On October 11, 2024, we introduced several changes to Meetup memberships. Now, several of Meetup’s advanced features are reserved exclusively for our Meetup+ members.
Meetup+ is a premium plan for members, available as a weekly, monthly, or annual subscription. A Meetup+ subscription unlocks a more powerful Meetup experience with the following benefits:
- 🆕 Unrestricted direct messaging with other members
- 🆕 Priority position on event waitlists
- 🆕 Full access to attendee list and group member lists
- 🆕 Full access to member profiles
- Full access to the "Who will be there" feature for upcoming events
- "First to know" event announcements
- Exemption from service fees when RSVPing to paid events
- A distinct Member+ badge
- Ad-free experience of Meetup across all platforms
- Custom app icons for your phone's home screen
Accessing the Meetup+ features and benefits
- Meetup members can subscribe to access the Meetup+ features and benefits by navigating to their Account Settings, selecting Meetup+ subscription, and following the subsequent prompts.
- Starter organizers automatically have full access to their group member lists and the attendee lists for the events they host. To access the plan’s other offerings, they’ll need to start a separate Meetup+ member subscription following the same process as outlined in the point above.
- Members who already subscribe to Meetup+—as well as Standard and Pro organizers—automatically have full access to all the exclusive Meetup+ advantages.
Below we dive into the specifics of which Meetup benefits are still accessible to everyone, and which are now reserved for Meetup+ members.
Direct messages
- All members can use the Messages feature to communicate with the leadership team members of the groups they’re in, meaning organizers, co-organizers, assistant organizers, and event hosts. Everyone also has unrestricted access to Meetup’s other communication tools: Group Discussions and Event Comments.
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Only Meetup+ members can send a direct message to any other Meetup member.****
- Members who are not subscribed to Meetup+ can chat with others via Messages if the conversation is started by an organizer or another member with a Meetup+ subscription.
- Members who are not subscribed to Meetup+ can continue sending direct messages in chats started before October 11.
- On Meetup, personal privacy settings take precedence. If you’ve blocked someone, they won’t be able to send you direct messages even if they have Meetup+.
Waitlists
- All members ****can join the waitlist for events they’re interested in.
- Meetup+ members get priority on the waitlist, meaning they have first access to any new spots that open up. If additional free spots remain, others on the waitlist will be added to the event on a first-come-first-serve basis.
Group member and event attendee lists
- All members can see the full details of members with leadership roles.
- All members can see “Familiar Faces” on an attendance list, in case they’ve attended an event with the same member(s) before. This feature allows everyone to immediately discern the people they’ve previously encountered through other Meetup experiences, before RSVPing to an event.
- Meetup+ members can see personal details of others in the group member and event attendee lists. Depending on each individual’s privacy settings, this may include full names (based on each member’s display name) and profile pictures. For other members, these details remain hidden.
Member profile
- All members can navigate to another member’s profile to see their profile picture, first name, and selection of their interests and the groups they’re part of.
- Meetup+ members can see the complete details that other members have chosen to share on their profile pages, which may include their full name, the entire list of interests, a comprehensive overview of group membership, social media links, and additional personal information in the “About me” and “I’m looking to” sections. Of course, an individual’s privacy settings still determine what others can see on their profiles.
FAQ
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Can I still use Meetup without subscribing to Meetup+?
Absolutely! Everyone can enjoy the core of what Meetup has to offer, even without a paid subscription. Anyone interesting in exploring Meetup can:
- Discover new groups and events based on their interests and location
- Join and RSVP for an unlimited number of groups and events
- Connect with other members through public community channels, like Group Discussion and Event Comments
- Connect with organizers and event hosts via direct messages
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How can I subscribe to Meetup+?
- Members can subscribe to Meetup+ by navigating to their Account Settings, selecting Meetup+ subscription, and following the subsequent prompts.
- Starter organizers automatically have full access to their group member lists and the attendee lists for the events they host. To access the plan’s other offerings, they’ll need to start a separate Meetup+ member subscription following the same process as outlined in the point above.
- Standard and Pro organizers—automatically have full access to all the exclusive Meetup+ advantages.
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Do I have access to Meetup+ benefits as an Standard or Pro organizer?
Yes, all organizers with a Standard or Pro subscription automatically have access to all Meetup+ benefits.
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Do I have access to Meetup+ benefits as a Starter organizer?
Here are the premium features included with the Starter plan:
- ✅ Starter organizers can always see the complete list of their group members.
- ✅ Starter organizers will see all the information in the attendee list for the events they organize.
- ❌ Starter organizers will see a limited attendee list on all events where they are not in a leadership role.
- ❌ Starter organizers do not have priority in waitlists
- ❌ Starter organizers cannot send DMs to non-organizers
Organizers with a Starter subscription can access all premium features by subscribing to a separate Meetup+ plan. To do so, navigate to your Account Settings, selecting Meetup+ subscription, and following the subsequent prompts.
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I don’t have Meetup+—can I still access existing direct messages with other members?
Yes. If you’re using Meetup for free, you can still send messages in conversations with other members that were started before October 11, 2024.
Going forward, you’ll also be able to send direct messages in the following scenarios:
- You can initiate a private conversation with someone in a leadership role in your group (for Standard of Pro-level organizers only).
- You can participate in a direct message conversation if the conversation is started by a leadership member or a Meetup+ member.
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What happens if a person I blocked has Meetup+? Can they see my profile or message me?
No. We take the security of our members very seriously, which is why personalized privacy settings always take precedence. No matter their subscription status, a person that you have blocked will not be able to see your profile details or send you any direct messages.
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What’s the difference between Meetup+ and membership dues?
Meetup+ is a premium plan created by Meetup with the goal of offering members advanced capabilities for an additional cost. It’s available as a weekly, monthly, or annual subscription. You can find an overview of the benefits at the beginning of this article.
Membership dues are set by individual organizers, and are typically a good way for organizers to offset the costs of hosting events. Each organizer can choose if they wish to collect dues. If they do, they can set a custom amount and free trial period. You can read more about Member Dues in this blog post.
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Do I get the benefits of Meetup+ with my Starter subscription?
No. Only Standard and Pro organizers automatically get access to all M+ plan features. If you’d like to access exclusive M+ benefits as a Meetup Starter subscriber, you’ll need to subscribe to Meetup+ separately.
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Why can’t I DM my group members?
Meetup Starter includes basic group communication features, like Group Discussions (group-based) and Event Chat (event-based). More powerful communication tools, like direct messages and broadcast communications, are exclusive to our higher-tier subscriptions.
If you wish to send direct messages to group members, here are a few options:
- Upgrade to Meetup Standard for access to direct messaging and email communications
- Keep your Starter plan and subscribe to Meetup+ (unlimited DMs are a benefit of Meetup+)
- Use a third-party tool, like Whatsapp or Discord to communicate with members without limits