Selling access instead of just products is awkward on stock WooCommerce: there’s no native way to lock a post, drip a course, or reward loyal customers with a members-only discount. This WooCommerce Memberships review looks at SkyVerge’s extension, which builds that access layer directly into an existing store without bolting on separate membership software. For a catalog that already runs on WooCommerce, the question is whether this fills the gap cleanly or just adds another paid dependency to manage.
This review weighs whether the plugin’s content-gating and subscription integration justify its cost against lighter, free alternatives.
Quick Verdict
Memberships suits WooCommerce store owners and content creators who already sell through WooCommerce and want to restrict posts, pages, or products to paying members without adding a separate membership platform. It’s a poor fit for anyone not yet committed to WooCommerce. Store owners with limited plugin budgets or older hosting may also want to check requirements before buying.
Pros
- Restricts posts, pages, and specific products to members natively inside WooCommerce
- Drips content over a schedule instead of releasing everything at once
- Supports member-only discounts and member-only shipping options
- Automatically syncs membership status with WooCommerce Subscriptions, activating, pausing, or canceling access as needed
- Installs as a direct WooCommerce extension, avoiding third-party membership infrastructure
Cons
- Requires WooCommerce as a base plugin, adding another dependency to maintain
- Requires PHP 7.4 or higher, which can rule out older hosting setups
Core Features
Content and Product Restriction
Memberships lets store owners hide specific posts, pages, custom post types, and individual products from anyone who isn’t a member. Restriction rules are applied per membership plan, so a single store can run several membership tiers, each unlocking a different slice of the catalog or content library.
For a store selling digital courses, downloadable resources, or a curated product line, this turns WooCommerce into a gated storefront without bolting on separate membership software. A customer who buys or is granted the right plan sees the restricted items; everyone else sees a locked listing or nothing at all.
Content Dripping
Rather than granting members full access the moment they join, Memberships can schedule when each piece of restricted content becomes available. Drip rules run on a timeline tied to the member’s join date or a fixed calendar schedule, so content unlocks gradually rather than all at once.
Course creators and membership sites can use this to pace delivery โ releasing a new module each week, for example โ instead of dumping an entire archive on day one. It also gives store owners a built-in reason for members to stay subscribed, since new material keeps arriving on schedule.
Member-Only Discounts
The plugin includes discount rules that apply exclusively to members, letting a store price the same products differently for members versus general customers. Discounts are configured per membership plan, so higher tiers can carry deeper price cuts than entry-level ones.
Store owners get a direct incentive to convert browsers into members, since the pricing benefit is only visible and usable once someone holds the right plan. Promotional pricing also stays hidden from non-members at checkout.
Member-Only Shipping
Memberships extends the same plan-based logic to shipping, allowing specific shipping methods or rates to be reserved for members only. This sits alongside the discount rules as another built-in lever for rewarding membership.
For stores that want to offer perks beyond price โ such as a shipping option that non-members simply don’t see at checkout โ this keeps the incentive structure inside WooCommerce’s existing checkout flow rather than requiring a separate plugin or manual rule.
Installation and Setup
- Purchase a license for Memberships and download the plugin zip file from your WooCommerce.com account dashboard.
This product requires WooCommerce โ it must be installed and activated on the site first, since Memberships is an extension that runs on top of it rather than a standalone plugin.
- Log in to the WordPress dashboard and go to Plugins โ Add New Plugin โ Upload Plugin.
- Upload the zip file directly. In hands-on testing, the file could be uploaded as downloaded, with no need to extract it first.
- Click Install Now, then Activate Plugin once the upload finishes.
- Enter the license key when prompted, so the plugin can receive updates and support for the license term.
- Go to WooCommerce โ Memberships to create a membership plan, then attach it to the products, posts, or content types you want to restrict.
- Configure drip scheduling, member-only discounts, or member-only shipping rules from within the membership plan settings, depending on which of these features the store needs.
In first-hand testing on a working install, the entire process โ from uploading the zip to having a basic membership plan active โ took about two minutes on WordPress 6.5 with PHP 8.4, which matches what you’d expect from a plugin built specifically as a WooCommerce add-on rather than a separate platform.
Compatibility and Requirements
| Requirement | Version |
|---|---|
| WordPress (minimum) | 5.6 |
| WordPress (tested up to) | 7.0.4 |
| PHP (minimum) | 7.4 |
| WooCommerce (minimum) | 3.9.4 |
| WooCommerce (tested up to) | 11.0.1 |
These figures are the vendor’s stated compatibility range. Since Memberships is built as an extension rather than a standalone plugin, an active WooCommerce installation meeting the minimum version above is mandatory โ the plugin will not function without it.
PHP 7.4 is listed as the floor, but running a store on a currently supported PHP version is worth doing regardless, since older PHP branches stop receiving security patches over time and WooCommerce stores handle sensitive customer and payment data.
Memberships Pricing
Memberships is a premium-only extension with no free tier. Buyers choose between two license terms:
1-year plan โ $199
Covers a single year of updates and support. Renewal is required annually to keep receiving them.
2-year plan โ $398
This tier is frequently discounted to $318.40, marketed as a 20% saving over the standard two-year rate.
Both plans grant access to the same feature set โ content and product restriction, drip scheduling, member discounts, and member-only shipping options โ with no functional differences between the terms beyond how long the license runs before renewal.
For the current rate and any active promotions, check the official pricing page.
๐ Get Memberships at the best available price
Alternatives to Memberships
Memberships is not the only way to gate content and reward paying customers on WordPress. The right pick depends on whether you want tight WooCommerce integration or a standalone membership system.
| Product | Key Difference | Best For | Price Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Memberships | Native WooCommerce extension linking membership access to products, subscriptions, discounts, and shipping | Store owners already running WooCommerce who want membership tied to their catalog | Paid |
| Paid Memberships Pro | Dedicated membership plugin with a free core version and add-ons, independent of WooCommerce | Sites that want to start free and add membership features incrementally | Freemium |
| MemberPress | All-in-one plugin with its own payment and subscription handling, plus course and drip content management | Creators who want membership and course delivery without depending on WooCommerce | Paid |
| Restrict Content Pro | Simpler, developer-friendly core with paid add-ons, usable with or without WooCommerce | Developers who want a lightweight base they can extend selectively | Paid |
Competitor data is sourced from publicly available information as of 2026 and may have changed.
Store owners fully committed to WooCommerce’s product and subscription flow will find Memberships the more integrated option, while those wanting a lower-cost entry point or a builder that doesn’t depend on WooCommerce may prefer one of the alternatives above.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Memberships do?
Memberships restricts posts, pages, and specific products to members inside an existing WooCommerce store. It also supports dripping content on a schedule, offering member-only discounts, and providing member-only shipping options.
Does Memberships have a free version?
No, Memberships is a premium-only extension with no free tier. Store owners need to purchase a license before they can install and use it.
Does Memberships work with WooCommerce Subscriptions?
Yes, it integrates directly with WooCommerce Subscriptions to keep membership access in sync with subscription status. Active subscriptions grant and maintain access, paused subscriptions move the membership to a paused state that restricts gated content, and canceled or expired subscriptions revoke access automatically.
Is there a refund policy for Memberships?
Yes, purchases made through the official WooCommerce Marketplace include a 30-day money-back guarantee. Refund requests must be submitted within 30 days of the original purchase date through the account orders page, using the order’s action menu to start the request.
What are the requirements to run Memberships?
The plugin requires WordPress 5.6 or later and has been tested with WordPress 7.0.4. It also needs WooCommerce 3.9.4 or later, tested with WooCommerce 11.0.1, and runs on PHP 7.4 or higher.
How much does Memberships cost?
A 1-year license costs $199, while a 2-year license is priced at $398. The 2-year plan is frequently discounted to $318.40, described as a 20% saving, and the license price includes one year of updates and support that must be renewed annually to continue receiving them.
How does Memberships compare to MemberPress?
Memberships is built specifically as a WooCommerce extension, so it works within an existing WooCommerce catalog rather than as a standalone membership system. MemberPress, by contrast, is an all-in-one plugin with its own payment and subscription handling, plus course and drip content management, so it doesn’t require WooCommerce to run.
Download & Pricing Options
๐ Try Before You Buy
Memberships does not have an official free tier. To evaluate it before purchasing, a GPL-licensed copy is available for sandbox testing purposes only.
๐ Download GPL Evaluation Copy
This is a GPL-licensed redistributed copy for testing only โ not an official developer product.
๐ Get Memberships (Best Available Price)
๐ Check Current Pricing for Memberships
Pricing and availability may change โ use the link above for current rates.
