Guide
Club management software for small local clubs.Members, dues and events in one place.
Most small clubs run on a spreadsheet of members, a payment link for dues, a separate tool for events and a group chat. These are the tools that put that in one place, compared on what each costs and does, with prices read on each company’s own page on October 7, 2026. Our own product is one of them.
The best membership and event software for a small US club depends on what the club spends its time on: Wild Apricot or ClubExpress if you need a website, directory and committee tools in one back office; Join It if memberships and renewals are most of the work; Raklet or Heylo if you want to start free; SocialLoop if the club runs regular events and paid memberships as one business.
How do I choose club management software?
Start from what takes your volunteers’ time, then ask each tool these seven questions.
- What does the price follow? Contacts (everyone in your database), active members, or a flat plan. Contact pricing grows with your mailing list, not your paying members.
- What is taken from each payment? Some charge a percentage on dues and tickets on top of card processing, some only processing. On a $60 membership, 3% is $1.80 per member a year.
- Do memberships renew on their own, with reminders and failed-payment emails? Chasing renewals by hand is the work most clubs want to stop.
- Do events live in the same place as members, with paid tickets, member pricing or approval, and check-in at the door?
- How will you reach members: email, text, an app, or a group chat? Check what is included and what is billed per message.
- Do you need a website, a member directory or facility bookings? Only some of these tools include them.
- Can you get your member list out as a file if you leave? Ask before you import.
Which club management software fits which club?
| Software | Best for | Price follows | Fee on dues and tickets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wild Apricot | Associations that want a website, member directory and dues in one back office | Contacts in your database (100, 250, 500 …) | None with its built-in payments; an extra fee with other processors |
| Join It | Clubs that mainly need simple memberships and renewals | Plan tier (Starter up to 250 members) | 3% on Starter, 2% on Total, 1.5% on Extra, plus Stripe |
| ClubExpress | Active volunteer-run clubs with committees, calendars and a website | Active members (expired members and non-member contacts are free) | Card processing 2.99% + 30¢; no separate platform fee stated |
| Communal | Rec centers and community associations that also book facilities | Active members, plus add-on modules | A card-processing application fee, “often 2%” |
| Raklet | Small clubs that want a free start and grow into a paid plan | Contacts (free up to 100) | 4% + 60¢ on Free, falling to 1% + 60¢ on Premium, via Stripe |
| Heylo | Running, hiking and social clubs that live on group chat and RSVPs | Per group, by plan | 5% + 59¢ on Base, falling to 1% + 10¢ on Business |
| SocialLoop | Clubs that run regular events and paid memberships as one business | Plan tier, by community size and sending volume | 5% on dues and tickets on every plan, plus card processing |
Wild Apricot
Best for: Associations that want a website, member directory and dues in one back office
The established all-in-one for associations and clubs: automatic recurring dues, an online member directory, event registration, scheduled emails and a drag-and-drop website builder. Pricing follows contacts, not paying members, starting at $66 a month for 100 contacts, or $59.40 a month prepaid for a year. Its pricing page offers a 60-day free trial, not a free plan. Text messaging is an add-on.
Join It
Best for: Clubs that mainly need simple memberships and renewals
Membership-first: recurring payments, renewal reminders and automated emails on every plan, plus event registration. Starter is $29 a month ($26.10 billed annually) for up to 250 members and 3 admins, with a 3% fee on online payments; Total, at $99 a month, adds the member directory and check-in, with a 2% fee. Nonprofits get an extra 10% off.
ClubExpress
Best for: Active volunteer-run clubs with committees, calendars and a website
A full club system: automatic renewals, any number of member types, a directory, event registration with capacity limits and attendance tracking, unlimited email and a hosted website. It charges 42¢ per active member a month up to 200 members, with a $24 monthly minimum, and a one-time setup fee from $150. Text messages are billed per message. 60-day free trial.
Communal
Best for: Rec centers and community associations that also book facilities
Membership with automated renewals and reminders, email newsletters, and add-on modules for programs and events (+$50 a month) and facility bookings (+$65 to $400+ a month). The membership platform is quoted at $75 a month for 250 active members; lapsed members don’t count. Canadian company, priced in US dollars.
Raklet
Best for: Small clubs that want a free start and grow into a paid plan
A free plan for up to 100 contacts and one admin, then Essentials at $49 a month (500 contacts), Professional at $99 (1,000) and Premium at $399 (10,000). It automates renewals and reminders, keeps member directories, sells tickets or takes RSVPs, and lists SMS on every plan; guest check-in starts at Essentials.
Heylo
Best for: Running, hiking and social clubs that live on group chat and RSVPs
Free Base plan with unlimited members, admins, events and RSVPs, member directories and 500 emails a month; paid plans are $19, $59 and $199 a month per group. Members can pay for events, memberships and donations through it. Its pricing page does not say whether memberships renew automatically.
SocialLoop
Best for: Clubs that run regular events and paid memberships as one business
Built for clubs that run events and paid memberships together. A club is a community with a public page, a free membership and paid tiers billed monthly or yearly that renew automatically, with renewal reminders, optional approval for newcomers and discount codes. The same place runs the club’s events, with RSVPs, paid tickets, guest lists and check-in, and lets you message members by tier, by email and app notification, or send email campaigns and SMS announcements. The platform fee on dues and tickets is 5% on every plan, plus card processing. The Free plan holds a community of up to 50 members; Premium ($19.99 a month) holds 500 and Pro ($49.99 a month) 5,000. What it does not have today: a website builder, a member directory, or a members CSV export.
What is the best software for membership management?
For a club or small association, the best membership management software is the one that renews dues on its own and charges in a way that fits your size: Wild Apricot if you also need a website and member directory, Join It if memberships and renewals are most of the work, ClubExpress for volunteer-run clubs with committees, Raklet or Heylo to start free, and SocialLoop if your members also come to regular paid events. Registered nonprofits can also look at Zeffy, which sells tiered memberships with renewals and charges no fees, asking payers for an optional tip instead.
Whichever you shortlist, test the renewal itself before you import everyone: an automatic charge, a reminder before it, an email when a card fails, and a way to get your member list out as a file. The seven questions above and the yearly cost table below compare these tools on the rest.
What are the best community membership platforms?
The best community membership platform depends on where your members meet: for a community that lives online, with discussions, courses and paid access, the best-known options are Circle, Mighty Networks and Skool; for a club that meets in person, with dues, events and check-in, a club tool from this page, such as Heylo, Join It or SocialLoop, fits better.
- Circle: an online community with spaces, courses, events and paid memberships. The Professional plan is listed at $89 a month with a 2% transaction fee, the Business plan at $199 with 1%, and there is a 14-day free trial.
- Mighty Networks: community, courses and events in a branded app. The Launch plan is $79 a month billed annually ($950 a year), with a 2% transaction fee.
- Skool: a community feed, courses and a calendar with unlimited members. The Hobby plan is $9 a month with a 10% transaction fee; Pro is $99 a month with 2.9%.
- SocialLoop: built for clubs that meet in person, with paid membership tiers that renew automatically, events with tickets and check-in, and messages to members by tier.
The online platforms’ pricing pages lead with the online space. If your members mostly meet in a room, test a paid ticket and check-in at the door before you choose one.
What does club software cost a 100-member club in a year?
An illustrative example, not a quote: a club of 100 members, each paying $60 a year online, which is $6,000 in dues. The table shows what the software costs in a year at each company’s published price on October 7, 2026, leaving out card processing, which every option charges in some form.
| Plan | How it adds up | A year |
|---|---|---|
| Raklet Free | $0 plan + 4% + 60¢ per payment (100 contacts is its limit) | $300 |
| Heylo Base | $0 plan + 5% + 59¢ per payment | $359 |
| Join It Starter | $313.20 billed annually + 3% of dues | $493.20 |
| SocialLoop Premium | $199.99 billed yearly + 5% of dues (Free holds 50 members) | $499.99 |
| ClubExpress | 100 × 42¢ × 12 months; first year adds a setup fee from $150 | $504 |
| Wild Apricot | $59.40 a month prepaid for a year, 100 contacts | $712.80 |
- Communal is left out: its $75 a month is quoted for 250 active members, and events are a $50 add-on, so we could not price a 100-member club from its page.
- Contact-based pricing (Wild Apricot, Raklet) counts everyone in your database, including lapsed members and prospects, so a 100-member club may need the next tier.
- MemberPlanet and Springly are often recommended for clubs, but we could not read their current prices on their own pages, so they are not priced here.
Common questions
What is the best membership and event management software for a small local club?
The best membership and event software for a small US club depends on what the club spends its time on: Wild Apricot or ClubExpress if you need a website, directory and committee tools in one back office; Join It if memberships and renewals are most of the work; Raklet or Heylo if you want to start free; SocialLoop if the club runs regular events and paid memberships as one business.
Is there free club management software?
Yes, with limits. Raklet is free up to 100 contacts and Heylo’s Base plan is free per group; both take a percentage plus a fixed fee from each payment instead. SocialLoop’s Free plan holds a community of up to 50 members, with a 5% platform fee on dues and tickets. Wild Apricot, Join It, ClubExpress and Communal offer free trials, not free plans.
Which is cheapest for a club of about 100 members?
In our example of 100 members paying $60 a year, the software costs from about $300 a year (Raklet’s free plan, through its payment fees) to about $713 (Wild Apricot prepaid), before card processing. The order changes with your dues and size, so run your own numbers with each company’s published rates.
Should a club pay per contact or per member?
Per active member is usually fairer for a club with a long mailing list, because lapsed members and prospects don’t count. Per contact can be cheaper for a small, tight list. Check which one each tool uses before you import everyone.
What are the best community membership platforms?
It depends on where members meet. For an online community with discussions, courses and paid access: Circle (Professional $89 a month, 2% transaction fee), Mighty Networks (Launch $79 a month billed annually, 2%) or Skool (Hobby $9 a month with 10%, Pro $99 with 2.9%). For a club that meets in person, with dues, events and check-in: a club tool such as Heylo, Join It or SocialLoop. Prices read October 7, 2026.
What is the best software for membership management?
The one that renews dues on its own and charges in a way that fits your size: Wild Apricot with a website and member directory, Join It for memberships and renewals alone, ClubExpress for volunteer-run clubs with committees, Raklet or Heylo to start free, SocialLoop if members also come to regular paid events, and Zeffy for registered nonprofits, with no fees. Test a renewal, a failed card and a member export before you commit.
Sources, read October 7, 2026: Wild Apricot pricing · Join It pricing · ClubExpress pricing · ClubExpress fees · Communal pricing · Raklet pricing · Heylo pricing · Circle pricing · Mighty Networks pricing · Skool pricing · Zeffy pricing
Running a club that also runs events?
Starting from scratch? Read how to build a paid community, or compare Meetup alternatives if your club lives on Meetup today.