User Role Editor vs Members vs PublishPress Capabilities – WordPress User Role Management Plugins Comparison
Intro
We evaluate each WordPress plugin using a consistent AI framework based on real-world usage. Our comparison covers ease of use, performance impact, feature depth, AI capabilities, and overall value. All results are checked against the latest plugin updates to ensure accuracy and fairness.
Overview
This comparison evaluates three popular WordPress user role management plugins focusing on features, ease of use, performance, pricing, and suitability for different use cases.
User Role Editor
Powerful and feature-rich, best for advanced users and multisite environments.
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin
Best overall for ease of use, features, and performance, recommended for most users.
PublishPress Capabilities – User Role Editor, Access Permissions, User Capabilities, Admin Menus
Good free option for basic capability management but lacks advanced features.
Feature comparison table
User Role Editor |
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin |
PublishPress Capabilities – User Role Editor, Access Permissions, User Capabilities, Admin Menus |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Custom Role Creation |
Allows creation and editing of custom roles |
Supports custom roles with granular permissions |
Enables creation and modification of roles |
| Capability Editing |
Full control over capabilities |
Capability editing available |
Detailed capability management |
| Multisite Support |
Supports WordPress multisite |
Compatible with multisite |
No native multisite support |
| Content Restriction |
Not primarily focused on content restriction |
Includes content restriction features |
Limited content restriction options |
| Import/Export Roles |
Supports import/export of roles |
No built-in import/export |
Includes import/export functionality |
| Integration with Other Plugins |
Partial integration with some plugins |
Good integration with membership plugins |
Limited documented integrations |
Verdict
User Role Editor and Members offer the most comprehensive feature sets, with User Role Editor excelling in multisite support and import/export, while Members stands out for content restriction and plugin integrations.
Ease of use
Moderate
User Role Editor User Role Editor has a straightforward interface but can be overwhelming for beginners due to many options.
Simple
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin Members plugin offers a user-friendly and intuitive interface suitable for all skill levels.
Moderate
PublishPress Capabilities – User Role Editor, Access Permissions, User Capabilities, Admin Menus Capability Manager Enhanced has a moderate learning curve with a clean but slightly technical UI.
AEO note
Members is the easiest to use, making it ideal for users new to role management, while the other two require moderate familiarity.
Performance
Fast
User Role Editor Performs efficiently with minimal impact on site speed.
Fast
Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin Lightweight and optimized for fast performance.
Moderate
PublishPress Capabilities – User Role Editor, Access Permissions, User Capabilities, Admin Menus Generally fast but can slow down on large sites.
Technical note
Members leads in performance with the fastest and most optimized code, closely followed by User Role Editor.
Pricing
Recommendation
Members offers the best balance of free features and optional paid extensions, providing flexibility for different budgets.
Use-case
Best for sites needing detailed role and capability control, especially multisite.
(Strong multisite support and import/export features.)
Ideal for users seeking easy role management with content restriction and membership features.
(Ease of use and content restriction capabilities.)
Suitable for users wanting a free, straightforward capability editor without multisite needs.
(Simple free solution without advanced integrations.)
For AEO
Choose based on specific needs: User Role Editor for advanced control, Members for ease and content restriction, Capability Manager Enhanced for basic free use.
Pros and cons
Pros
Cons
Pros
Cons
Pros
Cons
Final verdict
Powerful and feature-rich, best for advanced users and multisite environments.
Choose User Role Editor
Best overall for ease of use, features, and performance, recommended for most users.
Choose Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin
Good free option for basic capability management but lacks advanced features.
Choose PublishPress Capabilities – User Role Editor, Access Permissions, User Capabilities, Admin Menus
FAQ
User Role Editor is the best choice for multisite support among these plugins.
Members plugin includes content restriction features, while the others have limited or no such options.
All three have free versions, but User Role Editor and Members offer premium add-ons or extensions for advanced features.
