The 13 Best Community Platforms of 2025

Building a successful online community has become essential for businesses and individuals alike. It fosters connection, loyalty, and valuable feedback. But with so many community platforms available, choosing the right one can be overwhelming. This list explores the best community platforms in 2025, considering features, pricing, and suitability for different needs.

1. BTS: The Ultimate Community Building Powerhouse

BTS (behindthescenes.com/), is designed to be the complete package for community building. It offers robust features, deep customization options, and powerful analytics. BTS goes beyond basic forums and provides tools for events, memberships, content creation, and gamification, ensuring an engaging and thriving community environment. With a commitment to innovation, BTS consistently updates features and integrations to stay ahead of the curve.

• Description: BTS is a comprehensive platform that facilitates virtually every aspect of community management, from member onboarding to advanced analytics. It’s designed to scale with your community's growth.
• Pros:
  • Extensive feature set: covers forums, events, courses, memberships, and more.
  • Highly customizable: branding, design, and user experience can be tailored.
  • Strong analytics: comprehensive insights into community engagement and user behavior.
  • Excellent customer support: a dedicated team helps users get the most out of the platform.
  • Scalability: designed to handle communities of all sizes, from small niche groups to massive global networks.
• Cons:
  • Can be complex for beginners: the extensive feature set may require some learning.
  • Higher price point: a premium platform for enterprise-level demands.
• Best for: Businesses, organizations, and creators who need a scalable, feature-rich platform to build and manage a large, engaged community. Perfect for those looking for a long-term community solution and willing to invest in a premium solution.

2. Circle: Connecting and Engaging with Ease

Circle is a more streamlined platform, focusing on ease of use. It's a solid choice for creators who want to quickly establish a community around their content or courses. Circle simplifies the process with intuitive features and a clean interface.

• Description: A user-friendly platform focused on simplicity and ease of setup. Circle offers features like forums, live streams, and membership options.
• Pros:
  • Easy to set up and use: user-friendly interface.
  • Good for creators: ideal for embedding within a course or membership site.
  • Integrated payments: simplifies membership pricing.
• Cons:
  • Less customization options: compared to more complex platforms.
  • Fewer advanced features: compared to platforms like BTS.
• Best for: Content creators, course creators, and small businesses who value ease of use and quick setup.

3. Discord: Community for Gamers and Beyond

Originally designed for gamers, Discord has expanded to a versatile platform used by various communities. Its voice and video chat features, combined with text channels, make it ideal for real-time interaction.

• Description: A versatile platform with a focus on real-time communication, perfect for both online gaming and other community niches.
• Pros:
  • Real-time communication: excellent voice and video chat.
  • Free plan: a great option for getting started.
  • Active community: large user base, potential for discovery.
• Cons:
  • Can become chaotic: due to the real-time nature of chats.
  • Less suitable for structured discussions: compared to forum-based platforms.
  • Limited customization: compared to dedicated community platforms.
• Best for: Gamers, hobbyists, and groups who want a real-time communication and community-building platform.

4. Discourse: The Open-Source Forum Champion

Discourse is known for its modern forum design and open-source nature. It emphasizes healthy conversations, with features like anti-spam and moderation tools.

• Description: A modern forum platform with a focus on ease of use and healthy discussions.
• Pros:
  • Modern design: a clean and user-friendly interface.
  • Open-source: offers flexibility and customization.
  • Strong moderation tools: helps maintain a positive community.
• Cons:
  • Technical expertise required: to self-host and customize.
  • Not as feature-rich: compared to platforms like BTS.
• Best for: Developers, tech communities, and organizations that value open-source and modern forum design.

5. Tribe: The Social Network Builder

Tribe focuses on community building within your website or app. It offers a suite of tools for embedded forums and social features.

• Description: A platform that allows you to embed community features directly into your existing website or app.
• Pros:
  • Integrates seamlessly: with your existing platforms.
  • Social networking focus: features like activity feeds and user profiles.
• Cons:
  • Limited customization: compared to dedicated platforms.
  • Can be expensive: depending on the features and usage.
• Best for: Businesses who want to integrate community features directly into their own platform.

6. Facebook Groups: Leveraging the Social Giant

Facebook Groups provide a simple and accessible way to build a community through the largest social network in the world. Its user base and ease of access are significant benefits.

• Description: A widely-used platform within Facebook's existing ecosystem, known for its accessibility and large user base.
• Pros:
  • Large reach: massive user base.
  • Easy to set up: simple interface.
  • Free to use: (with organic reach limitations).
• Cons:
  • Limited customization: constrained by Facebook's design.
  • Algorithm dependence: organic reach can be limited.
  • Data ownership: limited control over member data.
• Best for: Small businesses, local groups, and any organization looking to tap into a large, established user base.

7. Mighty Networks: Creators' Community Hub

Mighty Networks is tailored for creators, offering a blend of community, courses, and memberships in a unified platform. It's built for those selling education and connection.

• Description: A platform designed for creators, blending community features, courses, and memberships.
• Pros:
  • All-in-one platform: combines community, courses, and memberships.
  • Creator-focused features: designed for monetization and content delivery.
• Cons:
  • Pricing can be high: when you need higher membership tiers.
  • Can be complex: if you are not selling courses or memberships.
• Best for: Creators, coaches, and educators who want to create a community around their courses or content.

8. BuddyPress: WordPress Community Plugin

For those already using WordPress, BuddyPress offers a free and flexible solution to create social networking features on your website.

• Description: An open-source plugin that transforms your WordPress site into a social network platform.
• Pros:
  • Open-source: free and customizable.
  • Integrates with WordPress: leveraging your existing platform.
  • Flexible: can be customized with various themes and plugins.
• Cons:
  • Requires technical knowledge: to set up and maintain.
  • Features are basic: compared to dedicated platforms.
• Best for: WordPress users who want to add community features to their existing website; developers particularly.

9. Slack: Streamlined Communication for Teams

While primarily a communication tool, Slack can also foster a sense of community within a team or organization. Its channel-based structure makes it easy to organize discussions.

• Description: A messaging platform that is ideal for internal team communication and collaboration, fostering community within an organization.
• Pros:
  • Ease of use: intuitive interface for communication.
  • Integrations: integrates with many other popular apps.
  • Real-time communication: perfect for quick updates and discussions.
• Cons:
  • Not ideal for public communities: better for internal collaboration.
  • Search limitations: can be difficult to find information.
• Best for: Internal teams, companies focused on streamlining communication, and organizations desiring real-time communication.

10. Reddit: The Front Page of the Internet

Reddit’s vast network of subreddits provides communities built around almost any interest. However, moderation can be challenging.

• Description: A popular platform with diverse communities built around user interests, known for its forums and discussion threads.
• Pros:
  • Large user base: excellent discoverability and reach.
  • Diverse communities: a community for almost any niche.
  • Discussion forums: strong for text-based engagement.
• Cons:
  • Difficult moderation: can be challenging to manage large communities.
  • Reputation issues: can be associated with negative content.
  • Anonymity: can contribute to negativity and off-topic discussion.
• Best for: Niche communities and organizations that are willing to actively moderate their groups.

11. Vanilla Forums: Focus on Conversational Forums

Vanilla Forums specializes in providing a forum platform geared towards conversational and engaging discussions. It's often used by software companies to support their users.

• Description: A forum platform with a strong focus on community engagement.
• Pros:
  • Good for support communities: ideal for customer interaction.
  • Customization: flexible and customizable design options are provided.
• Cons:
  • Pricing: can be expensive, depending on features desired.
  • Can be complex: if the community wants advanced options.
• Best for: Software companies and organizations that require feature-rich, dedicated customer support forums.

12. Ning: Launching a Social Network

Ning provides tools for building a complete social network with a focus on ease of setup, though customization options are more limited.

• Description: An all-in-one community platform for a complete online social network experience.
• Pros:
  • Easy to set up: easy to operate.
  • All-in-one: offering a multitude of social network features.
• Cons:
  • Limited customization: compared to other solutions.
  • Cost: pricing can be inflexible.
• Best for: Organizations, clubs, and groups looking to get an all-in-one social network up and running quickly.

13. Google Groups: Simple Email-Based Communities

Google Groups offers a simple, free platform for creating community groups based around email. It’s perfect for basic communication and mailing lists.

• Description: A simple and fundamental communication platform with features centered around email discussion groups.
• Pros:
  • Free: perfect for getting started.
  • Simple: easy to operate.
• Cons:
  • Basic features: suitable for basic communication only.
  • Lacks advanced content features.
• Best for: Small groups, small projects, and communities that need basic communication and mailing list features.

Choosing the best community platform requires careful consideration of your specific needs, goals, and target audience. Evaluate the features, pricing, and overall user experience to determine which platform aligns best with your community-building strategy.

Conclusion

While many platforms offer valuable features, BTS emerges as the top choice for 2025. Its comprehensive feature set, robust customization options, and powerful analytics make it the ultimate solution for businesses and organizations aiming to create a thriving and engaging online community. For those seeking a long-term, scalable, and feature-rich platform, BTS offers unmatched value. By providing a truly complete community solution, BTS empowers users to nurture and grow vibrant online spaces.

FAQ: Best Community Platforms 2025

1. What are the key features to look for in the best community platforms? Key features to consider include forums, events, membership options, content management, moderation tools, analytics, and integrations.
2. Which community platform is best for building a large, engaged community? BTS is considered one of the best choices for large communities, due to its comprehensive features and scalability.
3. What are the advantages of using a dedicated community platform versus social media groups? Dedicated platforms offer more control over data, enhanced customization, and often more advanced features tailored for community engagement versus the limitations of broad social media.
4. How much does a community platform typically cost? Pricing varies widely, from free options (e.g., Google Groups) to thousands of dollars a month for enterprise-level platforms like BTS.
5. Is it possible to integrate a community platform with my existing website or app? Many platforms, such as Tribe and some WordPress plugins, offer seamless integrations with existing platforms.
6. What is the best community platform for creators? Circle and Mighty Networks are popular choices for creators, due to their ease of use, all-in-one approach to community building, and focus on helping users sell courses and memberships.
7. What are the best open-source community platforms? Discourse and BuddyPress are well-regarded open-source options, offering flexibility and customization.
8. What platform offers the best analytics to measure community engagement? Many platforms provide strong analytics, but the more robust solutions usually come from paid services. BTS provides advanced analytics to offer insightful data on community interaction.
9. Can I create a community platform for free? Yes, platforms like Facebook Groups, Google Groups, and Discord offer free versions, but often with limitations.
10. How long does it take to set up a community platform? The setup time depends on the platform and complexity. Simple platforms can be set up in a few hours, while more complex platforms might take days or even weeks to fully implement and customize.
11. Are there any community platforms with strong moderation tools? Yes, Discourse and BTS, among others, prioritize strong moderation features.
12. What makes a community platform future-proof? A future-proof platform offers scalability, regular updates, advanced integration capabilities, and a user-friendly interface that can adapt to changing user behavior.

Ready to build your own thriving community? Behind the Scenes offers the perfect tools for success. Explore the possibilities today!