BuddyNext - community engine for WordPress

Compare Mattermost alternative

Open-core team collaboration platform

Looking for a Mattermost alternative?

Do not switch if you need secure team collaboration. Mattermost is built for that and BuddyNext is not. This page is for groups whose Mattermost is really a community of members, and it is fair to Mattermost.

Why BuddyNext fits See the full BuddyNext vs Mattermost comparison

The move, in short

What it is
Mattermost Team collaboration: chat, calls, playbooks, boards
BuddyNext Member community on a WordPress site
Platform
Mattermost Standalone server application
BuddyNext WordPress plugin

Watch it first

What owning it looks like

A short film on running the same community on your own WordPress site, with the members and the money staying yours.

Online Community Platform You Own: Build It on WordPress3:11Chapters and transcript

The honest reasons

Why people look for a Mattermost alternative.

Mattermost is open-core team collaboration aimed at organisations with strict security needs. People look beyond it when the group is a community and they want profiles, a directory, spaces and optional paid access, not a company workspace.

  • It is organised as a team workspace, not a public site members and visitors can browse.
  • There is no member directory, social feed or paid membership layer.
  • Paid editions are sold on their own terms, so check what the edition you need includes.
  • It is a separate server application to deploy and maintain, next to your website.
  • Its strengths are security and compliance work that most communities never need.

None of this means Mattermost is a bad product - for plenty of communities it is the right call. These are simply the friction points that send people looking, stated fairly.

The case for BuddyNext

Why BuddyNext is a strong Mattermost alternative.

BuddyNext is a self-hosted community platform for WordPress. The whole idea is the opposite of renting: you own the data, you pay for hosting instead of a platform cut, and you start free. Here is where that pays off against Mattermost.

  • BuddyNext is built for a member community: public-facing profiles, a directory, spaces, an activity feed and moderation, rather than an internal workspace.
  • It runs inside WordPress, sharing your theme, login, SEO and plugins, with no second server application to deploy.
  • The free core has no key and nothing in it expires. Pro adds paid memberships and gated spaces with payments through your own Stripe or PayPal account.
  • There is no per-seat model: BuddyNext does not count members as seats.
  • Content in a space keeps its own address and does not scroll away.

Want the even-handed, side-by-side detail - including where Mattermost genuinely wins? Read the full BuddyNext vs Mattermost comparison →

Not just us

Other alternatives to consider.

We would rather you pick the right home than just pick ours. If BuddyNext is not your fit, these are real options worth a look - each suits a different kind of community.

  • Zulip Open-source team chat organised by topic.
  • Rocket.Chat A secure communications platform with voice and video.
  • BuddyNext A member community inside WordPress. Not a chat tool: free BuddyNext polls instead of pushing, and instant delivery needs Pro.

No fairy tales

How to switch - honestly.

There is no Mattermost importer. Decide which conversations are worth keeping, recreate channels as spaces on a staging WordPress site, send a bulk CSV invite or space invite links, and keep Mattermost read-only for a while. If you need calls, compliance tooling or a restricted network, Mattermost is the right tool and BuddyNext can sit beside it.

  1. 1Plan it as a real project. A community move is migration work, not a button. Give it a window and a checklist, not an afternoon and a hope.
  2. 2Export your data first. Pull out your members, content and anything you can from Mattermost before you touch the new platform, so nothing depends on access you might lose.
  3. 3Build and test on staging. Stand up BuddyNext on a staging copy of your site, import everything, and check messaging, spaces and access actually work before any member sees it.
  4. 4Cut over and bring people across. Point your domain at the new home, invite your most active members first, and run both in parallel for a short while rather than flipping everyone at once.

Anyone selling you a magic one-click migration off a hosted platform is overselling it. Done as a real project, though, the move is very doable - and you only do it once.

What it costs you

Honestly, where the money goes

Switching costs something either way, so here is our side of it in plain terms rather than only Mattermost's.

Free, and it is a working community
Unlimited spaces, a filterable member directory, notifications and the full report-and-moderate queue are all in the free plugin, with direct messages through the free WPMediaVerse companion. It is not a trial that expires or a seat cap you grow into.
One licence, not a shopping list
The usual cost of a self-hosted community is not the plugin, it is the six add-ons you buy to make it a community. Messaging, the member directory, notifications and the moderation queue are in the free BuddyNext plugin rather than priced separately.
Moderation is not an upsell
The report button, the admin review queue, the moderation log, and dismiss, remove, warn, strike and suspend are free. A community with no way to settle an argument is not one, so it is not sold back to you separately.
A lifetime option exists
Pro is $149 a year, or $399 once. Stop renewing and the community keeps running, because the free plugin is what it is built on rather than a crippled version of it.

Mattermost pricing: Open core: free builds plus paid editions with extra features, sold on its own terms. Check mattermost.com for what each edition includes.

Sandbox demo

Try it on a live demo community

One click builds a private copy of our demo community, with members, spaces and posts already in it. InstaWP asks for an email to create it, it lasts four hours, and nobody else sees what you change.

Launch the demo (opens in a new tab) Get BuddyNext free

Prefer to watch first? See the tutorials.

What to try in the demo

  1. Open a space and its feed, then the member directory, to see what a community looks like when content stays put.
  2. Open a direct message conversation and check what is one-to-one on the free plan.
  3. As the owner, open Privacy & Data and read exactly what BuddyNext retains.

From the same team

Add the pieces your community needs

BuddyNext runs on its own. These are separate plugins from the same team, for when the community needs more than a feed and spaces.

Switcher questions

Questions people ask before they move.

Is BuddyNext a Mattermost alternative?

Only for a community, not for a company workspace. BuddyNext has profiles, a directory, spaces and a feed in WordPress. For team chat, calls and compliance requirements, Mattermost is the stronger choice.

Why would a community leave Mattermost?

Usually because it is organised around a team workspace. Communities want members to find each other, browse content publicly and keep answers findable, which is a site rather than a channel list.

How do I move from Mattermost to BuddyNext?

There is no importer. Decide which conversations are worth keeping, recreate channels as spaces, invite members by bulk CSV or invite link, and keep Mattermost running for a few weeks.

What is the best Mattermost alternative?

The main Mattermost alternatives are Zulip, Rocket.Chat, and BuddyNext. Zulip: Open-source team chat organised by topic. Rocket.Chat: A secure communications platform with voice and video. BuddyNext: A member community inside WordPress. Not a chat tool: free BuddyNext polls instead of pushing, and instant delivery needs Pro. The right one depends on what made you look.

Is BuddyNext a good alternative to Mattermost?

For people leaving Mattermost to own their stack, yes. BuddyNext is self-hosted on WordPress, so your members and content live in your own database, there is no per-month platform fee or cut of your sales, and there is a genuinely complete free tier to start on. The trade is that you (or your host) run WordPress. If you want zero maintenance above all, a hosted option may suit you better - and we say so.

Can I move my community from Mattermost to BuddyNext easily?

Be honest with yourself here: plan it as a real project, not a one-click switch. Export your members and content, rebuild on a staging site first, check everything survived the move, then point your domain across and invite people over. Anyone promising a magic one-click migration off a hosted platform is overselling it.

Is BuddyNext cheaper than Mattermost?

Usually, over time. BuddyNext has a complete free tier and an optional annual Pro license; your main running cost is your own hosting, with no monthly platform fee and no cut of your revenue. Mattermost's ongoing cost depends on its plan and any fees. Run your own numbers, but for a growing community the ownership model tends to win on cost.

Weighing a few options? See all BuddyNext comparisons →

Ready to own your community?

BuddyNext is live. Start free, move off Mattermost on your own terms, and upgrade only when you grow.

Get BuddyNext free Try the live demo →

What customers say on Trustpilot

WBComDesigns is amazing!

WBComDesigns is amazing. The WP plugins and themes are of top notch quality with lots of features and updated very frequently. Supports are very responsive and helpful. I use Reign with TutorLMS, and the experience is surprisingly smooth. The recently launched BuddyNext Pro and MediaShield Pro are…

Hoang PhanVN