Course & Community Platform Fee Calculator
Enter your monthly sales. We'll show plan cost, platform fees and card processing side by side, and what lands in your bank.
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What you keep, by platform
Keeps the most
You keep $4,808.00 (96.2%)
Systeme.io Startup keeps the most at $5,000.00/mo gross.
1. Systeme.io Startup
$4,808.00 kept · 96.2%
- You keep $4,808.00
- Platform fee $0.00
- Processing $175.00
- Plan cost $17.00
Total fees $192.00 · effective fee 3.8%
Visit Systeme.io (opens in new tab, affiliate link) ↗2. Thinkific Basic
$4,771.00 kept · 95.4%
- You keep $4,771.00
- Platform fee $0.00
- Processing $175.00
- Plan cost $54.00
Total fees $229.00 · effective fee 4.6% · −$37.00/mo vs Systeme.io Startup
Visit Thinkific (opens in new tab) ↗3. Teachable Builder
$4,736.00 kept · 94.7%
- You keep $4,736.00
- Platform fee $0.00
- Processing $175.00
- Plan cost $89.00
Total fees $264.00 · effective fee 5.3% · −$72.00/mo vs Systeme.io Startup
Visit Teachable (opens in new tab) ↗4. Skool Pro
$4,726.00 kept · 94.5%
- You keep $4,726.00
- Platform + processing $175.00
- Plan cost $99.00
Total fees $274.00 · effective fee 5.5% · −$82.00/mo vs Systeme.io Startup
Visit Skool (opens in new tab, affiliate link) ↗5. LearnWorlds Pro Trainer
$4,726.00 kept · 94.5%
- You keep $4,726.00
- Platform fee $0.00
- Processing $175.00
- Plan cost $99.00
Total fees $274.00 · effective fee 5.5% · −$82.00/mo vs Systeme.io Startup
Visit LearnWorlds (opens in new tab) ↗6. Kajabi Basic
$4,646.00 kept · 92.9%
- You keep $4,646.00
- Platform fee $0.00
- Processing $175.00
- Plan cost $179.00
Total fees $354.00 · effective fee 7.1% · −$162.00/mo vs Systeme.io Startup
Visit Kajabi (opens in new tab) ↗
- Skool Pro's fee tier (2.9% vs 3.9%) is chosen from your average transaction size ($900+ uses 3.9%).
- Circle runs one-time paywall sales through Stripe Invoicing, which adds 0.4% per paid invoice (included above).
- Teachable's custom Stripe gateway (2% fee for US schools) isn't modelled.
Estimates only. Excludes taxes/VAT, refunds, chargebacks and payout fees unless stated. Not financial advice.
Stack & Sum earns a commission from some links on this site, at no extra cost to you.
Assumptions & sources
Fees come from each platform's public pricing and help pages, linked below and checked on the date shown. Taxes, refunds, chargebacks and payout fees are excluded unless noted.
- Excludes sales tax/VAT/GST, refunds, chargebacks, payout and FX fees (unless toggled), and promotions.
- Annual prices are shown per month.
- Stripe (US standard): 2.9% + $0.30; +1.5% international cards; +0.7% Stripe Billing on subscriptions where the platform uses it. Source (opens in new tab) Unverified: check source
- Systeme.io: Free $0.00, Startup $17.00, Webinar $47.00, Unlimited $97.00. Source (opens in new tab) · checked 20 Oct 2026
- Skool: Hobby $9.00, Pro $99.00. Source (opens in new tab) · source 2 (opens in new tab) · source 3 (opens in new tab) · checked 20 Oct 2026
- Teachable: Starter $39.00, Builder $89.00, Growth $189.00. Source (opens in new tab) · source 2 (opens in new tab) · source 3 (opens in new tab) · source 4 (opens in new tab) · checked 20 Oct 2026
- Thinkific: Basic $54.00, Start $109.00, Grow $219.00. Source (opens in new tab) · source 2 (opens in new tab) · source 3 (opens in new tab) · checked 20 Oct 2026
- Kajabi: Basic $179.00, Growth $249.00, Pro $499.00. Source (opens in new tab) · source 2 (opens in new tab) · source 3 (opens in new tab) · source 4 (opens in new tab) · checked 20 Oct 2026
- Circle: Professional $99.00, Business $219.00, Scale $419.00, Circle Plus ∞ (annual billing). Source (opens in new tab) · source 2 (opens in new tab) · checked 20 Oct 2026
- LearnWorlds: Starter $29.00, Pro Trainer $99.00, Learning Center $299.00. Source (opens in new tab) · checked 20 Oct 2026
How it works
- Plan cost: the monthly price, or the annual price divided by 12 if you choose annual billing.
- Platform fee: the platform's own percentage and/or fixed fee per sale. Teachable Starter charges 7.5%, Skool charges a combined platform-and-processing fee, Circle charges 2% or 1% depending on plan, and LearnWorlds Starter charges $5 per paid enrollment.
- Processing: card fees from the platform's own payments product where it has one (Kajabi, Teachable, Thinkific). Otherwise Stripe's standard US rate of 2.9% + $0.30. International cards and subscription surcharges are added when you switch those inputs on.
- You keep = gross sales − plan cost − platform fees − processing.
Worked example
At $5,000 a month from 100 one-time sales, monthly billing and US cards, Systeme.io Startup leaves $4,808, Skool Pro $4,726, Kajabi Basic $4,646 and Circle Professional $4,606. (Circle uses its $99 monthly-billing price and includes the 0.4% Stripe Invoicing fee on one-time sales; at the $89 annual-billing price it would be $4,616.)
Frequently asked questions
Which course platform has the lowest fees?
It depends on your revenue and plan. At low revenue, the fixed monthly price matters most. As revenue grows, percentage fees matter more. Run the calculator with your own numbers and compare the 'you keep' column.
Does Systeme.io really charge 0% transaction fees?
Systeme.io charges no transaction fee of its own. You still pay your payment processor (Stripe or PayPal), which the calculator includes at Stripe's standard US rate.
Why does Skool show no processing fee?
Skool's transaction fee already includes card processing. The calculator shows it in a single 'platform + processing' figure.
Are taxes included?
No. Sales tax, VAT and GST, refunds, chargebacks and payout or currency-conversion fees are excluded. Optional tax-handling add-ons (Teachable, Thinkific, Kajabi) are noted but off by default.