Gated content, tiered access, recurring billing, and member dashboards. Built around retention, not just registration. We work with two major WordPress membership stacks to get the right architecture for your business.
The right membership stack depends on whether membership is your product or a feature of your store. We build with both, and here's how they compare.
Two plugins working together: WooCommerce Memberships handles access rules and content gating, while WooCommerce Subscriptions manages recurring billing and dunning. The natural choice when you already sell products and want to add membership tiers, VIP pricing, or gated content on top.
Native WooCommerce integration: member discounts, restricted products, free shipping perks
Mature dunning system with configurable retry rules and progressive notifications
Drip content scheduling with trial period control, built into core
Four membership models: subscription-tied, unlimited, set-length, and fixed-date
40+ payment gateways with automatic recurring support
Teams add-on for group/corporate memberships
Inherits the entire WooCommerce ecosystem: 100+ gateways, CRM, analytics
Membership tied directly to product purchases and subscription status
Drip content with trial period awareness included at no extra cost
One of the most battle-tested dunning/retry systems in WordPress
HPOS and Cart/Checkout blocks compatible
Member perks like product discounts, early access, and free shipping built in
Requires two paid plugins ($478/yr) with no free tier available
Depends on WooCommerce, so it's overkill if you're not selling products
WP-Cron dependency for renewals; a real cron job is recommended for reliability
Page caching can serve restricted content to non-members if not configured carefully
eCommerce stores adding member pricing, subscription boxes with gated content, B2B wholesale tiers, and any business where products and membership are intertwined.
WooCommerce Memberships: $199/yr. WooCommerce Subscriptions: $279/yr. Both needed for recurring membership billing, $478/yr total for one site.
A standalone membership plugin that doesn't depend on WooCommerce. Best when membership IS the business, not an add-on to an existing store. Open-source core with a generous free tier and 65+ add-ons for everything from BuddyPress communities to Zapier automation.
Unlimited membership levels with unique pricing and access rules
Built-in recurring billing via Stripe and PayPal, no extra plugin needed
Content restriction at page, post, category, and custom post type level
65+ add-ons: BuddyPress, bbPress, LearnDash, Zapier, email marketing
Regional gateways including Paystack (Africa) and Payfast (South Africa)
REST API with 13+ endpoints for headless and custom integrations
Membership-first architecture, not bolted onto ecommerce
Recurring billing built into core, not a separate purchase
Genuinely usable free tier for bootstrapping
Active open-source community on GitHub
South African payment gateway support (Payfast) out of the box
Discount codes, email templates, and member management included
No longer on WordPress.org; requires manual download or their Update Manager plugin
Drip content requires the premium Series add-on
Feature-rich setups often need 5-10 add-ons installed
eCommerce capabilities require the WooCommerce integration add-on
Associations, online communities, course platforms, content publishers, and non-profits where the entire site revolves around member access.
Free tier with core features (2% Stripe surcharge). Paid plans from $347/yr (1 site) to $1,197/yr (unlimited sites). All plans remove the surcharge and unlock premium add-ons.
Not sure which stack fits? We'll help you decide.
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