MemberPress: Lock Premium Content While Keeping 80% Free

Want to grow fast without locking your whole site? Give most content free to build trust, then put your best 20 percent behind a simple paywall. That is the plan. It is simple, fair, and proven.

MemberPress is a WordPress plugin that lets you control who sees what, sell memberships, and run courses. Today you will set up clear access rules, a free plan, paid plans, lean teasers, and smart drip schedules.

New for 2025: a free Courses add-on for full LMS features, ReadyLaunch page templates for clean pricing and checkout pages, partial content protection for sections, and no added transaction fees. This helps bloggers, creators, coaches, local media, and nonprofits. Expect to ship in one afternoon with WordPress, MemberPress, and Stripe or PayPal.

See the Video

How MemberPress Locks Premium Content While Keeping 80% Free

MemberPress lets you mix open content with premium content. Publish posts, videos, and tips for everyone, then lock deeper assets for members. Use access rules to protect entire categories or files. Use partial protection to hide only a section, like a downloadable template or a lesson recap. Add teasers so non-members see a preview and a clear reason to join.

Membership levels define who gets what. You set prices, billing terms, and perks. Payments run through Stripe or PayPal. MemberPress auto-creates key pages, like pricing, login, account, and thank you, so you can launch faster.

Common use cases:

• Tutorials that start free, with full systems locked for members

• Courses and cohorts, using the free Courses add-on for structure and tracking

• Template libraries, checklists, and downloads

• Private podcast feeds and archives

• Research, data packs, and local media reports

Access Rules 101: Posts, pages, categories, and custom content

Rules control access. You can protect:

• Single posts or pages

• Whole categories or tags

• Custom post types, like lessons or resources

• Files and folders

Example: create a “Premium Guides” category, add child categories like “SEO,” “Email,” and “Analytics,” then set one rule to lock that parent category. Everything inside, now and later, follows the rule. Rules can stack, so a VIP plan might unlock extra content on top of the Premium library. You can add exceptions too, like leaving one article free as a sample.

Keep steps short and verify with a private browser window.

Teasers and partial protection: Show previews without giving it all away

Teasers let you show an excerpt to everyone, while members see the entire article. Partial content protection hides only the section you choose, like a step-by-step breakdown, a download link, or a lesson video. You can place protected sections with a shortcode or block, then add a friendly prompt above or below it.

Best practices:

• Keep teasers short, 2 to 4 lines, with one image if it helps

• State the payoff, not just features

• Add a clear upgrade prompt that says what members get

Simple example:

• Teaser: “You will copy a 7-step launch checklist used on real campaigns. Members get the editable Google Sheet, the timeline, and the email scripts.”

• CTA: “Unlock the full guide” with a link to your pricing page

Membership levels and pricing: Free tier plus paid plans

Build a small ladder:

• Free, newsletter and comments

• Premium, full library

• VIP, courses, downloads, and office hours

You can add trials, coupons, and lifetime options if they fit your market. Keep pricing simple. Focus on outcomes. MemberPress does not add transaction fees, you only pay your payment processor.

Example price table in prose: Free is 0 per month, Premium is 15 per month with full access to guides and templates, VIP is 39 per month with all courses, downloads, and monthly office hours.

Payments and pages: Stripe, PayPal, and ReadyLaunch templates

Connect Stripe and PayPal from your dashboard. MemberPress sets up pricing, login, account, and thank you pages for you. Use ReadyLaunch templates to ship fast with clean design that looks good on phones. Add short copy, trust badges, and a few FAQs to reduce friction. Keep the checkout simple, fewer fields mean more signups.

Trust boosts:

• Short form, just name, email, and card

• “Secure checkout” note and a money-back line if you offer refunds

• Mobile checks, pinch and scan the page on your phone

Step-by-Step Setup: Lock 20% of Your Site in One Afternoon

Follow this checklist and keep moving. You can refine later.

Install MemberPress and create core pages

• Add the plugin, activate your license, run the setup wizard

• Confirm pricing, login, account, and thank you pages exist and work

• Use clean URLs, like /pricing and /account

• Test while logged in, then test in a private window

Build memberships: Free, Premium, and VIP

• Create three plans with simple names and short descriptions

• Set prices and billing terms, add trials only if they help

• Keep forms short, add custom fields only if they improve the offer

• Add tax rules if your region requires it

Create access rules for the premium 20%

• Pick what to lock, like a Premium category or a tag such as plus

• Add drip schedules for long guides and course lessons

• Set the unauthorized message to a helpful teaser, not a dead-end

• Send non-members to the pricing page with one click

• Test rules in a private window

Add teasers and upgrade buttons to key posts

• Place a short teaser above the fold

• Use a clear button, “Unlock the full guide”

• Link to the pricing table in the sidebar and below the teaser

• Check phone layout, make sure the CTA only shows to non-members

5-minute prelaunch review

• Do plans show on pricing, with one plan highlighted

• Can a guest reach checkout in two clicks

• Does the teaser show to guests, and full content to members

• Do drip dates look right

• Are emails for receipts and renewals turned on

80/20 Content Plan: What to Give for Free, What to Lock

Free content brings reach. Premium content delivers depth and speed. The mix matters.

Keep discovery content free to grow traffic

Good free items:

• News, short how-tos, tool lists

• Beginner guides and show-and-tell posts

• Quick wins that show your style

Link from free posts to your premium pieces. Use clear titles that match search intent. Skip clickbait. Add a small note at the end, “Members get the full template and walkthrough.”

Put depth, downloads, and courses behind the paywall

Premium items:

• Step-by-step systems, templates, spreadsheets, PDFs, and source files

• Full courses using the free Courses add-on, with modules, quizzes, and certificates

• Coaching calls or community access for higher tiers

This raises perceived value, since members save time and avoid guesswork.

Use drip schedules and email to increase upgrades

Plan a weekly release for big assets. For example, Module 1 today, Module 2 next week, and so on. Drip keeps members longer because they get a reason to return.

Use built-in emails for reminders, renewals, and failed payments. Connect an email tool like Mailchimp to tag free and paid members, then send upgrade nudges based on visits or clicks.

Offer a free membership with perks to warm up leads

Create a free plan that needs only an email. Perks could include comments, bookmarks, and a mini library. Tag free members by interest, like SEO or design, then send light-touch upsells in the welcome series. Keep it helpful and direct.

Optimize, Measure, and Prevent Churn

Small wins stack up. Tighten the path to checkout, clean your copy, then watch the numbers.

Design pricing pages that convert with ReadyLaunch

Use three plans with one marked Best value. List benefits in short bullets. Add a few testimonials, money-back terms, and a simple FAQ. Keep language at a middle school reading level. Clarity makes sales.

Track what works: reports and simple analytics

Check MemberPress reports weekly. Look at revenue, active members, churn, and refunds. Track clicks on your upgrade buttons. Cut what does not move the needle, and do more of what does.

Reduce churn: dunning emails, card updates, and pause options

Turn on renewal and failed payment emails. Add a link so members can update cards without support. Offer a pause plan instead of a hard cancel. Send win-back offers at 30 and 60 days with a quick recap of new content.

Legal and trust: Terms, refunds, and content protection rules

Post clear terms, a refund policy, and a privacy policy. State how you handle email consent and GDPR in plain words. Respect licenses for any assets you share. Keep promises about what is free and what is paid.

Conclusion

Most content free for reach, the best 20 percent locked for revenue. That is your new engine. With MemberPress, plus the 2025 boosts like the free Courses add-on, ReadyLaunch templates, partial content protection, and no added transaction fees, you can ship in a day and refine weekly.

Quick checklist: three plans, one pricing page, clean teasers, one rule for your premium category, drip set for long pieces, and email nudges on. Create your first access rule now. Test as a guest, then as a member, and tune your offer every week.