Learning Management · head to head
Thinkific vs Kajabi
Thinkific
Learning Management
Create and sell online courses your way
- From
- $36/month
- Rated
- -
Kajabi
Learning Management
All-in-one platform for knowledge entrepreneurs
- From
- $179/month
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Thinkific no free plan, 14-day trial only; Kajabi starter plan limited to 1 product, 1 community, and 1 website; requires upgrade for scaling
- They diverge on capability: Thinkific covers Quizzes, Kajabi covers Email marketing.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Thinkific and Kajabi actually diverge.
Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Learning Management).
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 Thinkific
- Quizzes
- Certificates
- Marketing tools
- ConvertKit
Only in Kajabi
- Email marketing
- Sales funnels
- Mobile app
- Google Analytics
Both cover
- Course builder
- Website builder
- Communities
- Memberships
- Analytics
- Zapier
- Mailchimp
- Stripe
- PayPal
- Web support
- IOS support
- Android support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Thinkific
- Course creationnot Kajabi
- Membership sitesnot Kajabi
- Coaching programsnot Kajabi
- Corporate trainingnot Kajabi
Kajabi
- Solo creators launching single digital products or coursesnot Thinkific
- Small coaching businesses with course, community, and email marketing needsnot Thinkific
- Multi-product creators requiring customisation and white-label optionsnot Thinkific
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
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)
Kajabi
- Starter plan limited to 1 product, 1 community, and 1 website; requires upgrade for scaling
- Starter and Basic tiers support only 1 community each; Growth tier caps at 1 community (Pro tier reaches 3)
- Payment processing fees 2.9%–2.7% (Kajabi Payments) plus 5%–0.5% for third-party providers, tiered by plan
- Admin user allowances escalate significantly: Starter (default 1), Basic (2), Growth (11), Pro (26)
Pricing, plan by plan
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)
Kajabi
$179/monthNo published plan breakdown. See the Kajabi review.
Which should you pick?
Choose Thinkific if
- You need quizzes.
- You work on Web, Mobile.
- You also want certificates.
Choose Kajabi if
- You need email marketing.
- You work on Web, iOS, Android.
- You also want sales funnels.
Questions people ask
- Is Thinkific or Kajabi better?
- Neither clearly leads. Thinkific starts at $36/month and Kajabi at $179/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Thinkific or Kajabi?
- Thinkific starts at $36/month and Kajabi at $179/month.
- Does Thinkific or Kajabi run on more platforms?
- Thinkific runs on Web, Mobile. Kajabi runs on Web, iOS, Android.
- What is Thinkific best used for?
- Thinkific is most often used for course creation, membership sites, coaching programs, corporate training. Of those, course creation and membership sites are not what Kajabi is typically brought in for.
- What can Thinkific do that Kajabi cannot?
- Thinkific covers Quizzes, Certificates, Marketing tools, ConvertKit. Kajabi covers Email marketing, Sales funnels, Mobile app, Facebook. Both handle Course builder, Website builder, Communities, Memberships.
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).
SourceThinkific: 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.
SourceThinkific: 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