Whatever rare and valuable skill, knowledge, or experience you have, there\u2019s a chance there\u2019s a business in it for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And it all starts with a membership website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If thinking of creating an exclusive website makes your palms sweaty, good news. These days, you don\u2019t have to know how to code to reach these goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Our trusty ol\u2019 pal WordPress, paired with the right plugin and some best practices we\u2019ll soon dive into, can transform any website into a gated, money-generating hub.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ready to start creating? Ready to get tips for growing that recurring revenue stream?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In this guide, we\u2019ll walk you through how to build a WordPress membership site, from choosing the right plugin to best practices that\u2019ll help your membership thrive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What\u2019s Up With Membership Sites?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
A membership site consists of fully or partially \u201cgated\u201d content that only folks with the required credentials can access. Think high-value courses, in-depth guides, thriving chatrooms, exclusive custom-built tools, or whatever other cool resources you\u2019ve built your online business around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While some membership sites and sections are free and some are paid, the unifying factor is that they always require users to create an account and log in to access the unique content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Membership sites certainly overlap with subscription sites and can charge a recurring fee, but they are typically less focused on regularly delivering a physical product.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If a subscription site is more what you want to build, don\u2019t miss our robust guide to launching your subscription business<\/a>! Deciding if you should go down the membership path? With a little creativity, there are endless types of products and services that you can deliver using this model. Here are some of the most common offerings that membership sites are built around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ok, so the flexibility of membership websites is cool and all,but what are the real reasons for selling your offerings this way?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Well, there are several!<\/p>\n\n\n\n The first, and possibly biggest, benefit to the membership model is recurring revenue<\/strong>. Go beyond one-off sales and create a steadier income stream through regular membership payments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Second, membership websites naturally create a sense of belonging<\/strong>. For community-based businesses, members gain a space to interact and share. Even for sites that are less about the community and more about the exclusive offerings, a membership may build exclusivity<\/strong> and brand connection<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why does deepening the subscriber relationship matter? Well, it\u2019s core to retention<\/strong> and can even lead to word-of-mouth marketing<\/strong> that grows your bottom line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Just one last thing before we dive into the specifics. What does a great membership site look<\/em> like?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Evelyn Wood\u2019s Vintage Sewing School<\/a> website features a supportive community and tons of how-to sewing videos to help creators level up their skills,all for an affordable monthly fee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This small business website makes it just as easy to learn about the membership offerings as it does to sign up and pay for them. It\u2019s a great example of the power of straightforward copywriting and simple website design in the membership world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Get Mom Strong<\/a> brand offers workouts for healing and building strength during and following pregnancy. With a membership, users gain access to various fitness programs as well as an app where they can track workouts, nutrition, and other health factors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Check out the website for a masterclass in using testimonials, tiered pricing, quizzes, and free trials to entice new members to join.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Aspiring pro artists take note \u2014the School of Visual Storytelling<\/a> has built a beautiful website (of course!) full of self-guided courses, live classes, and a robust community to help illustrators take their skills to the next level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Our favorite feature of the School of Visual Storytelling is how they use ungated content, such as blogs, a podcast, and regular livestreams, to create a connection with their audience and naturally drive purchases of their more exclusive goodies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With all that inspo in your back pocket, let\u2019s uncover the core ingredients behind creating an effective membership site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n First up, you have to have the \u201cbasecamp\u201d from which you\u2019ll run the whole thing. As we mentioned, there are purpose-built platforms out there for that. But we\u2019ll focus on how you can use your existing WordPress website to bring your membership program to life,code-free.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you still need to set that up, pause here and walk through our ultimate website-building guide for beginners<\/a>. It explains setting up a domain<\/a> and web hosting<\/a>, choosing a theme, how to decide what pages to include, tracking success metrics, and even installing plugins (more on that soon!).<\/p>\n\n\n\n With a WordPress site up and running, let\u2019s fold in the rest of the key membership ingredients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You may have heard of Might Networks, a popular online platform where businesses can host membership-based communities, courses, etc. While that\u2019s an option, we\u2019re big proponents of WordPress<\/a> for its sheer accessibility. We\u2019re happy to report that it\u2019s totally possible to build or retrofit your WordPress site with a membership area via a plugin. So, that\u2019s the direction we\u2019ll focus on in this guide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"Venn](\"https:\/\/www.dreamhost.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/01_membership_sites_vs_subscription_sites.webp\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nTypes of Membership Websites<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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![\"Grid](\"https:\/\/www.dreamhost.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/02_successful_membership_models.webp\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nWhy Go With the Membership Model?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Membership Sites Examples to Inspire<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Vintage Sewing School<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"Website](\"https:\/\/www.dreamhost.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/03_vintage_sewing_school.webp\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nGet Mom Strong<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"Get](\"https:\/\/www.dreamhost.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/04_get_mom_strong.webp\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nSchool of Visual Storytelling<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"School](\"https:\/\/www.dreamhost.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/05_school_of_visual_storytelling.webp\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nThe 4 P\u2019s of a Great Membership Site<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Platform<\/h3>\n\n\n\n