Kajabi vs Thinkific: Which Is Better for Online Courses?

As online learning is projected to become a $1 trillion industry by 2032, more creators are entering this competitive landscape, intensifying the need for the right course-creation platform. Choosing the right platform is crucial, as it can significantly impact your success and revenue potential. 

Among the leading platforms, Kajabi and Thinkific stand out as popular choices for online course creators. Both platforms offer powerful tools, but they cater to different types of users, depending on their specific needs and the features they prioritize. Whether you're a seasoned course creator looking to scale your business or just starting out, understanding the strengths and limitations of each platform is crucial to making the right choice.

Let’s dive into a brief overview of both platforms to give you a clearer idea of their offerings.

Kajabi

Kajabi is a powerhouse in the world of online course creation, known for its all-in-one approach that combines website building, marketing tools, and course hosting. It’s designed for creators who want to manage every aspect of their business from one platform. With an impressive G2 rating of 4.4 out of 5, Kajabi stands out for its comprehensive features and user-friendly interface. It’s the go-to choice for creators seeking a robust, integrated solution to streamline their operations and enhance their marketing efforts.

Now, let’s focus on what Thinkific has to offer.

Thinkific

Thinkific is celebrated for its simplicity and scalability. This platform is particularly appealing to first-time course creators due to its intuitive design and powerful course creation capabilities. Thinkific allows educators to deliver high-quality, engaging content without the need for extensive technical skills. 

With a solid G2 rating of 4.6 out of 5. Thinkific is a favorite among creators looking for a straightforward yet powerful tool to grow their online education business.

Let’s start off by going over the core features of Kajabi and Thinkific.

Core Features Comparison: Kajabi vs. Thinkific

1. Features & Customization Options

When it comes to course creation and customization, both Kajabi and Thinkific offer robust solutions tailored to different creator needs based on the level of complexity and flexibility required.

Kajabi Features

• Multimedia-Rich Courses: Supports a wide range of content formats like video, audio, and text, allowing creators to craft dynamic, engaging courses.

• Pipeline Builder: Automates the entire course delivery journey, from lead generation to enrollment, streamlining the customer experience.

• Drip Content: Allows scheduled lesson releases, giving students a structured learning path over time.

• Full Customization: Provides complete control over the design of landing pages and course content, allowing creators to align everything with their brand.

• Advanced Course Design: Best suited for experienced creators seeking detailed customization and automation in course building.

Thinkific Features

• Easy-to-Use Course Builder: Offers a drag-and-drop interface, making it simple to create multimedia-rich lessons with video, audio, text, and quizzes.

• Memberships & Bundles: Lets creators package multiple courses together or offer membership subscriptions for recurring revenue.

• Drip Content: Similar to Kajabi, Thinkific supports timed lesson releases to guide students through a structured learning process.

• Custom Branding: Allows creators to customize the look and feel of their course pages, though with fewer design options than Kajabi.

• Great for All Levels: Ideal for beginners and intermediate creators, offering a flexible balance of ease of use and customization without overwhelming complexity.

Why Graphy Stands Out

As an all-in-one solution, Graphy is designed to scale with your business growth while maintaining ease of use. It offers a balanced middle ground between the advanced customization and marketing features of Kajabi and the simplicity and affordability of Thinkific, making it an excellent option for creators who value both flexibility and usability.

Graphy includes advanced features that enhance the learning experience and support creators in their growth journey:

• Scalable and User-Friendly: Graphy grows with your business, offering a balance between Kajabi's advanced features and Thinkific's affordability.

• Advanced Features: It includes drip content, assessments, and multimedia support (video, audio, text), all within an intuitive interface that is accessible to both beginners and experienced creators.

• Cost-Effective: With no revenue share fees, Graphy ensures creators can scale their business without incurring extra costs, supported by dedicated customer assistance for a smooth setup process.

2. Ease of Use: Kajabi vs Thinkific

Kajabi: Full Control for Creators Kajabi offers a drag-and-drop builder for creating websites and courses with ease. Its pre-designed themes ensure quick setup, but its wide range of features like marketing automation and analytics may feel overwhelming for beginners. However, Kajabi’s comprehensive tools are particularly well-suited for managing larger businesses.

Thinkific: Simple and Flexible Thinkific is straightforward and user-friendly, especially for those new to course creation. Its course builder allows users to create engaging content without technical skills. While it lacks the built-in marketing tools of Kajabi, Thinkific stands out for its flexibility and affordability, making it ideal for both beginners and experienced creators.

For beginners, Thinkific’s simplicity makes it the easier choice, while Kajabi’s more advanced features are better suited to experienced users looking to scale their businesses.

Why Graphy Stands Out

Graphy combines the best of both Kajabi and Thinkific. It offers an easy setup process, AI tools, and a free branded mobile app in its plans, making it a strong option for creators of all levels. 

Graphy also provides personalized customer support with a dedicated representative to help users, making it easier to launch and grow courses successfully. Its balance of powerful features and simplicity makes it an appealing choice for creators looking to expand.

3. Pricing & Global Payments: Kajabi Vs Thinkific 

When comparing the pricing of Kajabi and Thinkific, both platforms offer various plans to suit different levels of course creation and business needs. Here’s how their pricing structures compare:

Kajabi Pricing:

• Kickstarter Plan: At $55/month with annual billing ($69/month if paid monthly), this plan helps you establish your business foundation. It provides 50 landing pages, one product, and 250 contacts, 1250 Marketing Emails all with zero transaction fees.

• Basic Plan: Priced at $119/month when billed annually ($149/month on a monthly basis), this plan gives you unlimited landing pages, three products, unlimited marketing emails, and 10,000 contacts—perfect for those looking to kick off their business without transaction fees.

• Growth Plan: This option costs $159/month billed annually ($199/month billed monthly) and offers unlimited landing pages, 15 products, and 25,000 contacts, along with advanced automation and an affiliate program, with no transaction fees included.

• Pro Plan: For $319/month when billed annually ($399/month on a monthly basis), this extensive plan features unlimited landing pages, 100 products, and 100,000 contacts. It also comes with advanced automation, custom branding, and the ability to run 3 websites, with no transaction fees.

Thinkific Pricing:

• Free Plan: Thinkific provides a free plan, which includes basic features and allows users to start building and selling courses without any upfront costs.

• Basic Plan: Priced at $36/month when billed annually ($49/month if paid monthly), this plan provides core features and essential tools to launch your online learning business. It includes unlimited courses, one community, five spaces per community, five digital downloads, five coaching & webinar sessions, and one administrator, along with unlimited student access. 
  
  Additionally, it offers email and live chat support, a drag-and-drop course builder, fully integrated e-commerce, and 100% ownership of your content.

• Start Plan: At $74/month with annual billing ($99/month on a monthly basis), this plan unlocks additional features for driving student engagement and creating an exceptional learning experience. It includes all Basic Plan features, plus assignments, bundles and add-on packages, memberships & payment plans, live lessons, and advanced course-building options.

• Grow Plan: This option costs $149/month when billed annually ($199/month if paid monthly) and is designed for those looking to expand their online business. It includes all Start Plan features, three communities, 20 spaces per community, phone and priority email support, and additional tools such as bulk student emailer and API access.

• Pro Plan: For $319/month with annual billing ($399/month if paid monthly), this comprehensive plan features all Grow Plan options, unlimited courses, unlimited coaching & webinars, two administrators, and advanced website code editing.

Thinkific is a budget-friendly option, especially for new course creators, offering essential tools with low upfront costs. Its Free Plan allows unlimited students with 0% transaction fees, although payment gateways like Stripe and PayPal do charge their standard processing fees. Moreover, the Basic Plan starts at just $36/month—nearly 70% cheaper than Kajabi's Basic Plan. This makes Thinkific ideal for creators on a budget.

However, Kajabi's higher price points reflect its all-in-one approach. It includes advanced features like sales funnels, automation, and integrated marketing, making it perfect for creators scaling their businesses. While pricier, Kajabi's comprehensive toolset eliminates the need for additional third-party tools, providing potential long-term savings.

Why Graphy Stands Out

Let’s take a look at Graphy’s pricing structure to understand how it is a better option.

While Thinkific offers budget-friendly options and Kajabi excels as an all-in-one platform, Graphy effectively combines affordability with premium features. Its pricing model eliminates transaction fees and provides access to custom apps and scalable live webinar options, perfect for creators aiming to deliver engaging content. Unlike Kajabi, Graphy includes branded mobile apps at no extra cost.

Whether you're starting on a budget or scaling your business, Graphy enables you to grow your online presence without unexpected fees. This transparency, coupled with powerful tools, makes Graphy the ideal choice for creators looking to balance cost and capability in building and scaling their online education businesses.

4. Support & Resources for Creators

​When you're starting out, having reliable support is essential, but not every platform offers the same level of assistance. Let’s dive into how Kajabi and Thinkific compare in this area.

Kajabi Support & Resources

• Free Plan: Kajabi doesn’t offer a free plan. However, users on any paid plan, including the Basic plan, can benefit from onboarding calls.

• Paid Plans: Growth and Pro plan users receive 24/7 support, providing around-the-clock assistance whenever needed. However, basic plans users will only get email support.

• Resources: Kajabi has a rich collection of tutorials, blog posts, webinars, and online courses designed to help creators navigate the platform with ease. Plus, there's Kajabi University, which offers training on everything from course creation to marketing and business growth.

Thinkific Support & Resources

• Free Plan: If you’re on the free plan with Thinkific, you can access the Help Center, which is packed with guides, articles, and FAQs. However, just like Kajabi, there’s no real-time support for free users, so you’ll need to rely on self-help resources.

• Paid Plans: On the paid plans, Thinkific provides email support, and users on the Pro plan get priority service. However, live webinars and training sessions are not natively hosted by Thinkific.
  
  To conduct live webinars, creators need to integrate with Zoom or other third-party apps, which can increase the overall cost depending on the chosen service. Community forums remain available for creators to connect and troubleshoot with peers.

• Resources: Thinkific offers a variety of educational materials, including blog posts, tutorials, and community forums. While these resources are helpful, they might not be enough if you need quick answers to more complex issues.

Why Graphy Stands Out

What sets Graphy apart from Kajabi and Thinkific is that it offers direct access to support for everyone, no matter what plan you’re on. With features like Graphy Assist, community forums, and dedicated personal assistance, creators can get the support they need right from the start. For beginners, Graphy even assigns a dedicated person to assist with setup and ensure a smooth start. This level of support means that whether you’re just getting started or looking to grow your course business, Graphy has your back every step of the way.

5. Monetization and Payment Flexibility

​Flexible monetization and global payment options are essential for creators looking to expand their revenue and grow their audience internationally. Let’s explore how Kajabi and Thinkific compare in this regard.

Kajabi Monetization

• Course Sales & More: Kajabi allows creators to sell courses, memberships, coaching services, and digital products. With flexible pricing options, creators can tailor their offerings to different customer needs.

• Memberships & Subscriptions: Kajabi supports subscription-based memberships, allowing creators to build recurring revenue streams.

• Coupons & Discounts: Kajabi offers coupon and discount code features, enabling creators to incentivize purchases and boost sales.

• Payment Gateways: Kajabi supports both Stripe and PayPal for seamless global transactions and doesn’t charge transaction fees on any of its plans, allowing creators to maximize their earnings.

• Upsell & Cross-Sell Features: Kajabi also provides built-in upsell and cross-sell tools, allowing creators to increase their revenue by promoting additional products or services during the checkout process.

Thinkific Monetization

• Course Sales: Thinkific enables creators to sell courses as one-time purchases with flexible pricing options.

• Memberships & Bundles: Creators can offer subscription-based memberships or bundle courses together to increase their value proposition.

• Coupons & Discounts: Thinkific offers coupon code functionality to help creators boost sales and offer discounts to their audience.

• Payment Gateways: Like Kajabi, Thinkific supports Stripe and PayPal, and there are no transaction fees on any plan.

Why Graphy Stands Out

Graphy offers creators strong monetization options, including selling courses, memberships, and digital products, with standout features that set it apart from Kajabi and Thinkific. Its live course functionality allows real-time interaction, increasing audience engagement—an area where its competitors are less focused. Graphy also supports a wider range of payment gateways, including localized options beyond Stripe and PayPal, making it ideal for creators targeting international markets.

It provides coupons, discounts, and upsell features, similar to Kajabi and Thinkific, but integrates them seamlessly with live courses to maximize revenue. With a more flexible pricing structure, Graphy allows creators to scale without the limitations of tiered plans, making it a strong choice for global expansion.

6. Marketing Tools & Audience Growth

Effective marketing tools are crucial for scaling online courses. Here’s how Kajabi and Thinkific compare when it comes to marketing features.

Kajabi Marketing Features

• SEO Tools: Kajabi provides robust SEO tools to help creators optimize course pages and digital products, improving visibility on search engines.

• Built-in Email Marketing: Kajabi excels with built-in email marketing features, including automations, drip campaigns, and personalized emails, eliminating the need for third-party integrations.

• Affiliate Marketing: Kajabi offers an affiliate marketing program, allowing creators to recruit affiliates who can promote their courses and products. This feature is available across all Kajabi plans.

• Analytics: Kajabi includes comprehensive analytics tools, providing insights into sales performance, email engagement, and customer behavior, all without the need for upgrading to a higher-tier plan.

Thinkific Marketing Features

• SEO Tools: Thinkific offers basic SEO tools to help creators optimize their course pages for search engines.

• Email Marketing: Thinkific integrates with third-party email marketing tools like Mailchimp and ConvertKit, but it lacks built-in email marketing features.

• Affiliate Marketing: Available on higher-tier plans, Thinkific offers affiliate marketing tools, enabling creators to partner with affiliates to promote their courses.

• Analytics: Thinkific provides limited built-in analytics, with more advanced reporting available only on higher-paid plans.

Why Graphy Stands Out

Graphy stands out with its comprehensive built-in marketing tools that empower creators to effectively grow their audience. 

• Advanced SEO Tools: Graphy offers comprehensive SEO tools to optimize course pages, making it easy for creators to improve search engine visibility and attract organic traffic.

• Built-in Email Marketing: Like Kajabi, Graphy includes built-in email marketing features such as automated workflows, drip campaigns, and personalized emails. This eliminates the need for third-party integrations and simplifies campaign management.

• Affiliate Marketing Across All Plans: Graphy provides an affiliate marketing program on all its plans, similar to Kajabi, allowing creators to grow their audience through affiliate partnerships without the need for higher-tier upgrades, unlike Thinkific.

• Detailed Analytics: Graphy includes in-depth analytics that track course performance, audience engagement, and email effectiveness, giving creators actionable insights to improve their marketing strategies and scale efficiently.

In contrast to Thinkific, which relies on external tools for email marketing and provides limited analytics, Graphy offers a more comprehensive suite of built-in marketing features, making it an all-in-one solution for growing and engaging audiences.

7. Community Building & Engagement

​Building a strong community can help boost engagement and retention. Here’s how Kajabi and Thinkific compare in terms of community-building features.

Kajabi Community Building

• Discussion Boards: Kajabi includes built-in community discussion forums, allowing students to engage with each other and the course content in a more interactive way.

• Comments & Engagement: Each lesson allows for comments, fostering communication between students and instructors. Kajabi also supports community-building through live events and webinars.

• Mobile App for Community: Kajabi’s mobile app allows students to access community discussions and course materials on the go, making it easier for students to stay connected.

• Advanced Features: Kajabi includes features like live chat and real-time interactions, helping create a more vibrant and engaged community within the platform.

Thinkific Community Building

• Discussion Boards: Thinkific includes basic discussion forums, but these lack real-time interaction, limiting the immediacy of engagement.

• Comments on Lessons: Students can leave comments on individual lessons, though this feature alone does not foster a dynamic or engaging community.

• Third-Party Integrations: For deeper community-building, Thinkific relies on third-party tools like Facebook Groups or Slack, taking students off the platform for richer engagement.

• Limited Features: Thinkific’s community-building features are limited unless enhanced with external apps.

Why Graphy Stands Out

Graphy offers a robust set of community-building features that outshine both Kajabi and Thinkific. It includes built-in discussion forums like Kajabi, but enhances engagement through real-time interaction with live chat, polls, and Q&A sessions during courses. 

Unlike Thinkific, which relies on third-party tools for deeper community engagement, Graphy keeps everything on-platform, ensuring seamless interaction without the need for external apps. Its mobile app provides full access to community features, allowing students to stay connected anywhere, much like Kajabi, but with a smoother integration of live and interactive content. 

Graphy’s advanced tools, such as live events, webinars, and interactive quizzes, foster stronger participation and create a vibrant, engaged community, making it an ideal platform for creators looking to boost retention and active involvement.

8. Mobile Experience and Accessibility

Kajabi:

• Responsive Design: Kajabi delivers a fully responsive design, allowing both course creators and students to access the platform smoothly from any device, whether it's a smartphone, tablet, or desktop.

• Mobile App for Students: Kajabi stands out by offering a dedicated mobile app for students, enhancing their learning experience with on-the-go access to courses. The app also allows offline viewing, increasing flexibility and engagement.

• Creator Management on Mobile: Kajabi offers mobile management for creators as well, enabling them to edit and update their courses via the app. However, access to a branded mobile app for creators comes with an additional fee of $199 per month, which may be a downside for those looking for a more affordable mobile solution.

Thinkific:

• Responsive Platform: Thinkific ensures that both creators and students can navigate the platform effortlessly on any device, with a fully responsive design optimized for smartphones, tablets, and desktop users.

• Mobile Access for Students: Thinkific offers a dedicated mobile app for students, allowing them to access courses on-the-go through the app or a smooth mobile web experience.

• White-Label Content Delivery: For an additional cost of $199/month, Thinkific offers the ability to create custom, white-labeled mobile apps. This allows creators to deliver courses through a branded app, giving their business a more professional and personalized touch.

Why Graphy Stands Out

Graphy stands out with its robust mobile experience, offering a fully branded mobile app available at no extra cost in its Rise and Scale plans. This app, compatible with both iOS and Android, empowers students to learn anytime, anywhere, with offline access to course materials.

For creators, the mobile app simplifies course management by allowing them to make edits and monitor progress directly from their smartphones or tablets. This ensures that they remain connected to their audience, making it easier to engage and manage content on-the-go.

Overall Value: Which Platform to Choose?

When comparing Kajabi and Thinkific, each platform has its strengths and caters to different needs, but they also come with specific limitations. Here’s a quick breakdown of the pros and cons of each:

Kajabi Pros & Cons

• Pros:

• All-in-One Solution: Kajabi integrates course creation, email marketing, sales funnels, and automation tools all within a single platform, minimizing the need for third-party tools.

• Comprehensive Analytics: Advanced analytics and detailed reporting are available on all plans, enabling creators to make data-driven decisions.

• No Transaction Fees: Kajabi does not charge any transaction fees, allowing creators to keep 100% of their earnings.

• Built-in Mobile App: Kajabi offers a branded mobile app for creators who want to offer a seamless experience to their students across devices; however, this feature comes at an additional cost of $199 per month.

• Versatile Monetization: Offers flexible monetization options like courses, coaching, memberships, and digital products.

• Cons:

• Higher Price Point: Kajabi is generally more expensive compared to Thinkific, especially for creators with smaller course catalogs.

• Learning Curve: Due to its advanced features and extensive toolset, Kajabi can have a steeper learning curve for beginners.

• Additional Fees for Branded App: While the mobile app is a plus, the branded version comes with a $199/month additional fee, which can add up for smaller creators.

Thinkific Pros & Cons

• Pros:

• Highly Customizable: Thinkific offers more granular control over branding and course design, making it ideal for creators who want to personalize their course pages.

• No Transaction Fees: Unlike some competitors, Thinkific does not charge transaction fees, which is beneficial for creators on smaller budgets.

• Strong Course Building Options: Thinkific offers a range of course creation features, including memberships, bundles, and advanced course compliance tools.

• Flexible Integration Options: Supports a wide variety of third-party integrations, allowing creators to expand their functionality with their favorite tools.

• Cons:

• Limited Community-Building Features: Thinkific lacks built-in community tools, making it hard to foster engagement without relying on external platforms.

• Processing Fees: While Thinkific does not charge transaction fees, payment gateways like Stripe and PayPal typically impose their own transaction fees. This can reduce your overall revenue, particularly impacting creators who sell courses at lower price points.

• Advanced Features Restricted to Higher Plans: More sophisticated marketing and analytics tools are only available on higher-tier plans, making the entry-level options less powerful.

Why Graphy Stands Out

Graphy distinguishes itself as a creator-friendly platform by seamlessly integrating monetization, marketing, and community-building tools—all in one place. Here’s why choosing Graphy is a wise move for creators:

• User-Friendly, No-Code Interface: Graphy features an intuitive, no-code platform that simplifies course creation, making it accessible to everyone, regardless of their technical expertise. This allows you to concentrate on creating quality content rather than dealing with complicated setups.

• No Revenue Sharing: Unlike other platforms that take a cut of your earnings, Graphy allows creators to keep 100% of their profits. This approach significantly boosts profitability, particularly for small businesses and independent creators.

• Dedicated Customer Support: From day one, Graphy offers personalized guidance to ensure a smooth onboarding experience. Unlike Thinkific and Kajabi, where support levels can vary significantly based on pricing plans, Graphy provides consistent and accessible assistance for all users, making it easier for creators to get started and thrive.

• Built in Webinars and Live Classes: Graphy includes these features directly on the platform. This is especially beneficial for business coaches, as it eliminates the need for third-party tools, reducing costs and simplifying the process. This connectivity enhances the experience for both you and your participants.

• Comprehensive Marketing Tools: Graphy comes equipped with integrated marketing features, such as email campaigns, webinars, and affiliate marketing programs, making it easy for you to promote your courses and grow your audience seamlessly.
  
  In comparison, while Kajabi does offer powerful marketing capabilities, some users may find them overwhelming. Thinkific, on the other hand, has more basic marketing options that might not fully support creators looking to expand their reach effectively.

• Robust Global Payment and Compliance Features: The platform supports international payments and ensures tax compliance, enabling you to reach a global audience without the stress of managing complex cross-border transactions.

• Flexible Localized Pricing: Graphy allows creators to set different prices for various countries, tailoring offerings to local market conditions and purchasing power. This adaptability ensures your courses are competitively priced and accessible to a diverse, global audience.

• Flexible Monetization Options: With Graphy, you have the freedom to choose how you want to earn. Whether it’s through subscriptions, one-time payments, or tiered memberships, you can do so without incurring transaction fees or revenue sharing.
  
  In contrast, both Kajabi and Thinkific impose additional costs or limitations on certain monetization strategies, making Graphy a more appealing option for creators who want complete control over their income.

• Enhanced Community Engagement: Graphy fosters connections through real-time chat, discussion forums, and group messaging. While Kajabi provides community features, Graphy’s emphasis on instant communication ensures creators can maintain a vibrant and interactive learning environment.

• Branded Mobile App: Graphy offers a Branded Mobile App that keeps learners engaged anytime and anywhere. This app enhances interaction and boosts completion rates by allowing students to access course materials on the go. Best of all, it’s included for free in the Rise and Scale plans, providing creators with a seamless mobile experience at no additional cost.

• Seamless Scalability: Scaling your business with Graphy is hassle-free; you won’t have to worry about unexpected fees or restrictions. Graphy is designed for creators who want to grow smoothly without the anxiety of surprise costs. This contrasts with Kajabi, where scaling up often means paying for higher-tier plans with added fees, making Graphy the smarter choice for future growth.

In summary, while Kajabi and Thinkific have their strengths, Graphy emerges as a superior choice for creators seeking a comprehensive, flexible, and supportive platform. With its focus on monetization freedom, community engagement, and robust marketing tools, Graphy empowers creators to build and scale their online education businesses with confidence.

Conclusion

When deciding between Kajabi and Thinkific, it ultimately comes down to your specific needs and budget. Kajabi offers an all-in-one platform with advanced marketing tools, robust monetization options, and a seamless mobile experience, making it ideal for creators looking for a complete solution, though it comes at a higher price point.

On the other hand, Thinkific provides greater customization flexibility, affordable plans for beginners, and no transaction fees, which makes it appealing for those who want more control over branding and course design without breaking the bank.

However, if you're looking for a balance between affordability and advanced capabilities, consider Graphy. With Graphy, you get the best of both worlds—comprehensive monetization, marketing tools, and community-building features—all without the high costs or transaction fees.

It’s a powerful yet budget-friendly option that combines the strengths of both Kajabi and Thinkific, giving you the tools you need to grow your business while staying within your budget.