If you want to know how to setup a membership site with WordPress then the plugins covered in this article will help you with your objective. Not only are these plugins packed with features, but they are, for the most part, very easy to setup and use. The tools listed cover a range of budgets, from free to premium, and they are ideal for those just starting out, through to site owners looking for a high end professional solution.
In fact, if you need to add a members’ area to your website, and are using WordPress then you will be pleasantly surprised by some of the tools available to help you accomplish this. Keep reading to discover the best membership plugins for WordPress and get your site up and running today.
MemberPress
This is a well-regarded professional membership plugin for WordPress. It’s not free but it should have all the features you need and more to setup a fully functional membership website.
Once installed, this plugin allows you to restrict access to all the content on your WordPress site including pages, posts, categories, tags and files you’ve uploaded. Some other top features of MemberPress include:
Management of unlimited members
Create unlimited access rules
Offer unlimited pricing pages
Sell an unlimited amount of digital products
Accept payments with PayPal Express Checkout and Stripe
Automatically grant and revoke access when members join or unsubscribe
Content dripping with timed release of access
Premium support
When it comes to pricing, there are two plans available: business and developer. Both are billed yearly, but you can choose to pay just once and go on using the plugin without support and updates.
If you want a premium membership plugin that covers all the bases and gives maximum flexibility then MemberPress is a great choice.
Pros: This is a well-regarded option that is very easy to use. The support for digital products as well as managing a membership site makes this a versatile plugin.
Cons: The annual billing could add up to be expensive over time, but the option to renew and use the plugin unsupported is there.
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MagicMembers
If you are looking for a solution that will enable you to deliver an online course, or need a way to drip feed content over time, instead of making all your premium content available to your members in one go, then the content dripping abilities of MagicMembers are top notch.
While some other plugins feature this ability, including MemberPress, MagicMembers continues to draw praise for doing it the best. However, that is not all this plugin does, other top features include:
Multiple payment gateway compatibility
Integration with email newsletters such as Aweber and MailChimp
Payment subscription support including daily, weekly, monthly and more
Download manager for restricting file access
Sequential course delivery for content dripping
Pay Per View for paid access to specific content such as videos
Automated expiration email reminders
The list of features is outstanding and is well-worth checking out. This is a premium membership plugin for WordPress, so you will have to pay to get access to it, but hopefully the revenue generated by your membership course will cover the cost in no time. There are three price plans to choose from and each comes with detailed support to help you get up and running in no time at all.
The only downside with this plugin is that the control panel doesn’t use the standard WordPress interface. This means the settings have the feel of being tacked on to your WordPress dashboard rather than seamlessly integrated. While this isn’t a major issue, it can make using the plugin feel less intuitive than it should be and might be something to consider when deploying MembershipMagic for clients.
Overall though, if you want a feature packed plugin that excels at content dripping and sequential course delivery, as well as everything else associated with running a membership site, then MembershipMagic is a highly recommended option.
Pros: The strong content dripping and sequential content delivery make this plugin ideal for those looking for offer a premium or members only online course. Also supports multiple payment gateways for making it even easier for your customers to sign up.
Cons: The interface uses a custom design, rather than following the standard WordPress interface, which might be confusing for some users.
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OptimizePress 2
We recently published a full OptimizePress 2 review, covering the best features and usability of this landing page builder for WordPress. However, it’s worth another mention here as it does allow you to enhance the membership functionality of your WordPress site.
OptimizePress 2 comes with a number of templates specifically for dealing with membership sites and is a great tool for those looking to optimise the signup pages of their site. The page builder makes it very easy to setup and customize the landing pages for your membership offering, and the membership portal aspect of the plugin works with a range of membership plugins. If you want to customize the sign up pages, login forms and membership lesson and module listings then OptimizePress, used in conjunction with a supported membership plugin equals a powerful combination.
Pros: Comes with a very large selection of templates. The page builder is also very easy to use, giving you access to an unlimited amount of designs. Ideal for any type of landing or registration page, not just membership sites.
Cons: Does not delivery membership management functionality to your site, and must be used in conjunction with a supported dedicated plugin.
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Paid Memberships Pro
This is a great option that will cost you nothing to get started with. Yes, this is a free membership plugin that you can begin using today in order to restrict access to the content on your WordPress site to selected users. There are also two premium options for this tool. The premium price plans will give you access support including documentation, premium content and members-only forums, but apart from that, it’s the same functionality.
As for the plug in itself, it’s got a great feature set making it a solid choice for anyone looking for a no-budget tool. Some of the standout features include:
Unlimited Membership Levels
Easy Payment Gateway Integration
Flexible Pricing and Free Trial Periods for your members
Accept recurring subscriptions
Set access and membership levels for individual pages and posts
Customise the notification email messages
Edit or replace the default plugin pages for login etc.
Offer discount codes
The main feature missing is the ability to drip content over time. This feature is popular with those offering online courses and who want to automatically make content available to their members at pre-determined intervals. If you run a course or membership programme that needs this functionality then Paid Memberships Pro isn’t for you, unless you combine it with an additional plugin that handles course delivery.
As this is a popular membership plugin, there are a number of third party addons available to provide connectivity and integration with other popular services such as MailChimp and Aweber.
Pros: The main draw of this plugin is that it is free to use on as many sites as you want, it also comes packed with features. The third party addons allow for easy integration with a range of other services you are probably already using.
Cons: The lack of time-released content, made available automatically at set intervals, is missing here. If that is something you will need then you might be better off going elsewhere, or combing this plugin with another dedicated service to handle content dripping.
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Conclusion: The Best Membership Plugin for WordPress
With high quality free and premium options available, anyone can start offering restricted access content on their site to their members and subscribers. Whether you want to build a private community or a premium online course, you should be able to setup your site in a very short amount of time using one of these plugins.
While the above plugins only represents a small sample of the many membership tools out there for WordPress, they should be enough for most user’s needs. Unfortunately there is no one size fits all best WordPress membership plugin, as while the above are all well rounded products, they have their own strengths and weakness, not to mention price tags.
Before making a choice, it’s a good idea to be clear on exactly how you plan to manage your members area and what features you will need, such as content dripping, course delivery, recurring payments, ease of use, custom landing pages or pay per view access. Once you know your requirements, making a decision will be much easier.
Have you setup a membership site and if so which plugin did you use?
The post The Best WordPress Membership Plugins to Match any Budget is written by Joe Fylan and appeared first on WPKube.