Most clubs leave ClubExpress because wallet cards, resource scheduling, the API and ad-hoc reports each arrive as a separate add-on invoice. Stay on ClubExpress if you want committees, forums and a storefront with phone support.
Ordered by how well each one fits the organizations that usually outgrow ClubExpress.
Memberships, programs, facility booking, volunteers and wallet cards on one member record
Memberships, programs and events, facility booking, volunteer shifts and donations on one member record, with Apple and Google Wallet cards and POS in the base plan.
Check first: There is no website builder, forums or storefront; Communal runs beside your existing site and sells products through POS and invoicing rather than an online store.
Website builder, events, store and member app with no module add-ons
Wild Apricot includes the site builder, events, email, online store, donations, member and admin apps and a public API on every tier, with no setup, customization or training fees.
Check first: Pricing counts every contact in the database, and using your own payment gateway adds a 20% surcharge on the subscription.
A membership and events widget that embeds in the website you already have
MembershipWorks embeds membership, a directory, events with capacity and check-in, donations, forms, a job board and a shopping cart into WordPress, Squarespace, Wix or Weebly.
Check first: No public API, no resource booking, no wallet cards, and volunteer tracking is basic.
A traditional AMS for small-staff associations that outgrew a club tool
YourMembership bundles a member database, dues automation, events, website CMS, online community, e-commerce and donations, with a job board, LMS and chapter and committee management as add-ons.
Check first: No published pricing, free trial or payment terms; annual contracts and sales-led purchasing.
Wallet cards, committee roles and meeting tooling for volunteer-run clubs
TidyHQ handles unlimited contacts, membership levels, dues and events, and its Pro plan adds Apple and Google Wallet cards, committee roles, tasks and meetings.
Check first: A 3% + $0.20 service fee on Starter (1% + $0.20 on Pro) on top of Stripe, no facility booking, and data hosted in Australia.
Dues, group texting and fundraising pages for PTAs, boosters and fraternal chapters
MemberPlanet covers dues, events, donation pages, surveys, group texting, a member app and a site builder, and its free Basic tier has no cap on members or admins.
Check first: A 1% to 2% platform fee stacks on 3% + $0.30 processing, and cards are in-app or PDF rather than wallet passes.
Pick this if fundraising outweighs club administration
Neon CRM starts as a donor database with unlimited records and users, and its Impact tier adds memberships, events, volunteers and an open API.
Check first: Entry tier is fundraising-only, processing is 2.99% + $0.30, and there is no website builder or free trial.
| Feature | Communal | ClubExpress | Wild Apricot | MembershipWorks | YourMembership |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Membership management | IncludedTiers, custom fields, segments | Included | Included | Included | Included |
| Automated renewals | IncludedReminders and auto-renew | Included | Included | Included | Included |
| Digital membership cards (Apple / Google Wallet) | IncludedIncluded in every plan | Add-on$200/yr, in-app | Partial | Not offered | Not listed |
| Family & household memberships | Included | IncludedSecondary members | PartialBundles | Not listed | Not listed |
| Event registration & ticketing | Add-onPrograms & events, +$50/mo | Included | Included | IncludedCapacity and check-in | Included |
| Program & class registration | Add-onWaitlists, capacity, attendance, rosters | Not listed | Not listed | Not listed | Not listed |
| Facility booking & rentals | Add-onFrom +$50/mo; approvals, invoices, agreements, iCal | Add-onResource Scheduling, $20/mo | Not offered | Not offered | Not offered |
| Volunteer shifts & hour tracking | IncludedShifts, hours, auto volunteer discounts | Included | Not offered | Partial | Partial |
| Donations & fundraising | IncludedIncluded; donor covers fees option | Included | Included | Included | Included |
| Member self-service portal | Included | Included | IncludedMember app | Included | Included |
| Email campaigns | IncludedCampaigns and segments | Included | Included | PartialMailchimp add-on | Included |
| Website builder | Not offeredWorks beside your site | Included | Included | Partial | Included |
| Chapters & federations | IncludedFederated leagues and chapters | Add-onChapters module | Not offered | Not offered | Included |
| Public API | IncludedREST API, Zapier webhooks, MCP server | Add-onWeb Services $200/yr | Included | Not offered | Included |
| Detail | Communal | ClubExpress | Wild Apricot | MembershipWorks | YourMembership |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $75/mo | $24/mo minimum | From $66/mo | Free to 50; $35/mo to 300 | Quote only |
| Pricing model | Flat, by member band (to 250 members at the floor) | Per active member per month | Per contact, tiered | Per member account, tiered | Annual license, quote |
| Contract | No contracts, prorated billing, cancel any module any time | Monthly billing; no long-term contract advertised | Month-to-month available;Detailsoptional 1-year and 2-year prepay discounts; no cancellation fees | No contract, month-to-month, cancel anytime; 30-day money-back guarantee | Annual contract (quote); term details not published |
| Payment fees | Card-processing application fee set in your agreement, often 2%; no monthly minimums | Built-in merchant account (Stripe-based).DetailsBasic Payments (funds to your own Stripe account): 2.99% + 30 cents per card transaction. Premium Payments (funds flow through ClubExpress, deposited 3x/month): 3.99% + 30 cents (grandfathered customers 3.15% + 30 cents). ACH: 1.5% with $1 min / $100 max. ClubExpress says it charges no separate per-transaction platform fee. Using your own merchant account is allowed only by exception. | No per-transaction fee from WildApricot itself when using the integrated Personify Payments processor (processor rates not published on the pricing page).DetailsUsing a third-party gateway (Stripe, PayPal, Authorize.Net) triggers a Payment System Servicing Fee described in the help center as 20% of the subscription plan price, applied to US/Canada accounts; vendor pricing page calls this 'an additional fee'. | No MembershipWorks transaction fee or revenue share;Detailsyou pay only Stripe / PayPal / Authorize.net gateway fees. No surcharge for using your own gateway. | Not published; vendor markets 'integrated payment processing' but rates and gateway fees are not disclosed publicly |
| Free trial | Free trial, no credit card | Yes, free trial website (Start a Free Trial) | 60-day free trial, no credit card required; no permanently free plan | No time-limited trial;Detailsfree plan up to 50 accounts plus 30-day money-back guarantee | No free trial or free plan; demo only |
Virtual membership cards, Resource Scheduling, the member-verification API, Ad-Hoc Reports, Continuing Education, the Contact Log CRM, QuickBooks sync and SSO are each priced separately, from $20/mo up to $300/yr. The $24/mo per-active-member floor rarely stays the bill.
One-time setup runs from $150 for the Basic package to $3,800 for Builder Pack Plus, with training billed at $140/hr. Clubs expecting a self-serve start find a services bill instead.
Basic Payments to your own Stripe account is 2.99% + $0.30 and Premium Payments through ClubExpress is 3.99% + $0.30. Bringing your own merchant account is allowed only by exception.
Reviewers describe the website templates and admin screens as dated, and custom design work costs extra. Clubs that want a modern member-facing site end up paying a designer on top of the subscription.
The $200/yr Virtual Membership Cards add-on is an in-app card; no true Apple or Google Wallet pass is confirmed. Clubs that scan members in at the door or want a card that updates on renewal look for it elsewhere.
Wallet cards, volunteer shifts with hour tracking, donation receipting, POS software, a public REST API, custom field reports and CSV or XLSX exports of everything are in the $75/mo base plan. On ClubExpress, virtual cards, web services, ad-hoc reports and the contact-log CRM are each billed separately.
Communal facility booking covers parent and child spaces, instant or request-and-approve workflows, member-type pricing, recurring seasonal bookings for leagues, block-offs and a public calendar. ClubExpress offers Resource Scheduling as a separate add-on module.
Payments settle weekly into your own Stripe Connect account with no monthly minimums, and donors and members can cover the fees at checkout. Migration of your members, renewals and history is scoped and free, with no setup package to buy first.
Communal issues Apple and Google Wallet passes that update by push when a membership renews or lapses, with scan in and out check-in, a card designer and PDF cards. ClubExpress sells an in-app virtual card add-on with no wallet pass confirmed.
Stay on ClubExpress if its module catalog is doing real work for you, the add-ons you pay for are the ones you use, and your members do not mind the look of the site. A 200-member hobby club on the $24/mo floor with committees, a forum and phone support is getting a fair deal. Move when wallet cards, room booking, the API and reporting each arrive as a separate invoice, or when the processing rate and setup fees outweigh the per-member saving.
Communal. Resident vs non-resident pricing by map boundary, hall and court rentals, kids programs and volunteer shifts all sit on one member record, and the Tuscany Community Association runs its soccer registration this way with about 10,000 volunteer hours saved.
Communal if the club books facilities, runs programs, or wants wallet cards and volunteer shifts included. TidyHQ if it is volunteer-run and needs committee and meeting tooling, or Wild Apricot if it wants a vendor-hosted website with no module add-ons.
YourMembership for a traditional AMS with a CMS, online community, job board and chapter management on an annual contract. Wild Apricot for smaller associations that want a published price and a website and member database from one vendor.
Communal for federations of community associations: each chapter is its own tenant with its own Stripe account, and the parent routes residents to the right chapter by address. The EFCL runs 163 Edmonton community leagues this way, while MemberPlanet suits fraternal and PTA chapters that want texting and a free tier.
ClubExpress exports members, secondary members, renewal dates, event registrations and transactions; expired members and non-member contacts come across as history.
Export active and expired members, secondary (household) members, membership types, renewal dates, interest groups and transaction history from ClubExpress; we map types to membership types, secondaries to family dependents, interest groups to tags, and run a dry-run import you can check.
Set up membership types, renewal rules, facilities, programs and volunteer opportunities in Communal, then import members with their existing expiry dates so renewals fall on the same day they would have.
Point your website to the Communal portal for signup, renewals, registration and bookings, send members their wallet cards, and run both systems briefly while the first renewals come through.
The Tuscany Community Association moved soccer registration onto Communal and reports about 10,000 volunteer hours saved. Read the case study.
How the hall gets booked, how program pricing works, how you chase renewals. No canned tour. We walk Communal through your real process so you can see the fit before you decide.
No canned tour · No sales script
For clubs and community associations that want wallet cards, volunteers, an API and facility booking at one flat price, Communal at $75/mo. For a club that wants a vendor-hosted website with every feature at every tier, Wild Apricot. For a club that already has a website and wants the lowest bill, MembershipWorks from free to 50 accounts. For staffed associations, YourMembership.
ClubExpress bills per active member per month with a $24/mo minimum; expired members and non-member contacts up to 5 times the active count are free. One-time setup packages run $150 to $3,800. Add-ons include Virtual Membership Cards at $200/yr, Resource Scheduling at $20/mo, Web Services at $200/yr, Ad-Hoc Reports at $200 to $300/yr and QuickBooks at $20/mo. Card processing is 2.99% + $0.30 (Basic) or 3.99% + $0.30 (Premium).
On the base subscription, ClubExpress at $24/mo is already cheap. The saving comes from what is included. Communal at $75/mo includes wallet cards, volunteers, POS, the API and reporting that ClubExpress bills separately, with no setup package. MembershipWorks is free to 50 accounts and TidyHQ has a free Starter plan if you only need dues and events. Compare on our pricing page.
Yes, and the scoped migration is free. We import active and expired members, secondary members as family dependents, membership types, renewal dates and transaction history from your ClubExpress exports, validate the mapping with you using a dry run, and keep existing expiry dates intact. Most moves finish in two to four weeks.
No. Communal runs as a member portal beside the website you already have, with your logo, colours and custom CSS. It has no forums, no website builder and no online storefront; products are sold through POS and invoicing. If a hosted club website with forums and a store is the core of what you need, ClubExpress or Wild Apricot is the better choice.
Not that we can confirm. ClubExpress sells a Virtual Membership Cards add-on at $200/yr that works in its app, but no Apple or Google Wallet pass is documented. Communal, TidyHQ Pro and Join It Total all issue true wallet passes.
ClubExpress is a published-price club platform billed per active member from $24/mo, aimed at hobby, athletic and social clubs and small associations, with modules added a la carte. YourMembership is a quote-priced AMS on annual contract for small-staff associations that want a CMS, online community, job board and LMS. Move up to YourMembership when you have staff and non-dues revenue to manage; stay at ClubExpress scale otherwise.