[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":324},["ShallowReactive",2],{"compare-wild-apricot-vs-hivebrite":3},{"_path":4,"_dir":5,"_draft":6,"_partial":6,"_locale":7,"title":8,"description":9,"h1":10,"a":11,"b":12,"verdict":13,"published":14,"modified":14,"communalPitch":15,"faqs":18,"body":37,"_type":317,"_id":318,"_source":319,"_file":320,"_stem":321,"_extension":322,"sitemap":323},"/compare/wild-apricot-vs-hivebrite","compare",false,"","Wild Apricot vs Hivebrite (2026): Pricing, Features and Who Each Fits","Wild Apricot and Hivebrite compared on starting price, contact versus flat plans, contracts, payment fees, website builder, community and engagement features and integrations, with the organizations each one suits and a third option for groups that run programs or rent space.","Wild Apricot vs Hivebrite: small-association toolkit against an enterprise community platform","wild-apricot","hivebrite","Wild Apricot (from $66/mo for 100 contacts, 60-day trial, month-to-month) is the self-serve membership database and website builder for clubs and small associations. Hivebrite (from $895/mo billed annually, unlimited users, demo only) is a community engagement platform for alumni networks and large associations that want groups, forums, mentoring and a white-label app. Pick Wild Apricot for dues, events and a site on a small budget; pick Hivebrite if member-to-member engagement is the product. Groups that book facilities or run programs need a third option.","2026-08-19",{"title":16,"text":17},"Operational membership tools at a flat monthly price","Communal prices by members, not contacts: $75/mo to 250 members with volunteer and donor management included, programs +$50/mo and facility booking from +$50/mo. No annual contract, 30-day free trial, free migration.",[19,22,25,28,31,34],{"question":20,"answer":21},"Hivebrite vs Wild Apricot: which is cheaper?","Wild Apricot, by more than ten times at the entry level. Wild Apricot starts at $66/mo for 100 contacts and, per third-party listings, reaches about $462/mo at 5,000 contacts. Hivebrite starts at $895/mo billed annually on its Core plan, with Flex and Prime above it, and pricing does not depend on contact count. Only very large databases bring Wild Apricot anywhere near Hivebrite's floor.",{"question":23,"answer":24},"What does Hivebrite do that Wild Apricot does not?","Community engagement. Hivebrite provides groups and sub-communities, forums, messaging, member matching, mentoring programs, a white-label native mobile app as an extension, enterprise SSO (SAML, OIDC, Okta, Azure AD) and autonomous sub-communities with governance on the Prime plan. Wild Apricot offers a member directory, forums and a member app, but it is built around the database, website, events and email rather than peer-to-peer engagement.",{"question":26,"answer":27},"Is Wild Apricot good enough for an alumni association?","For a small or regional alumni group that mostly collects dues, runs events and sends newsletters, yes, and the 60-day trial lets you check. For a university-scale network that wants mentoring, regional chapters with their own admins and a branded app, Hivebrite is built for that and Wild Apricot is not; Wild Apricot has no multi-chapter structure.",{"question":29,"answer":30},"Do Wild Apricot and Hivebrite charge payment fees?","Wild Apricot charges no platform fee when you use its Personify Payments processor (processor rates not published), but using Stripe, PayPal or Authorize.Net adds a Payment System Servicing Fee of 20% of your subscription. Hivebrite processes through integrated gateways (Stripe, Braintree, PayPal, Square, Zelle per vendor pages) at gateway rates and publishes no platform transaction fee; a fee for external gateways is not published.",{"question":32,"answer":33},"Which has a free trial or monthly billing?","Wild Apricot: a 60-day free trial with no credit card, month-to-month billing and optional 1-year (10% off) and 2-year (15% off) prepay. Hivebrite offers no trial, sells through a demo and bills annually, with no setup fee or minimum term published.",{"question":35,"answer":36},"What if we also book rooms or run programs?","Neither Wild Apricot nor Hivebrite has facility booking, and volunteer management is absent in Wild Apricot and limited to posting opportunities in Hivebrite. Communal covers memberships, program registration with waitlists and attendance, facility booking with approvals and invoices, donations with tax receipts and volunteer shifts in one member database at a flat price by member count, starting at $75/mo to 250 members.",{"type":38,"children":39,"toc":308},"root",[40,49,70,76,131,137,190,196,201,207,297,303],{"type":41,"tag":42,"props":43,"children":45},"element","h2",{"id":44},"the-short-version",[46],{"type":47,"value":48},"text","The short version",{"type":41,"tag":50,"props":51,"children":52},"p",{},[53,55,61,63,68],{"type":47,"value":54},"Pick ",{"type":41,"tag":56,"props":57,"children":58},"strong",{},[59],{"type":47,"value":60},"Wild Apricot",{"type":47,"value":62}," if you are a club, association or small nonprofit with a few hundred to a few thousand contacts, you need a website, member database, events and email from one vendor, and you want to set it up yourself on a 60-day trial without a contract. Pick ",{"type":41,"tag":56,"props":64,"children":65},{},[66],{"type":47,"value":67},"Hivebrite",{"type":47,"value":69}," if you are an alumni network, foundation, professional network or large association with an annual budget in the five figures, and the reason you are buying is member-to-member engagement: groups, forums, mentoring and a branded mobile app. Pick neither if your week includes hall rentals, kids programs or volunteer shifts: both stop well short of operations.",{"type":41,"tag":42,"props":71,"children":73},{"id":72},"where-wild-apricot-wins",[74],{"type":47,"value":75},"Where Wild Apricot wins",{"type":41,"tag":77,"props":78,"children":79},"ul",{},[80,91,101,111,121],{"type":41,"tag":81,"props":82,"children":83},"li",{},[84,89],{"type":41,"tag":56,"props":85,"children":86},{},[87],{"type":47,"value":88},"Price.",{"type":47,"value":90}," $66/mo for 100 contacts, every tier published, no setup fees. Hivebrite starts at $895/mo billed annually.",{"type":41,"tag":81,"props":92,"children":93},{},[94,99],{"type":41,"tag":56,"props":95,"children":96},{},[97],{"type":47,"value":98},"Trial and terms.",{"type":47,"value":100}," 60-day no-card trial, month-to-month billing, no cancellation fees. Hivebrite is demo only on annual terms.",{"type":41,"tag":81,"props":102,"children":103},{},[104,109],{"type":41,"tag":56,"props":105,"children":106},{},[107],{"type":47,"value":108},"Operational membership tools.",{"type":47,"value":110}," Dues, renewals, invoices, member bundles, events with registration types and waitlists, a store and donations, all in every tier and mature after fifteen-plus years.",{"type":41,"tag":81,"props":112,"children":113},{},[114,119],{"type":41,"tag":56,"props":115,"children":116},{},[117],{"type":47,"value":118},"Website builder at every tier.",{"type":47,"value":120}," Drag-and-drop builder, themes, member-only pages, widgets and WordPress embeds. Hivebrite has a no-code page builder, but it is a community portal rather than a general website.",{"type":41,"tag":81,"props":122,"children":123},{},[124,129],{"type":41,"tag":56,"props":125,"children":126},{},[127],{"type":47,"value":128},"Mobile apps included.",{"type":47,"value":130}," Member and admin apps ship with every plan; Hivebrite's native app is a paid extension.",{"type":41,"tag":42,"props":132,"children":134},{"id":133},"where-hivebrite-wins",[135],{"type":47,"value":136},"Where Hivebrite wins",{"type":41,"tag":77,"props":138,"children":139},{},[140,150,160,170,180],{"type":41,"tag":81,"props":141,"children":142},{},[143,148],{"type":41,"tag":56,"props":144,"children":145},{},[146],{"type":47,"value":147},"Community engagement.",{"type":47,"value":149}," Groups and sub-communities, forums, messaging, member matching and mentoring programs. Wild Apricot's directory and forums are basic by comparison.",{"type":41,"tag":81,"props":151,"children":152},{},[153,158],{"type":41,"tag":56,"props":154,"children":155},{},[156],{"type":47,"value":157},"Unlimited users and flat pricing.",{"type":47,"value":159}," No contact counting; plans differ by admin seats and groups (Core: 2 admins, 5 groups; Flex: 5 + 5 admins, 10 groups; Prime: 10 + 10 admins, 25 groups). Wild Apricot bills every contact.",{"type":41,"tag":81,"props":161,"children":162},{},[163,168],{"type":41,"tag":56,"props":164,"children":165},{},[166],{"type":47,"value":167},"Chapters and governance.",{"type":47,"value":169}," Autonomous sub-communities with governance on Prime, community champions on Flex. Wild Apricot has no multi-chapter structure.",{"type":41,"tag":81,"props":171,"children":172},{},[173,178],{"type":41,"tag":56,"props":174,"children":175},{},[176],{"type":47,"value":177},"Enterprise integration.",{"type":47,"value":179}," Documented REST API with OAuth2, SSO via SAML, OIDC, Okta and Azure AD, Zapier and Make. Wild Apricot has an API and Zapier/Make but no enterprise SSO.",{"type":41,"tag":81,"props":181,"children":182},{},[183,188],{"type":41,"tag":56,"props":184,"children":185},{},[186],{"type":47,"value":187},"No gateway surcharge published.",{"type":47,"value":189}," Payments run through Stripe, Braintree, PayPal, Square or Zelle at gateway rates. Wild Apricot adds 20% of your subscription if you bring your own gateway.",{"type":41,"tag":42,"props":191,"children":193},{"id":192},"pricing-in-practice",[194],{"type":47,"value":195},"Pricing in practice",{"type":41,"tag":50,"props":197,"children":198},{},[199],{"type":47,"value":200},"Wild Apricot is a subscription by total contacts: $66/mo at 100 ($59.40/mo with 1-year prepay, $56.10/mo with 2-year), and third-party listings show about $78 (250), $147 (500), $252 (2,000) and $462 (5,000). Lapsed members and subscribers count, so clean the list first, and budget 20% of the subscription extra if you must keep Stripe or PayPal. Hivebrite is a flat annual plan from $895/mo ($10,740/yr) for Core, with hands-on onboarding included, professional services sized to package, and the native mobile app as an extension. A 2,000-contact association pays about $252/mo on Wild Apricot and at least $895/mo on Hivebrite; the gap only closes if you would otherwise buy a separate community platform, mentoring tool and branded app.",{"type":41,"tag":42,"props":202,"children":204},{"id":203},"who-should-pick-which",[205],{"type":47,"value":206},"Who should pick which",{"type":41,"tag":208,"props":209,"children":210},"table",{},[211,230],{"type":41,"tag":212,"props":213,"children":214},"thead",{},[215],{"type":41,"tag":216,"props":217,"children":218},"tr",{},[219,225],{"type":41,"tag":220,"props":221,"children":222},"th",{},[223],{"type":47,"value":224},"If you are...",{"type":41,"tag":220,"props":226,"children":227},{},[228],{"type":47,"value":229},"Lean towards",{"type":41,"tag":231,"props":232,"children":233},"tbody",{},[234,247,259,271,284],{"type":41,"tag":216,"props":235,"children":236},{},[237,243],{"type":41,"tag":238,"props":239,"children":240},"td",{},[241],{"type":47,"value":242},"A club or association under 5,000 contacts that needs a site and dues",{"type":41,"tag":238,"props":244,"children":245},{},[246],{"type":47,"value":60},{"type":41,"tag":216,"props":248,"children":249},{},[250,255],{"type":41,"tag":238,"props":251,"children":252},{},[253],{"type":47,"value":254},"A group that wants to set up and run the tool itself with no contract",{"type":41,"tag":238,"props":256,"children":257},{},[258],{"type":47,"value":60},{"type":41,"tag":216,"props":260,"children":261},{},[262,267],{"type":41,"tag":238,"props":263,"children":264},{},[265],{"type":47,"value":266},"An alumni network or foundation where engagement and mentoring are the product",{"type":41,"tag":238,"props":268,"children":269},{},[270],{"type":47,"value":67},{"type":41,"tag":216,"props":272,"children":273},{},[274,279],{"type":41,"tag":238,"props":275,"children":276},{},[277],{"type":47,"value":278},"A large association with regional sub-communities and SSO requirements",{"type":41,"tag":238,"props":280,"children":281},{},[282],{"type":47,"value":283},"Hivebrite Flex or Prime",{"type":41,"tag":216,"props":285,"children":286},{},[287,292],{"type":41,"tag":238,"props":288,"children":289},{},[290],{"type":47,"value":291},"A community league, rec center or club that rents space or runs programs",{"type":41,"tag":238,"props":293,"children":294},{},[295],{"type":47,"value":296},"Neither; see the third option below",{"type":41,"tag":42,"props":298,"children":300},{"id":299},"the-third-option",[301],{"type":47,"value":302},"The third option",{"type":41,"tag":50,"props":304,"children":305},{},[306],{"type":47,"value":307},"If you are comparing these two because your current setup no longer fits, check what your organization actually does week to week. Communal was built for groups that run memberships alongside programs, facility rentals, donations and volunteers, and prices by paying members rather than contacts or a flat enterprise plan: $75/mo to 250 members with volunteers, donors and POS included, programs +$50/mo, facilities from +$50/mo, no contract, a 30-day free trial and free migration from either tool. It does not include a website builder, forums or a native mobile app, which is the honest trade.",{"title":7,"searchDepth":309,"depth":309,"links":310},2,[311,312,313,314,315,316],{"id":44,"depth":309,"text":48},{"id":72,"depth":309,"text":75},{"id":133,"depth":309,"text":136},{"id":192,"depth":309,"text":195},{"id":203,"depth":309,"text":206},{"id":299,"depth":309,"text":302},"markdown","content:compare:wild-apricot-vs-hivebrite.md","content","compare/wild-apricot-vs-hivebrite.md","compare/wild-apricot-vs-hivebrite","md",{"loc":4},1787618718367]