Kajabi vs SchoolMaker (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, SchoolMaker grades higher than Kajabi: 2.2 against 2.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 9, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Kajabi grades higher on features. SchoolMaker grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Kajabi
All-in-one platform for selling courses, coaching and communities
SchoolMaker
Course platform with milestones, community, coaching and AI coaches
Which one is for you
Pick Kajabi if
- Fits if you want site, email, checkout and courses on one bill and one login
- Works for coaches who sell courses, coaching and a newsletter to the same people
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you're just starting, as Basic is $143 a month even billed yearly
- Tight if you plan lots of offers, since Basic stops at 5 products and 2,500 contacts
- Skip it if you want your own branded app without paying $199 a month or moving to Pro
- Watch out: the trial rolls into Growth at $249 a month unless you cancel
- Watch out: other processors add 0.5% to 2% a sale, and extra contacts cost $125 a month per 25,000
Pick SchoolMaker if
- Fits if you coach in steps and want a community inside the same product
- Works for course makers who want AI coaches for their students
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you grow, because plans cap members from 100 to 5,000 and above that you contact the vendor
- Skip it if you want no badge on the cheapest plan, as Lite keeps a SchoolMaker badge
- Watch out: Lite is only open to new customers
- Watch out: extra member packs come only with Business, and the page offers annual billing but the monthly price is the one recorded here
How we grade them
| 2.0GPAKajabiFair | 2.2GPASchoolMakerFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DBasic is $143 a month billed yearly, and Kajabi takes no share of sales through Kajabi Payments, whose 2.9% + 30 cents is card processing. So $2,000 of sales a month costs $143, right where this category's dearest tenth starts. Use another processor and Basic adds 2%, another $40. | CLite is $29 a month, inside the cheaper quarter, but it has a badge, 100 members and is for new customers only. Starter is $99, Pro $165 and Business $249. |
| Free plan and trial | DNo free plan. The 14-day trial covers the whole platform, but it rolls into Growth at $249 a month unless you cancel, so it's the kind that bills you at the end. | C14-day free trial. No free plan, and the listing does not say a card is needed. |
| Features | BCourses with drip, assessments and cohorts, coaching, a community, unlimited emails, funnels and landing pages, upsells, affiliates, tax and paid newsletters. Nothing in the listing shows a gap in the job; Basic just stops at 5 products and 2,500 contacts. | CSteps and milestones, community, live sessions, AI coaches, checkout, referrals, an API and webhooks. Members and courses are capped on every plan. |
| Ease of use | C4.34 from about 7,400 App Store ratings, mid-table for this category. And you're setting up a site, emails, funnels and a checkout before anything sells. | CNo store rating on record. You build the school and its steps yourself. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Stripe, PayPal, Zapier, Mailchimp, ActiveCampaign and a public API. No desktop app, which an A needs. An app in your own name is on Pro, or $199 a month extra. | BWeb only, with 8 integrations and an API on record. |
| Best for | running a whole course business from one account | a coach selling a course with community and AI coaches |
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: Kajabi and SchoolMaker. How we grade
Price against what you get
Kajabi starts at $143 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. SchoolMaker starts at $29 a month and scores 2.3.
Kajabi scores higher, and starts $114 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other course and community platforms on the chart, 3 score higher than Kajabi for less, and 2 score higher than SchoolMaker 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
- Kajabi also covers marketing automation, email campaigns and paid newsletters.
- SchoolMaker also covers webinars.
At a glance
| Kajabi | SchoolMaker | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $143 per month, billed annually ($179 billed monthly) | $29 per month, billed monthly |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of the full platform; it rolls into the Growth monthly plan at $249 unless cancelled | 14-day free trial |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Kajabi | SchoolMaker |
| Price read from | kajabi.com | schoolmaker.com |
| Checked | Nov 9, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Kajabi
- No revenue share, but Kajabi Payments charges 2.7% to 2.9% plus $0.30 a sale in the US; using another processor (not PayPal) adds 0.5% to 2%.
- Basic stops at 5 products, 2,500 contacts and 2 admin users. Extra contacts cost $125 a month per block of 25,000.
- There is no free plan. The branded mobile app is only in Pro unless bought for $199 a month.
- Basic has no AI credits; Growth gets 500 and Pro 1,000, and 500 more cost $15 a month.
SchoolMaker
- Plans cap members (100 to 5,000) and courses; above 5,000 members the vendor asks you to contact it.
- The Lite plan keeps a SchoolMaker badge on and is only open to new customers.
- The page offers annual billing with a stated saving, but the monthly price is the one recorded here.
- Business is the only plan that includes extra member packs.
Key features
Kajabi
- Courses and coaching
- Courses with drip release, progress tracking, assessments and cohorts, plus coaching programs, memberships, podcasts and digital downloads.
- Communities
- Topic-based spaces with threaded posts, activity feeds and announcements, tied to product purchases. Basic and Growth include 1 community, Pro 3.
- Email, funnels and landing pages
- Unlimited marketing emails, landing pages and funnels on every plan, with broadcasts, sequences and automations triggered by what students do.
- Checkout and payments
- One-time prices, subscriptions and payment plans, coupons, order bumps, upsells, affiliate programs and automated tax calculation.
- Newsletters with paywalls
- Publish a newsletter from the same account and charge for it with paid subscriptions, premium issues or paywalled posts.
- Branded and Creator apps
- A mobile app with your own branding, included on Pro or $199 a month on other plans. A separate Creator app shows sales and contacts on a phone.
SchoolMaker
- Steps and milestones
- Courses are built as step-by-step journeys with milestones that students work through.
- Built-in community
- A community space for students inside the school, on every plan.
- Live sessions and coaching
- Consultations, live sessions and coaching, with Zoom or Google Meet links.
- AI coaches
- AI coaches that answer from course content: 10 on Lite, up to 30 on Business.
- Checkout and referrals
- Native checkout through Stripe, with no transaction fee from SchoolMaker.
- API, MCP and webhooks
- API, MCP server and webhooks on every plan, plus Zapier and Make.
Plans
Kajabi
Basic$143
per month for up to 2,500 contacts, billed annually ($179 monthly)
5 products, 1 website, 1 community, 2 admin users, no AI credits. Kajabi Payments at 2.9% + $0.30 a sale; other processors add a 2% fee.
Growth$199
per month for up to 25,000 contacts, billed annually ($249 monthly)
50 products, 1 website, 1 community, 11 admin users, 500 AI credits. Kajabi Payments at 2.8% + $0.30; other processors add a 1% fee.
Pro$399
per month for up to 100,000 contacts, billed annually ($499 monthly)
Unlimited products, 3 websites, 3 communities, 26 admin users, 1,000 AI credits and the branded mobile app. Other processors add a 0.5% fee.
SchoolMaker
Lite$29
per month for up to 100 members, billed monthly
1 course, 1 owner account, 100 GB storage and a SchoolMaker badge that stays on. Only for new customers.
Starter$99
per month for up to 500 members, billed monthly
15 courses, 5 team accounts, unlimited storage and free migration.
Pro$165
per month for up to 2,500 members, billed monthly
30 courses, 10 team accounts, priority support and free migration.
Business$249
per month for up to 5,000 members, billed monthly
Unlimited courses and team accounts, extra member packs, priority support and free migration.
Ways to pay less
Kajabi
- Annual discount
Save 20% with annual billing
Kajabi's pricing page lists 20% off for annual billing: Basic $143 a month instead of $179, Growth $199 instead of $249, Pro $399 instead of $499.
SchoolMaker
- Annual discount
Annual billing saving
The page lists a saving with annual billing: $120 a year on Lite, $240 on Starter, $408 on Pro and $600 on Business.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Kajabi or SchoolMaker?
As of Nov 12, 2026, SchoolMaker is cheaper to start with: $29 a month, against $143 a month for Kajabi. Kajabi starts at $143 per month, billed annually ($179 billed monthly), and SchoolMaker starts at $29 per month, billed monthly.
Which has a free plan, Kajabi or SchoolMaker?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither Kajabi nor SchoolMaker has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
Which platforms do Kajabi and SchoolMaker run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Kajabi 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.