Compare · Head to head
GiftWell vs the Lifeway Spiritual Gifts Survey
The Lifeway Spiritual Gifts Survey is a free printable PDF of 80 statements across 16 gifts, scored by hand out of 25 and drawn as a bar graph. GiftWell is about 60 statements across nine gifts on a phone, shows bands with the margin drawn, and reaches the church's follow-up list. Which fits your church.
Checked 20 October 2026. Prices and features are from Lifeway Spiritual Gifts Survey's own pages on that date. Where a page does not mention something, this says so rather than guessing.
At a glance
As of 20 October 2026, from the Lifeway PDF and GiftWell's own pages.
| Lifeway Spiritual Gifts Survey | GiftWell | |
|---|---|---|
| Format | printable PDF, self-scored | phone or any browser; no account |
| Cost | free | free to take; a church's first 50 people free, then $100/yr for 150 |
| Length | 80 statements, 1 to 5 scale | about 60 statements, about 10 minutes |
| Gifts | 16, five statements each, scored out of 25 | 9, five statements each, scored out of 25 |
| How a result is shown | totals copied onto a sheet and drawn as a bar graph | bands with a ±2 margin drawn, Romans 12 order, never ranked |
| What the statements ask | a mix of "concrete actions, descriptive traits, and statements of belief" (its own instructions) | things that have happened, mostly in the past year |
| For the church | the paper, if the person hands it in | follow-up list with the person's words and consent; serving teams; placements with a 90-day check; Planning Center |
| Dated | © 2003, revised 2022 | maintained; the why page carries the research |
The test itself
The Lifeway survey and GiftWell share a design: five statements per gift, scored out of 25. Lifeway covers 16 gifts, so a person answers 80 statements; GiftWell covers nine, so about 60. Lifeway's 16 include the gifts of the Spirit from 1 Corinthians 12 and some Ephesians 4 roles; GiftWell scores the Romans 12 gifts plus administration and hospitality, gives a first look at Ephesians 4 in a short second part, and leaves the gifts of the Spirit to an optional third part a church can turn on.
Lifeway's own instructions say its statements are a mix of actions, traits and beliefs. GiftWell's are written as behaviour, because people answer "I am patient" with the person they hope to be and "someone came to me with a hard thing this year" with what happened. The research is on why we ask what we ask.
How results are shown
Lifeway has the person add up each gift's five answers, copy the totals onto a sheet and draw a bar graph. GiftWell does the arithmetic and then draws the margin: every gift within three points of the highest is in the lead band, the next within two points is "at the edge", and inside a band the gifts sit in Romans 12 order. The same out-of-25 score is honest to about two points either way; Lifeway leaves the person to read the bars, and most people read the tallest as first and the next as second.
What happens after
A Lifeway sheet ends in a folder or a drawer, unless the church collects them and types them up. GiftWell's result reaches the church's follow-up list the moment it is finished, with the person's own words and whether they consented to contact, next to the serving teams that need those gifts. A pastor logs the conversation and checks 90 days later on whether a placement took. Band names sync to Planning Center.
Who should choose Lifeway
- A church that wants paper, in a room with no phones, or for people who prefer a pencil.
- A church that wants 16 gifts including the gifts of the Spirit on one scale.
- A church that wants nothing stored anywhere.
- A church with no budget at all and no wish to run a follow-up list.
Who should choose GiftWell
- A church that wants people to finish on a phone, from a QR code in the bulletin.
- A church that wants the result shown as bands with the margin drawn.
- A church that wants the result in a leader's hands the same day, with consent.
- A church that wants Planning Center to hold the band names.
- A church that wants a free start for its first 50 people.
Switching
A church with a drawer of Lifeway sheets can keep them. GiftWell's Growing plan imports homegrown and SHAPE results; Lifeway totals can be entered the same way. Most churches run GiftWell for new people and leave the sheets where they are.
Questions people ask
Is the Lifeway Spiritual Gifts Survey free?
Yes. It is a printable PDF (© 2003, revised 2022) that a person scores by hand. GiftWell is free to take as well, and a church's first 50 people are free with no card.
Does GiftWell measure the same gifts as Lifeway?
Partly. Both score each gift from five statements out of 25. Lifeway covers 16 gifts including the gifts of the Spirit; GiftWell scores nine (Romans 12 plus administration and hospitality), gives a first look at Ephesians 4 leanings, and leaves the gifts of the Spirit to an optional part a church can turn on.
Can we put the Lifeway survey online instead?
Lifeway publishes it as a PDF. Several paid tools, such as ServeWire, describe gift lists drawn from Lifeway resources. GiftWell has its own statements; on the Growing plan a church can add its own statements with the builder.
Which is more accurate?
Neither has clinical-grade evidence, and the same is true of every gifts inventory. Both score a gift out of 25 from five statements, which is honest to about two points either way. GiftWell draws that margin on the result; Lifeway leaves the person to read a bar graph.
See the result for yourself
Ten minutes on your phone, then the pastor's view of your own result in a demo church. If it fits, your first 50 people are free and there is no card to enter.
This page as Markdown, for notes or an AI assistant. Every GiftWell feature named here is explained in the documentation.