The original membership fee was very steep for the time: The first subscription fee was set at one guinea, which would be equivalent to nearly £400 today. Four grades of membership were agreed at the time: member, associate, student and honorary, with most appointments made on the basis of a review of their eligibility by the SCI council. Despite the high fee, by the time of the first official meeting of the Society of Chemical Industry in June 1881, it had attracted over 300 members.