Paid Memberships Pro
Open-source WordPress membership plugin with free core, unlimited levels, Stripe/PayPal subscriptions and a large library of free and premium add-ons.
94
SureMembers
Access-control membership plugin from Brainstorm Force: unlimited memberships and content rules, with selling handled by SureCart or WooCommerce.
Free installs2K+WordPress.org, active
Est. Pro installs~2.5KLikely 1.6K–3.8K
Rating5.0/52 reviews
Price from$69/yrFreemium
Last updated8 Sep 2026Version 1.4.1
Overview
SureMembers, from the Brainstorm Force team behind Astra and SureCart, is an access-control plugin rather than a full billing system. You create memberships (access groups) and rules that protect the whole site, any post type, taxonomy and term archives, menu items and the dashboard. People are added to a membership when they buy a product, register, or are granted access manually.
Selling is delegated. SureMembers has no checkout of its own: you connect it to SureCart (the same company’s free commerce plugin) or WooCommerce. SureCart supplies Stripe, PayPal and other gateways, recurring billing, free or paid trials, coupons, tax/VAT, PDF invoices, upgrades and downgrades, dunning emails and a customer dashboard. Registration forms come from SureForms, and automation from OttoKit.
Core (free) vs Pro
A free SureMembers Core plugin is now on WordPress.org. It covers unlimited memberships, content protection, the suremembers_restrict shortcode, unauthorised-access handling, login redirects, a member list shortcode, an analytics tab, LMS and community integrations (LearnDash, Tutor LMS, BuddyBoss, SureDash) and an Abilities API/MCP and WP-CLI layer. The paid plugin adds user role sync, block-level restrictions, drip content, protected downloads, login restrictions, email templates and CSV user import. Team accounts (shared seats) need the Pro or Business plan.
Limitations
- Payments, invoices and member billing depend on SureCart or WooCommerce.
- Only a basic member list; no profile pages or full directory.
- Built-in emails are limited to access, onboarding and password messages.
- Young product with a small WordPress.org footprint.
Who should pick it: sites already using SureCart, Astra or other Brainstorm Force tools that want simple, fast content gating, drip and downloads, and are happy to let SureCart handle billing. Anyone wanting one plugin that does billing, profiles and reports in one place should look at an all-in-one suite.
Best for: SureCart or WooCommerce sites that need straightforward content gating, drip and downloads without a heavy membership suite.
SureMembers is a tidy, modern gatekeeper that works best as part of the Brainstorm Force stack, with SureCart doing the billing. It is affordable and easy to set up, but it is not a complete membership system on its own: profiles, directories, invoices and reporting depth are thin or delegated.
Pros
- Free Core on WordPress.org with unlimited memberships and site-wide rules
- Clean rule system covering post types, taxonomies, menus and blocks
- Drip content and protected downloads on every paid plan
- Tight integration with SureCart, WooCommerce, LearnDash, Tutor LMS and BuddyBoss
- Abilities API, MCP server and WP-CLI support
- Generous site counts on Pro and Business
Cons
- No built-in checkout; billing features come from SureCart or WooCommerce
- No member profiles or full directory
- Limited built-in email notifications
- Team accounts require the Pro plan
- Small, young WordPress.org user base
Key features
What SureMembers highlights on its WordPress.org page and its own website, split by version.
Free version WordPress.org
- Unlimited memberships (access groups)
- Protect whole site, post types and taxonomies
- Inline restriction shortcode
- Hide menu items and restrict dashboard
- Grant, revoke and set expiry dates
- Auto-grant membership on registration
- Member list shortcode
- Analytics tab with growth and expirations
- SureCart and WooCommerce integration
- LearnDash, Tutor LMS and BuddyBoss
- Abilities API, MCP server and WP-CLI
Pro / paid adds From $69/yr
- Drip content schedules
- Block-level restrictions
- Protected digital downloads
- User role sync
- Login restrictions
- Email templates
- Bulk CSV user import
- Team accounts with seats (Pro plan)
- Bulk edit user access
- Lifetime licence option
Feature checklist
25 of 25 features we track in Membership Plugins, feature score 88/100
Access & content 6/6
Unlimited membership levels
Create as many membership levels/plans as you need.
Core allows unlimited memberships (access groups).
Included
Content restriction Key
Restrict posts, pages, categories and custom post types by membership.
Protect the whole site, any post type, taxonomies and term archives in Core.
Included
Content dripping Key
Release content over time after sign-up.
Drip content is a paid-plugin feature, included on every plan.
Paid version Starter
Teasers & partial restriction
Show an excerpt or part of a page to non-members.
Core has the suremembers_restrict shortcode; block-level rules need a paid plan.
Included
File / download protection
Protect media files and downloads from direct access.
Downloads protection for files, videos and PDFs in the paid plugin.
Paid version Starter
Courses / LMS
Built-in course builder or official LMS integration.
Core integrations with LearnDash, Tutor LMS and SureDash courses; no own course builder.
Included
Payments & billing 8/8
Stripe Key
Take payments through Stripe.
Payments via SureCart (free, same vendor) or WooCommerce gateways.
Via add-on
PayPal
Take payments through PayPal.
PayPal through SureCart or WooCommerce; no gateway in SureMembers itself.
Via add-on
Recurring subscriptions Key
Automatic recurring billing for memberships.
Recurring subscriptions handled by SureCart or WooCommerce Subscriptions.
Via add-on
Free & paid trials
Offer trial periods before billing starts.
Free or paid trials configured in SureCart.
Via add-on
Coupons & discounts
Discount codes for memberships.
Coupons and promotions come from SureCart or WooCommerce.
Via add-on
Upgrades, downgrades & proration
Members switch plans with fair proration.
Upgrades and downgrades managed by SureCart's customer dashboard.
Via add-on
Taxes & invoices
Tax rates/VAT handling and PDF invoices.
SureCart provides real-time tax/VAT and PDF invoices.
Via add-on
Group / corporate memberships
One account buys seats for a team.
Team accounts with configurable seats on Pro and Business plans.
Paid version Pro
Members & experience 5/5
Member account area Key
Front-end account page for subscriptions, payments and profile.
No own account page; SureCart's customer dashboard handles billing and plan changes.
Partial
Custom registration fields
Add custom fields to sign-up forms.
Registration forms via the SureForms integration; no own form builder.
Via add-on
Member directory & profiles
Public or private member directory and profile pages.
Member list shortcode only; no profile pages or searchable directory.
Partial
Community / forums
Built-in community or official forum integration.
Core integrates with BuddyBoss and SureDash communities.
Included
Member emails
Welcome, renewal, failed-payment and expiry emails.
Paid plugin sends access-granted, onboarding and password emails; billing emails via SureCart.
Partial Starter
Integrations & tools 6/6
WooCommerce integration
Sell memberships through WooCommerce or tie access to purchases.
Core integration grants memberships from WooCommerce purchases.
Included
Email marketing integrations
Mailchimp, ActiveCampaign, ConvertKit and similar.
Connect email tools through OttoKit automations (same vendor).
Via add-on
Zapier / automation
Zapier, webhooks or automation integrations.
Automations via OttoKit; Abilities API and optional MCP server in Core.
Via add-on
Reports & analytics
Revenue, churn and member reports.
Core analytics tab shows new members, growth, upcoming expirations and activity.
Included
Member import & migration
Import members or migrate from another membership plugin.
Import users via CSV in the paid plugin; no migration tool from other plugins.
Paid version Starter
Developer API
REST API, hooks and webhooks for custom work.
Abilities API, optional MCP server, WP-CLI and documented filters.
Included
Pricing
Free
$0On WordPress.org
Starter
$69per year1 site
Shown discounted from $99; 1 year updates and support. 14-day money-back.
Pro
$149per year10 sites
Shown discounted from $199; adds team accounts.
Business
$199per year100 sites
Shown discounted from $299.
Business Lifetime
$599lifetime100 sites
Shown discounted from $1,299; or 11 monthly payments of $59.
Prices are list prices from the vendor's site, checked 14 Oct 2026. Many vendors discount the first year.
How many sites use SureMembers?
Free installs from WordPress.org, the vendor's own claim, and our estimate of paid installs.
Free version (WordPress.org)
2K+
Active installations reported by WordPress.org.
Vendor claim
4,800+
Paying customers claimed by the vendor. source
Estimated Pro / paid installs
~2.5K
Our estimate, see method below.
How we estimated this: 4,800 paying customers or sales over 4 years; assuming 55% still use it and 1.3 sites per licence gives 3.4K. About 2.5K free installs x 30% (the usual share of free sites that also run the paid version when many key features are paid, and store owners upgrade more often) gives 750. Combining these (weighted average) gives about 2.5K. Likely range: 1.6K to 3.8K. This counts sites running the paid version, including sites whose licence has lapsed. Estimates are rough and based on public figures as of 14 Oct 2026.
Stats & health
Weekly downloads
419 downloads last week, 15.2K all time
Rating breakdown
| Version | 1.4.1 |
|---|---|
| Last updated | 8 Sep 2026 (56 days ago) |
| Tested up to | WordPress 7.1.4 |
| Requires | WordPress 6.6+, PHP 7.4+ |
| Support threads (2 months) | 0 of 1 resolved |
| On WordPress.org since | 20 Mar 2026 |
Company & policy
| Paying customers claimed | 4,800+ (source, 5 Oct 2026) Homepage says it is trusted by 4,800+ creators (the 4M+ website figure covers all Brainstorm Force products). |
|---|---|
| Refund policy | 14-day money-back (source, 5 Oct 2026) |
SureMembers compared
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FAQ
Is SureMembers free?
Yes. SureMembers has a free version on WordPress.org. Paid plans start at $69/yr.
How many sites use SureMembers?
WordPress.org reports 2K+ active installations of the free version. We estimate around 2.5K sites run the paid version.
Does SureMembers have content restriction?
Yes: included. Protect the whole site, any post type, taxonomies and term archives in Core.
Does SureMembers have content dripping?
Yes: paid version (Starter). Drip content is a paid-plugin feature, included on every plan.
Does SureMembers have stripe?
Yes: via add-on. Payments via SureCart (free, same vendor) or WooCommerce gateways.
Does SureMembers have recurring subscriptions?
Yes: via add-on. Recurring subscriptions handled by SureCart or WooCommerce Subscriptions.
Does SureMembers have member account area?
Yes: partial. No own account page; SureCart's customer dashboard handles billing and plan changes.
Does SureMembers have a free version?
Yes. SureMembers Core is free on WordPress.org and handles memberships, content protection and integrations. The paid plugin adds drip, downloads protection, block restrictions, role sync, email templates and CSV import, and needs Core installed.
How do members pay?
SureMembers has no checkout of its own. You sell access through SureCart (the same company's commerce plugin, with Stripe, PayPal, trials, coupons and tax) or through WooCommerce.
Can I sell team or group memberships?
Yes. Team accounts let a buyer own a membership with a set number of seats and invite others, but this is only available on the Pro and Business plans.
Does it work with LMS plugins?
Yes. Core integrates with LearnDash and Tutor LMS, and SureMembers can protect SureDash courses and content.
Last updated 5 Oct 2026. Spotted something wrong? Suggest an edit.