The best WordPress membership plugin for developers Chris Lema Book Speaking Coaching Blog For Engineers For Executives For Founders For Consultants For Creators Testimonials About Contact Book Speaking Coaching Blog For Engineers For Executives For Founders For Consultants For Creators Testimonials About Contact January 4, 2015 | Chris Lema The best WordPress membership plugin for developers Is there a good WordPress membership plugin that's right for developers? Yes, there are three. Here they are. Membership Sites ·Product Work I write a lot about membership sites and WordPress. And often, I'm writing for non-developers. Their questions are simple - which product does X or Y. But every now and then I get a question from a developer who isn't looking to build their own membership plugin. And that's when the question comes up - which is the best WordPress membership plugin for developers? And the answer, it turns out, is actually not as complicated as I initially feared. After all, the answer should be complex, right? Because there are so many plugins, and likely so many that can be manipulated if you know what you're doing. But that's not the issue. The issue is how often the developers of the plugins have spent time thinking about developers as they create their plugins. And that's often a secondary market for them. After all, it's harder to sell to developers (but that's an entirely different post). Anyway, to get to it, let's talk about three plugins that are worth your review, if you're a developer looking to customize a membership plugin.Restrict Content Pro Restrict Content Pro is a plugin written by Pippin - also the author of Easy Digital Downloads and AffiliateWP. So yeah, do I need to write more? Well, I will. Just a bit. One of the things I like most about RCP is the fact that it's written by a developer. And not just a developer who is looking to make money - but a developer who is constantly honing his skills, improving his products, and helping his community. That translates into a consistent evaluation of his plugin and ways to make it better. More importantly, he's had two plugins take off (EDD & AffiliateWP) and both have extensions. It's a model that works. And RCP has some extensions but not tons. What does that mean? Well, simply put, I think you're going to see tons more this next year. And that's going to mean tons of additional hooks made available for developers (beyond what's there right now). If you look at that last link, you'll see that it's not without hooks. It's already a plugin worth reviewing, if you're a developer who wants to customize a content restriction solution using a membership plugin. Buy Restrict Content ProPaid Memberships Pro Paid Memberships Pro is another plugin perfect for developers, by another developer who thinks about more than just selling a plugin. Jason Coleman is a sharp developer who made the decision a while ago to make sure his plugin was perfect for developers. That's why there's so much documentation on his site about the hooks you can leverage when customizing your solution. He has tons of add-ons available on GitHub as well, which you can review and see which are worth extending. I can't speak highly enough about both Pippin and Jason and the code they have made available for you to customize. Download Paid Memberships ProMemberPress MemberPress is one of the most feature-filled membership plugins available. Blair, the guy behind it's magic, keeps shaping the plugin to get it to be the only one you'll ever want or need. While the docs available are user-oriented, what's great about the code is that's easy to read and structured in a way that most developers will enjoy. Better yet, every person who buys the Developer Edition gets priority support with a response time of less than 48 hours. So if you want to use their paywall feature but tweak it, you can do so. If you want to use their subscription upgrade process, but want to tweak it, it's simply asking and getting answers from support. Buy MemberPress All three of these plugins are great for developers. What you do with them is completely up to you. Of course, if you want to talk more about your particular situation, let's connect on Clarity. A story. An insight. A bite-sized way to help. Get every article directly in your inbox every other day. Subscribe I won't send you spam. And I won't sell your name. Unsubscribe at any time. About the Author Chris Lema has spent twenty-five years in tech leadership, product development, and coaching. He builds AI-powered tools that help experts package what they know, build authority, and create programs people pay for. He writes about AI, leadership, and motivation. My coaching and products are designed for your expertise. I have products you can leverage, and coaching that's perfect for where you're at. Let's Chat Chris Lema Making Experts Dangerous svg]:size-[18px]" href="https://linkedin.com/in/mrchrislema" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" svg]:size-[18px]" href="https://twitter.com/chrislema" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" Tools Your Voice Profile Your Audience Segments Your Content Agent Your Platform Profile Your Lead Magnet Agent Content Blog Book Speaking Coaching Connect Contact About LinkedIn X / Twitter YouTube © 2026 Chris Lema. All rights reserved. Privacy Terms