Paid Memberships Pro vs Kartra

Paid Memberships Pro8.6Visit Kartra7.3Visit

Higher score Paid Memberships Pro #7 in Membership Site Platforms 8.6/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 2 of 2 features Visit site

vs

Kartra #20 in Membership Site Platforms 7.3/10 30-day trial Free trial✓ 2 of 2 features Visit Kartra

• Paid Memberships Pro fits best

  WordPress users wanting flexible membership control

• Kartra fits best

  Marketing-led membership businesses

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Side by side

Feature	Paid Memberships Pro 8.6/10 Visit ↗	Kartra 7.3/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	8.6	7.3
Ranking	#7 in Membership Site Platforms	#20 in Membership Site Platforms
Best for	WordPress users wanting flexible membership control	Marketing-led membership businesses
Pricing model	Free plan + paid	Paid
Starting price	$499/yr	$52/mo
Free plan	✓ (best)	—
Free trial	—	30 days
Deployment	Cloud, Self-hosted	Cloud
Platforms	Web	Web
Integrations	12 integrations	15 integrations
Features Paid Memberships Pro 2/2 · Kartra 2/2
Custom domain	✓	✓
Drip content	✓	✓
Specs
Content gating	Post	Post
Subscription billing	Both	Both
Member limit	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Transaction fee	No platform transaction fee; payment gateway charges still apply.	5% on Essentials; 0% on Starter and Growth
Our review
Pros	Restricts pages, posts, blocks, categories, and custom post types Supports free, one-time, and recurring membership levels Connects with Stripe, PayPal, Zapier, LMS, and community tools	Post-level gating and scheduled or member-age-based content dripping Recurring, one-time, installment, and subscription pricing options Email, SMS, webinars, analytics, and payment integrations in one platform
Cons	Requires a self-hosted WordPress site Series drip content requires a premium Add On Paid tiers start at $49 per month	Essentials limits accounts to 500 contacts and one membership or course Essentials charges a 5% transaction fee The broad feature set may exceed the needs of focused membership sites
Our verdict	Paid Memberships Pro is a self-hosted, open-source WordPress plugin for creating and operating membership websites. It suits site owners who want control over gated content, membership levels, subscriptions, member accounts, and reporting… Read the review →	Kartra is a hosted platform for coaches, consultants, creators, and service providers that sell memberships, courses, and digital products. It combines membership and course portals with website and funnel building, email and SMS… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• Paid Memberships Pro — where it wins

  • Restricts pages, posts, blocks, categories, and custom post types
  • Supports free, one-time, and recurring membership levels
  • Connects with Stripe, PayPal, Zapier, LMS, and community tools

  Where it doesn't

  • Requires a self-hosted WordPress site
  • Series drip content requires a premium Add On
  • Paid tiers start at $49 per month

• Kartra — where it wins

  • Post-level gating and scheduled or member-age-based content dripping
  • Recurring, one-time, installment, and subscription pricing options
  • Email, SMS, webinars, analytics, and payment integrations in one platform

  Where it doesn't

  • Essentials limits accounts to 500 contacts and one membership or course
  • Essentials charges a 5% transaction fee
  • The broad feature set may exceed the needs of focused membership sites

• Paid Memberships Pro8.6/10 · Free plan

  A flexible self-hosted WordPress option for memberships, payments, and gated content.

  Visit siteFull verdict →
• Kartra7.3/10 · 30-day trial

  A broad membership platform for businesses that sell through marketing and funnels.

  Visit KartraFull verdict →