If your church uses Planning Center (PCO) as a church management system, the Text In Church integration is a great way to keep your contacts, messaging, and data organized in one place. This article covers how the integration works, answers common questions, walks through the setup steps, and explains how to manage syncing groups and connect with youth contacts.

The Planning Center integration connects with Planning Center People's Lists and Planning Center Groups. You select which Lists or Groups to sync into Text In Church, and they are created as syncing Groups in your account -- with the same name as the Planning Center list or group. You can then attach Keywords, Connect Cards, and Automated Workflows to those groups for follow-up.

When contacts are added to a List or Group in Planning Center, they sync into the matching Group in Text In Church. Contacts added to a syncing Group in Text In Church are also synced back to Planning Center People.

Important: Planning Center Lists are built off of rules (for example, "Any record created in the last 14 days with membership type of Member"). If a contact you add to a Text In Church syncing Group doesn't meet the rule for the connected Planning Center List, they will be removed from the Text In Church Group on the next sync. Keep your list rules up to date to avoid unexpected removals.

Similarly, if a contact is removed from a Planning Center List or Group, they will also be removed from the matching Text In Church Group.

1. What information is required for a contact to sync from Planning Center into Text In Church?
Each contact must have at least one of the following: a valid mobile phone number or a valid email address. Text In Church can sync first name, last name, mobile phone number, email address, and mailing address.

2. What information can sync between Text In Church and Planning Center?
First name, last name, email address, phone number, and birthday can sync in both directions.

3. How are duplicates handled?
Within Text In Church, email addresses and phone numbers cannot be shared between contacts. If duplicate or shared contact details are detected during sync, one contact will sync while the others are flagged as duplicates. If a contact created in Text In Church matches an existing record in Planning Center, the records are matched to prevent duplicates on the Planning Center side. Learn more about sync failures here.

4. How are opted-out or inactive records handled?
If a contact replies STOP, they are opted out in Text In Church only -- this does not affect their Planning Center record. If a record is marked inactive in Planning Center, it will not sync into Text In Church. More about opting out here.

5. How are child records handled?
Records marked as "Child" in Planning Center will not sync into Text In Church. Avoid syncing lists that may contain child records. If you need to communicate with youth, see the Connecting with Youth section below for alternatives.

6. Where should I edit or delete records?
Planning Center is the master database. Edit or delete records in Planning Center, and those changes will sync into Text In Church. If you make a change on the Text In Church side, it will be overwritten when the next sync runs.

7. How often can I sync my groups?
You can trigger a manual sync at any time. You can also set each syncing group to sync nightly, weekly on a specific night, or monthly on a specific night. For real-time updates, enable Sync Instantly when there are changes to sync as soon as contact changes are detected in Planning Center.

8. Are there additional fees for the Planning Center integration?
No. Integration costs are included in your existing Text In Church subscription.

9. Can contacts sync from Text In Church back to Planning Center?
Yes. The integration is a two-way sync. Contacts you add to a syncing Group in Text In Church will sync into Planning Center People on the next scheduled or manual sync. Make sure those contacts meet the list rules for the connected Planning Center List -- if they don't, they may be removed on the next sync. To avoid this, sync to a Planning Center Group instead of a rule-based List.

10. Can I automatically push a new Text In Church contact into a PCO workflow?
Yes. Add the new contact to the appropriate Text In Church syncing Group. On the Planning Center side, connect your PCO workflow to the linked list or group. When the sync runs, the contact will appear in PCO and enter the workflow automatically.

Step 1: Create Lists or Groups in Planning Center

Before connecting the integration, make sure the Lists or Groups you want to sync already exist in Planning Center. See Planning Center's help resources for how to create a List and how to create a Group.

Step 2: Make Lists and Groups visible to all Planning Center Admins

If a List or Group is not visible to all Planning Center Admins, it won't appear as an option to sync in Text In Church. In the List settings, confirm it is visible to all Planning Center Admins and that they have at least "View Only" access. Learn how to share a list here.

Step 3: Enable the integration in Text In Church

The page will redirect back to Text In Church where you can continue setup.

Step 4: Select Lists and Groups to sync

Step 5: Run the first sync

If you have a large number of contacts, the first sync may take a few hours. You can close Text In Church or continue using other parts of the app while it runs in the background. When finished, your syncing Groups will be populated to match the connected Planning Center Lists or Groups.

Once the first sync completes, your Planning Center Lists and Groups appear in the Groups section of Text In Church with a sync icon and a description indicating where the group originated from.

Syncing Groups work just like regular Text In Church Groups -- you can attach Keywords, Connect Cards, and Automated Workflows to them. Contacts you add to a syncing Group in Text In Church are also synced back to Planning Center People.

If some contacts didn't sync as expected, open the Group in Text In Church and review the Sync Failures tab for details. Common reasons include: no contact information, contact marked as a child, not meeting Planning Center list rules, or duplicate records. Use the Sync Logs feature for additional troubleshooting details.

Here's how to set up the Planning Center integration specifically for first-time guest follow-up:

Once set up, anyone who texts the Keyword or fills out the Connect Card will be created as a contact in Text In Church. On the next sync, they'll be pushed to Planning Center -- matched to an existing record if one exists, or created as new. Workflow messages will begin sending as soon as a contact is synced into the Group.

Note: If you're using a Planning Center List, you may need to manually adjust a contact's record in Planning Center to ensure they meet the list's rule -- otherwise they could be removed from the Group on the next sync.

Records marked as "Child" in Planning Center cannot sync into Text In Church. In most cases this is by design -- you're communicating with parents, not children. However, there are cases, like a youth group, where texting someone under 18 is appropriate and permitted.

If you want to bring a youth contact into Text In Church through the integration, remove the "Child" status from their Planning Center record. They'll remain in the same household in Planning Center and will sync into Text In Church as an individual contact. If you'd rather not change their status, here are two alternatives:

Option 1: CSV Import

Export your youth list from Planning Center as a CSV file (include First Name, Last Name, Email, and Mobile Phone Number columns), then import it into Text In Church under Tools. This creates a non-syncing Group that you can update quarterly or as your roster grows. On subsequent imports, existing contacts are matched by email or mobile number -- only new contacts are added.

Download our pre-formatted import template: Click here to download it.

Option 2: Keyword for a New Group

Create a new Group in Text In Church with a Keyword like YOUTH. Have youth members text in and complete a Connect Card to add themselves with their own contact info. This avoids the export/import process entirely and ensures you have current information on file.

What happens to contacts if I disconnect?
Contacts will not be deleted from Text In Church. They remain in your People section, and their Planning Center origin is noted on their profile.

What happens to syncing Groups if I disconnect?
Syncing Groups become non-syncing Groups. They are not deleted -- they continue to function like any other Text In Church Group, including members, Keywords, Workflows, and Connect Cards. Because Planning Center is the master database, if you need to fully delete a Group, delete it in Planning Center first to prevent it from being re-created on the next sync.

How to un-sync a single Group:

How to disconnect the integration entirely:

Disconnecting stops data from syncing between platforms. No data is deleted from Text In Church. Previously synced Groups become non-syncing and continue to function normally.

Still have questions? No worries, we're always happy to help!

Check out our Troubleshooting the PCO Integration article, or reach out to our Member Support team at support@textinchurch.com.