TL;DR
Selling subscriptions, memberships, or accepting installment payments is not a core WooCommerce feature—you need a plugin for that. Two of the most popular options are WooCommerce Subscriptions by WooCommerce and Subscriptions for WooCommerce by WP Swings. Their similar names can be confusing, as you might accidentally refer to a different plugin than intended.
Why Do You Need a Subscription Plugin?
WooCommerce does not include built-in subscription functionality. With multiple subscription plugins available, it can be confusing to choose the right one, especially since some have very similar names.
Donation Platform for WooCommerce officially supports WooCommerce Subscriptions and Subscriptions for WooCommerce. Due to their naming similarity, it’s easy to accidentally refer to the wrong plugin in discussions, so it’s important to clarify which one you mean. Despite their similar names, they have significant differences in pricing, features, and capabilities.
WooCommerce Subscriptions (Premium Plugin by WooCommerce)
WooCommerce Subscriptions is a premium extension developed by WooCommerce. You can purchase it here: WooCommerce Subscriptions.
- Price: $279 per year (as of this writing)
- Supported Payment Gateways: Over 25 automatic recurring payment gateways
Features:
- Multiple billing schedules to fit various business models
- Automatic recurring payments with multiple payment gateways
- Support for manual renewals through any WooCommerce-supported payment method
- Automatic rebilling for failed subscription payments
- Built-in renewal notifications and email reminders
- Detailed reporting on recurring revenue, active subscribers, and more
Subscriptions for WooCommerce (Free Plugin by WP Swings)
Subscriptions for WooCommerce is a freemium plugin available on WordPress.org: Download here.
- Price: Free base version, with a premium upgrade for more features
- Supported Payment Gateways: Limited (mainly PayPal Standard and Stripe Credit Cards)
Features:
- Create recurring revenue with subscriptions for WooCommerce products
- Sell subscription-based products and services
- Free trial options for subscription-based products
- Customers can cancel subscriptions anytime
- Email notifications for renewal orders
- Logs subscription errors for debugging
- Auto-holds subscriptions when payments fail
- Subscriptions are automatically canceled when an order is canceled
- Basic membership and subscription auto-configurations
- Limitation: The free version does not support variable products (you can use grouped products as a workaround: How to Use Grouped Products for Subscriptions)
Conclusion
Both plugins allow you to sell subscriptions on your WooCommerce store, but they cater to different needs. WooCommerce Subscriptions is the premium, feature-rich option, while Subscriptions for WooCommerce is a more basic, budget-friendly choice. Due to their similar names, make sure you’re referring to the correct plugin when discussing subscription options. Select the plugin that best suits your budget, payment gateway requirements & business needs.