BuddyBoss Review (Features, Pricing & Alternative) – What to Know Before Signing up

Is it possible to turn your WordPress site into a social networking site or community?

The answer is yes! You can use WordPress plugins or solutions like the Buddyboss platform to build an online community with your website. However, you may be wondering whether the Buddyboss plugin is worth it, considering there are specialized all-in-one community platforms available that can save you time and cost. This Buddyboss review can help you come to a conclusion.

In this review, we’ll discuss the Buddyboss platform, Buddyboss Theme features, pros and cons, and pricing. Additionally, we’ll compare the Buddyboss platform to other all-in-one community platforms, such as Group.app.

Buddyboss Overview

The Buddyboss WordPress Plugin is a versatile option for creating online communities and managing online courses. It also allows for website and community customization. With over 50,000 users, it has evolved beyond a simple WordPress plugin to become a multi-faceted web platform, complete with a mobile app.

Additionally, the BuddyBoss WordPress plugin offers two primary features: The BuddyBoss Platform and BuddyBoss Theme.

Now, what’s the difference between the Buddyboss platform and the Buddyboss theme?

Let me tell you. The Buddyboss platform is the foundational plugin that enables you to create the whole online community and social network functionality. Whereas, the Buddyboss Theme enables you to style and customize that functionality.

The Buddyboss platform enables you to build WordPress-powered solutions for both web and mobile apps. This, in turn, allows you to create membership programs, online communities, and online courses. You can even launch a white-label app.

Before discussing the features, it’s important to mention the two facets of the Buddyboss platform.

Two Facets of Buddyboss – Buddyboss Web & Mobile App

Buddyboss comes up with two solid facets:

1. Buddyboss Web-Platform
2. Buddyboss Mobile App

Both platforms offer different pricing plans and sets of features, which we will discuss further in this review. You can create your online community site, online courses, or a membership using both the web platform and the mobile app.

Next, let’s talk about the Buddyboss Theme.

Buddy Boss Theme

The Buddyboss Theme is essentially a WordPress theme, but it offers advanced features and customization options for creating membership communities and online courses. This is a refreshing change from the boring and limited in-built WordPress themes.

The BuddyBoss Theme allows you to customize your WordPress and community site to match your personal or brand style.

With the BuddyBoss Theme, you have various options to customize the appearance. You can adjust the typography, choose the community layout, add sidebars, and more with different styling options. Additionally, you can create blogs, adjust the login panel, and customize the overall BuddyBoss platform.

Say goodbye to the complexity of the WordPress backend.

In addition to themes for your community site, you can also find themes to create and sell online courses. However, to do so, you will need to integrate two additional WordPress plugins. This means that BuddyBoss does not offer an in-built course builder like many other platforms do.

Let’s round off the plugins to create and sell courses online.

Learn Dash Theme Plugin

The Learn Dash theme plugin is essentially a WordPress LMS plugin. With this Learning Management System (LMS), you can create online courses and have full control over customizing them in terms of content type, access levels, and release.

With this plugin, you can offer drip content and multi-tiered courses. In addition, it provides advanced analytics for tracking course performance and student progress.

It also includes an intuitive learner’s dashboard that allows your clients or students to access and manage course content. Additionally, it provides insights into their progress and performance.

LearnDash allows creators to manage online courses directly through the WordPress dashboard. Additionally, this plugin enables you to monetize your online courses using a pricing model and strategy of your choice.

Lifter LMS Theme Plugin

This theme plugin is similar to the Learn Dash plugin, but it comes with additional features. It allows you to create online courses.

The Lifter LMS stands out due to its additional sales and engagement features. It comes up with monetization and revenue optimization options such as bulk sales, discount coupons, and affiliate marketing.

Plus, you can add features to connect with your students, such as private messaging, member profiles, social groups, and forums.

Buddyboss Platform Features

Next, let me walk you through the features of the main Buddyboss Platform. Please note that the features stated below correspond to the two facets of Buddyboss: The Buddyboss web platform and the Buddyboss mobile app.

1 – Buddyboss Online Community

Communities are at the core of the Buddyboss platform. After all, its primary purpose is to help you create a community or membership site.

This way you get the space to form a real connection with your clients or students. You can better learn about their problems and ultimately respond better. Moreover, you get direct feedback.

The Buddyboss platform makes it possible for you to effortlessly create a community and integrate it with your WordPress site.

If we narrow it down further, the Buddyboss platform community feature comes up with sub-features.

I – Member Profiles

Your community revolves around its members. That’s why it is important to have features that facilitate membership engagement.

With Buddyboss, you can create custom member profile fields. Plus, you can even create member profile types and allocate community roles to your members. You can also make a specific profile private, public, or hidden in your community.

Additionally, you have the option to set varying levels of access and control for different members of the community.

II – Social Groups

Next, we have Buddyboss groups.

On BuddyBoss, you can create groups within your community. These groups can be either public or private. Each group has its own feed and member listing.

III – Additional Online Community Features

Here are some additional features:

1. Your members can create discussions using the forums feature in a bulletin board-style format.
2. Your members can also activate private messaging to communicate with individuals in your community.
3. You can search for members in your community using the network search feature.
4. Community members can form connections within the community by sending a connection request.

2 – Buddyboss eLearning

Up next, we have the e-learning aspect of the Buddyboss platform.

However, please note that it will require additional plugins and third-party app integrations to create a holistic e-learning system with Buddyboss.

We have discussed the two integrations above that Buddyboss primarily allows you to use, i.e. Learn Dash and Lifter LMS. You can also award certificates with your courses if the plugin permits.

This means the nature of your learning system is dependent on the plugins you use for your online courses.

3 – Buddyboss Gamification

With Buddyboss, you can use a plugin called GamiPress to create a gamified experience for your members. You can add or subtract points depending on the engagement level of your members. This helps in creating an actively engaged community.

4 – Buddyboss E-Commerce

Buddyboss enables you to monetize your online courses and digital products using the WooCommerce plugin.

Yes, another plugin!

You can make money either with a one-time fee or by creating a recurring income through subscription-based membership.

5 – Buddyboss Mobile App

With BuddyBoss, you can create WordPress-powered mobile app solutions for both iOS and Android. This is one of the two facets of BuddyBoss, as I mentioned earlier.

You can create 100% white-label mobile apps that are both native and progressive. You can come up with a mobile app with better UI and UX. The app can be launched both at the App Store and Google Play.

You can fully customize your app according to your brand style. In addition, you can synchronize it with your website.

6 – Buddyboss Integrations

Finally, we have the Buddyboss integrations.

Buddyboss is compatible with a wide range of third-party integrations. That means endless possibilities for creating versatile functionality for your website and online community.

Integrating BuddyBoss with a third-party app can provide many benefits. For instance, if you want to create a job posting community for your members, you can install the WP Job Manager plugin to easily create job posts in your online community.

There are several options available beyond this one. You can install plugins for SEO, project management, live chats, and events.

For a comprehensive list of BuddyBoss integration options, follow this link: complete Buddyboss integration options.

Buddyboss Support

Buddyboss offers a help desk as customer support for its users. However, to access the help desk, you need to have a licensed Buddyboss product. If you are using any Buddyboss product, you will get 24/7 access to tech support.

Users can easily create a support ticket and a dedicated team will be in touch to provide assistance. Additionally, you have access to comprehensive knowledge base, which includes narrated videos, articles, and FAQs with answers.

Buddyboss Pricing – Web & Mobile App

Buddyboss has two types of pricing plans. One for the web platform and the other for the mobile app. Please note that all major features are available with both types of plans.

They only differ when it comes to particular features related to web and mobile apps. In addition, access to the Buddyboss Platform and Buddyboss Theme is available in both plans.

Let’s get into it.

Buddyboss Web-Platform Pricing

There are 3 plans for Buddyboss Web

1. 1 Site @ $228
2. 5 Sites @ $288
3. 10 Sites @ $388

As you can see, all plans are coherent in terms of their offerings. The only difference is the number of available sites in each plan. Each plan is billed annually.

Buddyboss Mobile App Pricing

Pricing plans for the Buddyboss mobile app are complex.

Basically, you have 3 plans. Primarily, all plans differ in terms of the number of apps available in each plan. The highest number of apps can be 10.

In addition, you can either opt for monthly billing or annual billing. Each plan comes with free onboarding and publishing services if paid annually.

If you opt for the Standard, you must develop, set up, and publish your app on your own.

You can opt for the Done For You plan if you want the BuddyBoss team to handle everything for you. However, it comes with a hefty price tag of $1,999. Please note that this price increases with an increase in the number of apps.

Buddyboss Pros & Cons

For a better understanding, let’s learn about the pros and cons of Buddyboss.

Buddyboss Cons

• You need a plugin for literally everything. That means more need for management time, plugin IDs, payments, maintenance cost, need for expertise, and problem-solving.
• There is no free plan available on the Buddyboss platform.
• Overall, the Buddyboss platform is very complex to learn.
• There is no in-built course builder. You will need a plugin to create and host online courses.
• You will have to pay a separate hosting fee for your WordPress website in addition to the costs of hosting your courses and online community.
• It can be even harder to learn if you do not know how to use WordPress.
• There’s a higher chance you will have to hire a developer for your app in case you opt for the standard plan.
• You will have to spend a lot of time learning about how Buddyboss works with plugins.
• Overall, their plans are expensive due to all of the hidden costs associated with using BuddyBoss.

Buddyboss Pros

• Buddyboss allows you to create and integrate a community into your main WordPress site.
• The possibilities are endless as you can use several WordPress plugins to carry out different tasks and projects.
• You can fully customize your website and online community using the main Theme.
• Overall, it’s a flexible platform.

My Verdict – Buddyboss Review

Now, here are my thoughts on whether Buddyboss is worth it or not.

When reading this review, how many times you came across the term “plugin”?

A lot of times right? That’s because Buddyboss is a plugin fundamentally and it’s all about using additional plugins to get the job done.

Although, that makes it more flexible, you will have to pay a heavy cost. Your expense will increase as your need for plugins increases. Let me tell you these plugins are not cheap. Even if you need a separate plugin to host your online courses as there’s no in-built course builder in Buddyboss.

A different plugin for every task? A big no!

The cost of these plugins will gradually accumulate into a big bill. In addition, you will have to pay extra for maintenance, updates, and who knows additional plugins.

Overall, Buddyboss is a very complex platform.

Community leaders and course creators need simple all-in-one solutions with straightforward pricing plans. That way you will be able to focus on your business instead of being entangled in a web of plugins.

Need an example? Consider GroupApp.

GroupApp – The All-In-One Learning Community Platform

GroupApp is an all-in-one learning community platform. With GroupApp, you can host your online courses and the community in one place. It comes with all the in-built features you will ever need.

That cuts the hassle for you and your customers as well. No more jumping across platforms or plugins.

GroupApp offers:

• In-built Course Builder (no need for Learn Dash Plugin)
• Memberships (no need for MemberPress Plugin)
• In-built Event Feature
• A free plan
• iOS and Android mobile apps

GroupApp has a plan for every budget. Create a free GroupApp account now!