Parable
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2011
- HeadquartersFort Collins, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
Parable firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Parable
- Legal name
- Parable
- Website
- https://liveyourparable.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2011
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Parable industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Church Financial Services
- NAICS
- Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Denominational & Ecclesiastical Governance Bodies (Dioceses, Synods, Conferences) (BPAGAJAB)
Keywords
Where Parable is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Fort Collins
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Parable business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Others
Revenue model
- Church Accounting and Bookkeeping Services: Ongoing bookkeeping and accounting services including bank reconciliation, financial reporting, and compliance support. Services are customized based on church size and needs.
- Payroll Services: Full-service payroll processing for churches including tax filing, direct deposit, and clergy-specific payroll handling including housing allowances.
- Bill Pay Services: Bill payment processing with dual-approval workflows to ensure accuracy and fraud protection.
- Advanced/CFO Services: Strategic financial services including fractional CFO consulting, financial forecasting, budgeting support, audit support, and financial safeguards checkups. These are higher-tier services for churches seeking deeper financial strategy support.
- Educational Content and Resources: Free educational content including the 'Distilled' podcast, toolkits, webinars, and guides to attract and educate potential customers. The podcast provides church finance education in 5-10 minute episodes.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Core Bookkeeping and Accounting Services - Basic tier for smaller churches |
| Subscription | Monthly | Full-Service Package - Bookkeeping, Payroll, and Bill Pay |
| Subscription | Monthly | Advanced/CFO Services - Strategic finance and consulting |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels8 records
Parable product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Parable delivers outsourced accounting, bookkeeping, payroll, bill pay, and fractional CFO services exclusively to US churches. Services are bundled into monthly subscriptions layered on a proprietary Financial Operating System (PFOS) that integrates QuickBooks Online, Bill.com, Divvy, and Gusto to handle day-to-day church financial operations. Advanced-tier offerings add strategic advisory — budgeting, forecasting, audit support, and financial safeguards reviews — for growing and established congregations.
Product overview
Parable is a financial services company offering church accounting, payroll, and CFO services through a bundled service model. The core offering consists of Bookkeeping & Accounting, Bill Pay, and Payroll services managed by a team of financial professionals. Advanced add-on modules include Advanced Reporting (Financial Dashboard), Fractional CFO Consulting, Budgeting Support, Audit Support, Financial Safeguards Checkup, and Financial Forecasting. The company also provides free educational resources including the Church Financial Toolkit, Church Budgeting Toolkit, Financial Leadership Assessment, and the Distilled podcast series. Services are delivered using QuickBooks Online as the primary accounting platform, integrated with Bill.com for bill pay and Divvy for expense management.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Bookkeeping & Accounting Services
- Bill Pay Services
- Payroll Services
- Advanced Reporting (Financial Dashboard)
- Fractional CFO Consulting
- Budgeting Support
- Audit Support
- Financial Safeguards Checkup
- Financial Forecasting
Quantifiable outcome
- Church giving increased after partnering with Parable
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Parable
Customer profileNamed customers10 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Parable technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration4 records
Feature3 records
Parable partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.
- QuickBooks Online (Intuit)corePrimary accounting platform used for church bookkeeping, reconciliation, and financial reporting. Parable leverages QuickBooks Online as the foundation for their Financial Operating System, utilizing features for chart of accounts, financial statements, and data consolidation.
- DivvycoreExpense management solution with built-in controls and mobile app for receipt capture. Recommended for churches to track and manage expenses with proper documentation.
- Bill.comcoreBill pay platform enabling automated approval workflows, ACH payments, and vendor management. Used for processing church bills with dual-approval safeguards.
- GustocorePayroll platform recommended for church payroll processing. Praised for its 'people platform' approach beyond just payroll, including onboarding, birthday cards, and automated tax filing.
- MortarStonesupportingDonor analytics software partner referenced in the Distilled podcast for helping churches understand giving patterns, identify lapses, and plan discipleship strategies. Used for year-end giving and donor segmentation.
- Martus SolutionssupportingCollaborative church budgeting and forecasting software. Featured in podcast episodes about budgeting, providing tools for church budget season preparation and collaborative budget planning.
- ChurchEconomist / Mark DeYmazsupportingMark DeYmaz, Pastor and CEO of ChurchEconomist, appears as a guest on Parable's Distilled podcast discussing church economics, revenue diversification, and the book 'The Coming Revolution in Church Economics'. Represents thought leadership partnership.
- StewardedsupportingHealth benefits consulting partner featured in podcast episode explaining health insurance strategies for churches including ICHRAs, QSEHRAs, and options under the 'Big Beautiful Bill'.
- Best Christian WorkplacessupportingCertification and consulting organization for Christian workplace cultures. Testimonials from Best Christian Workplaces representatives praising Parable's reporting features.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Parable competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Capin Crouse: Long-standing US accounting firm exclusively serving churches and faith-based nonprofits, now operating under the Forvis brand. The most direct comparable to Parable in church-specialized financial services, particularly in audit and ECFA work.
- Pilot: Outsourced bookkeeping, controller, and CFO service for a single vertical (tech startups). The closest business-model analog to Parable's verticalized outsourced finance team approach, though serving a different end market.
- Auxano: Church consulting and capital-campaign advisory firm with significant overlap to Parable's advanced/CFO and budgeting services for established and growing churches. Same buyer, adjacent deliverable set.
- Bench: Tech-enabled bookkeeping service for SMBs combining software and human bookkeepers. Closest business-model peer illustrating the tradeoffs of verticalized outsourced accounting at greater scale.
- 1-800Accountant: Outsourced virtual accounting, bookkeeping, payroll, and tax service targeting SMBs. Closest pure-SMB-outsourced-finance peer to Parable in terms of business model, distribution, and subscription-pricing approach.
Broad incumbents
- Pushpay (Ministry Brands): Large incumbent church-engagement software platform covering giving, congregant engagement, and increasingly church financial workflows. Competes with Parable for the church finance dollar from the software side.
- Vanderbloemen Search Group: Large church executive search and consulting firm covering staffing, compensation, and ministry finance advisory. Overlaps with Parable's CFO/strategy services and shares the same church buyer.
- BDO USA (Nonprofit Practice): Top-tier US accounting firm with a dedicated nonprofit and church practice, now including the Capin Crouse brand. Represents the scaled-CPA competition for Parable's larger accounts and audit work.
Emerging players
- Tithe.ly: Church-focused mobile giving, engagement, and management platform. Adjacent competitor for the church finance wallet, particularly with smaller and mid-sized churches.
- ChurchTrac: Affordable church management software with built-in accounting, giving, and member tools targeting small to mid-sized churches that overlap with Parable's entry-level segment.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Parable social profiles
Digital presenceParable financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Parable leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Parable funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Parable M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Parable
What does Parable do?
Parable delivers outsourced accounting, bookkeeping, payroll, bill pay, and fractional CFO services exclusively to US churches. Services are bundled into monthly subscriptions layered on a proprietary Financial Operating System (PFOS) that integrates QuickBooks Online, Bill.com, Divvy, and Gusto to handle day-to-day church financial operations. Advanced-tier offerings add strategic advisory — budgeting, forecasting, audit support, and financial safeguards reviews — for growing and established congregations.
Is Parable a public or private company?
Parable is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Parable founded?
Parable was founded in 2011. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Parable based?
Parable is headquartered in Fort Collins, United States, in the North America region.
How does Parable make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Church Accounting and Bookkeeping Services are the primary driver. The others are payroll Services, bill Pay Services, advanced/CFO Services and educational Content and Resources.
Who are Parable's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Capin Crouse, Pilot, Auxano, Bench and 1-800Accountant. Broad incumbents are Pushpay (Ministry Brands), Vanderbloemen Search Group and BDO USA (Nonprofit Practice). Emerging players are Tithe.ly and ChurchTrac.
Does Parable have an API?
No public API is recorded for Parable.
What industry is Parable in?
Parable's product category is Church Financial Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAJAB, Denominational & Ecclesiastical Governance Bodies (Dioceses, Synods, Conferences). Its NAICS code is 813.