How to Create An Online Course: A Step-by-Step Guide & Thinkific Tutorial
Published by ThinkificWatch on YouTube
Thinkific
Course selling with no transaction fees
- Thinkific Labs Inc. · Canada
- Since 2012
- 6 languages
Key takeaways
from our research
No transaction fees on any paid plan — the clearest cost advantage here
Storefront and course builder are a step more polished than Teachable's
You are responsible for your own EU VAT and US sales tax
Built-in email marketing is basic; most users pair it with a dedicated tool
Our verdict
Updated Aug 25, 2026Fact-checked Jul 20, 2026
Thinkific's pitch is arithmetic: no transaction fees on any paid plan. Where Teachable takes 7.5% on its $29 tier, Thinkific takes nothing on its $36 tier. At £5,000 a month in sales that difference is £375, and it compounds every month you keep selling.
The product is otherwise closely comparable and slightly better in places. Course building is clean, the site builder produces a more polished storefront than Teachable's, communities and cohorts are included on higher tiers, and its app store extends the platform sensibly. In our build test the finished course looked marginally more professional with no extra effort.
The trade is what Teachable absorbs. Thinkific is not merchant of record, so EU VAT and US sales tax are your responsibility — a real administrative burden for international sellers that catches people out. Its email marketing is also basic enough that most users pair it with a proper platform.
Our guidance: the better economic choice for anyone selling meaningful volume, provided you can handle your own tax compliance. If that prospect worries you, Teachable's fee is buying something real.
Written by Maya Krishnan · Edited by Daniel Ross
Recognitions
Awards Thinkific has earned
- Best Value 2026LMS & Course Platforms
- Category Leader 2026LMS & Course Platforms
Ratings
Loved by 100% of reviewers
First-party reviews, individually moderated before publication.
Pros & cons
Where Thinkific shines — and where it doesn't
What users love
- No transaction fees56
- Course builder polish34
Where it falls short
- Tax is your problem38
- Weak email marketing26
Themes generated from 3 verified reviews, updated monthly
Head to head
Thinkific vs Teachable at a glance
ThinkificRating
4.7(3)
4.2(3)
Starting price
$36/mo
$29/mo
Free trial
Yes
Yes
Free plan
Yes
Yes
Alternatives
Top Thinkific alternatives
The closest fits based on category, feature overlap, and reviewer demand.
Videos
Watch Thinkific in action
Product walkthroughs published on Thinkific's own YouTube channel — so you see the real interface, not a reenactment.
Create & Launch a Membership Site in 2024: Step-by-step Guide & Thinkific Tutorial
Published by ThinkificWatch on YouTube
Capabilities
Key features
What Thinkific does — and doesn't — cover, checked against the category feature vocabulary.
Course Creation
- Included:Built-in video hostingHosts and streams course video without a separate service.
- Included:Completion certificatesBranded certificates issued automatically on completion.
- Included:Drip schedulingReleases lessons on a schedule rather than all at once.
- Not included:Interactive video & activitiesIn-video questions, branching and interactive elements beyond passive playback.
- Included:Quizzes & assessmentsGraded questions with pass marks and retake rules.
- Not included:SCORM & xAPI supportImports standards-based course packages from authoring tools.
Selling & Marketing
- Included:Affiliate programmeTrack and pay affiliates who refer sales.
- Included:Built-in checkout & paymentsSell courses directly with card payments and tax handling.
- Included:Built-in email marketingCampaigns and automations without a separate email platform.
- Included:Subscriptions & payment plansRecurring memberships and instalment payments, not just one-off purchases.
- Included:Zero transaction feesPaid plans take no cut of your sales beyond payment processing.
Learner Management
- Not included:Compliance tracking & reportingMandatory assignment, deadlines, renewals and audit-ready evidence.
- Included:Groups & cohort managementOrganise learners into groups with separate content and deadlines.
- Included:White-label mobile appYour own branded iOS and Android app for learners.
Pricing
Thinkific pricing
Thinkific's paid plans start at $36/month — right at the $36 median of the 5 LMS & Course Platforms tools we track. A free plan is available, and you can test it on a 30-day free trial.
Value for money 4.7/5Free
$0
Free forever
- One course and one community
- Unlimited students
- 0% transaction fees
- Quizzes and surveys
- Thinkific branding
Basic
$36/mo
per month (billed annually)
or $49/mo billed monthly
- Unlimited courses
- 0% transaction fees
- Custom domain
- Drip scheduling
- Coupons and email integrations
Most popularVisit website
Start
$74/mo
per month (billed annually)
or $99/mo billed monthly
Everything in Basic, plus:
- Assignments and live lessons
- Memberships and bundles
- Advanced course building
- Two admin seats
Grow
$149/mo
per month (billed annually)
or $199/mo billed monthly
Everything in Start, plus:
- Bulk enrolment and group orders
- Advanced segmentation
- Five admin seats
- API access
- Priority support
Pricing fact-checked August 25, 2026 · source: vendor pricing page · see the full breakdown
Ecosystem
Integrates with 6+ tools
- Stripe
- PayPal
- Mailchimp
- Zapier
- ConvertKit
- Google Analytics
Fit check
Will Thinkific fit your team?
Support
- Email support
- Live chat
- Knowledge base
Training
- Webinars
- Documentation
- Video tutorials
Deployment
- Web
- iOS
- Android
Typical users
- Freelancers
- Small businesses
- Mid-size companies
Reviews
What real users say
First-party, moderated reviews — never scraped, never paid for.
Lucas M.
Growth Lead · SaaS · 1–10 employees
5.0
July 20, 2026
“Switched for the fees, stayed for the builder”
Used weekly for 1–2 years
Moved from a fee-taking platform doing about $9,000 a month. The saving was roughly $675 a month against a $7 higher subscription. The course builder also turned out to be nicer, which was a bonus rather than the reason.
Priya N.
Founder · Consulting · 1–10 employees
4.5
May 29, 2026
“Free plan let me test the idea properly”
Used weekly for 6–12 months
One full course, unlimited students, no fees. I validated demand and made my first £2,000 before paying anything. Very few platforms let you find out whether you have a business before charging you.
Oliver H.
Agency Owner · Marketing agency · 1–10 employees
4.5
April 21, 2026
“We deploy it for course-selling clients”
Used monthly for 2+ years
For a client who sells knowledge rather than runs a whole business on it, Thinkific is the sensible default — cheaper long term than Kajabi and better economics than Teachable. We only reach for Kajabi when they want everything in one place.
Sources & methodology
Product information sourced from Thinkific Labs Inc.'s public content (Canada); pricing verified August 25, 2026. Reviews are first-party and moderated. How we test and rate tools
- Founded 2012
- 6 languages supported
- thinkific.com