The Quick Verdict
Kajabi and Teachable are both excellent for online course creators — but with different philosophies. Kajabi wants to be your entire business platform: courses, memberships, email, community, podcasts, and payments in one tool. Teachable is more focused on courses and coaching, with less complexity for creators who just need to sell and deliver course content. If you want the simplest course creation experience, Teachable. If you want to run your full creator business without multiple tools, Kajabi.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Kajabi | Teachable |
|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | $55/mo (annual) | $0 (with 10% fees) / $39/mo |
| Transaction Fees | None | Yes (Free plan: 10%, Basic: 5%) |
| Course Builder | ★★★★★ | ★★★★★ |
| Email Marketing | Built-in | Basic |
| Community | Built-in | Via Teachable Communities (add-on) |
| Memberships | ★★★★★ | ★★★☆☆ |
| Podcast Hosting | Yes | No |
| Ease of Setup | ★★★★☆ | ★★★★★ |
| Best For | All-in-one creator business platform | Course-first creators who want simplicity |
| Our Score | 9.0 / 10 | 8.7 / 10 |
Pricing Comparison
Kajabi starts at $55/mo (annual) or $71/mo monthly. Teachable starts at $0 (with transaction fees) or $39/mo (Basic). Teachable is cheaper but takes a revenue cut on lower plans.
| Scenario | Kajabi | Teachable |
|---|---|---|
| Just starting out — no revenue yet | $55/mo (no transaction fee) | $0 (but 10% transaction fee) |
| $2,000/mo course revenue | $55/mo | $39/mo + $100 in fees (Basic) |
| $10,000/mo + full platform | $119/mo (Growth) | $199/mo (Pro) — no transaction fee |
| Scale (unlimited products) | $319/mo | $499/mo (Business) |
The transaction fee math
Teachable’s free plan and Basic plan charge transaction fees (10% and 5% respectively). For a creator earning $2,000/month in course sales on the Basic plan, that’s $100/month in fees on top of the $39 plan fee — $139 total. Kajabi at $55/month has no transaction fee. Once you’re generating meaningful course revenue, Kajabi’s no-transaction-fee model often undercuts Teachable’s total cost.
All-in-one vs focused tool
Kajabi’s advantage is that one subscription covers email marketing, sales pages, course delivery, membership sites, podcasting, community, and payments — reducing the number of tools and monthly subscriptions needed. Teachable focuses on what it does best: course and coaching delivery. Creators who want to use separate email platforms (ConvertKit, ActiveCampaign) and separate community tools (Circle.so) prefer Teachable’s focused approach.
Student experience
Both platforms deliver excellent student experiences. Kajabi’s student portal is more customizable. Teachable’s course player has historically been rated slightly better by students for video consumption UX. The difference is marginal — both deliver professional course experiences that students find intuitive.
Email Marketing and Automation Depth
Kajabi includes a full email marketing suite with sequences, broadcasts, and pipeline automations built directly into the platform — no third-party tool required. Teachable offers basic email notifications and integrates with tools like Mailchimp or ConvertKit, but it has no native automation builder worth relying on. For a course creator who wants to run drip campaigns, tag students based on behavior, or build a launch funnel, Kajabi handles all of it without leaving the dashboard. Teachable forces you to pay for and manage a separate email platform the moment your needs grow beyond simple transactional messages. Kajabi wins this dimension decisively — the depth of its native email and automation tools alone justifies the price gap for creators who take marketing seriously.
Who Should Choose Which?
- You want your entire creator business — courses, email, community, podcast — in one platform
- You're generating enough revenue that transaction fees would exceed Kajabi's monthly fee
- You want to avoid paying separate subscriptions for email, community, and course delivery
- Memberships, podcasts, and community are part of your business model alongside courses
- You want a focused, no-frills course creation experience without paying for marketing and community features you will never use
- You plan to integrate best-in-class third-party tools for email marketing and community rather than relying on a bundled all-in-one suite
- You are just starting out and want to avoid a recurring monthly fee until your course revenue justifies the investment
- Coaching program delivery is a core part of your business and you need structured session management alongside your course content