Own the community you built on Circle.so.
We move your members and posts off Circle.so and rebuild your community in BuddyNext, on a WordPress site you own, keeping the same Stripe account you already use.
- Scoping
- Free
- Since
- 2013
- Client projects
- 600+
- Trustpilot
- 4.8 from 93 reviews
When switching off Circle.so makes sense
The monthly platform fee is the problem
Circle.so bills you every month regardless of your revenue. On your own WordPress site, there is no platform fee sitting between you and your members.
You want your posts and threads to actually move
Circle.so's post export is a support-requested CSV, not a self-serve button. We handle that request and rebuild the content on your new site.
You need real course infrastructure
Circle.so has no documented course export and limited course tooling. Learnomy adds quizzes, certificates, cohorts and instructor payouts.
You want to keep growing without a plan-tier ceiling
A WordPress community scales with your hosting, not with which Circle.so pricing tier you are on.
Circle.so vs. WordPress with BuddyNext
An honest comparison, including where Circle.so genuinely wins.
Circle.so | WordPress (BuddyNext + Learnomy) | |
|---|---|---|
| Hosting and setup | Nothing to manage, live in minutes | You or we manage hosting; more setup up front |
| Monthly platform fee | Billed every month regardless of revenue | No platform fee or revenue share; you pay hosting and your payment processor |
| Payment processor | Your own connected Stripe account | Your own Stripe account, unchanged |
| Post and thread export | Support-requested CSV, no bulk media | Always available, you own the database |
| Course tools | Basic course/lesson creation, no documented export | Course builder, quizzes, certificates, cohorts, drip scheduling |
| Design and branding | Fixed Circle.so layout | Full control of theme, layout and branding |
What moves and what gets rebuilt
Circle.so gives you a self-serve CSV export of your members, including email addresses, from the Audience page. We import that list directly into your new WordPress community.
Circle.so does not offer a self-serve content export. Getting your posts and comments out requires emailing Circle.so support, who deliver four CSV files (Members, Spaces, Posts, Comments). Uploaded images and files are not included, only links. We request this export on your behalf and rebuild the content, re-hosting the media separately.
Circle.so has no documented export path for course or lesson content. We rebuild your courses in Learnomy, which adds quizzes, certificates and drip scheduling Circle.so does not offer.
Circle.so's paywall runs on your own connected Stripe account, not one Circle.so provisions for you, so your billing relationship with your subscribers is genuinely portable. We help you reconnect the same Stripe account to your new site.
Passwords never move, from Circle.so or from any other platform. Members set a new password (or use a magic link) the first time they sign in to your new WordPress community.
Built on our own products
BuddyNext
One community engine instead of stitching together forums, courses, events and messaging from different vendors.
See the live demoLearnomy
Run a full paid-course business on your own WordPress site, with no platform taking a share of your revenue.
See LearnomyJetonomy
A self-hosted forum you own outright, no monthly platform fees, with a straight import path off bbPress or wpForo.
See JetonomyWPMediaVerse
A member photo/video community that runs itself: members upload, tag and share, the owner sets privacy rules and moderates.
See WPMediaVerse4.8 out of 5 from 93+ reviews on Trustpilot
What community owners say
WBComDesigns is amazing. The WP plugins and themes are of top notch quality with lots of features and updated very frequently. Supports are very responsive and helpful. I use Reign with TutorLMS, and the experience is surprisingly smooth. The recently launched BuddyNext Pro and MediaShield Pro are like game changers for LMS + community. Very happy purchases and happy to be a loyal customer of WBComDesigns.
I highly recommend anyone in need of a website solution, whether for a community website, online store, or courses website, to choose wbcomdesigns.
