Verdict. Pick Circle if your community is the product and you want it under your own brand with your own Stripe account. Business at $219 a month is the plan to judge it on, since it adds the branded app and cuts Circle's fee to 1%. The catch is stacked fees. On Professional, a subscription pays Circle 2%, Stripe 2.9% + 30¢ and Stripe Billing about 0.7%.
- Founded
- 2020 (Sources give 2019 or January 2020 as the founding date. The public launch came in August 2020.)
- Best for
- Brands and creators running a large paid community
- Plans from
- $99/month
- You keep from $1,000
- $815 on Professional
Who can join. Open to anyone after a 14-day free trial with no card required. You need a standard Stripe account. Stripe Express and Custom accounts do not work with Circle paywalls.
Circle pricing and fees
Plans cost $99 to $419 a month billed monthly, Circle takes 2% of sales on Professional and 1% on Business and Scale, and Stripe charges from 2.9% + 30¢ on top.
| Plan | Price | Fee on sales | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Professional | $99/mo | 2% of sales | $89/mo billed annually. Unlimited members, 3 admins, 10 moderators, 20 spaces, 200GB storage. |
| Business | $219/mo | 1% of sales | $199/mo billed annually. Branded app, 5 admins, 30 spaces, 500GB storage. |
| Scale | $419/mo | 1% of sales | 10 admins, 100 moderators, 100 spaces, 1TB storage. |
| Circle Plus | Custom pricing | 0.5% of sales | Custom branded apps, unlimited admins and spaces, dedicated success manager. |
On $1,000 of monthly sales at $10 each, the cheapest option is the Professional plan. You'd pay about $185 in platform and card fees, 18.5% of revenue, and keep $815. Compare that with every other platform.
Payment processing. You connect your own standard Stripe account. Stripe charges from 2.9% + 30¢ per US card sale, and subscriptions also pay Stripe Billing, which Circle's own example puts at 0.7%. Circle takes its fee as an application fee on each charge.
Payouts. Stripe pays you on your normal Stripe payout schedule, with Circle's fee already deducted. Refunds issued inside Circle return Circle's fee, but refunds made in the Stripe dashboard do not.
What you get with Circle
- Discussion spaces and member profiles
- Courses
- Live events
- Website builder
- Gamification
- Paywalls for subscriptions, installments and one-time sales
- Workflows and automations
- Branded mobile app on Business and up
- Email Hub add-on
Circle pros and cons
What we like
- Payments run through your own Stripe account, so customer and billing data stay yours.
- Unlimited members on every plan.
- A branded mobile app comes with Business at $219 a month.
- No card needed for the 14-day trial, plus a 30-day money-back guarantee.
What gets in the way
- Circle takes 2% of sales on Professional on top of Stripe fees.
- Subscriptions on Professional cost about 5.6% + 30¢ once Stripe and Stripe Billing are added.
- Professional caps you at 3 admins and 20 spaces.
- Plan cards show annual rates, and monthly prices are not displayed.
- Extras like branded email notifications cost $40 a month on Professional.
Who should skip Circle
If you want the cheapest path to a paid group, pick Skool Hobby at $9 a month, and if courses come first, pick Thinkific or Teachable.
Circle alternatives
| Platform | Score | Keep from $1,000 | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Podia | 6.6 | $842 | Creators selling several small products from one storefront |
| Teachable | 6.6 | $852 | Solo course creators who want simple setup and checkout |
| Thinkific | 6.3 | $832 | Course businesses that want a polished learner experience |
| Skool | 5.8 | $861 | Coaches running a paid community with courses inside |
Head to head: Skool vs Circle.
See all 6 course and community platforms ranked.
Circle questions
How much does Circle take from sales?
Circle takes 2% of each paywall sale on Professional, 1% on Business and Scale, and 0.5% on Circle Plus. Stripe's processing comes on top, starting at 2.9% + 30¢ per US card sale, and subscriptions also pay Stripe Billing. Circle refunds its fee only when you refund inside Circle.
How much does Circle cost per month?
Billed monthly, Professional is $99 and Business is $219. Annual billing drops them to $89 and $199 a month. Scale is listed at $419 a month and Circle Plus is custom priced. Professional, Business and Scale come with a 14-day free trial that needs no card.
Does Circle have a free plan?
No. Circle has no free plan. You get a 14-day free trial on Professional, Business and Scale without entering a card, and a 30-day money-back guarantee after you pay. The cheapest plan is Professional at $99 a month, or $89 a month billed yearly.
Does Circle use my own Stripe account?
Yes. Circle paywalls connect to your own standard Stripe account, and Stripe Express or Custom accounts are not supported. Money lands in Stripe and pays out on Stripe's schedule, with Circle's transaction fee deducted as an application fee on each charge.
Sources
We checked these pages on October 20, 2026. Platforms change fees often, so confirm on the official page before you commit.