Thinkific Alternatives 2026: 5 Options, 2 Free
Thinkific alternatives: Moodle, Systeme.io, Podia, Teachable and 1 more. Prices and licenses checked October 25, 2026.
•3 min read•Online Courses & Creator Platforms
Verdict:Leave Thinkific when you have outgrown its Start plan and want a cheaper entry point, or when your courses no longer need the platform's full course player. Thinkific has no free plan, and its Start plan is $82 a month billed annually or $109 monthly. The cheapest free route is Moodle, the open-source learning management system: the software costs nothing and you pay only for hosting, but you need technical work to set it up. Systeme.io offers a free plan with 2,000 contacts and 3 funnels, which fits a creator selling one course through a funnel, though its course features are thinner. Podia is cheaper to start at $42 a month billed annually, with a 14-day trial and no card required. Teachable's Starter plan is $29 a month billed yearly, a lower annual entry price that comes with a 7-day trial. Kajabi costs $143 a month billed annually, which makes sense only if you want its full marketing suite. Thinkific remains reasonable if you need its course player and do not want to host anything.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Price | Platforms | Best for | Tested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Moodle | Free (Software is free open source; you pay for hosting, or buy managed hosting elsewhere) | Web browser, Self-hosted (PHP) | Schools and training teams that can run a server | Docs only |
| Systeme.io | Free (2,000 contacts, 3 sales funnels, unlimited emails); paid from $17 per month, billed monthly (Startup) | Web browser | Creators selling a single course with funnels | Docs only |
| Podia | Paid from $42 per month, billed annually (Mover; $49 monthly; 5% transaction fee) | Web browser | Creators selling courses, downloads and memberships | Docs only |
| Teachable | Paid from $29 per month, billed yearly (Starter; $39 monthly; 7.5% transaction fee) | Web browser | Creators who want a lower annual entry price | Docs only |
| Kajabi | Paid from $143 per month, billed annually (Basic; $179 billed monthly) | Web browser | Creators who want marketing and courses in one suite | Docs only |
| Uscreen | Paid from $49 per month (Starter, up to 100 subscribers, monthly billing only) | Web browser | Online courses | Docs only |
Independent comparison. Paid placements are labelled separately; editorial links earn no affiliate commissions. Learn more.
Good fit if
- You want a free open-source course platform and can host it (Moodle is the pick)
- You sell one course through funnels with a free plan (Systeme.io is the pick)
- You want a cheaper paid course platform with a trial (Podia is the pick)
- You want the lowest annual price for a course platform (Teachable is the pick)
- You want a course platform bundled with marketing tools (Kajabi is the pick)
Not ideal if
- You rely on Thinkific features or integrations that these tools do not replicate
Thinkific today: Paid from $82 per month, billed annually (Start; $109 monthly) (Thinkific pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Why people look for Thinkific alternatives
Thinkific has no free plan: Start is $82 a month billed annually ($109 monthly) with a 30-day trial. Start allows 2 administrators and 1 community, and leaves out the API and webhooks, bulk email to students, exams, reporting and removal of Thinkific branding, which come with Grow at $164 a month. Thinkific Payments costs 2.9%, and using Stripe or PayPal adds a gateway fee that varies by plan. SCORM and single sign-on need Plus.
Moodle
Compared with Thinkific: Open-source learning management system you host yourself; the software is free and you pay only for hosting or a managed host. You lose Thinkific's hosted checkout and polished course pages, but avoid any monthly platform fee.
Price: Free (Software is free open source; you pay for hosting, or buy managed hosting elsewhere) (Moodle pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web browser, Self-hosted (PHP). GPL-3.0 (open source).
Project activity: 7.6k GitHub stars · last commit Oct 21, 2026
Best for: Schools and training teams that can run a server.
Worth knowing: No built-in storefront; selling courses needs payment plugins. Price source is the repository README.
Systeme.io
Compared with Thinkific: Free plan includes 2,000 contacts, 3 sales funnels and unlimited emails. Startup is $17 a month billed monthly. It handles course sales with funnels, but lacks Thinkific's course-player features.
Price: Free (2,000 contacts, 3 sales funnels, unlimited emails); paid from $17 per month, billed monthly (Startup) (Systeme.io pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web browser. Proprietary SaaS.
Best for: Creators selling a single course with funnels.
Podia
Compared with Thinkific: No free plan, but a 14-day trial with no card needed. Mover is $42 a month billed annually against Thinkific's $82 annual Start plan. It is cheaper to start, but its course-builder depth is smaller.
Price: Paid from $42 per month, billed annually (Mover; $49 monthly; 5% transaction fee) (Podia pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web browser. Proprietary SaaS.
Best for: Creators selling courses, downloads and memberships.
Teachable
Compared with Thinkific: No free plan, only a 7-day trial per plan. Starter is $29 a month billed yearly, below Thinkific's $82 annual Start plan. You get a lower entry price, but the fee structure and feature limits on the Starter tier differ from Thinkific's.
Price: Paid from $29 per month, billed yearly (Starter; $39 monthly; 7.5% transaction fee) (Teachable pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web browser. Proprietary SaaS.
Best for: Creators who want a lower annual entry price.
Kajabi
Compared with Thinkific: No free plan. Basic is $143 a month billed annually, which costs more than Thinkific's Start plan. You gain an all-in-one marketing suite with email and site building, but pay substantially more for it.
Price: Paid from $143 per month, billed annually (Basic; $179 billed monthly) (Kajabi pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web browser. Proprietary SaaS.
Best for: Creators who want marketing and courses in one suite.
Other popular options (paid)
Uscreen
Compared with Thinkific: Video-first course and membership platform: Starter is $49 per month capped at 100 subscribers, Growth is $149 per month plus $1.99 per subscriber with no cap. Free for 14 days.
Price: Paid from $49 per month (Starter, up to 100 subscribers, monthly billing only) (Uscreen pricing, checked 2026-10-25).
Which one to pick
- You want a free open-source course platform and can host it: Moodle
- You sell one course through funnels with a free plan: Systeme.io
- You want a cheaper paid course platform with a trial: Podia
- You want the lowest annual price for a course platform: Teachable
- You want a course platform bundled with marketing tools: Kajabi
Limits of this review
Docs-only for Moodle, Systeme.io, Podia, Teachable, Kajabi: we did not install or run them, so feature claims come from vendor pages and we did not test import from Thinkific. Vendor prices and free limits change; confirm on the linked pricing page before you buy or migrate.
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Kevin Fan
Kevin Fan is a SaaS founder. He runs Free Instead Of, which tracks free and open-source alternatives to paid software and checks each price and free-plan limit against the vendor's own pages.
Methodology
Based on official pricing and product pages checked between 2026-10-22 and 2026-10-25: Thinkific, Moodle, Systeme.io, Podia, Teachable, Kajabi, Uscreen. Prices, free limits and licenses are the figures shown on those pages on those dates. No tool on this page was installed or run. No accounts were created.