Verdict. Pick Teachable if you sell a handful of courses and want checkout, tax handling and student apps without building much yourself. Builder at $89 a month is the real starting point because it drops the platform fee to 0%. Starter looks cheap at $39, but its 7.5% cut costs more than the Builder upgrade once you pass about $670 a month in sales. The product caps are the main annoyance.
- Founded
- 2013 (Launched in 2013 under the name Fedora. Hotmart acquired Teachable in 2020.)
- Headquarters
- New York, New York, US
- Best for
- Solo course creators who want simple setup and checkout
- Plans from
- $39/month
- You keep from $1,000
- $852 on Builder
Who can join. Open to anyone who pays for a plan after a 7-day free trial. Teachable Payments covers creators in 41 countries, and schools elsewhere use a custom payment gateway.
Teachable pricing and fees
Plans cost $39 to $189 a month billed monthly, Starter takes 7.5% of each sale, Builder and Growth take 0% on Teachable Payments, and US cards cost 2.9% + 30¢ to process.
| Plan | Price | Fee on sales | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $39/mo | 7.5% of sales | $29/mo billed annually. 5 products, 1 admin, unlimited students. |
| Builder | $89/mo | 0% on Teachable Payments | $69/mo billed annually. 10 products, affiliate program, real-time support. |
| Growth | $189/mo | 0% on Teachable Payments | $139/mo billed annually. 50 products, 5 admins, certificates, no Teachable branding. |
| Custom | Contact sales | 0% on Teachable Payments | For high-volume schools. Limits set with sales. |
On $1,000 of monthly sales at $10 each, the cheapest option is the Builder plan. You'd pay about $148 in platform and card fees, 14.8% of revenue, and keep $852. Compare that with every other platform.
Payment processing. Teachable Payments, built on Stripe, charges 2.9% + 30¢ per US card sale and 3.9% + 30¢ for international cards. PayPal costs 3.49% + 49¢ in the US and 4.99% + 49¢ abroad. Chargebacks cost $15, and the optional Go Global bundle adds 2.8%.
Payouts. Teachable Payments pays daily, weekly or monthly, and daily payouts run on a 2 business day rolling delay. Instant payouts are offered. You must file a W-9 or W-8 once you pass $100 in earnings, and payouts are held at $500 if the form is missing.
What you get with Teachable
- Online courses
- Digital downloads
- Memberships and coaching
- iOS and Android student apps
- Built-in email marketing
- Affiliate program on Builder and up
- Sales tax, VAT and GST handling
- Upsells, order bumps and abandoned cart emails
- AI course creation tools
Teachable pros and cons
What we like
- Builder and Growth take 0% of sales when you use Teachable Payments.
- Teachable calculates and remits US sales tax, VAT and GST for you.
- Starter at $39 a month is a cheap way to test a first course.
- Daily payouts on a 2 business day delay, plus instant payouts.
What gets in the way
- Starter keeps 7.5% of every sale, which beats the Builder upgrade only below about $670 a month.
- Product caps are tight. Starter allows 5 products and Builder 10.
- No free plan anymore, only a 7-day trial.
- Removing Teachable branding needs Growth at $189 a month.
- Teachable Payments works in only 41 countries.
Who should skip Teachable
If community is the center of your business, pick Skool or Circle, and if you want email, funnels and a website in one bill, pick Kajabi.
Teachable alternatives
| Platform | Score | Keep from $1,000 | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Podia | 6.6 | $842 | Creators selling several small products from one storefront |
| Thinkific | 6.3 | $832 | Course businesses that want a polished learner experience |
| Circle | 6.1 | $815 | Brands and creators running a large paid community |
| Skool | 5.8 | $861 | Coaches running a paid community with courses inside |
Head to head: Kajabi vs Teachable, Teachable vs Thinkific.
See all 6 course and community platforms ranked.
Teachable questions
How much does Teachable take per sale?
Teachable takes 7.5% of each sale on the $39 Starter plan. Builder, Growth and Custom take 0% when you use Teachable Payments. You still pay processing on every plan, 2.9% + 30¢ for US cards and 3.9% + 30¢ for international cards.
Does Teachable have a free plan?
No. Teachable is paid only, with a 7-day free trial and a 30-day money-back guarantee. The cheapest plan is Starter at $39 a month billed monthly or $29 a month billed yearly, with a 7.5% fee on sales and a 5 product limit.
How often does Teachable pay out?
Teachable Payments lets you choose daily, weekly or monthly payouts. Daily payouts run on a 2 business day rolling delay, so a Tuesday sale lands by Thursday. Keep a W-9 or W-8 tax form on file, because payouts are held once you reach $500 without one.
What replaced teachable:pay?
Teachable Payments replaced teachable:pay in 2026, and existing schools moved over in waves during the third quarter. It drops the 10% reserve on transactions, retires the BackOffice add-on and settles in your local currency. The Monthly Payment Gateway is closed to new schools.
Sources
We checked these pages on October 20, 2026. Platforms change fees often, so confirm on the official page before you commit.