The best online course platform depends on your price and monthly sales. Gumroad and Whop have no monthly fee, so they cost least at low volume; Thinkific, Teachable Builder, Podia Shaker and Kajabi charge a flat plan with no platform fee, so they win once a course sells steadily. On a $47 course, Thinkific Basic beats Gumroad from 11 sales a month; on a $197 course, from 3 (fees checked October 2026).
The best online course platforms in 2026 are Thinkific or Teachable for a course-first business, Kajabi if you want website, email and courses in one tool, and Gumroad or Whop if you want no monthly fee while sales are small. Which one is cheapest for you depends on two numbers, your course price and how many copies you sell a month, and the master table below shows where each platform's cost flips.
All prices and fees checked October 2026, in US dollars, on Teachable, Thinkific and its gateway fee FAQ, Kajabi, Podia, Gumroad and Whop. This update replaces an earlier version whose plan prices had changed. Platforms change pricing often; the linked pages are the source of truth.
This page is part of our courses and memberships hub, which goes deeper on the most common two-way choice, Teachable vs Gumroad, and on membership platforms. Here the field is wider: six platforms, two price points, one table.
The verdict: pick by price and volume
- Pick Gumroad to test a first course with no fixed cost and tax handled for you.
- Pick Whop if you sell to your own audience and want the lowest per-sale rate with recurring billing.
- Pick Thinkific if courses are the business and you can use Thinkific Payments.
- Pick Teachable for course tools plus tax handling at checkout, on Builder rather than Starter.
- Pick Podia if you sell courses, downloads and coaching together.
- Pick Kajabi if you will use its website, email, funnels and community and sales cover $179 a month.
Course platform fees compared: the master table
The fee per sale combines the platform's own cut with card processing for one US card. Where a platform uses its own payments, the table uses its published US rate (2.9% plus $0.30 for Teachable, Thinkific, Kajabi Basic and Podia's processors; 2.7% plus $0.30 for Whop). Gumroad charges processing separately on direct sales, so the table assumes 2.9% plus $0.30 there too. Tax, refunds and international cards are excluded.
| Platform and plan | Plan per month (monthly billing) | Platform fee | Fee per $47 sale | Fee per $197 sale |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gumroad | $0 | 10% + $0.50 (direct) | $6.86 | $26.21 |
| Whop | $0 | None; card rate 2.7% + $0.30 | $1.57 | $5.62 |
| Teachable Starter | $39 ($29 yearly) | 7.5% | $5.19 | $20.79 |
| Teachable Builder | $89 ($69 yearly) | 0% with Teachable Payments | $1.66 | $6.01 |
| Thinkific Basic | $54 ($40 yearly) | 0% with Thinkific Payments | $1.66 | $6.01 |
| Podia Mover | $49 ($42 yearly) | 5% | $4.01 | $15.86 |
| Podia Shaker | $99 ($84 yearly) | 0% | $1.66 | $6.01 |
| Kajabi Basic | $179 ($143 yearly) | 0% with Kajabi Payments | $1.66 | $6.01 |
Illustrative inputs: $47 price, 20 sales a month ($940 gross), monthly billing, one US card per sale. Whop add-ons, tax and refunds excluded. Source: Each platform's pricing page, checked October 2026
Where each platform's economics flip
A flat plan beats a percentage fee once the fee you save each month covers the plan. Gumroad's own fee is $5.20 on a $47 sale and $20.20 on a $197 sale, so the flip points are low, especially at the higher price. The table shows the monthly sales count (and gross sales) at which the first option becomes cheaper than the second, on monthly billing.
| Switch | At $47 a course | At $197 a course |
|---|---|---|
| Thinkific Basic instead of Gumroad | 11 sales ($517) | 3 sales ($591) |
| Teachable Builder instead of Gumroad | 18 sales ($846) | 5 sales ($985) |
| Podia Shaker instead of Gumroad | 20 sales ($940) | 5 sales ($985) |
| Kajabi Basic instead of Gumroad | 35 sales ($1,645) | 9 sales ($1,773) |
| Teachable Builder instead of Starter | 15 sales ($705) | 4 sales ($788) |
| Podia Shaker instead of Mover | 22 sales ($1,034) | 6 sales ($1,182) |
Two patterns stand out. First, the higher your price, the sooner a flat plan pays: three sales a month of a $197 course already justify Thinkific Basic. Second, entry plans with a percentage fee are short-lived: Teachable Starter and Podia Mover each lose to their own next tier at modest volume. Whop is cheaper per sale than every option here at its base rate, but it is a checkout and access platform rather than a full course builder, so compare features before fees.
Teachable
Teachable lists Starter at $39 a month with a 7.5% transaction fee, Builder at $89 and Growth at $189 with 0% when you use Teachable Payments; yearly billing brings them to $29, $69 and $139 (checked October 2026). Plans allow 5, 10 or 50 published products, where a course, coaching offer or digital download each count as one and memberships and bundles do not. The affiliate program starts on Builder and branding removal on Growth. Teachable lists U.S. sales tax, global VAT and GST handling with its payments, and a 7-day trial with a 30-day money-back period.
Strengths: mature course player, student apps, tax handling at checkout. Limits: product caps, and Starter's fee makes it poor value past a handful of sales.
Thinkific
Thinkific's pricing page lists Basic at $54, Start at $109 and Grow at $219 a month, or $40, $82 and $164 on yearly billing (checked October 2026). Every plan includes unlimited published courses and up to 10,000 current students. Basic includes one community; Grow adds three and removes Thinkific branding. With Thinkific Payments there is no platform fee; if you connect Stripe or PayPal directly, the gateway fee FAQ lists 5% on Basic, 2% on Start and 1% on Grow.
Strengths: lowest flat price for a dedicated course platform, unlimited courses. Limits: paid memberships are not on Basic, and the gateway fee applies if you cannot use Thinkific Payments.
Gumroad
Gumroad has no monthly fee. Its pricing page lists 10% plus $0.50 per direct sale and 30% per sale through the Discover marketplace (checked October 2026). The help center says card and PayPal processing on direct sales is not included in the 10%. Gumroad acts as merchant of record, collecting and remitting sales tax and VAT.
Strengths: zero fixed cost, tax handled, sells files and memberships as well as courses. Limits: the highest per-sale cost here once you sell regularly, and a simpler course player. Our Gumroad selling guide covers setup.
Kajabi
Kajabi's pricing page lists Basic at $179, Growth at $249 and Pro at $499 a month, or $143, $199 and $399 on yearly billing (checked October 2026). Plans allow 5, 50 or unlimited products and 2,500, 25,000 or 100,000 contacts. Kajabi takes no revenue share; Kajabi Payments costs 2.9%, 2.8% or 2.7% plus $0.30 per US card by plan, and using a third-party processor adds 2%, 1% or 0.5%.
Strengths: website, email, funnels, courses and community under one login. Limits: the highest fixed price, and Basic caps you at five products.
Podia
Podia's pricing page lists Mover at $42, Shaker at $84 and Earthquaker at $150 a month on yearly billing; its comparison pages list monthly billing at $49, $99 and $179 (checked October 2026). Mover charges a 5% transaction fee and Shaker and Earthquaker charge none; Stripe or PayPal processing of 2.9% plus 30¢ applies on all plans. Mover includes 50 products.
Strengths: courses, downloads, coaching and community in one simple store. Limits: Mover's fee, and fewer course-specific tools than Teachable or Thinkific.
Whop
Whop has no monthly fee. Its pricing page lists 2.7% plus $0.30 per successful domestic card payment, plus 1.5% for international cards and 1% for currency conversion; optional orchestration (0.8%), billing (0.5%) and tax collection (2%, when tax is collected) add to that when enabled, and payout methods carry their own fees (checked October 2026). Disclosure: we use Whop for checkout at iimagined.ai, and it is assessed here on the same terms as the others.
Strengths: lowest base rate, recurring billing for memberships and communities. Limits: add-ons change the real rate, and you bring your own traffic. For the community angle, read Skool vs Whop vs Teachable.
Teachable vs Thinkific vs Kajabi: which fits you
- You sell fewer copies than the flip points above
- You are still testing the offer
- You want tax handled (Gumroad)
- You sell recurring access to your own audience (Whop)
- Sales are past the flip point most months
- You need course tools: quizzes, certificates, apps
- You run affiliates or a team
- You plan more than one course
Costs the headline price leaves out
Plan prices and platform fees are the easy part to compare. These are the costs that change the answer once you are running a real course:
- International cards and currency conversion. Most processors charge more for cards issued outside your country, and Whop lists 1.5% extra for international cards and 1% for conversion. If much of your audience is abroad, add that to every row of the master table.
- Recurring billing. Payment plans and subscriptions often carry an extra billing fee, such as Whop's optional 0.5% billing add-on. Check this if you plan monthly memberships or split payments.
- Sales tax and VAT. Gumroad collects and remits as merchant of record; Teachable lists tax handling with its own payments; elsewhere the tool may calculate tax while filing stays with you. Tax work you have to do yourself is a cost even when no fee shows it.
- The tools you no longer need. Kajabi looks expensive next to Thinkific, but it includes email marketing and a website. If you would otherwise pay for both separately, compare the total stack, not the course platform alone.
- Plan limits. Product caps on Teachable and Kajabi Basic, and contact limits on Kajabi, can force an upgrade before fees do.
Before you switch platforms, export your customer list and sales records, ask both platforms whether active subscriptions can move, test the new checkout with a real purchase, and keep the old platform live until every student has access. Avoid switching in the middle of a launch.
Alternatives worth a look
If the course is really a community, Skool and Circle are built for that, and Patreon suits a membership built on regular posts; their fees are in our courses and memberships hub. If you mainly sell downloads and templates, a storefront from where to sell digital products in 2026 may fit better than any course platform.
The platform will not decide whether a course sells; the offer, price and launch do. Before you commit, read how to create and sell an online course and run the launch checklist. Our Digital Products program covers offer design, pricing and evergreen sales in depth.
Online course platforms: FAQ
What is the best online course platform in 2026?
There is no single best one; the cheapest and best fit depends on price and volume. With few sales, a no-monthly-fee option such as Gumroad or Whop costs least. Once a course sells steadily, a flat plan with no platform fee wins: Thinkific Basic is the lowest-priced of those at $54 a month, checked October 2026. Kajabi suits sellers who want website, email and courses in one tool.
Which online course platform has the lowest fees?
Per sale, Whop's base card rate of 2.7% plus $0.30 is the lowest in this comparison, with no monthly fee, checked October 2026; optional add-ons raise it when enabled. Among dedicated course platforms, Thinkific with Thinkific Payments charges no platform fee on its $54 Basic plan. Gumroad's 10% plus $0.50 per sale is the most expensive once you sell more than a handful of copies.
Teachable vs Thinkific vs Kajabi: which is cheapest?
On monthly billing, Thinkific Basic is $54, Teachable Builder is $89 and Kajabi Basic is $179, and none takes a platform fee when you use its own payments, checked October 2026. Teachable Starter is $39 but adds a 7.5% transaction fee. On yearly billing the same plans are $40, $69 and $143 a month. Kajabi costs more because it bundles a website, email marketing and funnels.
Does Thinkific charge transaction fees?
Not when you use Thinkific Payments, which charges standard card processing. If you connect Stripe or PayPal directly instead, Thinkific's support center lists a gateway fee of 5% on Basic, 2% on Start and 1% on Grow, applied to your first $1 million in sales each calendar year. Checked October 2026. Most sellers in supported countries avoid the fee by using Thinkific Payments.
Is Gumroad good for selling online courses?
It is a good place to start: no monthly fee, merchant-of-record tax handling, and support for courses and memberships as well as files. The cost is 10% plus $0.50 per direct sale, with card processing separate, and 30% on Discover marketplace sales. On a $47 course, Thinkific Basic becomes cheaper from about 11 sales a month and Teachable Builder from about 18.
Can I sell courses on Whop?
Yes. Whop sells access to courses, communities and memberships, with one-time or recurring billing and no monthly fee. Its base rate is 2.7% plus $0.30 per domestic card payment, with extra for international cards, currency conversion and optional add-ons, checked October 2026. It has no course marketplace traffic of its own to rely on, so it suits sellers with an audience.
Picked a platform? Now build the offer that sells.
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