Kartra vs Podia
We give Kartra a 2.2 GPA and Podia a 2.4, out of 4.0. Podia grades higher on features. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Kartra
Marketing suite with funnels, email, courses and membership sites
Podia
Website, store, courses, community and email for creators in one place
How we grade them
| 2.2GPAKartraFair | 2.4GPAPodiaFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CEssentials is $52 a month billed yearly, but it takes 5% of sales, $100 on $2,000, and allows 1 product. Starter at $99 takes no fee, so $99 a month is the real figure: above this category's dearer quarter ($59), short of its dearest tenth ($143). | 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 | CNo free plan. A 14-day trial of any plan is shown as a limited-time offer, and the listing doesn't say it needs a card; after that there's a 30-day money-back guarantee. | 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 | CPages, funnels, checkouts, courses and membership sites with video hosting, email and SMS, forms, calendars and AI copy. The gap is community: there's no discussion space for students anywhere in the listing. | 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 | CNo App Store rating on record. It's a big suite with funnels and sequences to set up, and passing your contact limit moves you up a plan mid-cycle. | CNo App Store rating on record. Everything's in one place, which helps, but you still build a site, a store and your emails before selling. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, with Stripe, PayPal, Authorize.net, Braintree, Zapier, Twilio, Zoom and Google Calendar. API access is only on Professional at $429 a month, and no apps are listed. | 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 | funnel-heavy course launches | 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: Kartra and Podia. How we grade
Price against what you get
Kartra starts at $52 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Podia starts at $42 a month and scores 2.7.
Podia scores higher and starts $10 a month lower. Of the other course and community platforms on the chart, 6 score higher than Kartra 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
- Kartra starts at $52 per month for up to 500 contacts, billed annually ($59 monthly). Podia starts at $42 per month for up to 100 subscribers, billed annually ($49 monthly).
- Kartra also covers forms, surveys and help desk.
- Podia also covers community.
At a glance
| Kartra | Podia | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $52 per month for up to 500 contacts, billed annually ($59 monthly) | $42 per month for up to 100 subscribers, billed annually ($49 monthly) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of any plan, shown as a limited-time offer; 30-day money-back guarantee | 14-day free trial of every feature, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Kartra Inc. | Podia Labs, Inc. |
| Price read from | kartra.com | podia.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Kartra
- Marketers who want funnels, email and course hosting in one account
- Course sellers who also need a help desk and an affiliate program
- Businesses that sell several products through funnels
Podia
- Creators who want site, store, community and email in one bill
- Small lists, since email is priced by subscriber count
- Sellers of a mix of courses, downloads and coaching
Worth knowing
Kartra
- Essentials takes 5% of every sale and allows only 1 product, 1 course and 5 pages; higher plans take no fee.
- Passing a plan's contact limit moves the account up a tier automatically, with a mid-cycle charge.
- Automations, affiliates and the help desk start on Growth; API access is only on Professional.
- There are no add-ons for extra domains, languages or team members; more of any means a bigger plan.
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
Kartra
- Pages, funnels and checkouts
- A drag-and-drop page and website builder, a funnel mapper, pre-built campaigns, and checkouts that take card and PayPal payments.
- Courses and membership sites
- Host courses and membership sites with Kartra's own video hosting. Essentials allows 1, Starter and above are unlimited.
- Email and SMS
- Broadcasts and automated sequences by email and text, unlimited from Starter. Automations that tag leads by behavior start on Growth.
- Forms, surveys and calendars
- A form builder on every plan, appointment calendars that sync with Google Calendar, Zoom and Google Meet, and surveys and quizzes on Growth.
- Affiliates and help desk
- Growth adds an affiliate program for partners and a customer support portal; Professional adds live chat to the help desk.
- Kartra AI
- Writes copy for pages, emails and texts: 30 uses on Essentials, 100 on Starter and 200 on Growth.
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
Kartra
Essentials$52
per month for up to 500 contacts, billed annually ($59 monthly)
10,000 emails and texts a month, 5 pages, 1 product, 1 membership or course, 30 Kartra AI uses, 1 domain. Kartra takes 5% of each sale.
Starter$99
per month for up to 2,500 contacts, billed annually ($119 monthly)
Unlimited email and SMS, pages, products, memberships and courses, video hosting, calendars, webinars, 5 team members. No transaction fee.
Growth$189
per month for up to 12,500 contacts, billed annually ($229 monthly)
The tier for 10,000 contacts. Adds automations, affiliates, surveys and quizzes, a help desk, funnel simulation, 10 team members, 3 domains.
Professional$429
per month for up to 25,000 contacts, billed annually ($549 monthly)
Everything in Growth, plus real-time funnel analytics, help desk live chat, API access and 5 custom domains.
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
Kartra
- Annual discount
Save up to 22% with yearly billing
Kartra's pricing page lists yearly billing at up to 22% off: Essentials $52 a month instead of $59, Starter $99 instead of $119, Growth $189 instead of $229.
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.
