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Browser Extensions · head to head

Mercury Reader vs Thinkific

M

Mercury Reader

Browser Extensions

Clear clutter from articles instantly

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Thinkific logo

Thinkific

Learning Management

Create and sell online courses your way

From
$36/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Mercury Reader has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Mercury Reader mercury Reader's underlying engine (Postlight Parser) is free open source software licensed under Apache License 2.0, per the GitHub repository, with no paid tier; Thinkific no free plan, 14-day trial only
  • They diverge on capability: Mercury Reader covers Content extraction, Thinkific covers Course builder.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Mercury Reader and Thinkific actually diverge.

Attributes where Mercury Reader and Thinkific differ
AttributeMercury ReaderThinkific
Starting priceFree$36/month
Pricing modelfreeUnknown
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsChrome, Firefox, EdgeWeb, Mobile
CategoryBrowser ExtensionsLearning Management
Founded20152012

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Mercury Reader

  • Content extraction
  • Clean reading view
  • Custom themes
  • Font customization
  • Chrome support
  • Firefox support
  • Edge support

Only in Thinkific

  • Course builder
  • Website builder
  • Quizzes
  • Certificates
  • Communities
  • Memberships
  • Marketing tools
  • Analytics

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Mercury Reader

No use cases recorded yet. See the Mercury Reader review.

Thinkific

  • Course creationnot Mercury Reader
  • Membership sitesnot Mercury Reader
  • Coaching programsnot Mercury Reader
  • Corporate trainingnot Mercury Reader

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Mercury Reader

  • Mercury Reader's underlying engine (Postlight Parser) is free open source software licensed under Apache License 2.0, per the GitHub repository, with no paid tier

Thinkific

  • No free plan, 14-day trial only
  • Transaction fees on third-party payment processors (5% on Basic tier)
  • PayPal only available on Grow plan ($199/month), not on Basic or Start
  • Limited customization on lower-tier plans
  • Cannot embed courses in external domains or iframes
  • Limited number of spaces per plan
  • Less interactive community features compared to alternatives
  • Features continuously moved to higher-priced tiers
  • Payment processing delays reported (up to 90 days)

Pricing, plan by plan

Mercury Reader

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Clutter removal
    • Clean reading
    • Custom themes

Thinkific

$36/month
  • Basic$36/month
    • 1 course
    • Up to 500 students
    • Thinkific Payments (0% fees)
  • Start$74/month
    • Up to 3 courses
    • Up to 2,000 students
    • Third-party payment (3% fees)
  • Grow$149/month
    • Unlimited courses
    • Unlimited students
    • Third-party payment (0% fees)

Which should you pick?

Choose Mercury Reader if

  • You need content extraction.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Chrome, Firefox, Edge.
  • You also want clean reading view.
Mercury Reader review

Choose Thinkific if

  • You need course builder.
  • You work on Web, Mobile.
  • You also want website builder.
Thinkific review

Questions people ask

Is Mercury Reader or Thinkific better?
Neither clearly leads. Mercury Reader starts at Free and Thinkific at $36/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Mercury Reader or Thinkific?
Mercury Reader has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Mercury Reader and $36/month for Thinkific.
Does Mercury Reader or Thinkific run on more platforms?
Mercury Reader runs on Chrome, Firefox, Edge. Thinkific runs on Web, Mobile.
Can I use Mercury Reader for free?
Yes. Mercury Reader has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Thinkific starts at $36/month.
What can Mercury Reader do that Thinkific cannot?
Mercury Reader covers Content extraction, Clean reading view, Custom themes, Font customization. Thinkific covers Course builder, Website builder, Quizzes, Certificates.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Thinkific: Does Thinkific have a free plan?

No. Thinkific does not offer a free plan but provides a 14-day free trial. Paid plans start at $36/month (Basic tier).

Source
Thinkific: Are there transaction fees on Thinkific?

Thinkific charges no transaction fees when using their built-in Thinkific Payments. Third-party payment processors incur 5% fees (Basic) down to 0% (Plus), plus 3.6% for Stripe with subscriptions.

Source
Thinkific: What payment methods does Thinkific support?

PayPal is locked to Grow plan ($199/month). Basic and Start plans do not support PayPal, limiting payment options for international creators and potentially reducing conversions.

Source
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Related pages

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