Planning a membership site is exciting until you realize how many features exist and how few of them you actually need on day one. This checklist breaks down every feature worth considering, sorted by priority, so you can launch with confidence and add complexity later.
Whether you are building a paid community, a gated content library, or a full learning platform, the features below cover what real membership sites need to retain members and grow revenue. We have built dozens of these platforms for clients across education, fitness, professional networking, and creator communities.
Core Features Every Membership Site Needs
These are non-negotiable. Without them, your membership site is just a blog with a login wall.
1. User Registration and Profiles
Members need to create accounts, log in, and manage their profile information. A good registration flow captures only essential details upfront (name, email, password) and lets members fill in profile fields later. Profile pages should display activity, membership level, and any badges or achievements earned.
Key requirements:
- Custom registration fields (job title, location, interests)
- Profile photo upload
- Social login options (Google, Facebook, LinkedIn)
- Email verification on signup
- Profile visibility controls (public vs members-only)
2. Access Levels and Content Restriction
The foundation of any membership site is controlling who sees what. You need the ability to restrict pages, posts, courses, downloads, and even sections within a page based on membership level.
Most membership sites use a tiered model:
- Free tier: Limited content to demonstrate value and encourage upgrades
- Basic tier: Core content library, community access
- Premium tier: Everything in basic plus exclusive content, live sessions, direct support
- VIP or Lifetime: All access with priority support and early access to new content
Content restriction should work at multiple levels: entire pages, specific blocks within a page, categories, tags, and custom post types. The best implementations show a teaser of restricted content with a clear call to action to upgrade.
3. Payment Processing and Subscriptions
Collecting payments reliably is where membership sites live or die. You need support for recurring subscriptions (monthly, quarterly, annual), one-time payments, free trials, and coupon codes.
Essential payment features:
- Stripe and PayPal integration (covers 90%+ of use cases)
- Recurring billing with automatic retry on failed payments
- Dunning management: automated emails when a card expires or payment fails
- Proration when members upgrade or downgrade mid-cycle
- Invoice generation for business members
- Tax handling (VAT for EU, GST for Australia)
- Multiple currency support if you serve a global audience
According to Recurly’s 2025 benchmark data, the average involuntary churn rate for subscription businesses is 4.3%. Good dunning workflows recover 20-40% of failed payments automatically. This alone can save thousands in annual revenue.
4. Content Drip and Scheduling
Content drip releases material on a schedule rather than all at once. This keeps members engaged over time and reduces the “binge and cancel” problem where new members consume everything in the first week and then unsubscribe.
Common drip patterns:
- Time-based: Release Module 2 seven days after the member joins
- Date-based: Release a new lesson every Monday regardless of join date
- Completion-based: Unlock the next module only after the current one is marked complete
- Hybrid: Combine time delays with completion requirements
The best drip systems send email notifications when new content unlocks and show a visual progress indicator so members know what is coming next.
5. Email Integration
Your membership site needs to communicate with members through automated emails. At minimum, you need:
- Welcome email after signup
- Payment confirmation and receipt
- Content unlock notifications (drip schedule)
- Renewal reminders before billing
- Failed payment notifications
- Cancellation confirmation with win-back offer
- Weekly or monthly digest of new content
Integration with email marketing platforms like ConvertKit, Mailchimp, or ActiveCampaign lets you segment members by plan level, engagement, and behavior for targeted campaigns.
Community and Engagement Features
Content alone does not retain members. Community does. Industry research consistently shows that engaged community members renew at rates 2-3x higher than passive content consumers. These features turn your membership site from a content library into a place members want to return to daily.
6. Activity Feeds
An activity feed gives members a real-time view of what is happening in the community. New posts, comments, member joins, course completions, and group updates all flow through a central feed that members can filter and interact with.
Activity feeds create a sense of belonging and FOMO (in a healthy way). When members see others completing courses, asking questions, and sharing wins, they are motivated to participate. BuddyPress provides robust activity feeds out of the box, with support for favorites, comments, and mentions.
7. Groups and Sub-Communities
As your membership grows beyond a few hundred members, a single community space becomes noisy. Groups let members self-organize around specific interests, cohorts, geographic regions, or membership tiers.
Group features to consider:
- Public groups anyone can join
- Private groups requiring approval or invitation
- Hidden groups visible only to members
- Group-specific activity feeds, forums, and media
- Group admins and moderators with delegated permissions
- Group announcements and pinned posts
For a step-by-step implementation guide, see our post on adding forums and groups to online courses.
8. Private Messaging
Members need a way to communicate privately with each other and with admins. Private messaging builds relationships between members, which increases retention because people stay for the connections, not just the content.
Essential messaging features:
- One-to-one direct messages
- Group conversations
- Email notifications for new messages (with unsubscribe option)
- Message search
- Read receipts
- Ability to block users
- Admin ability to moderate messages when reported
9. Discussion Forums
Forums provide structured, searchable conversations organized by topic. Unlike activity feeds (which are chronological and ephemeral), forum threads persist and become a knowledge base over time.
Forums work particularly well for:
- Q&A sections where members help each other
- Resource sharing and recommendations
- Feedback and feature requests
- Course-specific discussions tied to lessons
- Accountability groups and check-ins
bbPress integrates natively with WordPress and BuddyPress. For higher-volume communities, dedicated forum solutions or integration with platforms like Discourse can handle millions of posts without performance issues.
10. Notifications System
A notification system keeps members engaged without requiring them to constantly check the site. Notifications should cover:
- New replies to their posts or comments
- Mentions by other members
- New content in groups they follow
- Upcoming events or live sessions
- Achievement unlocks and milestone celebrations
- Admin announcements
Delivery channels matter too. On-site notifications (bell icon), email digests, and push notifications (web or mobile) give members control over how they want to stay informed.
Content and Learning Features
If your membership site includes courses, training, or structured learning paths, these features transform a basic content library into a proper learning experience.
11. Course and Lesson Structure
Organize content into courses, modules, and lessons with a clear hierarchy. Members should see their progress at every level and be able to pick up where they left off.
Learning management features to include:
- Course catalog with descriptions, difficulty levels, and estimated completion time
- Module and lesson ordering with drag-and-drop admin interface
- Video, text, audio, and downloadable resource support
- Progress tracking with visual completion bars
- Quizzes and assessments at module or course level
- Certificates of completion (PDF generation)
- Prerequisites: complete Course A before accessing Course B
WordPress LMS plugins like LearnDash handle this well and integrate with BuddyPress for social learning features. Our guide on creating social learning with BuddyPress covers how to connect course progress with community engagement.
12. Member Directory
A searchable member directory helps members find and connect with each other. This is especially valuable for professional communities, alumni networks, and industry groups where networking is a primary reason people join.
Directory features:
- Search by name, location, skills, interests, or custom fields
- Filter by membership tier or group membership
- Card or grid view with profile photos
- Connection or follow system
- Privacy controls: members choose what appears in the directory
13. Media Library and Downloads
Members expect access to downloadable resources: templates, worksheets, checklists, ebooks, and tools. A member-only media library with organized categories and search makes these resources easy to find.
Protect downloads from unauthorized sharing with:
- Expiring download links
- Download count limits per file
- Watermarked PDFs with the member’s name
- Access logging to track who downloads what
Moderation and Administration
As your community grows, you need tools to maintain quality and safety without spending all day moderating.
14. Content Moderation
Moderation tools protect your community from spam, abuse, and low-quality content. Essential moderation features include:
- Report button on all user-generated content
- Moderation queue for flagged content
- Auto-moderation rules (keyword filters, link limits for new members)
- Temporary and permanent bans
- Moderation log for accountability
- Delegated moderator roles with limited permissions
Our BuddyPress plugins collection includes moderation tools specifically designed for community sites running on WordPress.
15. Analytics and Reporting
You cannot improve what you do not measure. Membership analytics should track:
- Revenue metrics: MRR (Monthly Recurring Revenue), churn rate, LTV (Lifetime Value), ARPU (Average Revenue Per User)
- Engagement metrics: Daily active users, posts per member, login frequency, content consumption rate
- Growth metrics: New signups, trial conversion rate, upgrade/downgrade trends
- Content metrics: Most viewed content, course completion rates, popular downloads
- Retention metrics: Cohort analysis, cancellation reasons, at-risk member identification
At minimum, connect Google Analytics for traffic data and use your membership plugin’s built-in reports for subscription metrics. For deeper analysis, tools like Baremetrics or ChartMogul connect directly to Stripe to provide SaaS-style analytics.
16. Member Management
Admin tools for managing members directly:
- Manually add, upgrade, or downgrade members
- Grant complimentary access (press, partners, VIPs)
- Pause memberships (medical leave, vacation)
- Export member data (GDPR compliance)
- Bulk actions: email all members of a specific tier, tag members by cohort
- Member notes: internal notes about support interactions or special arrangements
Advanced Features Worth Considering
These features are not essential at launch but become valuable as your membership site matures and grows past a few hundred active members.
17. Gamification and Achievements
Points, badges, leaderboards, and streaks motivate engagement. Award points for logging in, completing lessons, posting in forums, and helping other members. Display badges on profiles to recognize milestones.
Gamification works best when it reinforces behaviors you actually want. Award points for meaningful contributions (answering questions, completing courses) rather than vanity actions (likes, profile views).
18. Events and Live Sessions
Live events add urgency and exclusivity that recorded content cannot match. Consider:
- Webinars and Q&A sessions
- Office hours with experts
- Virtual meetups and networking events
- Workshop sessions with limited seats
- Event calendar with timezone support
- Replay access for members who miss the live session
Integration with Zoom, Google Meet, or built-in video conferencing makes scheduling and attendance tracking seamless.
19. Affiliate and Referral Program
Your existing members are your best salespeople. A referral program rewards members who bring in new signups with discounts, free months, or cash commissions. This creates organic growth without increasing ad spend.
Track referrals with unique links, display earnings in a member dashboard, and automate payouts monthly. AffiliateWP integrates well with most WordPress membership plugins.
20. Mobile Experience
Over 60% of web traffic comes from mobile devices. Your membership site must work flawlessly on phones and tablets. This means:
- Responsive design that adapts to all screen sizes
- Touch-friendly navigation and buttons
- Video content that plays without issues on mobile
- Fast load times (under 3 seconds on 4G)
- Optional: Progressive Web App (PWA) for app-like experience without app store submission
- Optional: Native mobile app with React Native or Flutter for premium communities
21. Single Sign-On and Integrations
As your tech stack grows, members should not need separate logins for your site, community, courses, and support desk. Single sign-on (SSO) connects everything with one login.
Common integrations for membership sites:
- CRM (HubSpot, Salesforce) for member relationship tracking
- Help desk (Freshdesk, Zendesk) for support tickets
- Zapier or Make for connecting hundreds of apps
- Slack or Discord for real-time chat alongside the main community
- Accounting software (QuickBooks, Xero) for revenue tracking
The Priority Matrix: What to Build First
Not everything needs to be ready at launch. Here is a practical phased approach based on what we have seen work across dozens of membership site projects:
| Phase | Features | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Launch (MVP) | Registration, profiles, access levels, payments, content library, email integration | Week 1-4 |
| Growth | Activity feeds, groups, messaging, forums, content drip, member directory | Month 2-3 |
| Maturity | Gamification, events, analytics dashboard, affiliate program, moderation tools | Month 4-6 |
| Scale | Mobile app, SSO, advanced integrations, custom workflows, white-labeling | Month 6+ |
The biggest mistake we see is trying to launch with everything. Start with the core features that let members sign up, pay, access content, and communicate. Add community and advanced features once you have validated that people will pay for your offering.
Choosing the Right Tech Stack
Your tech choices depend on budget, team size, and how custom your requirements are.
| Approach | Best For | Cost Range | Customization |
|---|---|---|---|
| SaaS (Circle, Mighty Networks, Skool) | Solo creators, quick launch | $39-$399/month | Limited |
| WordPress + BuddyPress + LMS | Full ownership, custom features | $5K-$30K build + $50-200/month hosting | Unlimited |
| Custom build (React/Node/Django) | Enterprise, unique requirements | $50K-$200K+ | Unlimited |
For most membership sites, WordPress with BuddyPress and a membership plugin (Paid Memberships Pro, MemberPress, or WooCommerce Subscriptions) hits the sweet spot of cost, flexibility, and time to launch. You own your data, you control the experience, and you are not paying platform fees on every transaction.
Our detailed comparison of custom platforms vs SaaS solutions breaks down the trade-offs in depth. And if budget is a primary concern, our cost to build a community platform guide provides realistic numbers for 2026.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Launching with too many features: Start simple. Validate demand before investing in advanced functionality.
- Ignoring onboarding: New members who do not engage in the first 48 hours rarely come back. Create a guided onboarding sequence.
- No cancellation feedback: When members cancel, ask why. This data is gold for reducing churn.
- Weak content drip: Dumping all content at once invites binge-and-cancel behavior. Schedule releases strategically.
- Forgetting mobile: Test everything on a phone before launch. If the checkout process is clunky on mobile, you lose sales.
- No community management: A community without active facilitation dies. Budget for a community manager or dedicate time yourself.
Quick Reference Checklist
Use this as your planning document. Check off features as you implement them:
| Feature | Priority | Status |
|---|---|---|
| User registration and profiles | Must have | |
| Access levels and content restriction | Must have | |
| Payment processing and subscriptions | Must have | |
| Content drip and scheduling | Must have | |
| Email integration | Must have | |
| Activity feeds | High | |
| Groups and sub-communities | High | |
| Private messaging | High | |
| Discussion forums | High | |
| Notifications system | High | |
| Course and lesson structure | High (if applicable) | |
| Member directory | Medium | |
| Media library and downloads | Medium | |
| Content moderation | Medium | |
| Analytics and reporting | Medium | |
| Member management tools | Medium | |
| Gamification and achievements | Nice to have | |
| Events and live sessions | Nice to have | |
| Affiliate and referral program | Nice to have | |
| Mobile app | Nice to have | |
| Single sign-on and integrations | Nice to have |
Ready to Build Your Membership Site?
A membership site is one of the best ways to build recurring revenue around your expertise. The feature checklist above gives you a clear roadmap for what to build and when to build it.
If you are planning a membership site and want expert help with the technical build, we specialize in custom WordPress community platforms using BuddyPress, LearnDash, and WooCommerce. Book a free consultation to discuss your project requirements and get a realistic timeline and budget estimate.
