Memship

Memship is a self-hosted membership system for associations, clubs, and other member-led organizations that need records, activities, and payments in one place. It suits volunteer teams and small staffs managing a few hundred to a few thousand members. Its strongest case is control over member data without subscription or per-member charges; its main trade-off is the technical responsibility that comes with running it yourself.

Overview

Memship combines membership administration, activity registration, and payment collection in a single-tenant deployment on an organization’s own server. Membership types, groups, pricing, age rules, guardians, minors, role-based access, and organization settings cover the administrative structure that clubs and associations commonly need. A member portal lets people manage their own interactions instead of routing every change through staff.

The self-hosted model keeps member data on the organization’s infrastructure by default. That is a meaningful privacy and control advantage for groups that do not want a vendor cloud holding their records, although any connected outside service can receive data sent to it.

Key features

Membership and activities

Activity tools go beyond a simple sign-up form. Organizations can set price tiers, check eligibility, maintain waiting lists, issue discount codes, collect legal consents, and accept file uploads. Those controls are useful for clubs with age-dependent programs, capacity limits, or documentation requirements.

Payments and communication

Payment support includes SEPA direct debit, Redsys, Bizum, and Stripe Checkout, plus recurring billing, automatic overdue reminders, and PDF receipts with VAT breakdowns. Automated dunning and self-service renewals reduce repetitive collection work, while card and bank payment options cover different member preferences. Group announcements and automatic registration, cancellation, and waiting-list emails can run through SMTP or Resend. Email campaigns and direct messaging are marked as planned, so this is not yet a full outbound communications suite.

Language and access

The member-facing interface includes Spanish, Catalan, and English, with the option to extend it to other languages. Members can register, book activities, and pay from a phone browser. A dedicated member mobile app is still in development, which matters for organizations expecting a native app experience.

Pricing

Memship is free. The Free core plan costs free and includes the full application, self-hosted deployment, no subscriptions, and no per-member fees. The Memship core plan is also free with the same full-application, self-hosted, subscription-free, per-member-free terms. Since both published plans offer the same stated package, the attraction is straightforward: organizations keep the software without a recurring license bill. They must still provide the server and handle deployment and maintenance.

Platforms

Memship runs as self-hosted web software. The quick start requires Docker and Docker Compose, and the application is opened in a browser on port 8081. This fits organizations with technical support or a volunteer comfortable managing containers; it is a poor match for teams seeking a hosted, ready-to-use service. Community help is available through GitHub issues or email on a best-effort basis, while contributors may separately offer paid setup, hosting, or custom development.

Who it's for

Memship is aimed at associations, sports clubs, and cultural organizations with a few hundred to a few thousand members, especially those run by volunteers or small staffs. It is a sensible choice when data ownership, flexible activity rules, and integrated collection matter more than a polished native mobile app or vendor-managed hosting.

Pros and cons

• Pro: Full functionality is free, with no subscription or per-member fees, making ongoing software costs predictable.
• Pro: Self-hosting keeps member data on the organization’s server by default and supports a single-tenant setup.
• Pro: Eligibility checks, waiting lists, consent capture, recurring billing, dunning, and VAT-aware receipts address operational tasks in one system.
• Con: Docker and Docker Compose are required, so deployment and upkeep are the organization’s responsibility.
• Con: Members currently use a phone browser rather than a dedicated mobile app.
• Con: Email campaigns and direct messaging are planned rather than current communication features, and support is best-effort.

Alternatives

Choose Raklet instead if native Android and iOS apps and a freemium hosted model matter more than self-hosting; its free tier is limited to 100 contacts, one admin seat, and 1,250 emails per month.

memberplanet is a better fit for organizations wanting web, Android, and iOS access, with a Basic plan offering unlimited members and admins.

Pick MembershipWorks for a web service with account-based tiers, including a free allowance of 50 accounts and paid limits of 300 or 600 accounts.

PushPress suits groups prioritizing native mobile apps and unlimited leads, admins, members, and staff on its free tier, with transaction fees instead of monthly fees.

Use membermojo when a web-only service with annual, member-count pricing and a free trial is preferable.

GrowthZone is the alternative for organizations seeking a paid platform with mobile, API, and web access and plans built around unlimited members and contacts.

Mybers offers native apps, a free-forever starter tier with unlimited members and 500 emails per month, and paid upgrades.

Pelcro is another hosted option with mobile and API support, including a free tier for 100 customers.

For broader comparisons, see Membership Management Software and Membership Billing Software.

Verdict

Choose Memship if your association or club wants a capable membership, activity, and payment system without license fees and is prepared to operate Docker-based self-hosting. Look elsewhere if you need vendor-managed infrastructure, a native member app today, or mature campaign and direct-messaging tools.