Membership Cards
How digital membership cards work in Members, from designs and eligibility to wallets and check-in.
Overview
In Members, you can issue digital membership cards to Apple Wallet and Google Wallet. That is the main way members carry and present their credential at check-in.
Cards are customizable for each organization. You can run multiple designs for different tiers or products, so a standard member and a premium member do not have to share the same look. Fields on the card come from the member's profile and stay up to date automatically when that profile data changes.
Members can also open the card in the member website and app, and staff can open it from the member profile in the admin dashboard (including a scannable QR code). Card access can follow membership and entitlement status, so a lapsed member is not walking around with a card that still looks valid.
You need an email on the member record to send a membership card by email. Create designs and issue cards in the admin dashboard. The same functionality is available on the Pass Designs and Passes APIs. In the API, membership cards are called passes, and templates are pass designs.
The building blocks
| Concept | What it is |
|---|---|
| Card design | The template: layout, colors, logo, fields, barcode, and who is eligible |
| Card | The issued card for a member: design, share link, wallet assets, and whether it is active or revoked |
Designing cards
A card design controls how the card looks and which member data it shows. Create and edit designs in the admin dashboard.
Layouts
Every design uses one layout:
| Layout | Typical look |
|---|---|
| Strip image | Wallet store-card style with an optional strip image across the card |
| Thumbnail image | Wallet generic style with an optional thumbnail image |
Branding
Set background, label, and foreground colors, a required logo (upload media for your organization), an optional title beside the logo, and an optional strip or thumbnail image.
Field slots
Designs pull live data from the member profile into labeled slots on the card. When you issue a card, those slots fill from the profile. When the profile changes later, the card updates so Apple Wallet and Google Wallet stay current without reissuing by hand.
Slot layout:
- Header and primary fields (optional labels and values)
- Up to 8 secondary fields, each with a label and value
Each value can be:
| Source | Examples |
|---|---|
| Built-in profile fields | Name, email, phone, address, member ID, short ID, or external ID |
| Custom profile fields | Any custom field you defined for your program |
| Dynamic entitlements | Live benefit values, such as a meter balance for loyalty points or remaining class credits |
Dynamic fields are useful when the card should show something that changes often. For example, bind a secondary field to a points entitlement so the member always sees their current balance on the wallet card. As points are earned or spent, the card stays up to date with the entitlement on their profile.
Barcode
Choose a barcode format for the card:
| Format | Typical use |
|---|---|
| None | No barcode on the card |
| QR code | Common for door scan and check-in apps |
| PDF417, Aztec, Code 128, Code 39 | Other scanner or access-system formats |
Bind the barcode to a member field, and optionally show that value as readable text on supported wallets.
Who can use a design
Eligibility decides which members may receive a given design:
| Mode | Who qualifies |
|---|---|
| Active members | Any member with status Active |
| Products | Member on an active or trialing subscription for any listed product |
| Benefits | Member with an active entitlement for any listed benefit |
Use product or benefit eligibility when different tiers should get different cards. Benefit-gated designs pair well with a boolean benefit such as membership card access.
Examples
| Design | Eligibility | Who gets it |
|---|---|---|
| Founders tier card | Benefit or product limited to founders | Only members on that founders plan or entitlement. Everyone else is not eligible for this design. |
| 10-pack card | Products for credit-pack purchases | Members who bought a visit or credit pack (for example a 10-pack), not monthly members who never bought that product |
| Monthly membership card | Products for the monthly membership | Members on the recurring monthly plan |
A member can be eligible for more than one design. When you issue a card without picking a design, Members uses an eligible design for that member.
Issuing and delivering cards
- Create designs with layout, branding, fields, barcode, and eligibility.
- Issue a card for a member from their profile. Choose a design, or let Members pick an eligible one. The member must qualify for the design you choose.
- Deliver the card: send it by email, share the card link, open it in the member website and app, or view it from the member profile in the dashboard.
Wallet assets for Apple Wallet and Google Wallet are created in the background the first time the member opens the card. You do not need a separate provision step.
Send cards in bulk
From the members list, select one or more members, then choose the Send membership pass action. Members emails each selected person the first card they are eligible for. If they do not already have a card, that eligible design is allocated and sent automatically.
Wallets and check-in
Members add the card to Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, or open the share link. At the door they present the barcode or QR code. Staff can use the scanning functionality in the admin dashboard to scan a barcode and look up the member.
For programs that connect physical access systems, contact support to discuss access control.
Revoking cards
Revoke an issued card when it should no longer be used for check-in. Where possible, the card is removed from the member's phone wallet. Exact behaviour depends on Apple Wallet and Google Wallet, and a member can refuse or delay wallet updates so an old card still appears on their device. Treat the membership dashboard (and live membership status) as the source of truth for who is allowed in, especially when your security level requires it. Do not rely on the phone wallet alone.
The card stays on file as revoked after you revoke it.
Archiving a card design stops that template from being used for new cards. It does not revoke cards already issued to members.
Eligibility and membership status should keep cards meaningful: when a member is no longer entitled, they should not keep a usable card for check-in.
Next steps
- Set up members so profiles have the fields and email you need on the card.
- Create products when eligibility is tied to subscription tiers.
- Configure benefits if card access is entitlement-gated.
- API users can create pass designs and allocate, send, or revoke passes.