Membership Sites only works on your published website, on the domain you entered in Setup. Preview doesn't protect pages and can't sign anyone up. So before you tell people about your members area, publish it and work through this checklist as a pretend member. After it is a list of the problems we see most, with their fixes.
Before you test
- Your website is published on the exact Domain in Setup in the Client Area, entered without https:// or www (for example mydomain.com). A temporary address or another subdomain won't work.
- It opens with the padlock (HTTPS) at both mydomain.com and www.mydomain.com, because emails to members link to the www address. See My site says 'Not Secure': how to get HTTPS (SSL) on your website.
- On another web host, PHP is turned on with cURL (we recommend PHP 8.2 or later). EverWeb + Hosting already has this. See Can I use PHP on my EverWeb website?
- Your pages are chosen in Membership Site Settings... and each widget has its success page. See Build your members area in EverWeb: the Membership widgets, the pages you need and Membership Site Settings.
- For paid levels, Stripe shows CONNECTED in Setup.
The launch checklist
- Keep Test payment mode on. On your Payment page, select the Membership Payment Form widget and look in Inspector > Widget Settings. Test payment mode is ticked when you add the widget.
- Publish with File > Publish Entire Site. Members-only pages become .php pages, so every link and menu must update.
- Check a visitor who isn't logged in. In a private window, type the address of a members-only page. You should land on your Login page.
- Sign up on a free level, if you have one, with an email address you can read. Click the link in the confirmation email within 2 hours. You should then see that level's pages.
- Sign up on a paid level. Close all private windows, open a new one and sign up with a second address. On the Payment page, use Stripe's test card 4242 4242 4242 4242, any future date and any three-digit security code (more test cards). You should reach your Success Page and see that level's pages.
- Check the levels. As one test member, open a page their level isn't ticked for. You should see your Access Denied page.
- Test a free trial, if you offer one: sign up on the trial level and note what the Payment page asks for.
- Test the rest. Sign out with your Sign Out button and log in again. Use Forgot your password? and the emailed link (it works for 60 minutes). Change your details on the Profile page.
- Check the emails in your inbox and spam folder: confirm your address, welcome, payment, password reset, and the notifications you ticked in Setup.
- Check on a phone. If you use Mobile Pages, protect those too.
- Go live. Untick Test payment mode on the Payment Form widget and publish. Real cards don't work while it's ticked.
- Remove your test members in Members: click EDIT, then DELETE.
To prove live payments work, you can then pay for your cheapest level with your own card and refund it from that member's Payment History.
Fix common problems
"Domain is not whitelisted"
The address in the browser doesn't match the Domain in Setup, and members-only pages send everyone to Access Denied. Enter your domain without https:// or www, click Save, and open your website at that domain.
Members-only pages are visible to everyone
- You're in Preview, or still logged in. Test the published site in a new private window.
- The page's levels aren't ticked in Inspector > Page Settings > Password Protection > Memberships. Check its Mobile Page too.
- You used Publish instead of File > Publish Entire Site, so links still go to the old .html page.
- The page was online before you protected it. Its old .html copy is still on your server: remove it as in I deleted a page in EverWeb but it's still online.
- Your home page is inside the members' directory. Move it out.
Files are different: anyone with the direct link to a PDF, picture or video file in your Assets can open it. See Choose which pages members can see: protect pages and directories by membership level.
"This page is used as a membership management page so it cannot be password protected."
The pages chosen in Membership Site Settings..., such as Login, Sign Up and Payment, must stay public. Protect the pages members see after logging in.
I can't find the Membership widgets
Use Download Membership Widgets in the email "Thank You For Signing Up to EverWeb Memberships". Double-click the Install file, or drag the folder onto the Widgets tab. Then go to EverWeb > Settings > Account (Windows: Edit > Options > Account), click Sign Out and sign in again. Use the current version of EverWeb. See Install and use third-party widgets in EverWeb.
My levels don't show
In Password Protection > Memberships, choose your license, then click the Reload button next to it (the circular arrows). The Sign Up form only lists levels whose Active setting is Yes. "Monthly Sample" is the example level every new site starts with: edit or delete it in Membership Levels.
A membership warning when publishing
- "Can't find Membership Site license code.": select each Membership widget and choose your site in Membership Site in Inspector > Widget Settings.
- "Can't find Membership Site for: ...": EverWeb is signed in to a different account from the one that bought Membership Sites.
- "One or more membership levels no longer exist or cannot be validated.": a page still has a deleted level ticked. Tick valid levels, click Reload and publish again.
Payments don't work
- Real cards are declined, or the test card is refused: check Test payment mode. Ticked means test cards only, unticked means real cards only. Publish after changing it.
- "Error: admin has not connected a payment processor" or "You cannot add a paid member until you connect your Stripe account from the Settings tab.": connect Stripe at the bottom of Setup.
- New paid members don't see the Payment page: set the Sign Up form's Successful Signup page to your Payment page.
- Other card messages come from Stripe or the member's bank. Ask the member to try another card.
Sign up fails
- "The first name field is required.": in the Sign Up form's Widget Settings, keep Require first name and Require last name ticked, then publish.
- "Cannot add anymore free members.": free levels need the Plus or Deluxe plan. See Members-only pages, logins and paid subscriptions: EverWeb Membership Sites.
- "Please publish your website to test the sign up process": you're in Preview.
A member can't log in or lands on the wrong page
- "There is no member with this email" or "Wrong email or password": check the address in Members, or ask them to use Forgot your password?.
- "Your account blocked. Too many login attempts. Contact your administrator": open the member, untick Account blocked and click Save.
- Asked for an authorization code: when someone logs in from another country, a code may be emailed to them.
- Sent to the Email Validation page: they haven't confirmed their address. They can click Re-send Verification Email, or you can click Set Verified on their member page.
- Sent to the Payment or Account Suspended page: they haven't paid, or a payment failed. Check their Payment History.
- A logged-out visitor lands on your home page: choose a Login Page in Membership Site Settings... and publish.
- After logging in, members go to the Login form's Login Success page, not the page they first tried. That's normal.
"An error has occured. Please try again later"
The membership server didn't answer that time. Wait a minute and reload. If it keeps happening, contact us with your website address and the number shown after the message.
Emails don't arrive
Ask members to check their spam folder. Confirmation links work for 2 hours and password links for 60 minutes, so an old email may not work. For your own notifications, check the boxes and the CC system emails here address in Setup. To send from your own address, use Mail Configuration: for Gmail or Microsoft 365, choose Amazon (aws), not SMTP. See Set up Membership Sites step by step: buy a plan, fill in Setup and connect Stripe.
My import says it worked but added nobody
"Import queued" only means it started. Check the Imported, Existing and Member Errors counts, use your own level codes, and import in smaller files. See Manage your members: add, import, export, suspend, cancel and email them.
Still stuck?
Open a ticket with your website address, the page address, what you did and the exact message.
Related articles
- Members-only pages, logins and paid subscriptions: EverWeb Membership Sites
- Build your members area in EverWeb: the Membership widgets, the pages you need and Membership Site Settings
- Choose which pages members can see: protect pages and directories by membership level
- What's the difference between Publish and Publish Entire Site?