BRENTWOOD, Tenn. — Senior pastors at Southern Baptist churches have had to make do with small pay increases with less purchasing power recently.
Photo courtesy of Lifeway Research.
Compared to two years ago, the average Southern Baptist pastor’s pay package and total compensation grew slightly while still trailing inflation, according to recently revised numbers from a study conducted by Baptist state conventions along with Lifeway Research and GuideStone Financial Resources. The numbers were revised from a release last month.
“We know it is helpful to churches to consider fair compensation by using estimates of pay among other Southern Baptist church staff and accounting for cost-of-living increases,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research. “We are constantly working to make our estimates from the SBC Compensation Study as accurate as possible.”
The Consumer Price Index (CPI), the most widely used measure of inflation, climbed 6.3 percent since 2024. Meanwhile, the average compensation for full-time senior pastors grew 5.1 percent, and the average pastor’s total pay package had the same 5.1 percent growth over the same period.
Other full-time staff ministers also saw average increases in their compensation (4.9 percent) and pay package (5.3 percent) below inflation levels. Among full-time church staff, only the office personnel saw their salary (9.2 percent) and total pay package (8.5 percent) outpace inflation.
“Healthy churches and healthy pastors go hand in hand,” said Hance Dilbeck, president and CEO of GuideStone. “When a church thoughtfully invests in the compensation and well-being of its pastor, it is investing in the long-term effectiveness of its ministry. Fair and appropriate compensation can help reduce unnecessary financial pressures, strengthen a pastor family’s resilience, and provide greater freedom to focus on the ministry to which he has been called. We hope these findings give church leaders a helpful starting point as they make decisions that strengthen both their pastors and their congregations.”
Over the past four years, pay and benefits for all church staff have kept up with or exceeded inflation. While the CPI increased 12.7 percent since 2022, senior pastor compensation (14.9 percent) and pay package (13.4 percent), other staff minister compensation (12.7 percent) and pay package (13.5 percent) and full-time office personnel compensation (20.3 percent) and pay package (20.9 percent) have all grown by at least the rate of inflation.
For more information, view the complete study report and the regression report, and visit the online compensation tool.
Methodology
The 2026 Southern Baptist Church Compensation Study was conducted by Baptist state conventions along with GuideStone Financial Resources and Lifeway Research. The study was conducted between April 29 and June 29, 2026. Data acquired by the study can be accessed at LifewayResearch.com/compensation-data. Responses from 4,449 full-time senior pastors, staff ministers and office personnel were used in this report. Responses for senior pastors were weighted by average attendance to more accurately reflect the population.
This article was originally published by Baptist Press in partnership with Lifeway Research.
TO OUR READERS: The mission of MinistryWatch is to help Christian donors become more faithful stewards of the resources God has entrusted to them. Do you know of a story that will help us fulfill our mission, or do you want to give us feedback about this or any other story? If so, please email us at info@ministrywatch.com.
Access to MinistryWatch content is free. However, we hope you will support our work with your prayers and financial gifts. To make a donation, click here.