Coming from BuddyPress or BuddyBoss

A reference for developers who know BuddyPress or BuddyBoss and want to understand how Jetonomy maps to those concepts. This page covers concept-level differences, API equivalents for common tasks, and an honest account of where no equivalent exists.

If you want to run Jetonomy alongside an active BuddyPress install, start with the BuddyPress Integration developer reference, which covers the coexistence layer (group-to-space pairing, member sync, activity broadcast, and the comment-to-reply bridge).

Concept Map

BuddyPress / BuddyBoss Jetonomy Notes
Group Space The primary container for discussion. BP groups are general-purpose social containers; Jetonomy spaces are forum/Q&A/ideas/feed containers with a configurable type.
Group topic / reply (bbPress) Post / Reply Jetonomy stores posts and replies in custom tables, not as WordPress CPTs.
Activity stream (no equivalent) Jetonomy has no site-wide activity stream. When BuddyPress is active, new posts broadcast to the paired group's activity stream via the integration layer. See BuddyPress Integration.
Extended profile field (xprofile) Pro Custom Fields Custom field definitions per object type (post, user, space) via the Jetonomy Pro custom-fields extension.
Member type (bp_register_member_type) Trust Levels + WP roles Jetonomy uses a 0-5 trust ladder (auto-evaluated from activity) plus standard WP roles. There is no named member-type registry.
Group forum tab (BP_Group_Extension) Space tab (jetonomy_space_tabs filter) See Add a Space Tab.
Profile tab / nav item (bp_core_new_nav_item) Profile tab (jetonomy_profile_tabs filter) See Add a Profile Tab.
Community nav link jetonomy_header_nav_items action See Add a Nav Item.
Group visibility (public / private / hidden) Space visibility (public / private) Jetonomy does not have a "hidden" equivalent. Private spaces are invisible to non-members; there is no invitation-only discovery mode.
bp_user_can / bp_current_user_can Jetonomy\Permissions\Permission_Engine::can() Per-action, per-space capability check. See Visibility and Access Matrix.
Community public/private toggle Jetonomy\Visibility::can_view_community() Community-level read gate (public = anyone can read, private = logged-in only). Separate from per-space access rules.
Member directory + facet filters (no equivalent) Jetonomy has jetonomy_search_query_args for content search but no member directory or faceted member browser.
Cover images (no equivalent) Jetonomy user profiles and spaces do not have cover images.
Notification preference hooks (no equivalent) Jetonomy's notification preference UI has no injection hook. The email adapter is swappable (see Adapter System) but there is no per-type preference UI hook.

How Do I Do X?

Profile and navigation

BuddyPress / BuddyBoss Jetonomy equivalent Reference
bp_core_new_nav_item() - add a profile tab jetonomy_profile_tabs filter 12-add-a-profile-tab.md
BP_Group_Extension - add a space/group tab jetonomy_space_tabs filter 13-add-a-space-tab.md
bp_core_add_nav_item() - add a community nav link jetonomy_header_nav_items action 14-add-a-nav-item.md
bp_core_get_user_domain( $user_id ) \Jetonomy\get_profile_url( $user_id ) Filterable via jetonomy_profile_url

Membership and access

BuddyPress / BuddyBoss Jetonomy equivalent Notes
groups_is_user_member( $user_id, $group_id ) \Jetonomy\Models\SpaceMember::is_member( $space_id, $user_id ) Returns bool
bp_user_can( $user_id, 'publish_posts', 'groups' ) \Jetonomy\Permissions\Permission_Engine::can( $user_id, 'create_posts', $space_id ) Action strings: create_posts, vote, flag, moderate, manage_space, etc.
groups_is_user_admin( $user_id, $group_id ) \Jetonomy\Models\SpaceMember::get_role( $space_id, $user_id ) === 'admin' Roles: 'member', 'moderator', 'admin'
bp_is_user_in_group() (template tag) \Jetonomy\Models\SpaceMember::is_member( $space_id, get_current_user_id() ) n/a
bp_register_member_type( 'premium' ) WP add_role() / add_cap() + Jetonomy trust level evaluation No named member-type registry; use WP roles or trust levels

Content and spaces

BuddyPress / BuddyBoss Jetonomy equivalent Reference
groups_create_group( $args ) REST POST /jetonomy/v1/spaces or \Jetonomy\Models\Space::create( $data ) 01-rest-api.md
groups_get_groups( $args ) REST GET /jetonomy/v1/spaces or \Jetonomy\Models\Space::list( $args ) 01-rest-api.md
groups_get_group( $group_id ) \Jetonomy\Models\Space::find( $space_id ) n/a
bp_activity_add( $args ) REST POST /jetonomy/v1/spaces/{id}/posts or \Jetonomy\Models\Post::create( $data ) 01-rest-api.md
bp_activity_delete( $args ) REST DELETE /jetonomy/v1/posts/{id} 01-rest-api.md
xprofile_set_field_data( $field, $user_id, $value ) Pro Custom Fields extension - REST PUT /jetonomy/v1/users/{id}/custom-fields Pro only

Hooks

BuddyPress / BuddyBoss hook Jetonomy equivalent Reference
groups_join_group jetonomy_user_joined_space 02-hooks-reference.md
groups_leave_group / groups_remove_member jetonomy_user_left_space 02-hooks-reference.md
groups_promote_member (no direct equivalent) Listen to jetonomy_user_joined_space with $role = 'admin' or 'moderator'
bp_activity_comment_posted jetonomy_after_create_reply 02-hooks-reference.md
bp_activity_action (activity posted) jetonomy_after_create_post 02-hooks-reference.md
bp_get_user_domain jetonomy_profile_url filter 02-hooks-reference.md
bp_signup_validate jetonomy_check_content filter (content gate) 02-hooks-reference.md

Profile Tabs

In BuddyPress, bp_core_new_nav_item() registers a top-level profile tab; BuddyBoss adds bp_nouveau_get_nav_items() on top.

Jetonomy now has a jetonomy_profile_tabs filter for the same purpose. Full worked example: Add a Profile Tab.

// Register a "Portfolio" tab on every Jetonomy profile.
// Signature: $tabs (array), $user (WP_User), $is_own (bool - true when viewing your own profile).
add_filter( 'jetonomy_profile_tabs', function( array $tabs, \WP_User $user, bool $is_own ): array {
    $tabs[] = [
        'slug'  => 'portfolio',
        'label' => __( 'Portfolio', 'acme' ),
        'url'   => \Jetonomy\get_profile_url( $user->ID ) . 'portfolio/',
    ];
    return $tabs;
}, 10, 3 );

Space Tabs (frontend)

In BuddyPress, BP_Group_Extension adds a frontend tab to a group's sub-navigation. BuddyBoss exposes bp_nouveau_get_group_secondary_nav() on top.

Jetonomy now has a jetonomy_space_tabs filter for the equivalent. Full worked example: Add a Space Tab.

// Add a "Resources" tab to every space's frontend nav.
// Signature: $tabs (array), $space (object), $show_members (bool).
add_filter( 'jetonomy_space_tabs', function( array $tabs, object $space, bool $show_members ): array {
    $tabs[] = [
        'slug'  => 'resources',
        'label' => __( 'Resources', 'acme' ),
    ];
    return $tabs;
}, 10, 3 );

Note: the wp-admin side of space editing uses a different hook pair - jetonomy_admin_space_edit_tabs and jetonomy_admin_space_edit_tab_content. See Admin Extensions.

Trust Levels vs. Member Types

BuddyPress member types (bp_register_member_type) create named cohorts that can gate capabilities, appearance, and directory filters. Jetonomy does not have a member-type registry.

The closest tools are:

  • WP roles - add_role() / add_cap() - for capability gating. Jetonomy's Permission Engine checks WP capabilities via current_user_can() at the community level, then layered space roles and trust levels.
  • Trust Levels 0-5 - auto-evaluated daily from activity (posts, replies, reputation, days active). Readable as $user_profile->trust_level. Listen to jetonomy_trust_level_changed to react to promotions.
  • Space roles - 'member', 'moderator', 'admin' - per-space, not site-wide.

There is no equivalent of BP's per-type directory filter, profile field visibility gating, or per-type nav injection. Those require WP role - based conditionals or trust-level checks in your own code.

What Has No Equivalent (honest gaps)

BuddyPress / BuddyBoss feature Jetonomy status
Site-wide activity stream (bp_activity_*) Not implemented. The BuddyPress integration bridges new Jetonomy posts to a BP group's stream, but Jetonomy has no native activity stream.
Member directory with facet filters Not implemented. jetonomy_search_query_args covers content search; there is no member browser.
Member types (bp_register_member_type) Not implemented. Use WP roles and trust levels.
Member cover images Not implemented.
Notification preference UI hooks Not implemented. The email adapter is swappable, but there is no per-notification-type preference toggle for members.
BP_Group_Extension admin panel Not directly equivalent. Use jetonomy_admin_space_edit_tabs for a wp-admin panel on the space edit page. See Admin Extensions.

These are conscious omissions or open roadmap items, not accidental gaps.

What's Next?