Podia vs Thinkific
We give Podia and Thinkific the same GPA: 2.4 out of 4.0. 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.
Podia
Website, store, courses, community and email for creators in one place
Thinkific
Course, community and membership platform for experts and academies
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAPodiaFair | 2.4GPAThinkificFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | 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. | CBasic is $40 a month billed yearly with unlimited courses, and Thinkific takes no fee on sales through Thinkific Payments, whose 2.9% is card processing. So $2,000 of sales costs $40 a month, the middle of this category. Stripe or PayPal can add a gateway fee in some countries. |
| Free plan and trial | 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. | CNo free plan, but a 30-day trial of the whole platform, as long as any in this category. The listing doesn't say it needs a card. |
| Features | 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. | BDrag-and-drop courses with quizzes and drip, a community with spaces and events, a site builder, email automation, checkout with order bumps and sales tax, and B2B group orders on Grow. Nothing in the listing shows a gap in the core job. |
| Ease of use | 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. | CNo App Store rating on record. It's drag-and-drop, but you're building a course, a site and a checkout, so there's some setting up before you sell. |
| Platforms and integrations | 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. | BWeb, with Zoom, Stripe, PayPal, Zapier, HubSpot and Salesforce, and an API on Grow. Students get no app unless you buy the branded one for $199 a month. |
| Best for | creators selling a mix of courses and downloads | a full course business with a long free trial |
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: Podia and Thinkific. How we grade
Price against what you get
Podia starts at $42 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Thinkific starts at $40 a month and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and Thinkific starts $2 a month lower. Of the other course and community platforms on the chart, 1 scores higher than Podia for less, and none scores higher than Thinkific 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
- Podia starts at $42 per month for up to 100 subscribers, billed annually ($49 monthly). Thinkific starts at $40 per month, billed annually ($54 billed monthly).
- Podia also covers marketing automation and email campaigns.
- Thinkific also covers invoicing.
At a glance
| Podia | Thinkific | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $42 per month for up to 100 subscribers, billed annually ($49 monthly) | $40 per month, billed annually ($54 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of every feature, no credit card required | 30-day free trial of the whole platform |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Podia Labs, Inc. | Thinkific |
| Price read from | podia.com | thinkific.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
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
Thinkific
- Experts selling courses who want a long free trial before paying
- Academies selling seats to companies as well as to individuals
- Course businesses that already run a website elsewhere
Worth knowing
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.
Thinkific
- There is no free plan; the 30-day trial is the only way to try it.
- Stripe and PayPal carry an extra Thinkific gateway fee in some countries that varies by plan; Thinkific Payments charges 2.9%.
- Basic, Start and Grow cap current students at 10,000, and Basic allows 1 admin and 5 digital downloads.
- SSO, SCORM and the AI teaching assistant are only in the Plus plan, which is priced through sales.
Key features
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.
Thinkific
- Course builder
- Drag-and-drop courses with video, quizzes, drip schedules, discussions and compliance rules; assignments and certificates start on Start.
- Communities
- Standalone communities with topic spaces, live events and paid memberships: 1 community on Basic and Start, 3 on Grow.
- TCommerce checkout
- Thinkific Payments with order bumps, gifting, buy now pay later, payment plans, abandoned cart reminders and automated sales tax.
- Site builder and email
- Branded websites and landing pages on a custom domain, members-only pages, and email automation with pre-built sequences.
- B2B selling
- Grow adds group orders so companies can buy bulk seats, and invoicing to bill and collect from business buyers.
- Branded mobile app
- Your own iOS and Android app with push notifications, sold as a $199 a month add-on and included on some Plus contracts.
Plans
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.
Thinkific
Basic$40
per month, billed annually ($54 billed monthly)
Unlimited courses, 1 community with 5 spaces, 5 digital downloads, 1 admin, 100 GB of video a month, coupons and order bumps.
Start$82
per month, billed annually ($109 billed monthly)
Live cohorts with Zoom, certificates, assignments, memberships, bundles, upsells, payment plans, an HTML and CSS editor, 2 admins.
Grow$164
per month, billed annually ($219 billed monthly)
No Thinkific branding, 3 communities, group orders and invoicing for B2B buyers, API and webhooks, phone support, 6 admins.
PlusCustom
AI teaching assistant, SSO, SCORM and learning paths, HubSpot and Salesforce integrations, 10,000+ user seats and a dedicated success team.
Ways to pay less
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.
Thinkific
- Annual discount
Save 25% with annual billing
Thinkific's pricing page lists 25% off for annual billing: Basic $40 a month instead of $54, Start $82 instead of $109, Grow $164 instead of $219.
