FreshLearn vs Podia (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, FreshLearn and Podia share a 2.4 GPA, and only FreshLearn has a free plan.
Checked Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
They get the same grade on all five counts.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
FreshLearn
Course, coaching and community platform with zero sales fees
Podia
Website, store, courses, community and email for creators in one place
Which one is for you
Pick FreshLearn if
- Fits if you want courses and a community in one hosted account
- Works for sellers who want to start on a free plan
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free, as it stops at 1 product and 25 manual enrollments
- Pricey if you need community, live classes, quizzes or certificates: those start at No Brainer, $49 a month on 2-year billing
- Watch out: the lowest prices need a 2-year prepayment
- Watch out: a branded mobile app is $299 a year for each of iOS and Android
Pick Podia if
- Fits if you sell courses, downloads and coaching to one small audience
- Works for creators with a small email list, since email is priced by subscribers
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you have a big list, as 10,000 subscribers adds $56 a month billed annually
- Skip it if you plan to stay on Mover, because 5% of every sale goes to Podia
- Not for you if your members expect a phone app, as none is listed
- Watch out: PayPal, Zapier, affiliates, upsells and assistant seats need Shaker at $84 a month
- Watch out: there's no free plan, and refunds come only within 72 hours of the latest payment
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAFreshLearnFair | 2.4GPAPodiaFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CPro is $35 a month billed every 2 years, close to the category's middle of $37. Monthly billing is $49. | CMover is $42 a month billed yearly but adds a 5% fee, $100 on $2,000 of sales: $142. Shaker at $84 takes no fee, so $84 a month is what you'd pay, inside this category's usual range but above its dearer quarter ($59). Shaker includes 500 email subscribers. |
| Free plan and trial | CThe free plan has 1 product, 25 manual enrollments and 3 sales pages. Paid plans have a free trial with no card, per the page. | CNo free plan. There's a 14-day trial of every feature with no card needed, and once you pay, refunds only within 72 hours of the latest payment. |
| Features | BCourses, community, live classes, quizzes, certificates, payments and AI tools. The listing shows no gap in the core job, but the Pro plan lacks several parts. | BCourses with quizzes and certificates, downloads, coaching, events, a community with chat, a website and blog, checkout with tax for 230 jurisdictions, email automations and an MCP connection. No gap in the job; PayPal, Zapier and affiliates just need Shaker. |
| Ease of use | CA web app where you build courses and sales pages, with no store rating on record. | CNo App Store rating on record. Everything's in one account, but you still build a site, a store and your emails before selling. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iOS and Android, with Stripe, PayPal, Zapier, Zoom and HubSpot on the list. No desktop app. | BWeb only, with Stripe, PayPal, Zapier, Zoom, Calendly, Kit, Mailchimp and Discord, plus MCP for Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor. No phone or desktop apps listed. |
| Best for | courses and a community with 0% fees | creators selling a mix of courses and downloads |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: FreshLearn and Podia. How we grade
Price against what you get
FreshLearn starts at $35 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Podia starts at $42 a month and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and FreshLearn starts $7 a month lower. Of the other course and community platforms on the chart, none scores higher than FreshLearn for less, and 1 scores higher than Podia for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- FreshLearn also covers digital downloads.
- Podia also covers marketing automation.
At a glance
| FreshLearn | Podia | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $35 per month, billed every 2 years ($49 billed monthly) | $42 per month for up to 100 subscribers, billed annually ($49 monthly) |
| Free plan | 1 product, 25 manual enrollments, 3 sales pages, email support and the blogging CMS. | None |
| Free trial | Free trial on paid plans; the page says no credit card is required. | 14-day free trial of every feature, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | FreshLearn | Podia Labs, Inc. |
| Price read from | freshlearn.com | podia.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Worth knowing
FreshLearn
- Community, live classes, certificates and quizzes are not in the Pro plan; they start at No Brainer.
- The lowest prices need a 2-year prepayment; the monthly-billing price is higher.
- Free migration applies to annual and 2-year billing; monthly billing is charged a small fee.
- A branded mobile app is a separate add-on at $299 per year for each of iOS or Android.
Podia
- Mover adds a 5% Podia fee to each sale; Stripe or PayPal also charge their own fee of about 2.9% plus 30 cents.
- Plans include only 100, 500 or 1,000 email subscribers; 10,000 adds $56 a month billed annually ($70 monthly) on any plan.
- PayPal, Zapier, affiliate marketing, upsells and assistant seats need Shaker or Earthquaker.
- Refunds are given only within 72 hours of the latest payment; there is no free plan.
Key features
FreshLearn
- Courses and digital products
- Self-paced courses, masterclasses, downloadable files and product bundles, with unlimited courses and learners on paid plans.
- Community
- Discussion spaces where learners ask questions and share knowledge, included from the No Brainer plan.
- Live classes and coaching
- Schedule live classes and sell 1:1 coaching packages with bookings, from the No Brainer plan.
- Quizzes and certificates
- Assessments, assignments and certificates; No Brainer+ adds question banks, required watch time and verifiable certificate IDs.
- Payments
- Takes no transaction fee on sales. Payments go to your own Stripe or PayPal account, which charges its normal processing fee.
- AI tools
- An AI website builder, course outline generator and idea validator on all paid plans, with AI quiz generation from No Brainer.
Podia
- Courses, downloads and coaching
- Courses with drip lessons, quizzes, certificates and unlimited students, plus digital downloads, bookable coaching, and live or in-person events.
- Community
- Topic spaces, group chat, member-to-member messages, badges and paid membership tiers. Everyone who signs up or buys joins the community.
- Website, blog and checkout
- Pages, a blog and your own domain, with a one-page checkout, payment plans, coupons, subscriptions and tax handled for 230 jurisdictions.
- Email marketing
- Broadcasts to the whole list or a segment, welcome sequences and automations, and blog posts sent to subscribers as newsletters.
- Podia Agent and MCP
- A built-in AI assistant that works inside your account, and an MCP connection for Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor. Both are on every plan.
Plans
FreshLearn
Free$0
1 product, 25 manual enrollments, 3 sales pages, blogging CMS and email support.
Pro$35
per month, billed every 2 years ($49 billed monthly)
Courses, masterclasses, downloads, bundles, custom domain, checkout and AI website builder. 1 administrator.
No Brainer$49
per month, billed every 2 years ($79 billed monthly)
Adds community, 1:1 coaching, live classes, certificates, quizzes, mobile apps and Zapier. 3 administrators.
No Brainer+$99
per month, billed every 2 years ($149 billed monthly)
Adds API access, unlimited automations, question banks, video compliance and certificate verification. 7 administrators.
Enterprise$249
per month and up
Everything in No Brainer+, plus SCORM and xAPI, SSO, partner groups, a dedicated manager and a 99.9% uptime SLA.
Podia
Mover$42
per month for up to 100 subscribers, billed annually ($49 monthly)
50 products, 500 videos, 25 community spaces. Podia takes a 5% transaction fee. $98 a month at 10,000 subscribers, billed annually.
Shaker$84
per month for up to 500 subscribers, billed annually ($99 monthly)
150 products, 1,000 videos, 100 spaces, no transaction fee, 1 assistant, affiliates, upsells, PayPal and Zapier. $140 a month at 10,000 subscribers.
Earthquaker$150
per month for up to 1,000 subscribers, billed annually ($179 monthly)
Unlimited products, videos, spaces and assistants, no transaction fee. $206 a month at 10,000 subscribers, billed annually.
Ways to pay less
FreshLearn
- Annual discount
Lower price on 2-year billing
The pricing page shows each paid plan cheaper per month when billed every 2 years than month to month, with savings up to $1,177 over 2 years.
Podia
- Annual discount
Lower monthly price with yearly billing
Billed yearly, Mover is $42 a month instead of $49, Shaker $84 instead of $99 and Earthquaker $150 instead of $179.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, FreshLearn or Podia?
As of Nov 13, 2026, FreshLearn is cheaper to start with: $35 a month, against $42 a month for Podia. FreshLearn starts at $35 per month, billed every 2 years ($49 billed monthly), and Podia starts at $42 per month for up to 100 subscribers, billed annually ($49 monthly).
Which has a free plan, FreshLearn or Podia?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only FreshLearn has a free plan. Podia does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do FreshLearn and Podia run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only FreshLearn lists iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.