Thinkific vs Teachable vs Kajabi: Best Course Platform for Freelancers & Independent Creators
As a freelancer or independent creator (writer, designer, photographer, SMM), turning your expertise into an online course is a smart way to add passive income or scale your client education. The course platform you pick determines your profit margins, how easily your audience learns your material, and how much you pay as your course business grows. Thinkific, Teachable, and Kajabi each take a different cut – and the difference between them can cost thousands of dollars per year for your freelance brand.
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The Quick Answer
Choose Thinkific if you want to teach your specific skill (like a photography editing workflow or a copywriting masterclass) without losing money to transaction fees. Good if you already use Mailchimp or ConvertKit for your client list. Choose Teachable if you need a fast setup to launch a mini-course (e.g., a Canva template tutorial for graphic designers or a beginner social media strategy for SMMs) and are okay paying transaction fees on lower tiers. Choose Kajabi if you are building an entire creator business ecosystem – online courses, private community for clients, email newsletters for service updates, and sales funnels for high-ticket offerings – and are willing to pay for an all-in-one solution.
Side-by-Side Breakdown
Thinkific: free-$199/month, 0% transaction fees on all plans, strong course builder perfect for step-by-step skill guides (e.g., a 12-module writing course), no native email for your client list. Teachable: $0-299/month, 5% transaction fee on free plan (0% on paid), excellent sales page builder to promote your design template or mini-course, solid analytics to see which lessons in your social media course are most popular. Kajabi: $69-399/month, 0% transaction fees, includes email marketing for your subscribers, funnels to sell your premium coaching, a community for your course students, podcasts related to your niche, and a website for your creator brand – everything in one.
When to Choose Thinkific
You are launching your first course (e.g., 'Mastering Lightroom for Freelancers' or 'Advanced Video Editing Techniques') and want to keep costs predictable without transaction fees. You already have email marketing for your freelance list through another tool like ConvertKit or Mailchimp. You want a clean, professional course experience for students learning your specialized skill. You expect to grow to multiple courses over time, such as 'Level 1 Photography' and 'Level 2 Editing Workflow'.
When to Choose Teachable
You want the simplest possible setup to get your knowledge online — Teachable's course creation flow is the most beginner-friendly for independent creators. You are running promotions for a micro-course or digital product (e.g., '5-Day SEO for Writers Challenge' or 'Advanced Figma UI Kit') and need a polished sales page without hiring another designer. You are fine paying transaction fees in the short term while you validate your 'Freelance Portfolio Builder' course sells before upgrading to a paid plan.
When to Choose Kajabi
You are building a full creator business, not just selling a single course. You want email sequences for new clients, landing pages for service inquiries, a community for your course students, and course delivery all in one tool without stitching multiple platforms together. You are generating consistent revenue from your freelance services or initial courses and the $149-399/month cost is justified by eliminating 3-4 other subscriptions like email providers (ActiveCampaign, Flodesk), separate community platforms, and website builders.
The Verdict
For first-time independent creators teaching a specific skill, Thinkific's free plan with 0% fees is the lowest-risk starting point for a 'How-To' course. For creators who want the fastest setup and best sales page quality for a niche product (like 'Canva Templates for Small Biz' or 'Short-Form Video Masterclass'), Teachable offers a quick path. For established creators building a full business ecosystem (e.g., 'The Professional Photographer's Marketing & Business Academy'), Kajabi's all-in-one model pays for itself by consolidating tools. Do not pay for Kajabi until your courses or services are consistently bringing in revenue.
How to Get Started
Thinkific: Sign up for the free plan, create your first 'Skill-Specific Masterclass' course, and connect Stripe. You can launch before upgrading. Teachable: Use the free plan to build your 'Mini-Course for Beginners,' then upgrade to Basic ($59/month) to remove transaction fees once you have your first sales. Kajabi: Start a 14-day free trial, use a pipeline template for your 'Launch Your Freelance Business' funnel, and connect your existing email list to start building your creator ecosystem.
RECOMMENDED TOOLS
Thinkific
Launch your first course free — 0% transaction fees
Kajabi
All-in-one creator platform
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Can I migrate courses between platforms?
Video content can be re-uploaded, but student enrollment records, progress data, and completion certificates do not transfer cleanly. Migrating 100+ students is a manual process. Choose carefully before you have a large student base.
Does Kajabi replace ConvertKit?
Kajabi's email is capable for most creators, but ConvertKit has stronger automation tagging, deliverability, and creator-specific features. Some creators use both — Kajabi for courses, ConvertKit for email — though that adds cost.
What transaction fees does Teachable charge?
On the free plan, Teachable takes 10% plus payment processor fees. On the Basic plan ($59/month) the fee drops to 5%. On Professional ($159/month) and above, there are no transaction fees.