The pricing structures, refund policies, and updates and support periods all differ. Below I have compared the plugins with regard to those aspects.
You can click on the name of the product below to view its full review.
s2Member
Despite its wealth of features, s2Member starts very reasonably at $69 only for the single-site license. The unlimited domains license costs $129.
s2Member has a special, $289, license for Multisite blog farms, which includes support and documentation for those who wish to run a website to sell blogs.
Unlike the competition, all of s2Members' licenses include free life time support and updates.
s2Member is licensed under the GPL and there are no refunds.
WishList Member
You can buy the single site license ($97) which allows for installation on one domain. The Multi-Site license ($297) can be installed on as many domains as you own, and it includes some bonus material, such as themes and icons.
Both licenses entitle you to a one year of free updates. After that year, you can renew for $47.
WishList Member is backed by a 30-day satisfaction guarantee, so you can buy worry-free.
Digital Access Pass
DAP prices start at $167 for a 1-site license. An unlimited license is available for $297, which you can use on websites that you own only. The unlimited license includes the S3MediaVault WordPress plugin as a bonus.
If you wish to install DAP on clients' sites, you can buy the Developer 5-Pack license, which allows you to install the script on five client websites, for $497.
All of these licenses come with free installation of DAP.
If you need more help than simple installation, you can buy the Membership Site-In-A-Box service, which comes with the unlimited license and either 3 hours of personalized customizations ($497) or 6 hours of personalized customizations ($997).
These licenses never expire. However, upgrades and support are only offered for one year. If you need upgrades and support after that, you can renew for $30.
For the normal licenses, DAP is backed by a 30-day money back guarantee. For the Membership Site-In-A-Box, you can request a refund at any time before your scheduled session with the DAP team.
eMember
There's only one type of license for eMember. It includes life-time support and updates and it allows you to install eMember on any number of websites you own. It only costs $49.95!
This may seem like a very low figure for a membership plugin, but keep in mind that in some cases you may need to buy additional plugins from Tips & Tricks HQ to get certain features.
Like how you'd need to buy eStore ($69.95 for the bundle: eStore + eMember) if you wanted to offer protected downloadable files, or WP Lightbox Ultimate ($34.95) for protecting Amazon S3 streaming videos, or WP Affiliate Platform ($49.95) for managing affiliates.
Magic Members
There are three types of licenses for Magic Members: single, 3 users, and unlimited. The single license ($97) is for the base plugin and is to be installed on one site only. The 3 users license ($197) can be installed on up to 3 personal sites, and the unlimited license ($297) can be installed on an unlimited number of personal sites. Both the 3 users and unlimited license include a 300-icon set, the Magic Kicker plugin, and a 20% discount on the Magic Affiliate plugin as bonuses.
All licenses include a one year free update and support. After that, you'll have to renew ($49) to continue to receive updates and support.
All purchases from Magic Members are protected by a 30-day satisfaction guarantee.
Paid Memberships Pro
Paid Memberships Pro is GPL licensed and available for free from WordPress.org. If you're serious about using this plugin to power your membership site, you'll want to become a paying subscriber at PaidMembershipsPro.com to get support and updated documentation. The subscription fee is very affordable, $10/month. Not only is it affordable, but if, for some reason, you decided not to use the plugin within 30 days, you can request and get a full refund!
WPMU DEV Membership
All of WPMU DEV's products are GPL-licensed, which means they are open source and can be installed on as many sites as you wish.
To download this specific plugin, you can purchase it for $39 (includes 1-month upgrades and support), $79 (3 months upgrades and support) or $209 (1 year upgrades and support).
Alternatively, you can become a WPMU DEV subscriber to get access to WPMU DEV Membership and many other plugins and unlimited support. The prices for WPMU DEV subscriptions are here.
Keep in mind that there are no refunds with WPMU DEV.
MemberWing
A trial version of MemberWing can be downloaded for free. Once you've tried the plugin and liked it, you can purchase one of three types of licenses: Pro One, Pro Unlimited, and TSI Edition.
Pro One ($199.95) can be installed on one domain only. Pro Unlimited ($299.95) can be installed on unlimited number of websites. The TSI Edition ($299.95) includes the TSI protection features and can only be installed on one domain.
Because there's a free trial version of the plugin, refunds are not issued.
Each license is backed by one-year support and upgrades, which can be renewed ($40/year for Pro One, $60/year for Pro Unlimited and the TSI Edition).
Your Members
Your Members comes in four different licenses, several support options, and a few add-ons.
The Starter license ($95) has none of the add-ons. The Basic license ($115) has the Facebook membership site, adaptive pricing, and password sharing protection modules. The Pro license ($150) has everything that the Your Members team developed plus premium support. Each one of those licenses permits installation on one site only. The Ultimate license ($300) is just like the Pro license but permits installation on as many sites as you own.
All licenses are backed by life-time support and 1 year updates. After this year, you can renew for a small fee, around $30.
Your Members is backed by a "14-day no-quibble money back guarantee".
wp-Member
wp-Member comes in two licenses: single license and developer license. The single license ($29.99) can be installed on one site only. The developer license ($199 annually) can be installed on up to 30 websites.
Updates and support are offered for one year of purchase, and can be renewed for $19.99 when it expires. There are no refunds.
For Your Members, it’s probably worth noting all versions include free support via our forums (phone support available for an additional fee) and all sales come with a 14 day no-quibble return policy.