United Pentecostal Church International

What United Pentecostal Church International does

United Pentecostal Church International (UPCI) is a global Oneness Pentecostal denomination founded in 1945 and headquartered in Weldon Spring, Missouri. It serves approximately 5.5 million constituents across 43,000 churches in 238 nations and territories, organized through a hierarchical district structure governed by a General Superintendent, General Council, and Executive General Presbyters by region. UPCI offers a comprehensive ministry portfolio segmented by demographics—children, youth, men, women, senior adults, singles, families, and multicultural communities—alongside specialized ministries in chaplaincy, prison outreach, humanitarian aid (Compassion Services International), and disaster relief (Reach Out America). It operates affiliated higher education institutions (Urshan College and Urshan Graduate School of Theology) and produces media through the Pentecostal Publishing House, Pentecostal Life Magazine, InsideOut Webzine, and digital platforms including Ministry Central, Discipleship Now, SafeChurch, and UPC World Connect.

UPCI's core technology stack consists of digital ministry and content distribution platforms—live streaming via Facebook and YouTube, an online credentialing and training portal for ministers, and a church-locator SEO tool—with no disclosed AI/ML capabilities or proprietary model development. Revenue is generated primarily through voluntary tithes and offerings, designated missions giving ($62 million contributed in 2025), publishing and merchandise sales through Pentecostal Publishing House, and registration and merchandise revenue from major events including the annual General Conference and the North American Youth Congress (NAYC), which drew over 30,000 registrations in 2023. Its go-to-market is community-led and referral-driven through its district and local church network, with digital streaming serving as a top-of-funnel awareness and remote-participation channel.

UPCI does not publicly disclose consolidated revenue, has no parent company, and operates without venture capital or public ownership. Its most recent strategic milestones include the formation and first US convening of the Global Council in 2022, the 80th Anniversary General Conference in St. Louis in 2025, the reelection of General Superintendent Dr. David K. Bernard in 2025, and the launch of the SafeChurch abuse-prevention initiative in 2021.

Name

United Pentecostal Church International

Legal name

United Pentecostal Church International

Website

https://upci.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1945

Operating status

Operating

Short description

The United Pentecostal Church International is a global Oneness Pentecostal denomination founded in 1945, serving 5.5 million members across 43,000 churches in 238 nations through hierarchical district governance, demographic-specific ministries, humanitarian programs, and digital training and streaming platforms.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Religious Denomination Services

NAICS

Religious Organizations (8131), Religious Organizations (813110), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Local Congregations & Worship Communities (Churches, Mosques, Temples, Synagogues) (BPAGAJAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Faith-Based Missions & Evangelism Organizations (Domestic & International) (BPAGAJAE), Faith-Based Media, Publishing & Broadcasting (Radio, TV, Digital, Press) (BPAGAJAI)

Keywords

• Pentecostal church services
• Minister credentialing programs
• Global missionary services
• Religious publishing
• Humanitarian disaster relief

Headquarters

HQ city

Hazelwood

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Tithes and Offerings: Member and church contributions collected during worship services. Local churches remit portions to district and general church operations.
2. Missions Giving: Churches contribute to global and North American missions. In 2025, churches gave $62 million to missions. Includes special offerings like 'I AM GLOBAL' and 'Move the Mission'.
3. Publishing and Resources: Pentecostal Publishing House sells books, magazines, DVDs, CDs and other ministry resources.
4. Conference and Event Revenue: Registration fees and merchandise from General Conference, North American Youth Congress, and other events.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The United Pentecostal Church International is a global Oneness Pentecostal denomination that operates a worldwide network of 43,000 churches across 238 nations, delivering worship services, minister credentialing, theological education, discipleship and abuse-prevention training, print and digital publishing, global missionary coordination, and humanitarian aid and disaster relief programs to its 5.5 million members.

Product overview

United Pentecostal Church International operates as a global Pentecostal church organization with a diverse portfolio of ministries, digital platforms, and publications. The core offerings include church finder/locator services and various ministry divisions (Children's, Youth, Men's, Women's, Global Missions, North American Missions). Key digital products include SafeChurch (abuse prevention training platform), Ministry Central (minister credentialing and training portal), and Discipleship Now (discipleship and streaming platform). Print offerings include Pentecostal Publishing House and Pentecostal Life Magazine. Humanitarian ministries include Compassion Services International and Reach Out America. The organization hosts major events including General Conference and North American Youth Congress. All products function as separate ministry tools rather than an integrated platform-plus-modules architecture.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SafeChurch
• Ministry Central
• Discipleship Now
• UPC World Connect
• Pentecostal Publishing House
• Pentecostal Life Magazine
• InsideOut Webzine
• General Conference
• North American Youth Congress (NAYC)
• Urshan College
• Urshan Graduate School of Theology
• Global Missions
• North American Missions
• Compassion Services International (CSi)
• Reach Out America
• UPCI Children's Ministries
• UPCI Youth Ministries

Quantifiable outcome

• 5.5 million members served globally
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• National Volunteer Organizations Assisting in Disaster (NVOAD)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerReach Out America is a member of NVOAD, enabling coordination with other disaster relief organizations for more effective humanitarian response during natural disasters and emergencies.
• Compassion Services International (CSi)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHumanitarian aid organization distributing relief supplies globally. Distributed approximately $200,000 in aid to Ukraine churches and partnered with refugee housing organizations in Poland. Active in disaster relief and refugee assistance.
• Reach Out AmericacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEndorsed UPCI disaster relief ministry and member of NVOAD. Has distributed over $10 million in relief/humanitarian supplies. Active in tornado, hurricane, and disaster response across the U.S.
• Next Town MinistriesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerChurch planting ministry that launched Bible study groups in underserved areas. Received donated church building in Milbank, SD. Works to reduce distance between people and access to church in rural areas.
• Urshan CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHigher education institution affiliated with UPCI in Wentzville, MO, offering theological education and ministry training. Site of Global Council meeting activities and Graduate School of Theology.
• Charitable Partner for Refugee HousingminorOthersPartnership with unnamed charitable organization to secure refugee housing in Poland for Ukrainian refugees displaced by war.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Assemblies of God: The Assemblies of God is the largest U.S. Pentecostal denomination and a direct peer to UPCI in theology, governance, and global missions footprint. Both compete for the same Pentecostal member pool and operate parallel district structures, missions programs, and educational institutions.
• Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee): The Church of God (Cleveland, TN) is a major Pentecostal-Holiness denomination with comparable global missions scope, district-based governance, and a publishing/educational arm. It competes with UPCI for Pentecostal adherents and missionary candidates across North America and internationally.
• Church of God in Christ (COGIC): COGIC is one of the largest historically Black Pentecostal denominations, structurally and operationally comparable to UPCI with district governance, missionary deployment, and youth conventions at scale. Both target the U.S. Pentecostal member base, though COGIC serves an African-American demographic while UPCI is more multiethnic in the U.S.
• Foursquare Church: The Foursquare Church is a Pentecostal denomination with similar district governance, missions programs, and credentialed minister pipeline. Comparable in scale to UPCI's North American footprint and directly competes for the same evangelical-Pentecostal member demographic.
• Church of the Nazarene: The Church of the Nazarene is a Holiness/Wesleyan denomination overlapping the broader evangelical-charismatic space UPCI occupies. It has comparable district governance, educational institutions, and global missions program, competing for similar conservative-Christian member demographics.
• Christian and Missionary Alliance (C&MA): The Christian and Missionary Alliance is an evangelical denomination with a strong global-missions identity comparable to UPCI's Global Missions division. Both prioritize church planting internationally and maintain parallel credentialing and educational infrastructure for ministers.

Regional players

• Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada (PAOC): PAOC is the principal Pentecostal denomination in Canada and operates with district structures, missions programs, and credentialing analogous to UPCI's Canadian district. It is a regional peer competing with UPCI for Canadian constituents who are adjacent to UPCI's 1M-member North American base.

Broad incumbents

• Southern Baptist Convention: The Southern Baptist Convention is the largest U.S. Protestant denomination and a broad incumbent in the religious organization space. While non-Pentecostal and doctrinally distinct, SBC competes for the same North American evangelical/missions donor base and operates comparable publishing, missions, and seminary infrastructure.
• Seventh-day Adventist Church: The Seventh-day Adventist Church operates a global denomination structure with extensive publishing, education, and humanitarian ministries analogous to UPCI. Comparable scale in 200+ countries with centralized administrative headquarters and parallel digital outreach capabilities.

Others

• Pentecostal World Fellowship: Pentecostal World Fellowship is the global umbrella organization for classical Trinitarian Pentecostal denominations. It represents the broader ecclesiastical network UPCI is doctrinally distinct from, but serves as a coordinating body for the global Pentecostal movement UPCI operates within.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/UPCIORG
• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/UnitedPentecostalChurchInternational
• Facebookfacebook.com/upci.org
• Instagraminstagram.com/upciorg
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/united-pentecostal-church-internation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Subsidiaries23 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about United Pentecostal Church International