Thinkific occupies a specific niche in the course platform landscape: it’s the brand-focused option. Where Teachable prioritises simplicity and Kajabi targets premium course businesses, Thinkific emphasises customisation, design control, and building a course experience that looks and feels uniquely yours.
For course creators who care about branding — matching their website’s look, controlling the student experience precisely, and building something that doesn’t scream “hosted on a template platform” — Thinkific delivers. But like every course platform, it’s infrastructure, not a marketing engine.
Here’s the complete review.
First A Quick Note…
Hey, my name is Mark.
Course platforms are the last decision in course creation, not the first. Your niche, audience, and marketing strategy determine success. The platform just hosts the content.
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But first — the full Thinkific assessment.
What Thinkific Is
Thinkific is a cloud-based platform for creating, marketing, and selling online courses, memberships, and digital learning products. It provides course creation tools, a website builder, payment processing, student management, and marketing features.
Founded: 2012 Headquarters: Vancouver, Canada Creators on platform: 50,000+ Students served: 100+ million course enrollments
Pricing Breakdown
| Plan | Monthly Price | Annual Price | Transaction Fees | Key Features |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | $0 | 0% | 1 course, limited features |
| Basic | $49/month | $36/month (billed annually) | 0% | Unlimited courses, custom domain, coupons |
| Start | $99/month | $74/month (billed annually) | 0% | Assignments, memberships, bundles |
| Grow | $199/month | $149/month (billed annually) | 0% | Bulk selling, communities, advanced analytics |
| Plus | Custom | Custom | 0% | API access, SSO, dedicated support |
Key advantage over Teachable: 0% transaction fees on all plans, including the free plan. Teachable charges 5–10% on its Free and Basic tiers. For low-volume sellers, this makes Thinkific significantly cheaper per sale.
Annual discount: Approximately 27% savings on annual billing.
What Sets Thinkific Apart
Customisation and Branding
Thinkific’s primary differentiator is design control. The Site Builder provides more customisation options than Teachable or most competitors:
- Customisable course player with your branding
- Flexible page layouts (not just rigid templates)
- Custom code injection (HTML, CSS, JavaScript) for advanced users
- Theme customisation beyond basic colour and logo changes
- White-labelling options that make the platform invisible to students
For creators building a premium brand — where the course experience feels like a natural extension of their website, not a third-party platform — this matters.
Course Creation Tools
Content types: Video (hosted or external), text lessons, quizzes, surveys, assignments, downloadable files, multimedia embeds, SCORM content, and live lessons (via Zoom integration).
Learning experience features: Prerequisites (require students to complete Module 1 before accessing Module 2), drip scheduling (release content over time), expiry dates, and completion certificates.
Community features (Start plan and above): Built-in community spaces where students interact, discuss content, and engage with the creator. Reduces need for external community tools.
Marketing Features
Sales pages: Built-in landing page builder with more design flexibility than Teachable. Customisable checkout process.
Pricing options: One-time, subscription, payment plans, bundles, and free courses. Coupon codes and promotional pricing.
Integrations: Native integrations with Mailchimp, ConvertKit, ActiveCampaign, Zapier, Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, and more.
Affiliate programme: Available on Start plan and above. Recruit affiliates, set commission rates, and track referrals.
Pros
0% transaction fees on all plans. Even the free plan. This is a significant cost advantage over Teachable’s lower tiers.
Superior design customisation. More control over branding, layout, and student experience than most competitors.
Robust free plan. One course with unlimited students and 0% transaction fees — genuinely useful for testing.
Strong course building tools. Assignments, quizzes, prerequisites, communities, and certificates create engaging learning experiences.
Built-in community features. Reduces need for external community platforms (Circle, Discord, Facebook Groups).
Canadian data hosting option. Important for creators serving Canadian audiences with data residency requirements.
Cons
No built-in audience. Like Teachable, Thinkific provides zero traffic. Every student must come through your marketing efforts.
Higher starting price than Teachable. Basic plan is $49/month (Thinkific) vs. $39/month (Teachable). However, Thinkific’s 0% transaction fees can make it cheaper overall for sellers doing moderate volume.
The free plan is limiting. One course only. No custom domain. No email marketing features. It’s a trial, not a viable long-term option.
Learning curve for advanced customisation. Taking full advantage of Thinkific’s design flexibility requires some comfort with themes and potentially basic code.
Marketing tools are supplementary, not comprehensive. You’ll still need external email marketing, analytics, and advertising tools for serious marketing operations.
Thinkific vs. Teachable
| Factor | Thinkific | Teachable |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price (paid) | $49/month | $39/month |
| Transaction fees | 0% on all plans | 5–10% on Free/Basic |
| Design customisation | Superior | Good but more limited |
| Course builder | Slightly more robust | Strong and simple |
| Community features | Built-in (Start+) | Basic |
| Affiliate programme | Start plan ($99/month) | Pro plan ($119/month) |
| Free plan | 1 course, 0% fees | 1 course, $1 + 10% fee |
| Best for | Brand-focused creators | Simplicity-focused creators |
The verdict between them: If branding and customisation matter most, Thinkific wins. If simplicity and ease of setup matter most, Teachable wins. If you’re doing moderate sales volume, Thinkific’s 0% transaction fees likely save you money even at the slightly higher monthly price.
For understanding online businesses with no inventory, course creation through platforms like Thinkific is a pure digital product model.
Who Thinkific Is For
Brand-conscious course creators who want their course platform to feel like their own website, not a third-party tool.
Creators building community-based courses where student interaction is part of the learning experience.
Businesses offering employee training or certification programs that need professional presentation and completion tracking.
Course creators selling at moderate-to-high price points ($100+) where 0% transaction fees create meaningful savings over Teachable’s lower tiers.
Who Thinkific Is NOT For
If you have no audience and no marketing skills, Thinkific (like Teachable) provides zero student discovery.
If you want the simplest possible setup with minimal decisions, Teachable’s more streamlined interface may be easier.
If you’re selling courses under $30, the monthly platform cost may exceed your revenue. Consider Udemy or Skillshare’s marketplace model instead.
If budget is the primary concern, Systeme.io’s free plan includes course hosting plus funnels, email marketing, and more — all for $0.
For digital assets that pay monthly, online courses represent a genuine recurring revenue asset — but only with consistent marketing. The best online business to start depends on whether you have an audience to sell to.
For choosing the right online business model, course creation is excellent for experts with existing audiences and scalable for those willing to invest in marketing.
Verdict
Thinkific is the best choice for course creators who prioritise branding, customisation, and student experience design. Its 0% transaction fees on all plans give it a structural cost advantage over Teachable for most sellers. The course building tools are robust, and the platform is reliable.
However, like every self-hosted course platform, Thinkific solves the infrastructure problem but not the marketing problem. The platform hosts your course beautifully. Finding students is your job.
Alternatives
| Platform | Starting Price | Transaction Fees | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thinkific | $0 (1 course) | 0% | Brand-focused creators |
| Teachable | $0 (with fees) | 0–10% | Simplicity seekers |
| Kajabi | $149/month | 0% | Premium all-in-one |
| Systeme.io | $0 | 0% | Budget creators |
| Podia | $39/month | 0% | Simple course + download sellers |
| Udemy | $0 | 37–63% share | Marketplace-first creators |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Thinkific free? There’s a free plan with 1 course and 0% transaction fees. Paid plans start at $49/month ($36/month annually).
Is Thinkific better than Teachable? For customisation and 0% fees: yes. For simplicity: Teachable is slightly easier. Both are excellent platforms.
Does Thinkific bring students? No — marketing and student acquisition are entirely your responsibility.
Can I sell memberships on Thinkific? Yes — on Start plan ($99/month) and above. Includes recurring subscription pricing.
Thinkific hosts courses — it doesn’t find students. Local lead generation builds assets that generate leads automatically — $500–$1,200/site monthly, with zero audience-building required.
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The Bottom Line
Thinkific is premium course infrastructure for creators who care about branding and student experience. Its 0% transaction fees on all plans, robust customisation, and built-in community features make it the strongest option for brand-conscious course creators. But no course platform — Thinkific included — generates sales without marketing. Build your audience first. Then choose the platform that presents your courses best.
Thinkific’s Community Features
Starting from the Start plan ($99/month), Thinkific includes built-in community spaces.
What this includes: Discussion forums attached to courses, student-to-student interaction, instructor-led conversations, announcement boards, and activity feeds. Students can engage with content and each other without leaving the platform.
Why this matters: Community increases course completion rates (students who engage with peers are 3–5x more likely to finish courses), drives organic referrals, and creates perceived value that justifies premium pricing.
The alternative cost: Without built-in community, creators typically use Circle ($39–$99/month), Discord (free but unbranded), or Facebook Groups (free but limited control). Thinkific’s inclusion eliminates this additional expense.
Thinkific for Different Creator Types
For course-only creators: Thinkific provides everything needed — course builder, sales pages, payment processing, and student management. No additional tools required for a functional course business.
For creators with multiple revenue streams: Thinkific integrates with Shopify for physical products, ConvertKit/Mailchimp for email, and Zapier for custom workflows. It fits into a broader business ecosystem.
For corporate trainers: Thinkific’s white-labelling, bulk enrollment, and completion tracking features serve corporate training needs. The Grow plan’s advanced reporting provides the data enterprises require.
For coaches selling premium programmes: Memberships, live lessons (Zoom integration), and communities combine to create coaching infrastructure. Pricing flexibility supports high-ticket programmes ($500–$5,000+).
Thinkific’s Site Builder: What Customisation Actually Means
Thinkific’s main differentiator deserves detailed examination.
Theme customisation: Thinkific’s Site Builder allows you to customise your school’s homepage, course pages, and blog with more flexibility than Teachable. You can adjust layouts, add custom sections, rearrange content blocks, and modify typography — all without code. For creators who want their course site to look like a natural extension of their brand website, this matters significantly.
Custom code access: On paid plans, you can inject custom HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. This opens advanced possibilities: custom analytics tracking, third-party widget integration, interactive elements, and fully custom page designs. If you (or a developer) can code, Thinkific becomes nearly as flexible as a custom website.
Course player customisation: Modify the student-facing course interface to match your brand. Custom colours, logos, navigation labels, and layout options. The course player on Thinkific feels more “yours” than on most competitors where the platform’s branding shows through.
Limitations of customisation: Despite being more flexible than Teachable, Thinkific’s builder still operates within a template framework. You can’t achieve the same level of custom design as WordPress + Elementor or a fully custom-coded website. The improvement over competitors is meaningful but not revolutionary.
Thinkific’s Learning Experience Features
Beyond basic video lessons, Thinkific offers several features that enhance the student experience.
Multiple content types: Video (hosted natively), text lessons, PDFs, downloadable files, audio, presentations, SCORM/Tin Can content (for corporate training compliance), surveys, quizzes, and assignments. The variety allows you to create engaging, mixed-media learning experiences rather than “watch video, repeat.”
Assignments (Start plan+): Students submit text or file-based assignments that you review and provide feedback on. This transforms passive courses into active learning experiences and is essential for premium-priced courses ($500+) where students expect interaction.
Exams and certifications: Create graded exams with pass/fail thresholds. Issue custom certificates upon completion. Integrates with Accredible and Credly for verifiable digital credentials. Particularly valuable for professional development and certification programmes.
Prerequisites and drip scheduling: Require students to complete specific lessons before accessing others. Schedule content release over time. These features create structured learning paths that improve completion rates and learning outcomes.
Live lessons (Zoom integration): Host live sessions within your Thinkific course. Students join Zoom calls directly from the course interface. Recordings automatically add to the course as on-demand content. This hybrid approach (self-paced + live) is increasingly popular for premium courses.
Student progress tracking: Monitor individual student progress, identify drop-off points, and intervene with struggling students. The data helps you improve course content by revealing which lessons students skip, rewatch, or abandon.
Thinkific’s Business Tools
Analytics and reporting (Grow plan+): Revenue reports, enrollment trends, completion rates, and student engagement metrics. The data quality improves with higher-tier plans — Basic provides essentials, while Grow delivers actionable business intelligence.
Order management: Track all transactions, manage refunds, and generate financial reports. Payment plan monitoring helps identify at-risk payments before they fail.
Affiliate programme (Start plan+): Recruit affiliates who promote your courses for a commission (you set the percentage). Track referrals, manage payouts, and monitor affiliate performance. A functional affiliate programme can generate 20–40% of total course revenue when properly implemented.
Bulk selling (Grow plan+): Sell course access in bulk to organisations, companies, or teams. Essential for B2B course sellers and corporate training providers. Set group pricing, manage team enrollment, and track group progress.
Integrations: Native integrations with major tools: Mailchimp, ConvertKit, ActiveCampaign, Zapier, Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, Segment, Shopify, and more. The integration ecosystem is comprehensive enough for most small-to-medium course businesses.
Thinkific Pricing: When to Upgrade
Understanding when each plan makes sense prevents both overspending and under-investing.
Stay on Free ($0/month) when: You’re testing whether your course topic has demand. You’re building your first course and want to validate before committing money. You have fewer than 5 students.
Upgrade to Basic ($49/month) when: You’re ready to sell actively and want a custom domain. You need coupons and promotional tools. You’re selling your first paid course.
Upgrade to Start ($99/month) when: You want to offer memberships or subscriptions. You need assignments for premium courses. You’re ready to launch an affiliate programme. You need community features.
Upgrade to Grow ($199/month) when: You’re generating $2,000+/month in course revenue. You need bulk selling for corporate clients. You want advanced analytics to optimise your business. You have a team that needs role-based access.
The general rule: Your Thinkific plan cost should never exceed 10–15% of your monthly course revenue. If your plan costs $199/month, you should be generating $1,300+/month minimum in course sales.
Building a Successful Course Business on Thinkific
Platform choice matters less than execution. Here’s what determines success on Thinkific.
The audience question is everything. Before building a single lesson, ask: “Do I have 500+ people who would be interested in this topic?” If yes, proceed. If no, build your audience first through content marketing, social media, or community building. Thinkific provides excellent infrastructure — but infrastructure without audience produces zero revenue.
Price for value, not competition. New creators often look at what competitors charge and price similarly. Better approach: price based on the transformation your course delivers. A course that helps someone land a $50,000 raise is worth $500–$2,000 — regardless of what a competitor charges for a similar topic.
Invest in production quality proportionally. A $29 mini-course can succeed with screen recordings and a USB mic. A $997 comprehensive programme needs professional video, designed slides, and polished production. Match your investment in production to your price point and audience expectations.
Build an email list from day one. Use Thinkific’s landing pages to capture emails even before your course is ready. A 500-person email list interested in your topic is worth more than 10,000 social media followers for course sales. Email consistently converts at 3–10x the rate of social media for course launches.
Mark is the founder of MarksInsights and has spent 15+ years testing online business programs and tools. He focuses on honest, experience-based reviews that help people avoid scams and find real, sustainable ways to make money online.