Wild Apricot or Pass the Pad?
A fair side-by-side.
Both run memberships, dues, events and email for clubs. Wild Apricot adds a website builder; Pass the Pad adds a tablet sign-in at the door and prices by active members instead of every contact.
Club (Sign-in and Membership): from $45 a month, priced by active members · 30 days free, no card needed
Pass the Pad vs Wild Apricot with Pass the Pad
Priced by active members
Club starts at $45 a month for up to 300 active members. Guests, past members and mailing-list contacts are never counted.
Your own Stripe or PayPal
Dues go straight to your own account with no fee from us on top, and no extra charge for choosing Stripe or PayPal.
Self sign-in at the door
Members and guests sign themselves in on a tablet that keeps working offline, and you see who is current, lapsed or new.
Bring your Wild Apricot export
Upload the contacts export and members, levels, renewal dates and status come across, with a preview before anything is saved.
Newsletters included
Email your list from Pass the Pad, or keep using Mailchimp. Up to 250 subscribers are included on every paid plan.
An open API
Members, sign-ins, events, forms and payments over a documented API with webhooks, on every plan.
Pass the Pad and Wild Apricot
| Topic | Pass the Pad | Wild Apricot |
|---|---|---|
| What sets the price | Active members only. Club from $45 a month for up to 300 | Every contact: $66 a month for 100, $82 for 250, $154 for 500 |
| Paying through Stripe or PayPal | Your own account, nothing extra from us | 20% servicing fee on the subscription (US and Canada), unless you use Personify Payments |
| Free trial | 30 days, no card, then a free plan | 60 days, no card; no free plan |
| Door check-in | Self sign-in on a tablet, works offline | Admins and event managers check people in from the app or a QR code |
| Website builder | No: forms and portal embed in your site | Yes, included |
| Newsletters | Included (up to 250 subscribers), or Mailchimp | Included |
What we say about Wild Apricot comes from its own pages, checked October 25, 2026: Wild Apricot pricing, Payment System Servicing Fee (Wild Apricot help), Personify Payments rates, Event check-in (Wild Apricot help). Prices and features change, so check their site before you decide. Something out of date? Tell us and we'll fix it.
Ready in three steps.
Export from Wild Apricot
In Wild Apricot, export your contacts as CSV with all fields.
Preview and import
Pass the Pad recognises the file, shows every member and level, and flags anyone already here.
Run both for a while
Use the 30-day trial alongside Wild Apricot until you're sure, then switch.
Where each one fits
Wild Apricot is a long-standing all-in-one: a website builder, events, email, an online store, donations and separate admin and member apps, with every feature on every tier. Its price follows the number of contacts in your database: on its pricing page, $66 a month for 100 contacts, $82 for 250, $154 for 500 and $265 for 2,000, about 10% less when you prepay a year. Its trial is 60 days with no card, and there's no free plan.
Payments are where the bill can change. Wild Apricot's own help centre says US and Canadian accounts that take payments through PayPal, Stripe or Authorize.Net pay a servicing fee of 20% of the subscription price, from the day they switch, unless they use its own processor, Personify Payments, at 2.99% + 30¢ a card payment. Pass the Pad never takes a share of your dues and charges nothing extra for the processor you pick.
Pass the Pad started at the door, so check-in is its strongest part: guests and members sign themselves in on a tablet that works without wifi. Wild Apricot's check-in is done by administrators and event managers from its app or a QR code in the confirmation email, and its help pages don't describe an offline mode. If you need a full website built in your membership tool, Wild Apricot does that and Pass the Pad doesn't: Pass the Pad's forms, portal and member sign-in embed in the website you already have.
Frequently asked questions
Is Pass the Pad cheaper than Wild Apricot?
Usually, because we count active members, not contacts. Club is $45 a month for up to 300 active members, up to $189 for 10,000, with yearly plans at 10 months' price. Wild Apricot lists $82 a month for 250 contacts on its pricing page (checked October 25, 2026), and adds 20% if you pay through Stripe or PayPal.
Does Pass the Pad have a website builder like Wild Apricot?
No. Pass the Pad embeds join, renewal and event forms, the member portal and members-only pages in the website you already have. If you need a website built for you, Wild Apricot includes one.
Can I move my members from Wild Apricot?
Yes. Upload Wild Apricot's contacts export: members, levels, renewal dates and status come across, with a preview first. Wild Apricot doesn't export saved cards, so members renew with Pass the Pad when their time is up.
Does Wild Apricot charge extra for Stripe or PayPal?
Its help centre says US and Canadian accounts using PayPal, Stripe or Authorize.Net pay a servicing fee of 20% of the subscription price; Personify Payments, its own processor, avoids it (checked October 25, 2026). Pass the Pad charges nothing extra for either.
Is there a free trial?
Pass the Pad has a 30-day free trial with no card, and a free plan afterwards with one tablet and 100 sign-ins a month. Wild Apricot's trial is 60 days, with no free plan.
More from Pass the Pad
Try it at your next event.
30 days free. No card needed.