Podia is the cheaper platform for most solo creators on monthly billing, while Thinkific wins for course businesses that need graded quizzes, live cohorts and a no-fee plan above about $800 a month on annual billing.
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Table of Contents
- Why This Comparison Matters
- Quick Verdict: Choose Thinkific or Podia
- Thinkific Overview
- Podia Overview
- Head-to-Head: Pricing and Fees
- Worked Costs at Four Revenue Levels
- Head-to-Head: Features
- Head-to-Head: Ease of Use
- Email, Communities and Other Limits
- Who Should Choose Thinkific?
- Who Should Choose Podia?
- Migration Guide: Moving Between Thinkific and Podia
- Key Takeaways
- Frequently Asked Questions
- The Bottom Line
Why This Comparison Matters
Thinkific and Podia both let you sell online courses from your own domain. Both also sell memberships, communities, coaching and digital downloads. On a feature checklist, they look close.
The pricing tells a different story. Thinkific’s cheapest plan costs $109 a month on monthly billing and charges no Thinkific transaction fee when you use Thinkific Payments. Podia’s cheapest plan costs $49 a month but adds a 5% transaction fee on every sale.
This guide compares the published US prices for both platforms, works out which plan is cheapest at four revenue levels, and gives a clear pick for each type of creator. It completes our course platform series. If you read our Kajabi vs Thinkific comparison or our Teachable vs Podia cost breakdown, the method is the same: plan price plus platform fee, at fixed sales levels.
Quick Verdict: Choose Thinkific or Podia
Choose Thinkific if:
- You run a course business that needs quizzes, graded assignments, certificates and live cohorts on the entry plan.
- You bill annually and sell more than about $800 a month, where Thinkific Start at $82 a month with no Thinkific transaction fee becomes the cheapest plan in this comparison.
- You plan to sell seats to companies, since Thinkific lists B2B sales and invoicing on its Grow plan.
- You want a 30-day free trial instead of a 14-day one.
Choose Podia if:
- You bill monthly. Podia Shaker at $99 a month is $10 cheaper than Thinkific Start, and neither charges a platform fee.
- You earn less than about $800 a month, where Podia Mover at $42 to $49 a month plus 5% is the cheapest option on either billing cycle.
- You want email marketing included. Every Podia plan bundles Podia Email, while Thinkific lists bulk email to students only from Grow upward.
Thinkific Overview
Thinkific is a learning platform for selling courses, communities, memberships, coaching and digital downloads. It aims at creators who run courses as a business and at companies that train customers or staff.
Key strengths:
- Unlimited courses on every plan. Thinkific’s pricing page lists unlimited courses, digital downloads and coaching products on Start, Grow, Expand and Plus.
- Learning tools on the entry plan. Start includes quizzes, assignments, certificates, live cohorts and coaching with unlimited Zoom sessions and bookable calendars.
- No Thinkific transaction fee. None of the listed plans add a percentage fee on sales. Thinkific’s FAQ says customers who use Thinkific Payments do not pay a third-party gateway fee.
Key weaknesses:
- No bulk email on Start. Thinkific lists “Bulk Email to Students” as not included on Start, so most Start users need a separate email tool.
- Thinkific branding on Start. Removing Thinkific logos and references requires the Grow plan.
- No PayPal on Start. The plan comparison table lists PayPal payments on Grow and above only.
Pricing summary: Start costs $109 a month billed monthly or $82 a month billed annually. Grow costs $219 a month or $164 a month annually. Expand costs $499 a month or $374 a month annually. Plus is quoted by sales. Thinkific has no free plan and offers a 30-day free trial. These figures come from Thinkific’s US pricing page as captured on October 22, 2026 by the Internet Archive, because the live page shows local currency to visitors outside the US.
Podia Overview
Podia is an all-in-one creator platform that sells online courses, digital downloads, coaching, community memberships and events from one website. Podia’s pricing page says more than 15,000 creators run their business on it.
Key strengths:
- Email marketing on every plan. Podia Email is included up to 100 subscribers on Mover, 500 on Shaker and 1,000 on Earthquaker.
- Lower entry price. Mover costs $49 a month on monthly billing, $60 less than Thinkific Start.
- One feature set for everyone. Podia lists community, courses, downloads, coaching, events, a website and blog, a custom domain, landing pages, sales tax handling for 230 countries and built-in checkout on all plans.
Key weaknesses:
- 5% fee on the entry plan. Mover charges a 5% transaction fee on top of payment processing.
- Product caps below the top tier. Mover allows 50 products and Shaker allows 150. Only Earthquaker is unlimited.
- Short refund window. Podia refunds a payment only if you ask within 72 hours of it, and it does not give partial refunds on annual plans.
Pricing summary: Mover costs $49 a month billed monthly or $42 a month billed annually ($504 a year). Shaker costs $99 a month or $84 a month annually ($1,008 a year). Earthquaker costs $179 a month or $150 a month annually ($1,800 a year). Podia offers a 14-day free trial with no credit card required.
Head-to-Head: Pricing and Fees
The table below lines up each platform’s published US prices. Both platforms are compared in US dollars.
| Fee Type | Thinkific | Podia |
|---|---|---|
| Entry plan (monthly billing) | Start, $109/mo | Mover, $49/mo |
| Entry plan (annual billing) | $82/mo | $42/mo |
| Entry plan platform fee | None listed | 5% per sale |
| Second plan (monthly billing) | Grow, $219/mo | Shaker, $99/mo |
| Second plan (annual billing) | $164/mo | $84/mo |
| Second plan platform fee | None listed | 0% |
| Third plan (monthly billing) | Expand, $499/mo | Earthquaker, $179/mo |
| Third plan (annual billing) | $374/mo | $150/mo |
| Card processing | 2.9% with Thinkific Payments, per its FAQ | 2.9% + 30¢ via Stripe or PayPal |
| Free trial | 30 days | 14 days, no card |
| Free plan | No | No |
Pricing as of November 12, 2026, from podia.com/pricing and Thinkific’s US pricing page as captured on October 22, 2026. Fees change. Always verify current rates on each platform’s official pricing page before you commit. This article is general information, not financial or tax advice.
Payment processing
Thinkific’s FAQ says its built-in processor, Thinkific Payments, charges 2.9%, “in line with other processors like Stripe and Paypal.” If you use Stripe or PayPal instead, Thinkific says an extra third-party gateway fee applies in select countries and varies by plan, and the processor’s own fees still apply.
Podia does not process payments itself. Its FAQ says Stripe or PayPal charges a standard fee of 2.9% + 30¢, which may vary by location, and that this fee is not a Podia charge.
For US card sales, processing is close enough on both that the plan price and Podia’s 5% Mover fee decide the cheaper option.
Break-even points
Here is where each plan becomes the cheaper choice on monthly billing:
- Podia Mover vs Podia Shaker: the 5% fee costs more than the $50 price gap once monthly sales pass $1,000.
- Podia Mover vs Thinkific Start: Mover stays cheaper until monthly sales reach $1,200, where $49 plus 5% equals $109.
- Podia Shaker vs Thinkific Start: Shaker is $10 a month cheaper at every sales level, because neither charges a platform fee.
On monthly billing, Podia has the cheapest plan at every revenue level: Mover below $1,000 a month and Shaker above it.
Annual billing changes the picture:
- Podia Mover vs Thinkific Start: $42 plus 5% equals $82 at $800 a month in sales.
- Podia Mover vs Podia Shaker: $42 plus 5% equals $84 at $840 a month.
- Thinkific Start vs Podia Shaker: Start is $2 a month cheaper at every sales level.
So on annual billing, Mover is cheapest below $800 a month and Thinkific Start is cheapest above it, by a margin of $24 a year over Shaker.
Worked Costs at Four Revenue Levels
This table shows the monthly platform cost (plan price plus platform transaction fee) at four sales levels on monthly billing. Card processing is left out because both platforms quote 2.9% for US cards.
| Monthly sales | Thinkific Start | Thinkific Grow | Podia Mover | Podia Shaker |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $300 | $109 | $219 | $64 | $99 |
| $1,000 | $109 | $219 | $99 | $99 |
| $3,000 | $109 | $219 | $199 | $99 |
| $8,000 | $109 | $219 | $449 | $99 |
At $300 a month, Podia Mover costs $45 less than Thinkific Start. At $1,000, Mover and Shaker tie at $99, still $10 below Start. At $3,000 and $8,000, Shaker stays $10 a month below Start.
Now the same four levels on annual billing, shown as the monthly equivalent:
| Monthly sales | Thinkific Start | Podia Mover | Podia Shaker |
|---|---|---|---|
| $300 | $82 | $57 | $84 |
| $1,000 | $82 | $92 | $84 |
| $3,000 | $82 | $192 | $84 |
| $8,000 | $82 | $442 | $84 |
On annual billing, Thinkific Start beats both Podia plans from $1,000 a month upward, if only by $2 a month against Shaker.
A single $50 course sale
On a $50 course sale, here is the platform fee you pay before card processing:
- Thinkific Start: no Thinkific transaction fee, so you keep $50.00 before processing.
- Podia Mover: a 5% fee of $2.50, so you keep $47.50 before processing.
- Podia Shaker or Earthquaker: no Podia fee, so you keep $50.00 before processing.
With Podia’s quoted 2.9% + 30¢ Stripe rate ($1.75 on a $50 sale), a Mover seller keeps $45.75 and a Shaker seller keeps $48.25.
Head-to-Head: Features
Both platforms cover the same product types. The gap is in depth. Thinkific goes deeper on teaching tools. Podia goes wider on marketing tools.
| Feature | Thinkific Start | Podia Mover |
|---|---|---|
| Courses | Unlimited | 50 products total |
| Digital downloads | Included | Included |
| Coaching | Included, with Zoom sessions and bookable calendars | Included |
| Community | 1 community, 10 spaces | 25 spaces |
| Quizzes, assignments, certificates | Included | Not listed on pricing page |
| Live cohorts | Included | Not listed on pricing page |
| Email marketing | Bulk email not included (Grow and up) | Podia Email, 100 subscribers |
| Website and blog | Custom domain and site | Website, blog, landing pages |
| PayPal | Grow and up | Shaker and up |
Where Thinkific is stronger
Thinkific packs more teaching tools into each plan. Start includes quizzes, graded assignments and branded completion certificates. Grow adds exams and question banks, student engagement reports, and B2B sales with invoicing for companies that buy seats in bulk.
Thinkific also lists a branded iOS and Android app as a $199-a-month add-on. That matters if your students learn on their phones and you want your own app in the stores.
Where Podia is stronger
Podia bundles the marketing stack. Every plan includes Podia Email, a website with a blog, landing pages, sales tax handling for 230 countries and more than 20 currencies. Shaker adds affiliate marketing, upsells, PayPal and Zapier.
For a solo creator who sells a few courses, a template pack and a paid community, that bundle can replace two or three separate subscriptions.
Head-to-Head: Ease of Use
Both are hosted platforms. Neither requires you to install software, manage a server or write code.
Thinkific’s course builder is drag-and-drop, organized into chapters and lessons, with quizzes and assignments slotted in between. The extra teaching tools add more settings to learn, which pays off if you need them and slows you down if you don’t.
Podia’s setup is lighter. A course, a download and a community live side by side in one dashboard, and the same account holds your email list and website. Podia’s pricing page also says it helps migrate products from another platform: up to 50 on Mover and up to 150 on Shaker and Earthquaker.
Who gets up and running faster? Podia, for a creator selling a simple course plus downloads. Thinkific, for a creator who already has a structured curriculum with tests and certificates, because those tools are ready on day one.
Support differs too. Thinkific lists email and chat support on Start and adds phone and priority chat on Grow. Podia lists email and chat support on every plan.
Email, Communities and Other Limits
Plan limits are where the headline price can mislead you.
Podia includes 100 email subscribers on Mover, 500 on Shaker and 1,000 on Earthquaker. Larger lists cost extra. On Mover, Podia’s pricing page lists 1,000 subscribers at $18 a month and 2,500 subscribers at $28 a month on monthly billing. A Mover creator with 2,500 subscribers pays $49 plus $28, or $77 a month, before the 5% fee.
Thinkific lists bulk email to students, “with no monthly sending limit,” on Grow and above. On Start, you will likely pay for an outside newsletter tool. Add that tool’s price to Thinkific’s $109 before comparing.
Students and bandwidth
Thinkific caps “current students” (people with active access to at least one course) at 10,000 on Start, Grow and Expand. Course video bandwidth is 200 GB a month on Start, 400 GB on Grow and 1,000 GB on Expand.
Podia lists unlimited customers on every plan. It caps videos instead: 500 on Mover, 1,000 on Shaker and unlimited on Earthquaker.
Communities and team seats
Thinkific allows 1 community with 10 spaces on Start, 3 communities with 20 spaces on Grow, and 10 communities with 200 spaces on Expand. It allows 2 administrators on Start, 6 on Grow and 15 on Expand.
Podia lists 25 community spaces on Mover, 100 on Shaker and unlimited on Earthquaker.
Who Should Choose Thinkific?
- Structured course businesses. You need quizzes, graded assignments, certificates and cohorts, and you don’t want to bolt them on.
- Creators on annual billing above about $800 a month. Thinkific Start at $82 a month is the lowest flat cost here once Mover’s 5% fee grows.
- Large or growing catalogs. Unlimited courses on every plan means no product cap to plan around.
- B2B training sellers. Grow adds bulk seat sales and invoicing for company buyers.
- Creators who want a long trial. Thinkific’s 30-day free trial is twice as long as Podia’s.
Who Should Choose Podia?
- Creators on monthly billing. Podia’s cheapest plan beats Thinkific Start at every sales level in our worked table.
- New sellers under about $800 a month. Mover at $49 a month, or $42 on annual billing, keeps fixed costs low while revenue is small.
- Mixed catalogs. You sell a course, a few downloads, coaching calls and a paid community, and want one checkout and one email list.
- Creators without an email tool yet. Podia Email is included on every plan, starting at 100 subscribers. Our Podia vs Payhip comparison covers a cheaper option for download-only sellers.
- Sellers who want to try before entering a card. Podia’s 14-day trial needs no credit card.
Migration Guide: Moving Between Thinkific and Podia
Switching course platforms takes planning more than technical skill. Expect a few days for a small catalog and two to three weeks for a large one with active members.
- Export your student list. Download a CSV of students, emails and enrollments from your current platform before you change anything.
- Inventory your products. List every course, download, bundle, coupon and membership tier, with prices.
- Check product caps. Moving to Podia Mover means 50 products at most. Moving to Thinkific means no course cap.
- Ask about migration help. Podia says it migrates up to 50 products on Mover and up to 150 on Shaker and Earthquaker, including course content, downloads and customer emails.
- Rebuild quizzes and certificates. Thinkific quizzes, assignments and certificates won’t carry over to Podia as-is. Plan to recreate or drop them.
- Move recurring billing carefully. Active subscriptions are tied to your payment processor. Check how your processor handles moving subscribers before you cancel anything.
- Run both platforms for one billing cycle. Keep the old platform live until every student has confirmed access on the new one.
- Redirect your domain last. Point your custom domain to the new platform only after testing checkout and course access.
The most common mistake is canceling the old plan before students have logged in to the new one. Keep the overlap.
Key Takeaways
- Thinkific Start costs $109 a month, or $82 on annual billing, with no Thinkific transaction fee.
- Podia Mover costs $49 a month, or $42 on annual billing, plus a 5% fee per sale.
- On monthly billing, Podia has the cheapest plan at every sales level in our table.
- On annual billing, Thinkific Start becomes the cheapest plan above $800 a month in sales.
- Thinkific includes quizzes, assignments, certificates and live cohorts on its entry plan.
- Podia includes email marketing on every plan, from 100 subscribers on Mover.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Podia cheaper than Thinkific?
On monthly billing, yes. Podia Shaker at $99 a month is $10 cheaper than Thinkific Start at $109, and Podia Mover is cheaper still below $1,000 a month in sales. On annual billing, Thinkific Start at $82 a month becomes the cheapest plan once sales pass $800 a month.
Does Thinkific charge transaction fees?
Thinkific’s listed plans do not add a Thinkific transaction fee on sales. Card processing through Thinkific Payments is quoted at 2.9% in Thinkific’s FAQ. If you use Stripe or PayPal, a third-party gateway fee can apply in select countries and varies by plan.
Does Podia charge transaction fees?
Podia charges a 5% transaction fee on the Mover plan. Shaker and Earthquaker have no Podia fees. Stripe or PayPal still charge their own processing fee, which Podia quotes as 2.9% + 30¢.
Which is better for beginners?
Podia is easier for most beginners. Mover is $60 a month cheaper than Thinkific Start on monthly billing, and courses, downloads, email and your website live in one dashboard. Thinkific suits beginners who already have a structured curriculum with tests.
Does Thinkific have a free plan?
No. Thinkific’s FAQ says it has no free plan and offers a 30-day free trial instead. Podia also has no free plan and offers a 14-day free trial with no credit card.
Which platform has better email marketing?
Podia, because every plan includes Podia Email, starting at 100 subscribers on Mover. Thinkific lists bulk email to students only on Grow and above, so Start users usually need an outside email tool.
Which is better for quizzes and certificates?
Thinkific. Its Start plan includes quizzes, assignments and branded certificates, and Grow adds exams and question banks. Podia’s pricing page does not list quizzes or certificates among its plan features.
How many courses can I sell on each platform?
Thinkific allows unlimited courses on every plan. Podia counts products instead: 50 on Mover, 150 on Shaker and unlimited on Earthquaker.
Can I accept PayPal on both platforms?
Yes, but not on the entry plans. Thinkific lists PayPal payments on Grow and above. Podia lists PayPal on Shaker and Earthquaker.
How long does it take to move from Thinkific to Podia?
A small catalog can move in a few days. Larger catalogs with active members can take two to three weeks, mostly for rebuilding quizzes and testing access. Podia says it will migrate up to 50 products on Mover and up to 150 on higher plans.
Are there hidden costs on either platform?
The main extra costs are outside tools and add-ons. On Thinkific Start, budget for a separate email tool, and note the branded mobile app is a $199-a-month add-on. On Podia, email lists above your plan’s included subscribers cost extra, such as $28 a month for 2,500 subscribers on Mover.
What happens if I cancel?
Export your student list and content before canceling on either platform. Podia refunds a payment only if you ask within 72 hours of it and does not give partial refunds on annual plans. Check Thinkific’s terms for its refund rules before you commit to annual billing.
The Bottom Line
For most solo creators, Podia costs less. On monthly billing, Podia has the cheapest plan at every sales level in our table, and it bundles email, a website and a community into one bill. Thinkific earns its higher sticker price when you need built-in teaching tools (quizzes, assignments, certificates, cohorts) or when you bill annually and sell more than about $800 a month, where Start at $82 with no Thinkific fee comes out ahead.
If you sell a course plus downloads and want one simple bill, go with Podia. If you run a structured course business, sell to companies, or plan to grow past a few dozen courses, go with Thinkific.
Both offer free trials, so start one on each before you migrate a single lesson. Compare Teachable vs Thinkific next if Thinkific is on your shortlist, or read Kajabi vs Teachable for the two other big course platforms.
Related Articles
- Kajabi vs Podia: Which Costs Less for Creators (2026): the all-in-one comparison for creators who want funnels as well as courses.
- Payhip vs Thinkific: Course and Download Costs (2026): when a lighter checkout beats a full course platform.
- Podia vs Gumroad: Which Costs Less for Creators (2026): Podia against a pay-per-sale marketplace option.
About This Research
Chloe Cruz has spent four years writing about eCommerce and covers platforms for CartCompare (LinkedIn).
This comparison is based on Podia’s live US pricing page (checked November 12, 2026) and Thinkific’s US pricing page and FAQ as captured by the Internet Archive on October 22, 2026. The cost tables are our own calculations from those published rates at four stated sales levels. They leave out sales tax, refunds, chargebacks and the cost of outside tools.
Content reviewed and updated: 2026-11-12
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