Comparison · 11 material differences
ICSC vs ILPA
This comparison was generated on request from the records. It carries no editorial verdict and is not indexed. The published comparisons are listed on the compare page.
Read down each column for one organization, across a row for the difference. A bronze mark at the left of a cell means the organizations differ on that row. A dash or “not published” means the organization does not disclose the fact — it is not a zero.
Verified September 2026
Professional association
Verified September 2026 ICSC
Owners, developers, managers, investors, brokers and marketers of shopping centres and other retail and mixed-use property, plus retailers, public officials and academics
Professional association
ILPA
Institutional limited partners — pension funds, endowments, foundations, insurers, family offices, sovereign wealth funds and development finance institutions — that invest in…
What the records say
- Maximum age at joining — ICSC: Next Generation membership: industry professionals under 40; ILPA: No published maximum age at joining.
- Industry restriction — ICSC: Standard membership: companies and individuals who own, develop, manage or support marketplaces and spaces (excludes retailers and tenants); ILPA: No published industry restriction.
- Annual dues — ICSC: $300 a year; ILPA: $4,410 a year.
Side by side
| ICSC | ILPA | |
|---|---|---|
| Profile | ||
| Type | Professional association | Professional association |
| Founded | 1957 (ICSC's own account: "With a $500 payment and a handshake, seven enterprising professionals established ICSC in a downtown Chicago hotel in 1957.") | 2002 (ILPA describes its origins as an informal networking club of a few dozen limited partners more than two decades ago; secondary sources date its formal establishment as a trade association to 2002) |
| Headquarters | New York, United States | Washington, United States |
| Geographic footprint | Global; ICSC runs regional divisions and works with national and regional shopping centre councils worldwide, and holds a Washington DC office alongside its New York headquarters | Members in 50-plus countries; roughly 60% US-based and 40% in Europe, Canada and elsewhere. Offices in Toronto, Washington DC and London. |
| Members | 70,000as of May 2026 | 600as of September 2026 |
| Chapters | Not publicly disclosed as a single figure. ICSC organises by region and division rather than by named chapters, and Wikipedia reports relationships with more than 25 national and regional shopping centre councils. | Not applicable — no chapters. ILPA runs 20-plus regional gatherings across 12-plus countries |
| Primary audience | Owners, developers, managers, investors, brokers and marketers of shopping centres and other retail and mixed-use property, plus retailers, public officials and academics | Institutional limited partners — pension funds, endowments, foundations, insurers, family offices, sovereign wealth funds and development finance institutions — that invest in private market funds |
| Typical member | Membership spans the retail property chain: shopping centre owners, developers, managers, marketing specialists, investors, retailers and brokers, together with academics and public officials. ICSC's own pricing distinguishes companies and individuals who own, develop, manage or support marketplaces from retailers and tenants, who pay a lower rate. | Members are institutions rather than individuals: public and corporate pensions, endowments, foundations, family offices, insurance companies, investment firms, development finance institutions and sovereign wealth funds. Around 7,000 individual professionals sit under those institutional memberships. Service providers, consultants and general partners are excluded. |
| Qualification | ||
| Maximum age at joining | Next Generation membership: industry professionals under 40A discounted category, not a barrier to joining.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | No published maximum age at joining |
| Industry restriction | Standard membership: companies and individuals who own, develop, manage or support marketplaces and spaces (excludes retailers and tenants)Retailers and tenants have their own lower-priced category.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | No published industry restriction |
| Invitation required | No | No |
| Sponsor required | No | No |
| Application process | Applicants join online through the ICSC membership pages, choosing a member type. Categories with reduced rates require documentary proof — government letterhead for public sector applicants, a university ID for academics, and a transcript, course list or registrar's letter for students. There is no sponsor, interview or committee stage in the published process. | An institution submits a membership application request form — a separate form exists for associate membership — and ILPA checks it against the three eligibility tests. Fees are then assigned from the four-tier AUM schedule for a 12-month term. Questions go to membership@ilpa.org. |
| Selectivity | Not publicly disclosed; the published route is open enrolment with eligibility set by the type of business the applicant is in. | Not publicly disclosed — ILPA publishes eligibility criteria but no acceptance or rejection data |
| Cost | ||
| Annual dues | $300 a yearStandard membershipverified September 2026 · source ↗ | $4,410 a yearTier 1 — total AUM under $1.5 billion. Fees rise about 5% year over year.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Initiation fee | Not publicly disclosed; no joining fee is listed alongside the published dues.verified September 2026 | Fees are institutional, cover a 12-month term, and are banded by total AUM in USD. |
| Event costs | Not recorded here. ICSC's conferences are separately ticketed and are the main cost of participation, but rates vary by event and were not read for this record.verified September 2026 | Fees are institutional, cover a 12-month term, and are banded by total AUM in USD. |
| Membership term | Annual | 12-month term, renewed annually |
| Structure | ||
| Meeting frequency | A year-round conference programme including ICSC Las Vegas and ICSC New York, plus regional and state conferences | Annual Summit, Legal Conference, Members' Conference and Forum EMEA, plus more than 20 regional gatherings across 12-plus countries and a webcast programme |
| Peer forums | No confidential peer forum structure is published; participation is through events, divisions and committees | No standing peer forums; members convene at conferences, regional gatherings and through the ILPA Connect platform |
| Confidentiality | Not publicly disclosed | Could not be independently verified — no published confidentiality policy was found |
| Time commitment | Not documented | Not documented |
| Organized as | Event-focused, Chapter-based | Event-focused, Virtual |
| Confidential peer forums | No | Partial |
| Local chapters | Partial | No |
| Virtual membership | Partial | Partial |
| Online community | Partial | Yes |
| Member directory | Yes | Yes |
| Events | Yes | Yes |
| Programming | ||
| Educational programming | Yes | Yes |
| Leadership development | Partial | Partial |
| Retreats | No | No |
| Travel | No | No |
| Family programming | No | No |
| Spouse and partner programming | Not documented | No |
| Next-generation programming | Yes | No |
| Investment discussions | Yes | Yes |
| Investment opportunities | Partial | No |
| Philanthropic component | No | No |
| Networking emphasis | High | High |
| Social emphasis | Medium | Low |
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Last verified: not yet reviewed
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