Are you seeing locked posts even after joining a creator’s page? Don’t worry – we want you to get the most out of your membership with your creators, and we’re here to help. Below we’ve gathered the most common reasons that a post might still be locked to you:
- Make sure you’re logged in to your account
- Check that you’re in the tier that unlocks that post
- Check the post to see which tiers should have access
- Check your billing history to make sure there aren’t any unresolved payments
- Have you cancelled your membership with the creator?
- Are you locked out of a creator's website, or platform outside of Patreon?
- Frequent asked questions
Double check that you’re logged in
If you’re accessing posts from your emails, and click “Check it out” you may be required to log in before seeing the content of the post. This link will grant you access to the post once without being logged in. If you follow the link additional times, double check that you're logged in to your Patreon.
If you follow an email to a post, and see that you’re locked out, you can quickly log in using the log in option in the upper-right corner.
What tier are you in?
If you’ve increased your membership with your creator, but can’t view posts for that tier, check what tier you’re in. You can double check your tier by doing the following:
Step 1: Head to your Manage memberships page, and click on the Active memberships tab. Click “Edit” next to your membership.
Step 2: Your current tier will be listed to the right of “Your Tier” on the left side of the confirmation page. Not in the tier you thought you were in? Click Edit to choose a different tier.
Important: If you see “Custom pledge” it means that you’re not currently in a tier. If posts are locked to you, click Edit and select your desired tier – this will likely fix this issue for you.
You can also double check your tier from your creator’s page
While on your creator’s page, check their tiers on the right side of their page to see which tier you’re in.
You can easily join the correct tier by clicking the “Join now for $X per month,” to be taken to the confirmation page. Don’t worry – if you’ve already been charged that amount for the current month (without being in the tier), you won’t be charged again. Learn more about this in the FAQ section below, here.
Has your creator given your tier access to the post?
If you’ve confirmed you’re in the right tier to unlock access, double check that your creator has given your tier access to that post. Creators have the ability to lock posts for certain tiers. This means that posts that are available to lower tiers might not be accessible to you.
You can see what tiers have access to a post by clicking the “Locked” badge.
Not seeing your tier?
If you expect to have access to certain posts, but aren’t seeing your tier listed, reach out to your creator. There may be a disconnect between expected access, and what the creator has planned. Want help sending your creator a message? Read through this resource.
Check your billing history
Do a look through of your Billing History to see if there are any declined (failed) payments with the creator.
If your membership payment declines, you’ll lose access to any patron-only content the creator has posted. Need help resolving a declined payment? We’ve got you covered with this guide on retrying declined payments.
Have you recently cancelled?
If your creator charges their patrons up front, then you’ll have access to their patron-only posts for the remainder of the month after cancelling. For many creators, you’ll need an active membership to view their patron-only posts.
You can see which month your payment was in support of from your Billing History page, under “supported period.” If you see the previous month, you’ll need an active membership with that creator, and can regain access by clicking the Repledge button.
Having trouble accessing a site your creator runs outside of Patreon?
We offer a variety of posting options for creators to share their podcasts, videos, and images with patrons. Even so, we understand that many creators prefer keeping their exclusive content on a site they manage outside of Patreon.
If you find yourself locked out of content that your membership should give you access to, and you’ve gone through the checklist in this article, reach out to your creator for next steps in regaining access.
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You can message your creator on Patreon directly from their page, or from the Messages section of your Patreon account.
FAQ
Q: Why doesn’t the dollar amount unlock everything? In the past it has.
A: In November of 2018, we gave creators more control over how they can publish their content. Creators can now set access to posts in the following ways:
- Public - A gift to the world from your creator!
- All patrons - Every single one of a creator’s patrons will be able to view the content of the post. Even folks who are contributing, but aren’t in a tier.
- Select tiers - Creators can select specific tiers that will have access to the post. This means that even if you’re in a higher tier, you may not have access to the content of the post. Read through your tier description for more information on expected access to posts. If you’re unsure, it doesn’t hurt to send your creator a quick note asking for clarification.
Q: I thought that the higher tiers got access to everything the lower tiers got?
A: If your tier mentions access to benefits from all lower tiers, check in with your creator. The post that’s locked to you may not be benefit-related (like a call to upgrade), but it doesn’t hurt to ask. It could be an easily fixed mix-up, or a change to tier structure – your creator will have more information for you.
Q: How is it possible that I’m paying the dollar amount, but I’m not in that tier?
A: We give patrons the option to “choose what you pay” at every tier level. This is so that generous patrons can contribute more to their creators without needing to change tiers (if they prefer staying in the lower tier). When upping your membership, be sure to change the tier, and not just the dollar amount. Upping your dollar amount without selecting the tier, will not unlock new post content.
Q: If I change to a new tier that’s the same dollar amount as my monthly payment, will I be charged again?
A: Nope! If you’ve already been charged for the current month, and are joining a tier to reflect your monthly payment, you won’t be charged again. You can confirm this on the right-hand side of your membership confirmation page. We don't want any surprises for you, so we list your charge amount, and your next charge date under the "Summary" section.
Q: Can I pledge to two tiers at once to get more access?
A: At the moment, no. You can select one tier per creator.