Which Membership Is Right for You? A Guide to Help You Choose

Compare Membership Features

Standard Members ($20 per year)

Standard Membership allows the freedom of requesting books without ever paying Swap Fees (just using Book credits), as well as a number of extra features, including the largest available (500-item) Wish List. On average, Standard Members request three or more books a month. They may participate in Forums such as Games or Club Members' Thoughts or the Book Bazaar. Any member who swaps actively/frequently, and/or who participate socially in the club (posting in Discussion Forums and/or sending Personal Messages to other members unrelated to active or recent swaps) will choose Standard Membership. Standard Members enjoy ad-free* browsing, and they get all the features that Limited Membership (see below) gives, and more -- for example, only Standard Members can request multiple copies of the same book at the same time, and they can also see how many copies of each book is available in the club by looking at the Book Details page. Read more Information about Standard Annual Membership 

A la Carte members  (no annual fee)

A la Carte members request on average fewer than 2 books a month, and would not make use of the extra features of Annual Membership. They swap pretty lightly, and don't participate in the social aspects of the club (Discussion Forums and non-transaction-related Personal Messaging). They have the smallest Wish List (100 item limit), and they view ads on the site as a way to support the site without paying an annual fee. They don't pay anything annually for membership - they just pay 49 cents in PBS Money per request (in addition to the Book Credit(s) required), or they use "Free Swaps" which replace Swap Fees, which they earn by using Printable Postage to send their books. Read more Information about A la Carte Membership

Limited Members ($12 per year)

Limited Members fall in between the two categories above - they are OK with a medium sized (200-item) Wish List, and they may not swap as often as Standard Members (1 - 3 books per month on average). They may be more involved in the social aspects of the site (posting in Discussion Forums, and messaging other members outside of transactions). They want to be able to wish for more than 100 items on the Wish List (but they don't need 500 items). They enjoy ad-free* browsing, and they can submit 30 book requests/year without paying Swap Fees in addition to the Book Credit(s) required. There are also some extra features to Limited Membership which may be attractive in their own right (see the info at the "read more" link below). Limited Members who decide they would rather have Standard Membership can easily upgrade the remnant of their enrollment year, by purchasing the Upgrade item in the Kiosk for $8 at any time during their subscription. The Upgrade item will upgrade fom Limited to Standard Membership *for the duration of the active Limited Membership*. Read more Information about Limited Annual Membership 

*note: there are a few showcased Amazon items in the rotating display at the top of the Member Homepage, that all members see.

Compare Membership Features