One-Click Install via Softaculous

Softaculous is a one-click installer built into most shared hosting control panels (cPanel, Plesk, DirectAdmin, etc.). It installs ChurchCRM in about 90 seconds with no manual file uploads, database creation, or configuration required.

Easiest option for most churches

If your hosting provider offers cPanel or Plesk, check for Softaculous first — it's the fastest path from "nothing" to a working ChurchCRM.

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Does my host support Softaculous?

Log in to your hosting control panel and look for:

• A Softaculous Apps Installer icon (usually in the "Software" section)
• An Auto Installers section listing WordPress, Joomla, and other apps

If you see ChurchCRM listed, you're set. If Softaculous is present but ChurchCRM isn't listed, contact your host — they may need to enable it.

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Step-by-step: Installing via Softaculous

1. Open Softaculous from your hosting control panel.

2. Search for ChurchCRM and click it.

3. Click Install Now.

4. Fill in the installation form:

   Field	What to enter
   Protocol	https:// (if SSL is set up) or http://
   Domain	Your domain or subdomain
   In Directory	Leave blank to install at the root, or enter churchcrm to install at yourdomain.com/churchcrm
   Database Name	Softaculous fills this in — leave as-is unless you have a preference
   Admin Username	Choose a username for the admin account
   Admin Password	Choose a strong password
   Admin Email	Your email address
   Church Name	Your church's name (can be changed later)

5. Click Install. Softaculous creates the database, uploads the files, and configures the application.

6. When complete, Softaculous shows you two links:

   • Site URL — your ChurchCRM login page
   • Admin URL — same as site URL for ChurchCRM

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First login

Navigate to your ChurchCRM URL. You'll be prompted to:

1. Change the admin password (required on first login)
2. Complete the Church Information setup (name, address, timezone)

See First Run Configuration for a walkthrough of what comes next.

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Upgrading a Softaculous install

Softaculous can also handle upgrades:

1. Open Softaculous in your control panel
2. Go to Installations → find ChurchCRM
3. Click the upgrade icon (arrow) if a new version is shown
4. Softaculous backs up your files and database, then applies the new version

Alternatively, use ChurchCRM's built-in upgrade wizard (Admin → System → Upgrade) — it works the same way regardless of how ChurchCRM was originally installed. See Upgrade Guide.

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Softaculous not available?

Your situation	Recommended path
cPanel but no Softaculous	cPanel Shared Hosting — manual upload method
VPS or dedicated server (Ubuntu)	Self-Hosted on Ubuntu
VPS or dedicated server (Rocky Linux / RHEL)	Self-Hosted on Rocky Linux
Microsoft Azure	Azure
Docker	Installation Overview — FrankenPHP image

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See Also

• First Run Configuration
• Upgrade Guide
• System Requirements