WPSubscription vs ArraySubs (2026): Which WooCommerce Plugin Fits Best?

Key takeaways

• Both WPSubscription and ArraySubs are native WooCommerce plugins with free versions on WordPress.org and lifetime license options.
• ArraySubs puts more in its free plugin: automatic Stripe, PayPal, Paddle, and Mollie renewals, variable subscriptions, content restriction, pause and skip, and a subscription box builder.
• WPSubscription leads on split payments (ArraySubs lists them as “coming soon”), delivery schedules, and win-back campaigns for customers who have already cancelled. All three need a paid WPSubscription plan.
• Both can ask why customers cancel and offer them a reason to stay. WPSubscription’s survey is free (insights and retention offers on paid plans); ArraySubs does this in Pro with its Retention Flow.
• For one site, WPSubscription costs less: $347 vs $387 over three years on annual plans, or $199 vs $269 for a lifetime license.
• Both plugins keep your customer and subscription data inside your own WordPress database.

Finding the right subscription plugin for WooCommerce often comes down to two priorities: commerce tools such as installments, delivery schedules, and win-back campaigns, or one plugin that handles both billing and membership content restriction.

WPSubscription and ArraySubs are two of the plugins in our roundup of the best WooCommerce subscription plugins. Both operate natively within WooCommerce, both offer a free version on WordPress.org, and both provide one-time lifetime licenses to keep long-term operating costs low.

ArraySubs is much newer. It was listed on WordPress.org in March 2026 and has 300+ active installs. It also changes fast: features have moved between its free and Pro versions more than once, so we checked its WordPress.org readme and changelog, not just its marketing pages.

Each plugin solves different problems. This head-to-head comparison breaks down their features, payment gateways, retention workflows, pricing, and long-term costs so you can pick the right tool for your store.

Quick Overview: The Two Plugins

WPSubscription

WPSubscription is a native WooCommerce subscription plugin. The free version covers simple subscription products, free trials, a customer dashboard, and automatic Stripe and PayPal renewals. Paid plans add variable subscriptions, installments, delivery schedules, and churn tools.

Key Strengths:

• Flexible billing: Simple subscriptions (free) and variable subscriptions (paid plans) with daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly recurring billing cycles.
• Split payments (paid plans): Offer installment plans (such as pay-in-four) without buying a separate add-on.
• Delivery scheduling (paid plans): Plan shipments around the subscription cycle, with delivery statuses and printable delivery addresses.
• Churn tools: A Cancellation Survey in the free version (insights on paid plans), smart retries and retention offers on paid plans, and Subscription Recovery win-back campaigns (Standard and Pro, or a $58/yr add-on on Basic).
• Gateways: Stripe and PayPal in the free version; Mollie, Razorpay, and Xendit on paid plans; Paddle through the separate WP SmartPay plugin.
• Pricing: Free on WordPress.org; paid plans cost $89/yr (renews at $129/yr); lifetime licenses from $199. Explore all capabilities on the WPSubscription features page.

ArraySubs

ArraySubs is a WooCommerce subscription and membership plugin by ArrayHash. It combines recurring billing, customer self-service, and content restriction in one plugin, which suits creators and educators who need to protect member content. It is new (listed on WordPress.org in March 2026, 5.0/5 from 5 reviews), requires PHP 8.1 or later, and ships updates very often.

Key Strengths:

• Combined subscriptions and memberships (free): Restrict pages, posts, blocks, custom post types, URL paths, and downloads to subscription plans, with drip rules and Elementor support.
• Flexible product types: Variable subscriptions and lifetime deals in the free plugin; Fixed Period Membership (fixed-date access) in Pro.
• Customer self-service portal (free): Subscribers can pause, skip, upgrade, downgrade, cancel, and reactivate from their account, with three proration methods for plan changes.
• Automatic payments in the free plugin: Stripe, PayPal, Paddle, and Mollie. Stripe needs the WooCommerce Stripe Gateway plugin and Mollie needs Mollie Payments for WooCommerce. Manual renewal invoices work through any WooCommerce gateway.
• Subscription boxes: A free Subscription Box builder lets customers build their own box, and free Renewal Sync aligns renewals to a set day of the week or month, or to January 1. Subscription Shipping is in Pro.
• Retention (Pro): Retention Flow records cancellation reasons and shows save offers before a cancellation completes. Pro also adds Retention Analytics, AI churn analysis, and a revenue forecast.
• Native WooCommerce integration: Uses the native WooCommerce cart and checkout (including block checkout) and supports HPOS.
• Pricing: Free on WordPress.org; Pro $129/yr for one site; lifetime licenses at $269 for one site or $899 for 1,000 sites.

Feature Comparison Table

Here is the direct feature breakdown comparing WPSubscription and ArraySubs. ✓ means included and ✕ means not available. “Paid plans” (WPSubscription) and “Pro” (ArraySubs) mark features that need a paid license.

Head-to-Head Feature Breakdown

1. Subscription Billing & Product Types

Both plugins support the product configurations store owners expect in WooCommerce:

• Simple subscriptions: Flat-rate recurring charges on daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly schedules. Free in both.
• Variable subscriptions: Tiered plans where customers choose variations (such as billing interval, size, or delivery frequency). Free in ArraySubs; paid plans in WPSubscription.
• Free trials and sign-up fees: Both support them. WPSubscription’s trials are free; its sign-up fees need a paid plan.

Where WPSubscription sets itself apart is with split payments in WooCommerce (paid plans). If you sell high-ticket items, courses, or annual packages, you can split payments across fixed installments (like 4 monthly payments of $50) without installing a separate plugin. ArraySubs lists installments as “coming soon”.

ArraySubs counters with lifetime deals in its free plugin, sold alongside recurring tiers, and Fixed Period Membership in Pro for seasonal memberships and enrollment windows. Its free Renewal Sync can also put every subscriber on the same renewal day (a day of the week or month, or January 1). WPSubscription has no renewal-date alignment.

2. Memberships & Content Protection

This is the most pronounced architectural difference between the two tools:

• ArraySubs builds content access control into its free plugin. You can restrict pages, posts, blocks, custom post types, URL paths, and downloads to active subscribers, add drip rules, and protect Elementor content. When a subscription expires or cancels, content access revokes automatically.
• WPSubscription handles access through WordPress user role assignment on its paid plans. When a user buys a subscription, it can assign a role on activation and remove or change it when the subscription ends. Paid plans also control access to digital files. It has no page, block, or drip rules of its own, so for gated content you pair it with a dedicated membership plugin.

If your primary business is selling protected articles, premium forums, or member-only videos, ArraySubs gives you an integrated content restriction workflow in its free plugin.

3. Churn Prevention & Retention Automation

Retaining existing subscribers is often more profitable than acquiring new ones. Keeping your churn rate low takes tools for both failed payments and voluntary cancellations:

• WPSubscription spreads its retention tools across plans:
  1. Failed-payment handling (dunning management): Stripe retries failed payments in the free version. Paid plans add smart retry logic and a grace period. See our guide to handling failed subscription payments.
  2. Cancellation Survey: When a subscriber cancels, WPSubscription asks why and saves the reason (free). Insights, cancellation reports, and retention offers need a paid plan.
  3. Subscription Recovery (Win-Back): Targeted campaigns and offers that invite customers back after they have cancelled. Included in Standard and Pro; a $58/yr add-on on Basic.
• ArraySubs sends renewal reminders and applies a grace period for failed renewals in its free plugin. Its Pro Retention Flow records cancellation reasons (seven defaults) and shows save offers before the cancellation completes: a discount, a pause, a downgrade, a skip, or a contact request. Retention Analytics reports on those reasons, and Pro adds AI churn analysis and a revenue forecast. We found no win-back campaigns for customers who have already cancelled.

Both plugins now cover the moment of cancellation. The difference is what happens afterwards: WPSubscription can keep working to win customers back, while ArraySubs concentrates on saving them before they go. Learn more in our guide on managing subscription renewals.

4. Physical Subscription Boxes & Delivery Scheduling

Selling physical recurring products (like roasted coffee, beauty boxes, or supplements) introduces logistical complexity that software subscriptions don’t have.

• WPSubscription includes dedicated delivery scheduling on paid plans. You can plan shipments around the subscription cycle, track delivery status, and print delivery addresses for your fulfillment team.
• ArraySubs includes a free Subscription Box builder, so customers can pick the items in their own box, plus free Renewal Sync to put renewals on a shared day. Subscription Shipping is in Pro. We did not find a separate delivery schedule with delivery statuses and printable addresses.

If you want customers to build their own box, ArraySubs has that tool and WPSubscription does not. If you ship a fixed box on a schedule and want delivery dates, statuses, and address lists, WPSubscription’s delivery scheduling fits better.

5. Payment Gateways & Global Commerce

Reliable payment processing is vital for recurring payments. Here is how gateway support for automatic renewals compares:

Both plugins support Stripe and PayPal in their free versions. ArraySubs also includes Paddle (a merchant-of-record option that handles sales tax and VAT) and Mollie (popular across Europe) for free. In WPSubscription, Mollie needs a paid plan and Paddle works only through the separate WP SmartPay plugin. ArraySubs can also send manual renewal invoices that customers pay through any WooCommerce gateway.

ArraySubs’ gateways come with some conditions. Stripe and Mollie need their own WooCommerce gateway plugins installed. Its PayPal integration can’t handle mixed carts or multiple subscriptions in one order, and doesn’t support skipping a renewal.

WPSubscription adds Razorpay (India) and Xendit (Southeast Asia) on paid plans, plus WooEpay, giving stores in those regions wider payment coverage.

3-Year Total Cost of Ownership

When evaluating subscription plugins, look past the initial checkout price. Most plugins charge recurring annual renewals. Here is what you will actually spend over three years for a single store license:

Both plugins cost far less than the official WooCommerce Subscriptions extension ($279/yr, or $837 over 3 years). For one site, WPSubscription is $40 cheaper over 3 years on annual plans (if ArraySubs renews at $129/yr) and $70 cheaper on lifetime licenses.

Two things narrow that gap. ArraySubs’ free plugin already includes features that need a paid WPSubscription plan, such as variable subscriptions, Mollie, and upgrades and downgrades with proration. And at agency scale, ArraySubs’ $899 Agency Lifetime covers 1,000 sites, against $799 for WPSubscription’s 50-site Pro lifetime. ArraySubs has no multi-site yearly plan, though.

Where ArraySubs Wins

1. A Broader Free Plugin: Automatic Stripe, PayPal, Paddle, and Mollie renewals, variable subscriptions, lifetime deals, content restriction, and customer pause, skip, upgrade, and downgrade (with proration) are all free.
2. Integrated Content Gating: Protect pages, posts, blocks, custom post types, URL paths, and downloads, with drip rules, without installing an additional membership plugin.
3. Customer-Built Subscription Boxes: A free Subscription Box builder, plus free Renewal Sync to align renewal dates.
4. Saving Customers Before They Cancel (Pro): Retention Flow with cancellation reasons and save offers, Retention Analytics, AI churn analysis, and a revenue forecast.
5. Extra Commerce Tools: A store credit wallet, member pricing, Fixed Period Membership (Pro), and manual renewal invoices through any WooCommerce gateway.
6. Agency Lifetime Pricing: $899 once for up to 1,000 sites.
7. Very Frequent Releases: The free plugin reached 2.0.9 and Pro reached 1.2.8 by October 2026, about seven months after its WordPress.org listing.

Where WPSubscription Wins

1. Lower Cost for One Site: $347 vs $387 over three years on annual plans (if ArraySubs renews at $129/yr), and $199 vs $269 for a lifetime license.
2. Installments / Split Payments (paid plans): Sell high-value products in fixed installments without third-party BNPL dependencies. ArraySubs lists installments as “coming soon”.
3. Win-Back Campaigns After Cancellation: Subscription Recovery (Standard and Pro, or an add-on on Basic) keeps working after a customer leaves, and the Cancellation Survey is in the free version.
4. Delivery Scheduling for Boxes (paid plans): Delivery statuses and printable delivery addresses for recurring physical shipments.
5. More Regional Gateways: Razorpay and Xendit (paid plans) and WooEpay, alongside Stripe and PayPal.
6. Documented REST API, Hooks, and Filters (paid plans): For connecting subscriptions to other tools.
7. A Longer Track Record: On WordPress.org since 2022 (rebuilt in 2023), with 1,000+ active installs and 4.9/5 from 25 ratings, against ArraySubs’ 300+ installs and 5 reviews since March 2026.

Who Should Choose Which?

Frequently Asked Questions

Are both WPSubscription and ArraySubs free to start?

Yes, but the free versions are not equal. ArraySubs’ free plugin is broader: it includes automatic Stripe, PayPal, Paddle, and Mollie renewals, variable subscriptions, content restriction, customer pause and skip, upgrades and downgrades with proration, and a subscription box builder. WPSubscription’s free version covers simple subscriptions, free trials, a customer dashboard, Stripe and PayPal renewals, and a cancellation survey. Its paid plans add variable subscriptions, split payments, delivery scheduling, and more gateways. ArraySubs Pro adds Retention Flow, Subscription Shipping, Fixed Period Membership, and AI churn analysis.

Where is customer and subscription data stored?

Both plugins are native to WooCommerce. Customer profiles, subscription records, renewal logs, and order history live inside your self-hosted WordPress database, not on a third-party platform.

Which plugin is better for physical subscription boxes?

It depends on the box. If customers choose what goes in it, ArraySubs has a free Subscription Box builder and WPSubscription does not. If you ship a fixed box, WPSubscription’s delivery scheduling (paid plans) adds delivery statuses and printable delivery addresses. ArraySubs can also align every renewal to the same day with its free Renewal Sync.

Can I restrict content with WPSubscription?

Only through WordPress user roles, on paid plans. When a subscription starts, the customer can receive a role; when it ends, the role is removed or changed. For built-in page, block, and drip gating without extra plugins, ArraySubs provides content restriction in its free plugin.

Do both plugins support lifetime licenses?

Yes. WPSubscription offers lifetime licenses from $199 for one site up to $799 for 50 sites. ArraySubs offers lifetime plans at $269 for one site and $899 for 1,000 sites. Both eliminate recurring annual renewal fees.

How do both plugins handle failed payments?

WPSubscription’s Stripe integration retries failed payments in the free version, and paid plans add smart retry logic and a grace period. ArraySubs sends renewal reminders and applies a grace period in its free plugin. For voluntary cancellations, ArraySubs Pro shows save offers before the cancellation completes, while WPSubscription’s Subscription Recovery (Standard and Pro) runs win-back campaigns after it.

The Bottom Line

Both WPSubscription and ArraySubs are lower-cost alternatives to the official WooCommerce Subscriptions extension.

If your priority is content gating and membership community management in one package, or you want as much as possible in a free plugin, ArraySubs is a strong option, as long as you are comfortable with a newer plugin whose free and Pro features are still moving.

If your goal is selling fixed subscription boxes, offering installment plans, and winning back customers who cancel, at a lower price for one site, WPSubscription is the better fit.

Ready to build your recurring revenue engine? Download the free plugin on WordPress.org or compare our pricing plans to see what each paid plan includes.