Teachable
Teachable is an all-in-one platform that allows you to create, market, and sell online courses, digital downloads, and coaching services to students worldwide while managing your entire knowledge business.
Thinkific
Thinkific is a comprehensive course creation platform that allows you to build, market, and sell online courses and membership sites under your own brand without needing any technical coding skills.
Quick Comparison
| Feature | Teachable | Thinkific |
|---|---|---|
| Website | teachable.com | thinkific.com |
| Pricing Model | Freemium | Freemium |
| Starting Price | Free | Free |
| FREE Trial | ✘ No free trial | ✓ 30 days free trial |
| Free Plan | ✓ Has free plan | ✓ Has free plan |
| Product Demo | ✓ Request demo here | ✓ Request demo here |
| Deployment | ||
| Integrations | ||
| Target Users | ||
| Target Industries | ||
| Customer Count | 0 | 0 |
| Founded Year | 2014 | 2012 |
| Headquarters | New York, USA | Vancouver, Canada |
Overview
Teachable
Teachable is a comprehensive platform designed to help you turn your expertise into a profitable online business. You can build professional course websites without any coding knowledge, using intuitive drag-and-drop tools to upload videos, PDFs, and quizzes. The platform handles the heavy lifting of payment processing, tax collection, and student management so you can focus on creating high-quality content.
You can also offer one-on-one coaching sessions or sell digital downloads like ebooks and templates directly to your audience. Whether you are an individual creator starting your first side hustle or a growing business scaling your training programs, the platform provides the infrastructure to host your content securely. You get full control over your branding, pricing, and student data throughout the entire process.
Thinkific
Thinkific provides you with all the tools needed to turn your expertise into a sustainable online business. You can create professional courses using a drag-and-drop builder that supports video, quizzes, and interactive content. The platform handles the heavy lifting of hosting and security, so you can focus on teaching and growing your audience. You maintain full control over your branding, student data, and pricing models, ensuring your business looks exactly how you envisioned it.
Beyond just hosting content, you can build fully functional websites and sales pages to convert visitors into students. The platform supports various revenue streams, including one-time purchases, subscriptions, and digital downloads. Whether you are an individual creator or a growing company, you can scale your education business with automated student onboarding and integrated payment processing that puts money directly into your account.
Overview
Teachable Features
- Course Builder Create engaging lessons by dragging and dropping video, audio, and text files directly into your curriculum folders.
- Custom Domain Support Connect your own professional web address to your school to maintain a consistent brand experience for your students.
- Integrated Payments Accept credit cards, Apple Pay, and Google Pay instantly with automated payouts and built-in fraud protection.
- Student Quizzes Reinforce learning and track progress by adding graded or non-graded assessments to your online course modules.
- Digital Downloads Sell more than just courses by offering ebooks, guides, and templates as standalone products or course add-ons.
- Automated Tax Handling Save time on administrative work with built-in EU VAT collection and automated tax reporting for your sales.
Thinkific Features
- Drag-and-Drop Course Builder. Upload videos, build quizzes, and organize your lessons easily without writing a single line of code.
- Custom Web Themes. Design a professional storefront that matches your brand using pre-built themes and a visual site editor.
- Thinkific App Store. Extend your site's functionality by connecting with specialized tools for marketing, analytics, and student engagement.
- Student Communities. Drive higher engagement by creating dedicated spaces where your students can interact and learn from each other.
- Automated Certificates. Reward your students' hard work by automatically issuing branded completion certificates when they finish your course.
- Flexible Pricing Tools. Set up subscriptions, payment plans, or one-time fees to match how your audience prefers to buy.
Pricing Comparison
Teachable Pricing
- 1 course or digital download
- Unlimited students
- Integrated payment processing
- Tax handling
- Teachable subdomain
- $1 + 10% transaction fee
- Everything in Free, plus:
- 5 courses or digital downloads
- Custom domain support
- Direct integrations
- Email marketing tools
- 5% transaction fee
Thinkific Pricing
- 1 course
- Unlimited students
- 1 community
- Drag-and-drop course builder
- Full ecommerce features
- Thinkific App Store access
- Everything in Free, plus:
- Unlimited courses
- Custom domain
- Scheduled (drip) content
- Affiliate reporting
- Email integrations
Pros & Cons
Teachable
Pros
- Very easy to set up without technical skills
- Handles complex global tax compliance automatically
- Reliable video hosting included in all plans
- Clean and professional student learning interface
Cons
- Transaction fees apply even on paid plans
- Site customization options are somewhat limited
- Customer support response times can be slow
Thinkific
Pros
- Intuitive interface makes course setup fast and simple
- No transaction fees on any of the paid plans
- Reliable customer support and extensive knowledge base
- Excellent uptime and fast video loading for students
Cons
- Built-in email marketing tools are somewhat basic
- Checkout process has limited customization options
- Higher tiers required for advanced reporting features