Private community
Members, activity, profiles and groups closed to visitors from the moment you activate it, with a login form in place of the content rather than a bounce somewhere else. Pro gates by membership level on ten systems.
Members only
Sign in to see the community.
Still on /members, so the link works the moment they sign in.
What private means here
This plugin decides what gets rendered to whom. That covers the way almost everybody arrives, and it is worth knowing exactly where it stops before you describe your community as private to anyone else.
It restricts
Members, activity, profiles and groups, locked against visitors from the moment you activate it.
Tick the WordPress pages and custom post types you want behind the wall. Both start unlocked, so nothing disappears on install.
Locked content drops out of the search results your site returns, so nobody browses to it from the search box.
Past the front door there is a second layer: which roles reach which BuddyPress pages, who can create groups, who can send a message.
It does not reach
If your requirement is that nothing leaves the site at all, those three need their own answer, at the server or with a plugin built for them. Said here because the alternative is finding out later.
What a visitor sees at a locked page is your login form in place of the content, on the same URL, with the rest of your site around it. They are not bounced anywhere, which keeps the link they were sent still working the moment they sign in.
FREE COVERS THE BASICS · PRO ADDS THE GATING ENGINE
Free is enough for most communities. Pro fits sites already running a membership plugin (PMPro, MemberPress, LearnDash, LifterLMS, WooCommerce Memberships, and 5 more).
Two modes. URL wildcards. Built-in login form. 400+ installs.
For: Communities that need members-only access without per-tier gating.
Gate by membership level on 10 systems.
For: Sites already running a WordPress membership engine that want BuddyPress access tied to paid levels.
Tab-level access. Profile completion. Per-member visibility.
For: Communities where access depends on profile state, role, or who's allowed to see whom.
OUR HISTORY
Free version on WordPress.org with 300+ active installs. Pro version on EDD. Both maintained continuously for 7+ years.
Private Community for BuddyPress v1.0 ships free on WordPress.org. Site-wide lock with URL list.
Pro version ships with membership-level gating on PMPro and MemberPress.
Free version adds wildcard URL patterns. Pro adds LearnDash + LifterLMS course gating.
Pro integrations expand to 10 systems including WooCommerce Memberships, Restrict Content Pro, WishList Member, GamiPress, s2Member, Memberium.
Free v2.1.2 ships. Pro v3.1.0 ships with profile completion enforcement, tab-level access, customizable locked-content templates.
The three routes WordPress site owners actually consider when they want members-only community access.
Free version handles 'lock the site' on its own. Pro is the route for sites already running a membership plugin who want community access tied to paid tiers.
Private is not one switch. Choose per tab, per role and per membership level.
Full Protection (lock everything) or Partial Protection (lock listed URLs only). Whitelist the URLs that stay public.
Patterns like /premium/* or /courses/cohort-* lock entire sections in one rule. No need to list every URL.
Use the built-in login form (styled to your theme) or swap in Gravity Forms / WPForms / Forminator via filter hook.
Send logged-out visitors to a welcome page instead of the login form. Useful for sales landing pages.
Gate by membership level on PMPro, MemberPress, LearnDash, LifterLMS, WooCommerce Memberships, Restrict Content Pro, WishList Member, GamiPress, s2Member, Memberium.
Force members to complete X% of their profile before locked areas unlock. Useful for paid course onboarding.
Hide BuddyPress profile tabs and group tabs from members by role. Not just lock pages - hide entire tabs from the UI.
Translation-ready. 8+ developer filters (bplock_whitelist_urls, bplock_locked_urls, bplock_redirect_url, etc.) for custom logic.
Pay once and own it forever, or pick the annual plan. All features included in every plan, no hidden add-ons.
The plugin keeps working. Updates and support stop until you renew.
Free forever. Annual licenses include a year of updates and support and renew at 30% off. Lifetime licenses are a one-time payment and never expire.
The free version locks BuddyPress site-wide or per area. Pro adds gating by membership level on ten systems, with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
