Kajabi vs Teachable vs Thinkific (2026): Which Is Best?

Trying to choose between Kajabi, Teachable, and Thinkific? You're not alone—this is one of the most common decisions online course creators face, and honestly, it's confusing because all three platforms look similar on the surface.

Here's the thing: I've actually used all three. Not just “signed up for a free trial and clicked around for an hour”—I've built real businesses, launched real courses, and made real money on these platforms over the past 7+ years.

So let me save you the headache and break down exactly how they compare, who each platform is best for, and which one I'd recommend based on your specific situation.

Updated January 2026 with latest pricing and features.

Kajabi vs Teachable vs Thinkific: Side-by-Side Comparison

Let's start with the big picture. Here's how these three platforms stack up across the features that matter most:

Feature	Kajabi ⭐	Teachable	Thinkific
Starting Price	$69/mo	$39/mo	$36/mo
Transaction Fees	0% ✅	5% on Basic ⚠️	0% ✅
Email Marketing	✅ Built-in	Basic only	❌ Need 3rd party
Sales Funnels	✅ Built-in	❌ Need 3rd party	❌ Need 3rd party
Website Builder	✅ Full website	Sales pages only	Sales pages only
Course Builder	✅ Excellent	✅ Excellent	✅ Excellent
Quizzes & Assessments	Basic	✅ Good	✅ Good
Community Features	✅ Built-in	Basic comments	✅ Communities add-on
Mobile App	✅ iOS & Android	iOS only ⚠️	✅ iOS & Android
Affiliate Program	✅ Built-in	✅ Built-in	✅ Built-in
Podcast Hosting	✅ Built-in	❌ No	❌ No
Free Plan	❌ No (30-day trial)	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
All-in-One Platform	✅ Yes	❌ No	❌ No

The key difference: Kajabi is an all-in-one business platform. Teachable and Thinkific are course platforms. This fundamentally changes the pricing equation (more on that below).

Pricing Breakdown: What You'll Actually Pay

This is where most comparisons get it wrong. They just show you the sticker price without calculating what you'll actually spend to run your business.

Kajabi Pricing 2026

Plan	Price (Annual)	Products	Contacts
Kickstarter	$69/mo	1	250
Basic	$149/mo	3	10,000
Growth	$199/mo	15	25,000
Pro	$399/mo	100	100,000

What's included: Website, email marketing, landing pages, sales funnels, course hosting, community, analytics, podcast hosting, mobile app. Zero transaction fees.

Teachable Pricing 2026

Plan	Price (Annual)	Transaction Fee	Courses
Free	$0	$1 + 10%	1
Basic	$39/mo	5%	Unlimited
Pro	$119/mo	0%	Unlimited
Pro+	$199/mo	0%	Unlimited

What's NOT included: Full website (only sales pages), email marketing (basic only), sales funnels, podcast hosting. You'll need additional tools.

Thinkific Pricing 2026

Plan	Price (Annual)	Transaction Fee	Courses
Free	$0	0%	1
Basic	$36/mo	0%	Unlimited
Start	$74/mo	0%	Unlimited
Grow	$149/mo	0%	Unlimited

What's NOT included: Email marketing (none), sales funnels, full website builder. You'll definitely need additional tools.

🧮 The Real Cost Comparison (This Is What Matters)

Here's what most people miss: Teachable and Thinkific require additional tools to run your business. Let's do the actual maths:

Bottom line: Kajabi looks expensive until you add up what you'd actually pay to replicate its features with Teachable or Thinkific + other tools. Then it's often the cheapest option.

Course Creation & Hosting: How They Compare

All three platforms can host your courses. But there are meaningful differences in how they work.

Kajabi Course Builder

Strengths:

• Clean, intuitive interface
• Modules → Lessons → Sub-lessons structure
• Drip content scheduling
• Built-in community per course
• Progress tracking
• Certificates
• Mobile app for students (iOS + Android)

Limitations:

• Only one video/audio per lesson (can't mix content types in same lesson)
• Quiz functionality is more basic than competitors
• No SCORM support

Teachable Course Builder

Strengths:

• Multiple content types in one lecture (video + text + quiz together)
• Good quiz and assessment options
• Completion certificates
• Student comments on lectures
• Compliance features (completion requirements)

Limitations:

• iOS app only (no Android) — big problem since 70%+ of mobile users are on Android
• No built-in community features
• Interface feels slightly dated

Thinkific Course Builder

Strengths:

• Excellent quiz and survey options
• Assignments and submissions
• Good completion tracking
• Certificates
• Communities feature (paid add-on)
• Mobile app (iOS + Android)

Limitations:

• Interface can feel clunky
• Community is a separate paid add-on
• Some features locked to higher tiers

My Take on Course Building

For pure course building features, Thinkific edges ahead slightly with better assessments and the ability to accept student submissions. Teachable is solid but the Android app issue is a dealbreaker for many.

Kajabi's course builder is “good enough” for most creators—and for me, the trade-off is worth it because everything else (email, funnels, website) is integrated. I don't need the fanciest quiz features; I need a system that works together without breaking.

Marketing & Email Tools: The Biggest Difference

This is where the platforms diverge dramatically.

Kajabi: Full Marketing Suite

What's included:

• ✅ Email marketing with automation sequences
• ✅ Visual pipeline/funnel builder
• ✅ Landing page builder
• ✅ Forms and opt-ins
• ✅ Segmentation and tagging
• ✅ Broadcast emails
• ✅ Analytics and tracking
• ✅ Affiliate program management

I moved my entire email list (thousands of subscribers) to Kajabi and saved over $500/month on email marketing software. The automation capabilities rival dedicated tools like ConvertKit or ActiveCampaign.

Teachable: Basic Email Only

What's included:

• ⚠️ Basic email to students only
• ⚠️ Limited automation
• ❌ No landing page builder
• ❌ No funnel builder
• ❌ No lead magnet delivery

Teachable's email is really just for communicating with existing students. For actual email marketing (lead magnets, nurture sequences, sales campaigns), you'll need a separate tool.

Thinkific: No Email Marketing

What's included:

• ❌ No email marketing
• ❌ No automation
• ❌ No funnel builder
• Basic notifications only

Thinkific is purely a course platform. You'll 100% need a separate email marketing tool.

Why This Matters

Email marketing isn't optional for course creators—it's how you build relationships, launch courses, and generate revenue. If your platform doesn't include it, you're adding $50-300+/month in additional costs plus the headache of integrating everything.

Website Building: Another Key Difference

Kajabi: Full Website Builder

Kajabi lets you build your entire business website—homepage, about page, blog, contact, everything. The templates are modern and professional, and everything integrates seamlessly with your courses and email.

This article you might be reading? It's on a Kajabi-hosted website that ranks on Google. The SEO capabilities are solid.

Teachable & Thinkific: Sales Pages Only

Both platforms let you create sales pages and checkout pages for your courses, but they're not designed to be your full website. Most users pair them with:

• WordPress
• Squarespace
• Wix
• Showit

This means another subscription, another login, and more things to maintain and integrate.

Payments & Transaction Fees

This one's straightforward but important:

Platform	Transaction Fee	Payment Processors
Kajabi	0% on all plans	Stripe, PayPal, Kajabi Payments
Teachable	5% on Basic, 0% on Pro+	Stripe, PayPal
Thinkific	0% on all plans	Stripe, PayPal

Watch out: Teachable's 5% fee on the Basic plan adds up fast. Sell $10,000 in courses and you're paying $500 in fees on top of your subscription and credit card processing.

All platforms charge standard Stripe/PayPal processing fees (approximately 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction). This is unavoidable regardless of platform.

Ease of Use: Learning Curve Comparison

Kajabi

Learning curve: Moderate

There's more to learn because there's more included. But once you understand how the pieces fit together, it's intuitive. The payoff is that you only need to learn ONE system instead of five.

Teachable

Learning curve: Easy

Teachable is straightforward because it does less. Great for getting a course up quickly, but you'll eventually hit limitations and need to learn additional tools anyway.

Thinkific

Learning curve: Easy to Moderate

Similar to Teachable in terms of initial simplicity. The interface can feel a bit more cluttered as you explore advanced features.

My Experience

I found Kajabi's learning curve worth the investment. Yes, it took a few weeks to feel fully comfortable. But now I manage everything from one dashboard instead of logging into 5+ different tools. The cognitive load of running my business dropped significantly.

Customer Support

Platform	Live Chat	Email	Phone	Training
Kajabi	✅ 24/7	✅	Higher plans	✅ Kajabi University
Teachable	✅	✅	❌	✅ TeachableU
Thinkific	✅	✅	❌	✅ Training Hub

All three have solid support. Kajabi's 24/7 live chat has saved me during late-night launch prep more than once.

Who Should Use What: My Recommendations

After using all three platforms, here's my honest take on who each is best for:

Choose Kajabi If:

• ✅ You want everything in one place (no more tool juggling)
• ✅ You're serious about email marketing and automation
• ✅ You plan to scale beyond a single course
• ✅ You value your time more than the lowest possible price
• ✅ You want to build a brand, not just sell a course
• ✅ You're tired of integration headaches
• ✅ You can invest $149+/month in your business

→ Try Kajabi free for 30 days

Choose Teachable If:

• ✅ You just need simple course hosting
• ✅ You already have a website and email marketing sorted
• ✅ You want to start with a free plan to test
• ✅ Your audience is primarily iOS users (no Android app)
• ✅ You don't mind paying for additional tools separately

Choose Thinkific If:

• ✅ Budget is your primary concern
• ✅ You want good quiz/assessment features
• ✅ You already have email marketing and a website
• ✅ You want a free plan with no transaction fees
• ✅ You don't need built-in marketing tools

Who Should NOT Use Each Platform

Don't choose Kajabi if:

• ❌ You're on a very tight budget (under $100/month total)
• ❌ You only plan to sell one small digital product
• ❌ You need highly advanced quiz/assessment features
• ❌ You specifically need SCORM compliance

Don't choose Teachable if:

• ❌ Many of your students use Android phones
• ❌ You want everything in one platform
• ❌ You're selling enough that 5% fees hurt (use Pro plan instead)

Don't choose Thinkific if:

• ❌ You don't want to manage multiple tools
• ❌ You need built-in email marketing
• ❌ You want sales funnels included

My Final Verdict

Here's the truth: all three platforms can work. Successful course creators use each of them. The “best” platform depends entirely on your situation.

But here's what I've learned after 7+ years:

The hidden cost of “cheaper” platforms isn't just the additional subscriptions—it's the time you spend managing multiple tools, troubleshooting broken integrations, and context-switching between dashboards.

When I consolidated everything into Kajabi, I didn't just save money. I got hours of my week back. Hours I now spend creating content, connecting with my audience, and actually enjoying my business instead of playing tech support.

Is Kajabi perfect? No. The quiz features could be better. The community tools are improving but still not Circle-level. And yes, the pricing has increased.

But for running an online course business without the tech headaches? It's still the best option I've found.

Whatever you choose, the most important thing is to choose and start. You can always switch later. (I did, from my duct-taped tech stack to Kajabi, and I wish I'd done it sooner.)

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Related reading:

• My Full Kajabi Review (2026): 7+ Years of Experience

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you sign up through my links, I may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend tools I've personally used for years. These opinions are based on 7+ years of real experience, not a quick trial.