A Mocono alternative: subscriptions, print and advertising on one record
Mocono and RunMags start from different places. Mocono describes itself as a paywall and subscriber CRM built for digital publishers, connected to a WordPress site and the publisher's own Stripe account. Source: Mocono homepage, retrieved 2026-10-05. Source: Mocono pricing page, retrieved 2026-10-05. RunMags is a system for the whole publishing business: advertising sales, contracts, flatplan, billing and print and digital subscriptions, with the advertiser and the subscriber on the same customer record. This guide sets out where each one fits better, including where Mocono documents more than RunMags does today. Explore the publishing software comparison hub.
Quick verdict
If you publish digitally on WordPress and want a paywall, automated subscription billing and a guided setup, Mocono documents all three (sources below), and RunMags does not document a paywall or automatic renewals today. If you also sell advertising, print issues or send copies to a printer, and want sales, production and billing to work from one record, RunMags is worth evaluating. Neither choice is right for every publisher, so test the workflow that matters most to you.
Side by side: what each vendor documents
Supported means the capability is documented. Partial means part of it is documented. Not shown means we found no public evidence; it does not mean the product lacks it. Mocono statuses are vendor claims from Mocono's official pages, retrieved 2026-10-05. RunMags statuses come from our own capability review in October 2026. Neither column is an independent test.
| Capability | Mocono (vendor-claimed) | RunMags |
|---|---|---|
| Paywall and access rules | Supported. A category-based paywall, a free-article meter or open access, with bonus articles for email sign-ups, through a WordPress plugin. Mocono homepage | Not shown |
| Subscription plans and offers | Supported. Individual and seat-based group plans, monthly and annual prices, free-trial days and discount codes. Mocono homepage | Partial. Print and digital subscriptions with issue-based or time-based terms, gifts and back issues; seat-based group licences are not documented |
| Renewals | Supported. Renewals and card updates run automatically in the background on Stripe. Mocono homepage | Partial. Renewals are charged when your staff run the renewal batch; automatic scheduled renewal is not available yet |
| Failed card payment follow-up | Supported. Dunning and failed-payment emails. Mocono homepage | Not available yet. RunMags does not retry failed card payments |
| Subscriber records | Supported. A subscriber CRM to search, filter, change plans, seats and payment methods, cancel and export to CSV. Mocono homepage | Supported. Subscribers sit on the same organisation or contact record as advertising orders |
| Subscriber emails and newsletters | Partial. Welcome, renewal, failed payment, cancellation and password reset emails, with your own SMTP if you want; newsletter sending is not shown. Mocono homepage | Partial. Newsletter sending with subscribe forms and bounce and link statistics; automated subscriber lifecycle emails are not documented |
| Subscription reporting | Supported. A dashboard with MRR, churn, average revenue per user and conversion, with period comparison. Mocono homepage | Partial. Owner dashboard and subscription finance views; reader cohort reports are not available yet |
| Integrations | Supported. WordPress and Stripe are required; Zapier is optional. Mocono homepage | Partial. Stripe payments and accounting sync with Fortnox, QuickBooks or Xero; no Zapier integration is documented |
| Print subscriptions and distribution lists | Partial. Plans can be print and digital, and a printed copy can be triggered through Zapier; distribution lists for a printer are not shown. Mocono homepage | Supported. Issue-based terms and per-issue distribution batches for your printer |
| Accounting sync and EU VAT | Not shown on the pages we checked. Currency and tax settings are a setup step, and Xero is among the apps shown for Zapier. Mocono homepage | Partial. Advertiser invoices sync to Fortnox, QuickBooks or Xero, with EU VAT; subscription invoices are not part of the sync yet |
| Advertising sales, contracts and orders | Not shown on the pages we checked. Mocono's media kit template describes Mocono as help with the reader-revenue line. Media kit template page | Supported |
| Flatplanning and issue production | Not shown on the pages we checked | Supported. The flatplan is built from booked advertising orders |
Published pricing (checked )
Mocono's pricing page lists a platform commission of 3.5% of transaction value and a server provision fee of £50 per 1,000 registered users per month. It counts any registered account as a user: active subscribers, lapsed subscribers and free registered readers. The page lists no setup or migration fee, says Stripe's card fees are charged separately through your own Stripe account, and offers a 60-day free trial. Larger titles and publisher groups can ask for bespoke pricing. Source: Mocono pricing page, retrieved 2026-10-05. See RunMags pricing.
Who should choose which
Choose or stay with Mocono if
- You publish on WordPress and want a paywall now. Mocono documents category-based gating, a free-article meter and bonus articles for readers who sign up with an email address. Source: Mocono homepage, retrieved 2026-10-05.
- You want subscription billing to run on its own. Mocono's homepage says renewals, card updates and dunning happen in the background, with failed-payment emails sent on the event. Source: Mocono homepage, retrieved 2026-10-05.
- You want a guided self-serve start. Mocono describes a ten-step checklist from connecting WordPress to a test subscription and going live, and several publications under one login. Source: Mocono homepage, retrieved 2026-10-05.
- You sell seat-based group subscriptions to teams and companies. Source: Mocono homepage, retrieved 2026-10-05.
If your Mocono setup already does this work well, keeping it is a sensible decision. RunMags does not document a paywall, does not schedule automatic renewals or retry failed card payments yet, and does not document subscriber self-service.
Consider RunMags if
- You sell advertising and subscriptions, often to the same organisations. In RunMags, an organisation or contact keeps its advertising orders and its subscriptions on one record, in one CRM for magazines.
- Your sales team works from contracts with order rows per channel, and production plans each issue. The flatplan is built from booked advertising orders. See flatplanning.
- You sell print and digital subscriptions with issue-based or time-based terms, including renewals, back issues, gifts and credit notes, and you send per-issue distribution lists to your printer. See subscription sales and circulation management.
- You invoice advertisers through Fortnox, QuickBooks or Xero, with EU VAT, and take payments through Stripe. Subscription invoices are not part of the accounting sync yet.
The Mocono pages we checked describe a paywall, subscriber CRM and billing for digital publishers and do not document advertising sales or flatplanning. That is not proof that Mocono lacks them, so ask Mocono directly if you need them. Source: Mocono homepage, retrieved 2026-10-05.
Switching from Mocono: a step-by-step plan
- List what you run on Mocono today: plans and group seats, access rules and the free-article meter, discount codes, subscriber emails, Zapier flows and the WordPress connection. Mark what you need on the first day.
- Check each need against the table above. If you rely on the paywall, automatic renewals or failed-payment follow-up, decide how you will cover them before you move, or keep Mocono for that part.
- Export a sample of your subscribers. Mocono's subscriber list exports to CSV, and its terms say you may export your subscriber data at any time. Source: Mocono homepage, retrieved 2026-10-05. Source: Mocono terms, retrieved 2026-10-05.
- Ask the RunMags team to import the sample into a trial account; subscriber and subscription imports are part of onboarding. Compare plans, renewal dates and the next issue's distribution list with Mocono.
- Agree how saved payment cards will move. Mocono runs on your own Stripe account, and RunMags also takes payments through Stripe, but RunMags does not document card-token continuity today, so plan this with the RunMags team and Stripe before you set a date. Source: Mocono pricing page, retrieved 2026-10-05.
- Check your Mocono exit terms. The pricing page lists no fixed contract length or exit penalty on the standard package, and the terms say assisted or bulk migration beyond the self-service CSV export is charged at Mocono's day rates, and that the export stays available for 30 days after termination. Source: Mocono pricing page, retrieved 2026-10-05. Source: Mocono terms, retrieved 2026-10-05.
- Keep Mocono running until renewals and subscriber access match in RunMags.
Frequently asked questions
Does RunMags have a WordPress paywall like Mocono?
RunMags does not document a paywall today. Mocono documents a category-based paywall, a free-article meter and bonus articles for email sign-ups through its WordPress plugin (source: mocono.app, retrieved 2026-10-05). If a paywall is what you need now, Mocono is the better fit for that part.
Does RunMags renew subscriptions and chase failed payments automatically?
Not yet. In RunMags, renewals are charged when your staff run the renewal batch. RunMags does not schedule automatic renewals or retry failed card payments yet. Mocono's homepage says renewals, card updates and dunning run in the background (source: mocono.app, retrieved 2026-10-05).
How is Mocono priced?
On 2026-10-05 Mocono's pricing page (mocono.app/pricing) listed a 3.5% platform commission on transaction value plus a server provision fee of £50 per 1,000 registered users per month, where registered users include lapsed subscribers and free registered readers. It listed no setup fee and a 60-day free trial, with bespoke pricing for larger titles and groups. See the RunMags pricing page for RunMags plans, and compare quotes for your own setup.
Can I move my Mocono subscribers into RunMags?
Yes, with help from the team: subscriber and subscription imports are part of RunMags onboarding. Mocono's terms say you may export your subscriber data at any time (source: mocono.app/terms, retrieved 2026-10-05). Card-token continuity is not documented, so plan with the RunMags team how saved payment methods will move before you switch.
Can I use Mocono and RunMags together?
RunMags has no documented Mocono integration. Using both would mean keeping subscribers and advertisers in separate systems. Ask the RunMags team what that split would mean for your billing and distribution lists.
Evaluate RunMags with your own publishing workflow
Bring one advertiser who also subscribes, one renewal and your next issue. Start a trial or book a walkthrough with the team.
