I compare paid-community platforms by what they actually cost you, not by their sticker price. Every article shows the fees, the formulas and the revenue level where one plan starts to beat another, so you can redo the numbers for your own community.
Start here
- How to pick a community platform: Skool, Circle, Mighty Networks, Heartbeat, Podia and Kajabi, compared on what each one really costs you.
- What a paid community costs to run: subscription, platform fee and payment processing at three revenue levels.
- What 100 paying members actually earns you: take-home pay across six platforms and three price points.
- Starting a paid community: the five decisions that set your ceiling, with a worked example.
- Patreon or a community platform? Where a percentage fee starts costing more than a subscription.
- Monthly or annual billing? The churn rate that decides which to offer your members.
How the comparisons work
Prices come from each company’s own pricing page, using monthly-billing rates. Payment processing is calculated at Stripe’s standard 2.9% plus 30 cents, and the formulas are written out so you can check them.
Some links on this site are affiliate links, and I may earn a commission if you sign up through them. It doesn’t change what I write: the platform that comes out cheapest in most of my cost comparisons is one I earn nothing from, and the articles say so. More about how this site works.
Latest articles
- Fan Community Platforms: When Patreon Is Right and When You’ve Outgrown ItPatreon takes 10% forever. A fixed subscription takes less past about $1,200 a month. But fees are not what should decide this, and here is what should.
- Starting a Paid Community: The Five Decisions That Set Your CeilingBefore you pick a platform, five decisions set the ceiling on what your community can earn. Here is what each one is worth, with the arithmetic attached.
- Should You Bill Members Monthly or Annually?Annual billing saves $3.30 per member per year in fees, which is not the reason to do it. The real case is churn, and there is a break-even rate you can calculate for yourself.
- What 100 Paying Members Actually Earns YouA hundred members at $50 isn’t $5,000. Here’s what you actually keep across six platforms, and why your price point moves the number about five times more than your platform does.
- What a Paid Community Actually Costs to Run Three layers of cost, six platforms, three revenue levels. Including the exact monthly revenue at which each platform’s cheap plan stops being the cheap one.
- The Best Community Platforms for Creators: How to Pick One Without Regretting ItThe sticker price is almost never what you pay. A comparison of Skool, Circle, Mighty Networks, Heartbeat, Podia and Kajabi, built on what each one actually costs.