giving/estate services.

Product overview

The Church of the Nazarene is a Protestant Christian denomination in the Wesleyan-Holiness tradition organized in 1908. It operates as a religious organization with global ministry activities rather than a technology product company. The denomination offers various ministry programs and services including global missions, compassionate ministries (NCM), discipleship (NDI), youth ministry (NYI), education/clergy development, and stewardship/funding programs such as the World Evangelism Fund (WEF). The organization maintains a web presence for member engagement, donations, news, and church finder services, but does not offer technology products or platforms in the traditional SaaS sense.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Global Missions Program Coordinates and funds missionary deployment, church planting, and cross-cultural ministry across 165 world areas through six regional structures.
• Nazarene Compassionate Ministries (NCM)

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Wesleyan Church: The Wesleyan Church is a Protestant denomination rooted in the same Wesleyan-Holiness heritage as the Church of the Nazarene. It operates a similar district-based governance structure, missionary deployment model, and emphasis on entire sanctification, making it the closest doctrinal and structural peer.
• Evangelical Covenant Church: The Evangelical Covenant Church is a Wesleyan-Holiness-rooted Protestant denomination with comparable district governance, affiliated higher-education institutions, and a smaller but structurally similar footprint to the Church of the Nazarene.
• Christian and Missionary Alliance: The Christian and Missionary Alliance is an evangelical denomination with a strong global missions infrastructure and similar district-organized structure. Comparable in scale, membership (~2-3M globally), and focus on church planting in unreached areas.
• The Salvation Army: The Salvation Army operates as a global, decentralized religious and humanitarian organization with military-style regional command structures across many of the same 165 world areas. Comparable in operating geographies, donor-funded model, and integration of worship with social services (NCM parallels Salvation Army social work).
• Free Methodist Church: The Free Methodist Church is another Wesleyan-Holiness denomination organized as a worldwide communion of conferences with missionary, educational, and publishing operations. It shares the Church of the Nazarene's holiness distinctives, district/conference governance, and global mission focus.

Broad incumbents

• Church of God (Cleveland, TN): The Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee) is a holiness-rooted Pentecostal denomination with global operations, district/state council governance, and emphasis on missions. Comparable in size and operational footprint to the Church of the Nazarene, with overlapping cultural background in the American holiness movement.
• Assemblies of God: The Assemblies of God is one of the largest global Pentecostal denominations, with comparable missionary infrastructure and district governance operating in many of the same world areas. While doctrinally distinct (Pentecostal rather than Wesleyan-Holiness), it competes for the same global missionary converts and donors.
• Seventh-day Adventist Church: The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a global Protestant denomination with a strong hierarchical structure, affiliated healthcare and educational institutions, and presence across the same 165+ world areas as the Church of the Nazarene. Comparable in global operating model and multi-ministry subsidiary structure.
• Southern Baptist Convention: The Southern Baptist Convention is the largest Protestant denomination in the United States with a global missionary sending structure (IMB) and affiliated educational institutions. While Evangelical/Baptist rather than Wesleyan-Holiness, it competes for the same member base in the US and operates at a significantly larger scale.
• United Methodist Church: The United Methodist Church is a much larger Wesleyan-tradition mainline denomination with global conferences, structured governance, and centralized funding mechanisms. Operates at a significantly larger scale than the Church of the Nazarene and overlaps in missions, education, and publishing.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/NazareneOfficial
• Instagraminstagram.com/nazareneofficial
• Xx.com/Nazarene
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/church-of-the-nazarene

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries10 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 Church of the Nazarene