Choosing an online course platform can be overwhelming. There are so many options for creating a beautiful online school, and each one seems to offer something different. This blog post will compare two of the most popular online course platforms: Thinkific vs. Teachable. We’ll discuss the pros and cons of each platform, so you can decide which one is best for you. Let’s get started!
- Best for Affiliate Programs: Teachable
- Best for Beginners: Thinkific
- Best for Multiple Authors: Teachable
- Best for 3rd party integrations: Thinkific
- Best Enterprise Plan: Teachable
- Best for Communities: Thinkific
- Best for Video Courses: Teachable
- Best for Live Lessons: Thinkific
Thinkfic vs. Teachable Side By Side Comparision
People learn in different ways. Some people learn by listening to lectures, others by reading texts, and others by doing hands-on activities. However, no matter how someone prefers to learn, there are certain basics that all learners need to be successful. These include a clear and concise goal, an engaging and well-organized presentation, and the opportunity to practice what has been learned. When it comes to online learning platforms, two of the most popular choices are Teachable and Thinkific. So which one is right for you?
Both Teachable and Thinkific offer a variety of features that can be helpful for online instructors. For example, both platforms allow you to create courses using video, audio, text, and other media. They also provide course templates and drag-and-drop content builders to make course creation quick and easy. In addition, both Teachable and Thinkific offer features such as quizzes and assignments to help engage learners and assess their understanding of the material. However, there are some critical differences between these two platforms as we compare Thinkfic vs. Teachable.
| Teachable | Thinkific |
| $0 – $249 mo. | $0-$499 mo. |
| Custom URL | Custom URL |
| Website/Blog | Website/Blog |
| Drip Content | Drip Content |
| Installment Plans | Installment Plans |
| Pre-sell Launch | Pre-sell Launch |
| Quizzes | Quizzes |
| Student Affiliate Program | Student Affiliate Program |
| Course Bundles | Course Bundles |
| Price Plan Variations | Price Plan Variations |
| Affiliate Program | Affiliate Program |
| Upsells | Upsells |
| Coupons | Coupons |
| Cross Sell Products | Cross Sell Products |
| Unlimited Courses | Unlimited Courses |
| Drag & Drop Builder | Drag and Drop Builder |
| Send Emails | Send Emails |
| Progress Reports | Progress Reports |
| Mulitple Instructors | Multiple Instructors |
| Completion Certificates | Completion Certificates |
| Multiple Instructors | Multiple Instructors |
| Time-Limited Courses | Time-Limited Courses |
| Prerequisite Lessons | |
| Bulk Import Students | Bulk Import Students |
| Bulk Import Courses | Bulk Import Courses |
| Unlimited Students | Unlimited Students |
| Multiple Admins | Multiple Admins |
| SSL Certificate | SSL Certificate |
| Hidden Courses | Hidden Courses |
| Themes and Colors | Themes and Colors |
| Communities |
Teachable Pricing
Teachable offers three plans available in a monthly billing cycle or discounted for annual purchases. You can also launch your school for free before determining which paid tier you want.
- Basic: $39.00 per month or $29.00 in the annual plan
- Professional: $99.00 per month or $79.00 annually
- Business: $499.00 monthly or $399.00 paid up-front each year.
Thinkific Pricing
Thinkific also has three plans which include annual discounts. They also offer a free trial to explore.
- Basic: $49.00 per month or $39.00 per month Annually
- Pro: $99.00 per month or $79.00 per month paid up-front each year
- Premier: $499.00 per month or $399.00 per month annually
Thinkific Communities
A strong community can make all the difference. It provides a support system, a sounding board, and a sense of camaraderie. Thinkific introduced Thinkific Communities: a place for you to connect with your students outside of your course content.
Whether you want to build a Community for your entire school or just for individual courses, they’ve covered you. Each Community offers a dedicated page on your Thinkific site. Students and teachers can interact through written posts and comments.
Communities are accessible at either a site level or associated with specific courses or bundles. So go ahead and start building those bonds.
Live Lessons
While Teachable offers a zoom integration through Zapier, Thinkific has a native integration that offers more features such as breakout rooms and poll questions. It’s easy to see why this would be advantageous for instructors looking to create more interactive and engaging courses.
Affiliate Program Features
You’ve written the perfect online course. You’re excited to get started teaching, but you’re not sure how to get students. One option is to offer an affiliate program for your course through a third-party platform like teachable. By providing an affiliate program, you allow other people to promote your course for a percentage of the sales. This can be a great way to get exposure for your course and reach a larger audience.
Plus, it can be a way to make some extra income from your online teaching. If you’re interested in offering an affiliate program for your course, teachable is the best online course platform. You can easily set up an affiliate program and promote your course to a broader audience with teachable. So if you’re ready to take your online teaching to the next level, consider using teachable to offer an affiliate program for your students.
Being a 6-figure earner in affiliate marketing with an emphasis on software, I think it’s important to point out the various affiliate programs and compare thinkific vs. teachable.
The first is how you earn as an affiliate, and the second is how you can benefit from others promoting your course affiliate program.
Winner: Teachable wins the top award again as it offers the complete affiliate program.
Teachable
Teachable has an affiliate program through its platform vs. a 3rd party affiliate network.
- 30% Commission Recurring Forever
- 90-day cookie
- Monthly Payments
Teachable has a built-in affiliate program that you can offer to your students. The school affiliate program allows you to choose how much commission you give to any student. This amount can vary from student to student. You can also choose the cookie duration.
They offer a paid service to manage your affiliate payouts.
Thinkific
- 20% Commission Recurring Forever
- Bonus on Annual Plans ( $25, $75, or $150)
- 90-Day Cookie
- Pays Monthly
- Assets for Promotion
Thinkific offers a school affiliate program that allows you to choose commissions that can vary from student to student. The cookie duration is 30 days.
Payouts are manual. This means you are responsible for manually submitting the payouts. When comparing thinkific vs. teachable affiliate programs, I favor Thinkific a bit on this one.
Course Creation Limits
If you are going to be creating more than one course, you may care about how many products you can create in each platform.
Having a vision for how you might scale your school is important so that you choose a platform that can grow with you.
Teachable again is the clear winner in the unlimited course options.
Teachable
- Unlimited Courses
Thinkific
- Basic Plan and Above: Unlimited
Multiple Instructors
Thinkific vs. Teachable Transaction fees
Unlike our previous categories, when we compare Thinkific vs. teachable, Teachable comes in last on this one with 1-10% transaction fees on the free plan and 5% on the basic plan, while the others have no transaction fees.
As long as you are using professional or above with Teachable, they would all be 0% at that level.
Teachable
- 1-10% on the Free Plan
- 5% on the Basic Plan
- 0% (new signups after 10/18) on additional plans
Thinkific
- 0% Transaction Fees on All Plans
Thinkific vs. Teachable Students
When determining which online learning platform to use for your educational goals, consider the number of students you anticipate having. Both Thinkific and Teachable offer unlimited students for their schools, so you can be confident that your chosen platform can accommodate your needs. While both platforms are comparable in this respect, there are other features that you may want to take into account when making your decision.
For example, Thinkific offers more features and customization options than Teachable, while Teachable has a more streamlined and user-friendly interface. Ultimately, the best platform will depend on your specific needs and preferences. However, knowing that both Thinkific and Teachable can accommodate an unlimited number of students is good to know.
Teachable
- Unlimited on all Plans
Thinkific
- Unlimited
Drag & Drop Builder
If you’re looking for an easy way to build your online course, you can’t go wrong with Teachable or Thinkific. Both platforms offer a drag and drop builder that makes it simple to create engaging, interactive lessons. Plus, they both provide a variety of templates and themes to choose from, so you can give your course its own unique look and feel.
And if you need any help along the way, both Teachable and Thinkific have excellent customer support teams that are always happy to assist. So whether you’re just getting started in the world of online learning or you’re a seasoned pro, Teachable and Thinkific are both great choices.
Drip Lessons
Teachable and Thinkific both offer drip lessons, which can help you release content gradually over time. This can be helpful if you have a lot of content to cover, or if you want to pace your students’ learning. With drip lessons, you can set up your course so that new lessons are unlocked automatically after a certain amount of time has passed, or after the student has completed a previous lesson.
This can help to keep students on track, and it can also give you more control over the pacing of your course. If you’re looking for a way to release content gradually, then drip lessons may be the right option for you.
FAQ
Is Thinkific of Teachable Better?
This is a difficult question to answer. It depends on your needs and preferences as an instructor. If you’re looking for a more comprehensive platform with built-in student management tools and integrations, then Teachable might be the better choice. On the other hand, if you’re looking for a platform that offers more flexibility in pricing and promotions, Thinkific might be the better option. Ultimately, the best way to decide is to try out both platforms and see which one you prefer.
Is Thinkific Really Free?
Thinkific does have a free plan, but it is very limited. For example, you can only create three courses with the free plan. In addition, you’ll have to display Thinkific ads on your courses, and you won’t be able to use your own domain name. If you want to remove these limitations, you’ll need to upgrade to one of Thinkific’s paid plans.
