MemberMouse vs Paid Memberships Pro (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Paid Memberships Pro grades higher than MemberMouse: 2.4 against 1.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Paid Memberships Pro grades higher on the free plan. They get the same grade on value for money, features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
MemberMouse
WordPress membership plugin with tiered yearly licenses
Paid Memberships Pro
Open-source WordPress membership plugin with managed hosting
Which one is for you
Pick MemberMouse if
- Fits if you sell memberships from a WordPress site
- Works for people who already use ActiveCampaign or ConvertKit
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a free plan or trial, as there is neither
- Pricey if you stay past year one: the $149.50, $249.50 and $349.50 intro prices double
- Watch out: gateways beyond Stripe, quizzes and certificates need Plus or Pro
- Watch out: it runs only on self-hosted WordPress, so hosting is yours
Pick Paid Memberships Pro if
- Fits if you run WordPress and want paid membership with free software
- Works for developers who will add the add-ons they need
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you don't want WordPress, because it only runs there
- Tight if you stay free: no license key, no support and no premium add-ons
- Pricey if you want managed hosting: that starts on Max at $99 a month
- Watch out: Max plans are billed per server, and Standard covers one site with no hosting
How we grade them
| 1.8GPAMemberMouseWeak | 2.4GPAPaid Memberships ProFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CBasic is $299 a year at renewal, about $24.90 a month, between the cheapest quarter ($20) and the middle ($37). The first year is $149.50. | CThe core is free but needs your own WordPress hosting, so it counts as a middle price. Standard is $49 a month and Max $99. |
| Free plan and trial | FNo free plan and no trial are on record. A 14-day money-back guarantee is not a trial. | BSelf-host the core plugin with 25 free add-ons and payment gateways at no cost. There is no support and no premium add-ons. |
| Features | BContent protection, drip, payments, courses, email and affiliate hooks and reporting. Quizzes, certificates and extra gateways are on dearer plans. | BRestricting content, payment gateways and many add-ons, with managed hosting on Max. Nothing in the listing is missing from the job. |
| Ease of use | DIt needs a self-hosted WordPress site, and no store rating is on record. | DIt runs only on WordPress, which you host, unless you pay for Max managed hosting. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, with Stripe, PayPal, ActiveCampaign, Zapier, LearnDash and more on the list. No app. | BWeb only, with Stripe, PayPal, Paystack and CCBill gateways. |
| Best for | paid memberships on WordPress | a free membership plugin for WordPress |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: MemberMouse and Paid Memberships Pro. How we grade
Price against what you get
MemberMouse starts at $24.92 a month when paid by the year and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Paid Memberships Pro starts at $49 a month and scores 2.3.
They score the same, and MemberMouse starts $24.08 a month lower. Of the other course and community platforms on the chart, 7 score higher than MemberMouse for less, and 13 score higher than Paid Memberships Pro for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Paid Memberships Pro is open source and self-hostable, according to its own site.
- MemberMouse also covers marketing automation, reports and online courses.
- Paid Memberships Pro also covers templates and paid newsletters.
At a glance
| MemberMouse | Paid Memberships Pro | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Free plan |
| Starts at | $299 per year at renewal, after a first year at $149.50 | $49 per month for Standard (self-hosted), or a free self-hosted core |
| Free plan | None | Self-host the open-source PMPro platform with the core plugin, 25 free add-ons and payment gateways; no support or premium add-ons. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | MemberMouse | Paid Memberships Pro |
| Price read from | membermouse.com | paidmembershipspro.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
MemberMouse
- It runs only inside a self-hosted WordPress site; hosting is your job.
- The page says all annual renewals are at full price, so year two costs double the intro price.
- Gateways beyond Stripe, and quizzes and certificates, need Plus or Pro.
- A 14-day money-back guarantee applies to purchases.
Paid Memberships Pro
- It runs only on WordPress; Free has no license key or support.
- Standard covers one site and does not include hosting.
- Max plans are billed per server, with the vendor saying a 100-day money-back guarantee applies.
Key features
MemberMouse
- Content protection and drip
- Gate pages and posts by membership level in bulk, and schedule content to release over time.
- Payments
- Stripe on every plan; PayPal and Braintree from Plus; Authorize.Net and ClickBank on Pro. One-click purchases and upsells.
- Courses
- A courses add-on is included from Basic; Plus adds quizzes and certificates for those courses.
- Email and affiliate integrations
- Basic lists 7 email integrations including ConvertKit, Drip and ActiveCampaign, plus Zapier and affiliate tracking.
- Reporting
- Standard reports and analytics on Basic; the full analytics and reporting suite on Pro.
- Developer tools
- WordPress hooks and developer tools, and a staging license on every plan.
Paid Memberships Pro
- Restrict content
- Limit pages and posts to members by level, with registration, subscriptions and member emails built in.
- Payment gateways
- Gateways listed include Stripe, PayPal, Paystack, CCBill and manual payment.
- Add-ons
- 25 free add-ons come with the free plugin and 54 premium add-ons come with paid plans.
- Managed hosting on Max
- Max plans run on a dedicated server with caching, daily backups, a CDN and free migration from other platforms.
- Do It For Me credits
- Max includes 25 credits every month for custom code, add-on setup and design changes, which the vendor quotes per request.
- Use cases
- Pages cover courses, paid newsletters, private video, podcasts, member directories and communities.
Plans
MemberMouse
Basic$299
per year at renewal, after a first year at $149.50
Stripe payments, courses, 7 email integrations, Zapier, drip content, coupons, gifting and standard reports.
Plus$499
per year at renewal, after a first year at $249.50
Adds PayPal and Braintree payments, social sign-up and login, and quizzes and certificates for courses.
Pro$699
per year at renewal, after a first year at $349.50
Adds Authorize.Net and ClickBank, billing-date management, full analytics, employee access control and priority support.
Paid Memberships Pro
Free$0
Open-source core plugin and 25 free add-ons that you host yourself, without support.
Standard$49
per month, billed monthly ($499 billed yearly)
1-site license with all 54 premium add-ons and support; you host the site.
Max$99
per month, billed monthly ($999 billed yearly)
Managed hosting, free migration and 25 credits a month; the page crosses out a normal price of $149.
Max 2x$299
per month, billed monthly ($2,999 billed yearly)
Twice the server and 50 credits a month, for busier sites.
Ways to pay less
MemberMouse
- Other savings
50% introductory first-year price
Basic is $149.50, Plus $249.50 and Pro $349.50 in the first year, against $299, $499 and $699 regular. The page says annual renewals are at full price.
Paid Memberships Pro
- Annual discount
Pay annually, save about 2 months
The pricing page lists yearly totals of $499 for Standard, $999 for Max and $2,999 for Max 2x against monthly plans of $49, $99 and $299.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, MemberMouse or Paid Memberships Pro?
As of Nov 13, 2026, MemberMouse is cheaper to start with: $24.92 a month when paid by the year, against $49 a month for Paid Memberships Pro. MemberMouse starts at $299 per year at renewal, after a first year at $149.50, and Paid Memberships Pro starts at $49 per month for Standard (self-hosted), or a free self-hosted core.
Which has a free plan, MemberMouse or Paid Memberships Pro?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Paid Memberships Pro has a free plan. MemberMouse does not.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.