Teachable vs Thinkific vs Kajabi — Best Course Platform Compared

Pricing & Transaction Fees — The Real Cost

Teachable Basic plan costs $59/mo (annual) with a 5% transaction fee on all sales. The Pro plan at $159/mo removes transaction fees entirely. Thinkific Basic is $49/mo (annual) with 0% transaction fees, making it the cheapest entry point. Thinkific's Pro plan is $99/mo and includes assignments, certificates, and community features. Kajabi is the most expensive — the Basic plan starts at $149/mo (annual) with 0% transaction fees, 10,000 contacts, and 3 products. All three platforms charge standard payment processing fees (2.9% + $0.30 via Stripe) on top of their subscription costs. For a creator with $5,000/mo in course sales, Teachable Basic would cost roughly $59 + $250 (5%) = $309/mo, while Thinkific would cost $49 + $0 = $49/mo.

Course Creation & Student Experience

Teachable is the simplest to set up — drag-and-drop curriculum builder, lecture-by-lecture video hosting, and clean student dashboard. It supports multimedia lessons (video, audio, PDF, text, quizzes) and offers an excellent native video player with speed controls and captioning. Thinkific offers the most flexible curriculum builder with direct drag-and-drop reordering, multimedia lessons, interactive video (quizzes embedded in video), surveys, and full certificates. Its student experience is polished with customisable course cards and progress tracking. Kajabi uses a pipeline-based content structure (rather than a simple course outline), which takes getting used to. Its video hosting is solid, but the student interface feels heavier than Teachable or Thinkific. For pure course creation ease, Teachable wins. For customisable student experiences, Thinkific wins.

Marketing, Email & Sales Funnels

Kajabi is the undisputed marketing king. It includes a full email marketing platform (visual automations, segments, tags, broadcasts), landing page builder with dozens of high-converting templates, pipeline builder for sales funnels, and native checkout pages with upsells and order bumps. You do not need any external tools — Kajabi replaces ConvertKit, ClickFunnels, and Leadpages in one subscription. Teachable offers basic marketing features — coupon codes, affiliate program, built-in checkout — but no email marketing or landing page builder beyond simple sales pages. Thinkific includes coupons, bundles, and an affiliate system, plus built-in email notifications, but also lacks a true email marketing platform. If marketing automation matters most, Kajabi is clearly superior. See our course creation guide for more strategy.

Community & Student Engagement

Thinkific offers built-in community features (discussion feeds, comments, student profiles) on its Pro plan and above — keeping students engaged without a separate Facebook group or Circle community. Teachable has Q&A sections per lecture and basic comments, but no community hub. Kajabi includes community functionality at higher tiers, with a social-feed-style interface for cohort-based courses. Thinkific offers the best community experience for the price, while Kajabi's community features are adequate for structured cohorts but less robust for ongoing discussion.

Quick Comparison Table

Teachable Basic: $59/mo + 5% fees — simplest setup, good video player, basic marketing. Best for solo creators who want a no-fuss platform and do not mind the transaction fee.
Thinkific Basic: $49/mo + 0% fees — flexible builder, no transaction fees, best community features. Best value for price-conscious creators.
Kajabi Basic: $149/mo + 0% fees — complete all-in-one ecosystem with email, funnels, and landing pages. Best for creators who want to avoid multiple tool subscriptions.

Verdict

If you want the simplest platform and are okay paying transaction fees, choose Teachable. If you want the best value with zero transaction fees and strong community features, choose Thinkific. If you want a complete business ecosystem that replaces 3–4 separate tools and you have the budget for it, choose Kajabi. All three platforms are reliable — your choice ultimately depends on how much you want to invest upfront versus how many tools you want to manage.

FAQs

Can I migrate from one platform to another?

Yes, but it is tedious. You will need to export course content and student data from the old platform and re-upload to the new one. Video files typically need to be re-hosted. Most creators find the migration worthwhile only if they are scaling significantly and need different features.

Which platform has the best video hosting?

Teachable has the best native video player with 1080p streaming, speed controls, and automatic captioning. Thinkific's player is good but slightly less polished. Kajabi's video hosting is solid but compresses quality more aggressively. For high-end video courses, Teachable delivers the best viewing experience.

Do I need Kajabi if I already have an email platform?

Not necessarily. If you already have ConvertKit or MailerLite and are happy with it, Teachable or Thinkific plus your existing email tool is a more cost-effective combination than Kajabi alone. Kajabi makes sense when you want to consolidate tools and eliminate monthly subscriptions.

Which platform handles memberships best?

Kajabi handles membership sites best with its pipeline-based content delivery, drip scheduling, and community integration. Thinkific supports memberships well via its course bundles and drip settings. Teachable is primarily course-focused and less suited for ongoing membership models.