MemberPress vs Ultimate Member (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Ultimate Member grades higher than MemberPress: 2.2 against 1.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
MemberPress grades higher on ease of use. Ultimate Member grades higher on the free plan. They get the same grade on value for money, features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
MemberPress
WordPress plugin for paid memberships, courses and communities
Ultimate Member
WordPress plugin for member profiles, sign-up and directories
Which one is for you
Pick MemberPress if
- Fits if you want a membership business on a WordPress site you control
- Works for owners who want posts, courses and coaching under one login, with member data on their own host
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you want to try before you pay, as there's no trial or free version
- Skip it if you don't want to look after WordPress and hosting
- Pricey if you budget on year one, since every plan renews at double the first-year price
- Watch out: each plan covers one site, and up to 15 more are separate yearly subscriptions
- Watch out: Launch takes 4.9% a payment, and Zapier, the API, webhooks and affiliates need Scale at $999 a year
Pick Ultimate Member if
- Fits if you want member profiles and directories on a WordPress site
- Works for people happy to add extensions one by one
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a hosted service, as it runs only on your own WordPress site
- Tight if you stay free, as groups, messaging, social login and Stripe are paid extensions
- Watch out: its pricing page was blocked to us, so paid prices are not recorded
- Not for you if you want courses or memberships out of the box, since those come through add-ons
How we grade them
| 1.8GPAMemberPressWeak | 2.2GPAUltimate MemberFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CLaunch is $399 a year at renewal plus 4.9% of every payment, about $131 a month at $2,000 of sales. Growth drops the fee: $699 a year at renewal, about $58 a month ($349.50 in the first year). The middle of this category, with hosting on top. | CNo paid price is on record, so this sits in the middle. The listing says paid extensions and plans are sold separately. |
| Free plan and trial | FNothing free: no free version and no trial in the listing. You buy a yearly license to see it. | BThe core plugin is free on WordPress.org, with registration, profiles, directories and content restriction. Hosting is yours. |
| Features | CPaywall rules, memberships, a course builder, quizzes and certificates on Growth, ClubSuite forums and a member directory, and CoachKit coaching. It needs a WordPress site to be useful, and Zapier and the API wait for Scale. | CProfiles, fields, directories and restriction in the core. Groups, messaging, social login and Stripe are paid extensions, which is a gap in the core job. |
| Ease of use | CNo rating on record. You need WordPress on a host before anything else, then content rules and memberships to set up, so it takes some learning. | DIt needs a self-hosted WordPress site, and no store rating is on record. |
| Platforms and integrations | BRuns in the browser inside WordPress, with Stripe, PayPal, Square, Authorize.net, Zapier, Mailchimp, ActiveCampaign and Kit. The REST API and webhooks are on Scale. | BWeb, with WooCommerce, Stripe, Mailchimp, Zapier and bbPress on the list. No app. |
| Best for | paid memberships on your own WordPress site | free member profiles on 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: MemberPress and Ultimate Member. How we grade
Where they differ
- MemberPress also covers online courses.
- Ultimate Member also covers forms.
At a glance
| MemberPress | Ultimate Member | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Free plan |
| Starts at | $399 per year at renewal, after a first year for $199.50 | Not published |
| Free plan | None | The core plugin is listed on WordPress.org; paid extensions and paid plans are sold separately. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Caseproof, LLC | Ultimate Member |
| Price read from | memberpress.com | Not confirmed |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
MemberPress
- MemberPress needs a WordPress site. Each plan covers one site activation, staging sites included; up to 15 more are sold as separate yearly subscriptions.
- Launch takes 4.9% of every payment and accepts Stripe only; Growth and Scale drop the fee, though Stripe or PayPal charges still apply.
- First-year prices are half the list price, and every plan renews at full price: $399, $699 or $999 a year.
- Forums, coaching and quizzes start on Growth; Zapier, the REST API and webhooks, and affiliates need Scale.
Ultimate Member
- Its pricing page was blocked by a bot check, so paid plan and extension prices are not recorded here.
- It runs only inside a self-hosted WordPress site; hosting is your job.
- Groups, messaging, social login, Stripe and many other community features are paid extensions.
Key features
MemberPress
- Paywall and content rules
- Smart Rules protect pages, posts, custom post types, categories, tags, files or parts of a page by membership; dripping content on a schedule needs Growth.
- Memberships and checkout
- Unlimited one-time and recurring memberships with upgrades, downgrades and pausing, coupons, a multi-item cart and a self-serve member dashboard.
- Courses and quizzes
- A drag-and-drop curriculum builder for unlimited courses and lessons; quizzes, assignments and certificates come with Growth.
- AI Course Generator
- Describe a course and AI drafts the sections, lessons and quiz questions, using a yearly allowance of AI credits that grows with the plan.
- ClubSuite community
- Forums and private groups called Circles, member profiles and a searchable directory on Growth, with direct messaging added on Scale.
- CoachKit coaching
- Run coaching programs with unlimited coaches, clients and cohorts, milestone and habit tracking, and dashboards for coaches and clients.
Ultimate Member
- Profiles, registration and login
- Front-end user profiles, sign-up and login forms and a user account page, built with a drag-and-drop form builder.
- Custom fields and logic
- Custom form fields with conditional logic, custom user roles and automated user emails.
- Member directories
- Directories of members that can show author posts and comments on each profile.
- Content restriction
- Restrict content by logged-in status or role, with conditional navigation menus for logged-in and logged-out visitors.
- Paid extensions
- Extensions add Groups, Private Messages, Social Login, Stripe subscriptions, WooCommerce and Mailchimp integrations, and more.
- Free extensions and developer hooks
- Free extensions include Google reCAPTCHA and Online Users, and the plugin exposes actions and filters for developers.
Plans
MemberPress
Launch$399
per year at renewal, after a first year for $199.50
$199.50 the first year. One site, unlimited members and courses, Stripe only, 25,000 AI credits. MemberPress takes a 4.9% fee on each payment.
Growth$699
per year at renewal, after a first year for $349.50
$349.50 the first year. No transaction fee, PayPal and Square, forums and member directory, CoachKit, quizzes, certificates, dripping, 50,000 AI credits.
Scale$999
per year at renewal, after a first year for $499.50
$499.50 the first year. REST API and webhooks, Zapier, Easy Affiliate, direct messaging, gradebook, corporate accounts, Authorize.net, 100,000 AI credits.
Ultimate Member
Pricing could not be confirmed. See ultimatemember.com.
Ways to pay less
MemberPress
- Other savings
Half price for the first year
The pricing page sells the first year of Launch at $199.50, Growth at $349.50 and Scale at $499.50; renewals are at the full $399, $699 and $999.
- Nonprofit
Introductory price for life for nonprofits
Qualifying nonprofits keep the introductory price at every renewal, which MemberPress describes as up to 50% off all plan levels.
Ultimate Member
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, MemberPress or Ultimate Member?
As of Nov 13, 2026, MemberPress starts at $399 per year at renewal, after a first year for $199.50, and Ultimate Member has no price we could confirm.
Which has a free plan, MemberPress or Ultimate Member?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Ultimate Member has a free plan. MemberPress 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.