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Software · head to head

Chargebee vs Memberful

Chargebee logo

Chargebee

Software

Subscription billing & revenue management

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Memberful logo

Memberful

Software

Membership platform for creators to sell subscriptions, courses and gated content

From
$49/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Chargebee priced as a percentage of billing, 0.80 percent on pay-as-you-go or 0.65 percent plus $99 a month on the committed plan, so the fee rises with revenue; Memberful charges a 4.9% transaction fee on top of the flat monthly fee on the Standard plan.
  • They diverge on capability: Chargebee covers Subscription management, Memberful covers Membership checkout.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Chargebee and Memberful actually diverge.

Attributes where Chargebee and Memberful differ
AttributeChargebeeMemberful
Starting price$29/month$49/month
Founded20112013

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), free tier (No), platforms (Web, Api), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Chargebee

  • Subscription management
  • Recurring billing
  • Revenue recognition
  • Dunning management
  • Checkout pages
  • Stripe
  • PayPal
  • Salesforce

Only in Memberful

  • Membership checkout
  • Flexible subscriptions
  • Member management
  • Landing page builder
  • Dynamic paywalls
  • Third-party integrations

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Chargebee

  • Subscription billingnot Memberful
  • Revenue operationsnot Memberful
  • Pricing experimentationnot Memberful

Memberful

  • Selling paid membership subscriptions from an existing websitenot Chargebee
  • Gating podcast, newsletter or course content behind a paywallnot Chargebee
  • Running a WordPress site with paid member-only contentnot Chargebee
  • Offering one-time purchases alongside recurring membershipsnot Chargebee

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Chargebee

  • Priced as a percentage of billing, 0.80 percent on pay-as-you-go or 0.65 percent plus $99 a month on the committed plan, so the fee rises with revenue
  • Split into four separate product lines, Billing, CPQ, RevRec and Growth, each with its own tiers and most quote-only
  • CPQ Lite is free only for the first 50 quotes
  • Revenue recognition pricing is demo-only
  • Enterprise Plus requires an annual commitment

Memberful

  • Charges a 4.9% transaction fee on top of the flat monthly fee on the Standard plan.
  • Requires a separate Stripe account, adding setup complexity compared to all-in-one checkout platforms.
  • Lacks built-in course-hosting depth found in dedicated learning management platforms.
  • No free plan beyond the pre-launch trial period; charges begin once payments go live.

Pricing, plan by plan

Chargebee

$29/month
  • StarterFree
    • First $250K revenue free
    • Basic billing
    • Invoicing
  • Performance$599/month
    • Revenue recognition
    • Advanced analytics
    • Multi-currency

Memberful

$49/month
  • Standard$49/month
    • 4.9% transaction fee
    • Full platform access
    • Free until you go live
  • Enterprise$undefined/mo
    • Custom volume-based rates
    • Premium services and success management
    • Dedicated migration support

Which should you pick?

Choose Chargebee if

  • You need subscription management.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want recurring billing.
Chargebee review

Choose Memberful if

  • You need membership checkout.
  • You work on web, api.
  • You also want flexible subscriptions.
Memberful review

Questions people ask

Is Chargebee or Memberful better?
Neither clearly leads. Chargebee starts at $29/month and Memberful at $49/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Chargebee or Memberful?
Chargebee starts at $29/month and Memberful at $49/month.
Does Chargebee or Memberful run on more platforms?
Chargebee runs on Web, Api. Memberful runs on web, api.
What is Chargebee best used for?
Chargebee is most often used for subscription billing, revenue operations, pricing experimentation. Of those, subscription billing and revenue operations are not what Memberful is typically brought in for.
What can Chargebee do that Memberful cannot?
Chargebee covers Subscription management, Recurring billing, Revenue recognition, Dunning management. Memberful covers Membership checkout, Flexible subscriptions, Member management, Landing page builder.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Memberful: What does Memberful cost?

Memberful's Standard plan costs $49/month plus a 4.9% transaction fee, while larger organizations can get custom volume-based rates on the Enterprise plan.

Source
Memberful: Is there a free plan, and what are its limits?

Memberful can be used for free while setting up a membership site, with no charges incurred until the creator goes live and starts accepting payments.

Source
Memberful: What does Memberful integrate with?

Memberful integrates with WordPress, Mailchimp, Discord and Kit, among other tools, to connect membership data with existing sites and marketing systems.

Source
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