Press release
NANA launches a three-year Dues Model Study
A survey of 300 associations opens Phase 1 of a study into how member organizations set dues.
Haruko Tanaka
Treasurer, Alliance of Regional Credit Unions
WASHINGTON — NANA opened Phase 1 of a three-year Dues Model Study today, surveying 300 member associations on how they structure and price membership dues. The study's kickoff webinar ran this afternoon, drawing staff and board members from associations weighing whether to change their own dues models.
What the study will measure
NANA Treasurer Haruko Tanaka, CFO of the Alliance of Regional Credit Unions, is leading the study on the board's behalf. Director of Research Inês Carvalho-Reyes designed the survey instrument, and Fieldstone Data Partners, the firm that fields NANA's annual State of Associations survey, will handle data collection and analysis.
Phase 1 runs from this month through July 2026 and asks the 300 participating associations to report their current dues structure, how often they've changed it, and what member data they track when they do. NANA classifies dues structures into four broad types: tiered, flat, value- or budget-based, and other arrangements that don't fit neatly into the first three.
"Associations ask us for benchmarks on almost everything else — compensation, renewal rates, event pricing," Tanaka said. "Dues design is the one area where most of our members are still guessing."
Why now
The study follows years of anecdotal reports from chapter leaders that flat-dues associations were struggling to hold onto smaller members, while tiered structures seemed to track more closely with membership growth. NANA's research team wanted figures, not impressions, before recommending anything to the board.
Carvalho-Reyes said the survey deliberately includes associations of every size NANA serves, from single-staff shops to organizations with dozens of employees, so the eventual findings won't reflect only the largest members' experience.
Phase 1 alone will generate the largest dues dataset NANA has ever assembled — roughly four times the sample size of any prior benchmarking project the research team has run.
Phase 2, opening in September 2026, will move from survey data to a live pilot: a subset of participating associations will test a new dues model for several months and report back on member response and revenue. Results from both phases are expected in a member webinar in mid-2027.
What members should do
Associations interested in joining Phase 1 should:
Confirm with their board or finance committee before enrolling, since the survey asks for actual dues and revenue figures
Expect the survey instrument in the coming weeks from Carvalho-Reyes's research team
Watch for the Phase 2 pilot call later in 2026 if they want to test a new model directly
The study does not commit NANA to changing its own dues structure. Whether NANA moves from its current flat Individual and Organization dues to a tiered model remains an open question for the board, and Tanaka said no decision has been made.
About NANA
The National Association of National Associations is the professional society for association executives, boards, and staff, representing more than 750 member organizations and the two million professionals who work for them. NANA provides research, peer community, and advocacy for the people who run the organizations that hold civic life together.