Building a thriving online community requires more than just a shared interest; it demands a dedicated digital space that fosters engagement, provides value, and simplifies administration. Choosing the right platform is the foundational step in creating this environment, but the sheer number of options can be overwhelming. Each tool offers a unique blend of features, integrations, and pricing models, making it difficult to determine which one truly aligns with your specific goals, whether that's for customer support, brand advocacy, or professional networking.
This guide cuts through the noise. We've compiled a comprehensive list of the best community management software available, providing a detailed breakdown of the leading platforms. Our goal is to equip you with the practical insights needed to make an informed decision without wading through marketing jargon. Forget generic feature lists; we're diving deep into what makes each platform tick.
Inside this resource, you'll find an in-depth analysis of each tool, covering:
- Core features and unique differentiators.
- Ideal use cases and target audiences.
- Honest assessments of pros and cons.
- Straightforward pricing information.
- Key implementation considerations to get you started.
We will explore a range of solutions, from powerful open-source options like Discourse to all-in-one platforms like Circle and enterprise-grade systems such as Salesforce Experience Cloud. Each review includes screenshots for a clear visual reference and direct links to help you explore further. Let’s find the perfect digital home for your community.
1. Discourse
Discourse stands out as one of the best community management software options for companies wanting a modern, feature-rich discussion forum. It’s engineered to foster civilized, long-form conversations, moving beyond the simple, linear threads of older forum software. Its unique strength lies in its dual-offering model: a powerful open-source version for self-hosting and tiered SaaS plans for those who prefer a managed solution. This flexibility makes it accessible to everyone, from small startups to massive enterprise deployments.
The platform includes robust moderation tools, gamification through trust levels and badges, and a clean, mobile-first user interface. These features are designed to keep users engaged and discussions productive, forming the backbone of effective community management. You can explore a deeper dive into these concepts with our community engagement best practices guide. For tech-savvy teams, the extensive API, webhooks, and SSO integrations allow for deep customization and seamless integration into existing tech stacks.
Key Features and Pricing
Discourse’s offerings are structured to accommodate different scales and technical capabilities.
- Hosting: Free, self-hosted open-source edition or fully managed SaaS plans.
- Extensibility: A vast library of official and third-party plugins (over 50 on Enterprise plans) allows you to add features like chat, calendars, and voting.
- Integrations: Natively supports SSO, APIs, and webhooks for connecting with tools like Slack, Zendesk, and GitHub.
- Pricing: Hosted plans start at $100/month for the Basic tier, scaling to $300/month for Standard and custom pricing for Enterprise. A 14-day free trial is available for paid tiers.
Website: https://www.discourse.org/pricing
2. Bettermode (formerly Tribe)
Bettermode carves out its niche as a powerful, no-code community management software designed for customer engagement and support. It excels at creating white-label community spaces where businesses can foster customer education, gather product feedback, and scale their support efforts. The platform's standout feature is its modular approach using "Spaces," which allows administrators to tailor different sections of the community for specific purposes like discussions, Q&A, or events. This flexibility makes it an excellent choice for SaaS companies aiming to build a self-sustaining customer hub.
With a focus on seamless integration, Bettermode connects directly with core business tools like HubSpot, Salesforce, and Zendesk, ensuring the community becomes a central part of the customer lifecycle. The platform provides a modern, intuitive user interface that simplifies both member participation and administrative management. For those looking to integrate community data into their wider outreach, these connections provide a solid foundation. You can build on this by applying proven social media engagement strategies to amplify your community's reach.
Key Features and Pricing
Bettermode structures its plans to support communities from inception to enterprise scale, with a generous free starting point.
- Customization: Full white-labeling, theming, and custom domain support allow for a branded experience that feels native to your business.
- Integrations: Native connections to key CRM and support tools, plus Zapier integration for wider automation possibilities.
- Add-ons: Critical features like SSO, API access, and advanced security are available as add-ons, allowing for a customized feature set.
- Pricing: A free Starter plan is available for up to 100 members. The paid Pro plan is $599/month, with custom pricing for the Enterprise tier which includes a staging environment and data residency options.
Website: https://bettermode.com/pricing
3. Circle
Circle has carved out a niche as one of the best community management software solutions for creators, coaches, and brands focused on monetization. It excels by integrating community discussions with direct revenue-generating tools like courses, paid memberships, and exclusive events, all within a polished, user-friendly interface. This all-in-one approach eliminates the need to stitch together multiple platforms, providing a seamless experience for both administrators and members. Its strength lies in making community-building a profitable, self-sustaining venture from day one.
The platform is designed for engagement, offering features like live streams, chat spaces, and structured discussion forums. By enabling creators to build a direct relationship with their audience, Circle helps in improving customer lifetime value and reducing reliance on third-party social media algorithms. For developers and larger brands, the headless API offers powerful flexibility to build custom applications and deeply integrate the community experience into existing websites or mobile apps.
Key Features and Pricing
Circle’s plans are built to scale with a creator’s or brand’s growth, offering more advanced tools at higher tiers.
- Monetization: Built-in tools for courses, paid memberships, events, and paywalled content.
- Engagement: Features live streams, real-time chat, event management, and structured discussion spaces.
- Customization: Offers a white-label website builder, branded email notifications, and powerful headless/member APIs for custom development. SSO is available on the Enterprise plan.
- Pricing: The Basic plan starts at $49/month, Professional at $99/month, and Business at $219/month. A 14-day free trial is available for all standard plans.
Website: https://circle.so/pricing
4. Mighty Networks
Mighty Networks positions itself as a powerful all-in-one platform for creators and entrepreneurs who want to build communities around courses, memberships, and cohort-based programs. Its key differentiator is the tight integration of community features with robust commerce and content delivery tools. This makes it an excellent choice for businesses whose community is directly tied to a paid offering, eliminating the need to stitch together separate platforms for discussion, payments, and course hosting. It's designed for rapid launch, allowing creators to monetize their audience effectively from day one.
The platform organizes content and interactions into "Spaces," which can be configured for events, courses, chat, or forums. This flexible structure supports various engagement models, from simple discussion groups to complex, multi-week challenges. With built-in analytics, email notifications, and optional branded mobile apps, Mighty Networks provides a comprehensive toolkit for managing and scaling a vibrant, revenue-generating community. It’s a standout piece of community management software for those focused on education and subscription models.
Key Features and Pricing
Mighty Networks structures its plans to support creators as they grow their membership business.
- Content & Commerce: Sell memberships, courses, and event tickets with multi-currency support and integrated payment processing.
- Engagement Tools: Features include live events, member chat, polls, Q&As, and structured program formats like cohort courses and challenges.
- Branding & Access: Offers custom landing pages and the option for fully branded mobile apps on higher-tier plans.
- Pricing: The Community plan starts at $41/month, the Business plan is $99/month, and Mighty Pro is available for custom pricing. Transaction fees apply on lower tiers, and a free trial is available.
Website: https://www.mightynetworks.com/pricing
5. Higher Logic Vanilla
Higher Logic Vanilla carves out its space as a top-tier community management software by focusing squarely on the enterprise market. It excels at creating sophisticated customer communities for both B2B and B2C organizations, combining traditional forums with modern Q&A, ideation, and knowledge base functionalities. The platform is engineered for scale, offering robust security, staging environments, and deep integrations tailored to fit within complex corporate ecosystems, making it a go-to for businesses prioritizing product feedback and customer support.
Its strength lies in powerful automation and analytics. Features like AI-suggested answers, sentiment analysis, and customizable automation rules help community managers streamline operations and derive actionable insights. With extensive support for SSO, unlimited API calls, and pre-built integrations for tools like Salesforce, Zendesk, and Jira, Higher Logic Vanilla seamlessly connects community activity to core business functions like customer support, product development, and sales.
Key Features and Pricing
Higher Logic Vanilla's packages are designed for enterprise-level needs, with features and support scaling accordingly.
- Core Modules: Includes dedicated modules for forums, Q&A, ideation, events, and a knowledge base to serve diverse community purposes.
- Advanced Features: Offers gamification, AI-powered tools, sentiment analysis, and powerful automation rules to enhance engagement and management.
- Integrations: Provides native connectors for Salesforce, Zendesk, HubSpot, and more, alongside unlimited API calls and webhooks for custom solutions.
- Pricing: All plans are quote-based and not publicly listed. Pricing is customized based on features, user volume, and required integrations.
Website: https://www.higherlogic.com/vanilla-packages/
6. Khoros Communities
Khoros Communities, formerly known as Lithium, is an enterprise-grade platform built for large, brand-owned communities. It is engineered to handle the scale and complexity required by Fortune-level brands, offering a powerful suite of tools for moderation, engagement, and analytics. Its strength lies in its robust, scalable architecture and a headless-friendly approach, allowing deep integration into a company’s digital ecosystem. This makes it one of the best community management software solutions for global enterprises seeking a fully customized and integrated brand experience.
The platform focuses on providing a sophisticated feature set designed for high-scale deployments. With its Aurora next-gen UI framework and GraphQL APIs, developers have the flexibility to build highly tailored user experiences. Features like advanced gamification, ideation modules, and in-depth analytics empower community managers to drive specific business outcomes, from customer support deflection to product innovation. Furthermore, Khoros fosters its own active vendor community, providing customers with valuable peer support and best practices.
Key Features and Pricing
Khoros is designed for large-scale operations with a focus on deep integration and customization.
- Architecture: Modern UI framework (Aurora) and extensive GraphQL APIs for headless implementations and custom front-end experiences.
- Engagement Tools: Includes sophisticated gamification, user-driven ideation, and powerful analytics to measure community ROI.
- Integrations: A strong integration ecosystem with federated search partnerships allows seamless connection to other enterprise systems.
- Pricing: Khoros does not offer public pricing. Access is through a direct, enterprise-focused sales cycle with custom quotes based on specific organizational needs.
Website: https://khoros.com/platform/communities
7. Gainsight Customer Communities (formerly inSided)
Gainsight Customer Communities carves out a niche as one of the best community management software options specifically for B2B SaaS companies focused on customer success. Acquired by Gainsight, the platform is deeply embedded within a broader customer success ecosystem. Its core strength is leveraging community to drive measurable business outcomes like case deflection, product feedback collection, and customer retention, moving beyond simple engagement metrics. This makes it a strategic tool for CS teams aiming to scale support and improve the customer experience.
The platform excels at creating a self-service hub where users can find answers, share best practices, and submit product ideas. Features are purpose-built for the customer journey, including knowledge base integrations, ideation modules, and in-app widgets. By connecting community activity directly with customer health data in Gainsight CS, teams gain a holistic view of account engagement and risk, allowing for more proactive success management.
Key Features and Pricing
Gainsight’s community offering is designed for integration and impact within a customer success framework.
- CS Integration: Natively connects with Gainsight CS and PX platforms to link community engagement with customer health scores and product analytics.
- Self-Service Focus: Includes features for knowledge base integration, peer-to-peer support forums, and product ideation to reduce support ticket volume.
- Engagement Tools: Provides robust moderation, gamification, and event management capabilities to foster an active user base.
- Pricing: Pricing is not publicly listed and is provided through a sales-led process. It is typically geared towards enterprise-level budgets and requires a custom quote based on specific needs.
Website: https://www.insided.com/
8. Hivebrite
Hivebrite is a powerful, all-in-one community management software designed for large-scale networks like alumni associations, non-profits, and corporate communities. Its core strength lies in providing a fully branded and highly configurable platform that goes far beyond simple discussion forums. It excels at empowering administrators with robust tools to manage complex membership structures, run sophisticated events, and drive revenue through donations and subscriptions, all from a centralized hub.
The platform is engineered for organizations that need deep control over their data and user experience. Features like a dynamic member directory, sub-groups, job boards, and built-in email campaign tools support multifaceted engagement strategies. For enterprise-level needs, Hivebrite offers branded mobile apps, API access, SSO, and dedicated onboarding support, ensuring a smooth integration into existing enterprise ecosystems and a professional experience for members.
Key Features and Pricing
Hivebrite’s feature set is tailored for organizations with complex operational needs and monetization goals.
- Membership Management: Includes a comprehensive member directory, custom profiles, and advanced segmentation tools.
- Monetization: Built-in capabilities for managing memberships, processing donations, and selling tickets for events.
- Engagement Tools: Offers event management, groups, forums, a job board, and integrated email marketing campaigns.
- Enterprise-Ready: Provides branded mobile apps, SSO, API access, audit logs, and dedicated enterprise support.
- Pricing: Hivebrite uses a quote-based model, so pricing is not publicly available. It is generally positioned for larger organizations with significant budgets.
Website: https://hivebrite.io/pricing
9. Salesforce Experience Cloud
Salesforce Experience Cloud is the go-to solution for businesses already embedded in the Salesforce ecosystem. It excels at creating authenticated portals and communities for customers and partners, leveraging its tight integration with Salesforce CRM and Service Cloud. Its primary strength is its ability to surface CRM data directly into a community environment, enabling powerful use cases like self-service case management, personalized knowledge bases, and partner relationship management, all within a secure, branded space.
Unlike standalone platforms, Experience Cloud is not just a discussion forum; it's a window into your company's core operations. It uses templates for quick deployment and Salesforce's powerful automation tools, like Flows, to create sophisticated, data-driven workflows. This deep connection makes it one of the best community management software options for companies looking to unify their customer service, sales, and community efforts into a single, cohesive experience. The platform’s robust security and governance controls are built for enterprise-level demands.
Key Features and Pricing
Salesforce Experience Cloud’s pricing is complex, with models based on either monthly logins or total members.
- CRM Integration: Natively connects to Salesforce objects, allowing members to view and interact with their data (e.g., support cases, order history).
- Automation: Utilizes Salesforce Flows to automate processes like member onboarding, case escalations, and content recommendations.
- Customization: Offers pre-built templates for various use cases (Customer Service, Partner Central) that can be customized with a drag-and-drop builder.
- Pricing: The Customer Community plan starts at $2/login or $5/member per month. The more advanced Customer Community Plus plan is $6/login or $15/member per month. Partner Relationship Management plans are also available.
Website: https://www.salesforce.com/service/customer-self-service/pricing/
10. Zendesk (Community as part of Zendesk Suite)
Zendesk is a powerhouse in customer service, and its community platform (formerly Gather) is a natural extension for companies already embedded in its ecosystem. It is designed to reduce support tickets by enabling peer-to-peer assistance and building a user-generated knowledge base. The platform's core strength is its seamless integration with Zendesk's ticketing system, allowing agents to convert community posts into support tickets or link existing tickets to relevant discussions, creating a unified support workflow.
The community tool functions as an integrated forum within the broader Zendesk Help Center. This allows users to search for answers across both official documentation and community conversations from a single interface, significantly improving the self-service experience. This integration makes it one of the best community management software choices for support-focused communities where deflecting tickets and scaling customer service are primary goals. Many platforms, including Zendesk, offer robust integrations with live chat tools to streamline support; you can explore more about Zendesk live chat integration to further enhance user interaction.
Key Features and Pricing
Zendesk's community features are bundled within its broader support suites, not sold as a standalone product.
- Hosting: Fully managed SaaS as part of the Zendesk Suite.
- Extensibility: Access to a rich marketplace of apps and integrations to connect with other business tools.
- Integrations: Natively connects with Zendesk's entire product line (Support, Guide, Chat) for a cohesive customer experience.
- Pricing: Community features are included in Zendesk Suite plans, which start at $55/agent/month (billed annually) for the Suite Team plan. Advanced AI and workforce management tools are available as add-ons at an additional cost.
Website: https://www.zendesk.com/pricing/
11. Common Room
Common Room distinguishes itself as an intelligent community management software designed for product-led growth (PLG) and community-led go-to-market teams. Its core strength lies in unifying disparate signals from platforms like Slack, Discord, GitHub, social media, and CRM systems. It uses AI to stitch together a comprehensive view of each community member and customer account, identifying key influencers, product champions, and potential sales leads automatically.
The platform is engineered to turn community activity into actionable business intelligence. With features like Person360 for identity resolution and RoomieAI for automated alerts and workflows, teams can streamline engagement and handoffs. This focus on connecting community engagement directly to revenue outcomes, such as identifying accounts showing buying intent, makes it a powerful tool for modern B2B SaaS companies looking to leverage their user base for growth.
Key Features and Pricing
Common Room’s pricing and features are built to scale with a company's community-led motion.
- Intelligence: Utilizes Person360 for identity resolution and data enrichment across all connected channels.
- Automation: RoomieAI powers automated alerts, workflows, and member scoring to surface critical insights for sales and customer success teams.
- Integrations: Connects with essential tools like Salesforce and HubSpot, and includes a Chrome extension for easy access to community data.
- Pricing: A free plan is available for small teams. Paid plans start with the Team tier at $1,450/month, followed by the Business plan at $2,950/month, with custom pricing for Enterprise.
Website: https://www.commonroom.io/pricing/
12. Threado
Threado carves out a unique niche as a community operations platform, making it one of the best community management software choices for managers overseeing communities on multiple platforms. Its core strength lies in automating workflows and centralizing engagement data from channels like Slack, Discord, and Circle. This allows community teams to move beyond manual tasks and focus on strategic initiatives, using powerful automation to handle onboarding, engagement campaigns, and member segmentation.
The platform is purpose-built to operationalize community efforts. With features like AI agents trained on internal knowledge bases and deep integrations with CRMs like HubSpot, Threado acts as a command center. It bridges the gap between community activity and business outcomes by providing a unified view of member interactions, engagement scoring, and automated reporting, which is invaluable for demonstrating ROI.
Key Features and Pricing
Threado’s feature set is designed for automation and multi-channel management.
- Hosting: This is a SaaS platform that integrates with existing community channels, not a standalone community host.
- Extensibility: Offers workflow automation, embeddable widgets, and AI agents to extend functionality within your community.
- Integrations: Natively connects with Slack, Discord, Circle, HubSpot, and other platforms via its marketplace listings.
- Pricing: Pricing is not publicly listed on their main site but is available through partner marketplaces like HubSpot's. Packages vary, so it's best to contact them directly for current plans. Free plans or trials are sometimes available via these partner listings.
Website: https://www.threado.com
Top 12 Community Management Software Comparison
Beyond Software: Building a Community That Lasts
Navigating the landscape of community management software can feel overwhelming. We've explored a dozen powerful platforms, from the open-source flexibility of Discourse to the enterprise-grade ecosystem of Salesforce Experience Cloud, and the modern, integration-focused approaches of tools like Common Room and Threado. Each tool presents a unique philosophy on how to build, manage, and scale a thriving online community.
The central takeaway is that there is no single "best" community management software for everyone. The ideal choice is not about finding the platform with the most features, but about identifying the one that aligns perfectly with your specific goals, audience, and operational capacity. A B2B SaaS company aiming to reduce support tickets with a knowledge base will have vastly different needs than a creator building a paid membership around exclusive content.
Your decision should be a strategic one, deeply rooted in your business objectives. The right software acts as a powerful catalyst, but it's your strategy, content, and engagement that will ultimately determine your community's success.
How to Choose Your Ideal Platform
As you move from evaluation to decision, distill your options by focusing on these core pillars. Revisit the detailed reviews in this article and weigh each platform against these critical questions:
- Primary Business Goal: What is the number one objective for your community? Is it customer support (like Zendesk or Higher Logic Vanilla), customer success and product feedback (like Gainsight), brand advocacy, or lead generation? Your primary goal will immediately narrow the field.
- Audience and Engagement Style: Where does your audience currently congregate? Do they prefer a traditional forum-style interaction (Discourse), a modern social feed (Bettermode), or a structured, course-based environment (Mighty Networks)? Choose a platform that feels intuitive and natural for your target members.
- Scalability and Future Needs: Consider your community's trajectory. A simple, elegant solution like Circle might be perfect for a startup, but will it support the complex integrations and security requirements you'll need in three years? Platforms like Khoros and Salesforce are built for that long-term, enterprise scale.
- Integration and Tech Stack: Your community platform cannot exist in a vacuum. How well does it integrate with your CRM, support desk, marketing automation, and analytics tools? A seamless data flow is crucial for proving ROI and creating a cohesive customer experience.
Implementation: The First 90 Days Are Critical
Selecting your software is just the beginning. A successful launch requires a thoughtful implementation plan. Don’t just switch on the platform and expect members to flood in. Focus on a structured rollout.
First, define your moderation guidelines, community values, and success metrics before you invite your first member. Next, seed the community with valuable content and conversation starters. This ensures new members arrive in a vibrant, engaging space, not an empty room.
Finally, empower a core group of founding members or brand advocates. These early adopters will become your biggest champions, helping to set the tone, answer questions, and make the community a welcoming place. Remember that a strong community is a powerful engine for customer loyalty and growth. To further explore how a strong community impacts user longevity, consider various effective SaaS retention strategies.
Ultimately, the best community management software is the one that fades into the background, allowing human connection and valuable conversations to take center stage. It’s a foundational tool, but your team, your members, and your shared purpose are what will truly build a community that lasts.
Is your SaaS platform's user interface holding back your community's engagement potential? At PimpMySaaS, we specialize in UI/UX audits and redesigns that transform complex software into intuitive, user-friendly experiences. Visit PimpMySaaS to see how we can help you create a seamless environment your community will love.