What Should a Church Website Include? The Complete 2026 Guide

Someone is going to visit your church for the first time this Sunday. Before they walk through the door, they're going to check your website. They want to know three things: when do you meet, where are you, and what should they expect.

If your website can't answer those questions in under 30 seconds, you've lost them. They'll visit the church down the road that made it easy.

Your church website isn't a brochure. It's the first handshake. Here's everything it should include.

Service Times and Location

This is the single most important information on your entire website. Not your mission statement. Not your pastor's bio. Service times and location.

Put them on the homepage. Above the fold. Visible without scrolling. "Sundays at 9:00 AM and 11:00 AM" is better than "Sunday Morning Worship Experience." People are scanning for a time, not a brand name.

Include the physical address with a link to Google Maps. If your building is hard to find, add specific directions. "Enter through the double doors on the east side of the building, facing the parking lot." First-time visitors are already nervous. Don't make them wander.

A "What to Expect" Page

This is the page most church websites are missing, and it's the page first-time visitors need most.

Answer the questions a nervous visitor is actually thinking. How long is the service? What do people wear? Where do I park? What's the music like? Will I be asked to stand up or introduce myself? Is there childcare?

Be honest and specific. "Come as you are" is a nice sentiment, but "most people wear jeans and casual clothes, though some dress up" actually helps someone decide what to put on Sunday morning. "We have a nursery for ages 0-2 and a kids' program for ages 3-10 that starts after the opening music" tells a parent exactly what to expect.

Include a real photo of the entrance and interior. Not a professional glamour shot. A photo that shows what the space actually looks like.

About Your Church

Your about page tells people who you are beyond Sunday mornings. Your church's story: when was it founded, how did it start. Your beliefs or statement of faith. Denominational affiliation if applicable. Your mission in plain language.

Keep the story human. "Pastor James started this church in his living room in 2008 with six families" is more compelling than "Founded in 2008, our organization is committed to community-centered spiritual development."

Staff and Leadership Directory

List your pastoral staff, ministry leaders, and key volunteers. Name, role, photo, and a brief bio (3-5 sentences about who they are, not just what they do).

The photos matter more than you think. First-time visitors are walking into a room of strangers. Being able to recognize a face before they arrive makes it less intimidating. Use real, friendly photos.

Include contact information so people can reach specific staff. A parent looking for the children's ministry director shouldn't have to email a generic info address and hope.

Events and Calendar

Show what's happening beyond Sunday services. Small groups, Bible studies, youth programs, community events, volunteer opportunities, holiday services.

Keep it current. An events page showing last month's Easter service in July signals that nobody is maintaining the site. If you can't keep a full calendar updated, use a simpler approach: a short list of recurring events, plus a note to follow your social media for updates.

Giving and Donations

Online giving should be easy to find and easy to complete. Place a "Give" button in your main navigation, visible on every page.

Link directly to your giving platform (Tithe.ly, Pushpay, Planning Center, or PayPal) with a clear explanation of the process. If you offer recurring giving, highlight it. If giving is tax-deductible, say so. If there are multiple funds, explain what each supports.

The fewer clicks between "I want to give" and "I gave," the better.

Sermon Archive

If your church records sermons, put them on your website. Members who missed Sunday can catch up. First-time visitors can preview the teaching style. And it gives search engines fresh content to index.

Organize by date, series, speaker, or topic. Make the media actually playable. Don't link to a Google Drive folder with 200 unlabeled MP3 files. Embed a player that works on mobile.

Ministries and Programs

Every ministry deserves its own section with a clear description. Who it's for, when and where it meets, what a typical gathering looks like, and how to get involved.

Write for someone who knows nothing about your church. "Wednesday Night Warriors" means nothing to a visitor. "Wednesday night Bible study for men, 7:00 PM in Room 204" means everything.

Contact Information

Offer multiple ways to reach the church. A contact form, a phone number, a physical address, an email, and office hours.

Include social media links, but only to accounts you actually maintain. A Facebook page with the last post from 2023 does more harm than good.

If your church has a process for connecting newcomers (welcome class, lunch with the pastor, connect card), describe it and make it easy to sign up.

Accessibility: Welcoming Everyone

Accessibility on your church website isn't a technical checkbox. It's ministry.

Your congregation includes people with low vision, people who are deaf, people who use wheelchairs, and people who navigate the web using only a keyboard. When your website is accessible, you're welcoming them before they ever walk through your doors.

Consider including information about physical accessibility at your building too: wheelchair access, accessible parking, hearing loop systems, large print materials. A visitor with a disability is already wondering whether they can physically attend. Answer that question on your website.

Mobile Responsiveness

More than half of church website visits happen on phones. A visitor standing in their kitchen on Sunday morning is looking at your site on a 6-inch screen.

Service times and address should be visible without scrolling. The "Get Directions" link should open their maps app. The phone number should be tappable. The giving button should work.

What You Don't Need

You don't need a flashy animated intro. You don't need background music that auto-plays. You don't need a members-only login portal (unless you have a specific, well-maintained reason). You don't need a custom app. Your mobile-responsive website is your app.

Simple, clear, fast, accessible. That's what a church website needs to be.

Getting Started

If your current site is missing half the things on this list, start with the essentials: service times above the fold, a "what to expect" page, and accurate contact information. Those three things will serve more first-time visitors than any other changes you could make.

When you're ready for a complete site, Laurel Web Co. builds church websites with accessibility as a core feature. We also offer pre-built church website templates starting at $247, ready to customize and deploy.