The Real Cost of Course Platform Transaction Fees

Transaction fees are the cost you never see on the pricing page — until they've quietly consumed thousands of dollars of your course revenue. A 5% transaction fee sounds small when you're making your first sale. At $75,000 in annual revenue, that same fee costs you $3,750 every year. Over five years, it's $18,750 gone.

I'm Abe Crystal, PhD. I've spent 14 years building Ruzuku, an online course platform where more than 32,000 courses have launched. We've never charged a transaction fee on any plan, so I have strong opinions about this topic — but I'll lay out the numbers and let you decide what makes sense for your business.

This analysis covers every major course platform's fee structure, shows you the real cost at different revenue levels, and identifies the hidden costs that go beyond the headline transaction fee percentage.

What Transaction Fees Actually Are (and Are Not)

Before diving into platform-specific numbers, let's clarify what we're talking about. There are two separate fees that get conflated in platform marketing:

• Payment processing fees — charged by Stripe, PayPal, or the platform's own payment processor. Typically 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction. Every platform passes these through, regardless of their own fee structure. You can't avoid these.
• Platform transaction fees — an additional percentage the course platform takes from each sale, on top of payment processing. This is the fee that varies dramatically between platforms and plans, and it's the one you can avoid.

When a platform advertises "no transaction fees," they mean no platform fee. You still pay Stripe or PayPal. When a platform charges 5%, that's 5% on top of the payment processor's ~2.9%. Your actual deduction per sale is closer to 8%.

Platform Fee Comparison: Every Major Platform in 2026

Here's the current transaction fee structure for each major course platform, broken down by plan tier. All pricing is as of early 2026. For detailed feature comparisons, see our platform comparison hub.

A few patterns stand out. Teachable's Starter plan carries the highest transaction fee at 7.5% — nearly triple what most competitors charge. Platforms like Mighty Networks and Circle charge transaction fees across all their plans, with no zero-fee tier available. And Thinkific's fee depends on which payment processor you use: their in-house TCommerce is fee-free, but connecting your own Stripe account adds a 5% platform fee on the Basic plan.

For a deeper dive into how Teachable's pricing compares feature by feature, see our Ruzuku vs. Teachable comparison.

Revenue Math: What You Actually Pay at Different Revenue Levels

Transaction fee percentages are abstract. Dollar amounts aren't. The table below shows the total annual cost (subscription fee + transaction fees) at four revenue levels for each platform's lowest-priced plan that includes course selling.

Annual subscription costs calculated from monthly prices. Ruzuku at $74.75/mo (annual billing). Payment processing fees (Stripe/PayPal ~2.9% + $0.30) are excluded — those apply equally to all platforms.

The pattern is clear. At $25,000 in annual revenue, the spread between the cheapest option (Ruzuku at $897/year) and the most expensive (Teachable Starter at $2,343) is $1,446. Meaningful, but manageable. At $100,000 in revenue, that gap widens to $7,071. Teachable Starter costs nearly nine times what Ruzuku costs at that level.

Notice that Kajabi's $179/month looks expensive in the low-revenue column, but its flat cost becomes competitive once you're earning above $50,000 annually. That's by design — Kajabi bundles email marketing, landing pages, and automation tools that would otherwise require separate subscriptions. More on that trade-off shortly.

The 5-Year View: Cumulative Cost Over Time

Most course creators don't think in five-year time horizons. But you should, because the compounding effect of transaction fees is significant. Assuming steady revenue of $75,000 per year over five years, here's what each platform costs you in total:

Assumes steady $75,000/year in course revenue over 5 years. Subscription costs use monthly pricing billed annually where available.

Over five years at $75K/year, staying on Teachable's Starter plan would cost you $25,980 more than Ruzuku. Even Circle's relatively modest 2% fee adds up to an $8,355 premium. These aren't trivial numbers — they represent courses you could create, marketing you could fund, or simply profit you could retain.

Hidden Costs Beyond the Transaction Fee

Transaction fees are the most visible cost difference between platforms, but they're not the only one. Several platforms impose limits that effectively act as hidden fees — forcing you to upgrade (and pay more) as your business grows.

Product and student limits

Some platforms cap how many courses, coaching products, or students you can have on lower-tier plans. When you hit the cap, your only option is to upgrade to a plan that may cost significantly more — even if you don't need any of the other features on that higher tier.

• Teachable Starter: Limited to 5 products (courses + coaching). A creator with 6 courses must upgrade to the $89/mo Builder plan.
• Kajabi Basic: Limited to 3 products and 2,500 contacts. If you have a fourth course idea, you're looking at the $249/mo Growth plan.
• Ruzuku: Unlimited courses, unlimited students on all plans.

Feature gating

Features you might consider essential — affiliate programs, advanced analytics, removal of platform branding, priority support — are often locked behind higher tiers.

• Affiliate marketing: Teachable requires Pro ($199/mo) for affiliates. Podia requires Shaker ($89/mo). On Ruzuku, coupon codes are available on all plans.
• Custom domain: Available on all paid plans for most platforms, but some (like Mighty Networks) require higher tiers for full white-labeling.
• Advanced reporting: Kajabi's Basic plan includes limited analytics. Detailed revenue reports require Growth ($249/mo).

Email and marketing tools

Some platforms bundle email marketing; others don't. If yours doesn't, add $20-100/month for a service like ConvertKit, Mailchimp, or ActiveCampaign. This is where Kajabi's higher base price starts to look more reasonable — it includes email marketing, landing pages, and basic automation that would otherwise be separate costs.

When Paying More for the Platform Makes Sense

Not every creator should optimize for the lowest possible platform cost. In some cases, paying more for your course platform saves money overall because it replaces other tools.

The Kajabi math: At $179/month, Kajabi is the most expensive platform in this comparison. But it includes email marketing, a website builder, landing pages, and automation pipelines. If you'd otherwise pay $49/month for ConvertKit + $29/month for a landing page tool + $39/month for a course platform, your total is $117/month. Kajabi's $179/month premium is only $62/month for the convenience of having everything in one place — and for some creators, that consolidation is worth it. For a full feature-by-feature breakdown, see our Ruzuku vs. Kajabi comparison.

The minimalist math: If you already have an email provider you like, don't need a built-in website, and just want a straightforward course platform with zero transaction fees, the most cost-effective path is a focused platform like Ruzuku. You pay for what you use, and nothing extra. See our pricing page for current plans.

The community-first math: If your primary need is community (with courses as a secondary feature), Circle or Mighty Networks may make sense despite their transaction fees. Their community features — event calendars, discussion forums, member directories — are more mature than what most course-first platforms offer. The 2-3% transaction fee is the cost of that specialization.

The Breakeven Point: When to Upgrade Plans

For platforms that offer both a fee-charging lower tier and a fee-free upper tier, there's a specific revenue level where upgrading saves money. Here's the math:

• Teachable: Starter ($39/mo, 7.5% fee) vs. Builder ($89/mo, 0% fee). The breakeven is around $8,000/year in revenue. Above that, Builder is cheaper. At $50,000/year, staying on Starter costs you $3,750 in fees — far more than the $600 annual upgrade cost.
• Podia: Mover ($39/mo, 5% fee) vs. Shaker ($89/mo, 0% fee). Breakeven is around $12,000/year. Above that, upgrade.
• Thinkific: Basic with own Stripe ($49/mo, 5% fee) vs. using TCommerce (0% fee, same plan). Here, the "upgrade" is switching payment processors, not plans. But TCommerce is only available in certain countries, so check eligibility first.

The short version: if you're earning more than about $12,000/year on any platform with a transaction fee, investigate whether upgrading eliminates that fee. The upgrade almost always pays for itself.

How to Calculate Your True Platform Cost

Here's a simple framework for comparing what you'll actually spend. For each platform you're considering:

1. Start with the subscription cost. Use the annual price if available (most platforms offer 15-20% annual billing discounts).
2. Add the transaction fee at your expected revenue. Multiply your projected annual revenue by the platform's fee percentage.
3. Add payment processing. Estimate 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction. For a $200 course, that's about $6.10 per sale, or roughly 3% of revenue.
4. Add external tools. Email marketing, landing pages, webinar software — any tool the platform doesn't include that you'll need.
5. Check for caps. Will you hit product or student limits within the year? Factor in the cost of upgrading mid-year.

Want to run the numbers for your specific situation? Our revenue calculator can help you model different pricing scenarios.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I still pay Stripe/PayPal fees on platforms with zero transaction fees?

Yes. Payment processor fees (typically 2.9% + $0.30) are separate from platform transaction fees. Every platform passes payment processing costs through to the creator. A "zero transaction fee" platform means the platform itself takes no additional cut.

Can I switch platforms without losing my students?

You can export your student data (email addresses, enrollment records) from most platforms. Course content (videos, text, files) is yours — you just need to re-upload it. The friction is real but manageable. Most creators complete a platform migration in 2-4 weeks. See our switching guide for step-by-step help.

Are there platforms with no fees at all?

No legitimate course platform is completely free of all fees. You'll always pay payment processing (~2.9%). The question is whether you're paying an additional platform fee on top of that. For platforms without additional transaction fees on any plan, your options include Ruzuku, Kajabi, and Thinkific (via TCommerce). For a broader look at no-fee options, see our guide to platforms with no transaction fees.

Why do platforms charge transaction fees on lower tiers?

It's a pricing strategy. The low subscription price gets you in the door, and the transaction fee generates revenue as your business grows. For the platform, it's less risky than charging a higher subscription upfront — they only earn more when you earn more. For the creator, it's a trade-off: lower upfront cost, but higher total cost if your business succeeds.

Should transaction fees be the deciding factor in choosing a platform?

Not on their own. Transaction fees matter most when your revenue exceeds roughly $25,000/year. Below that, the difference between a 0% and 5% fee is $1,250/year — noticeable, but probably not a dealbreaker. What matters most is whether the platform supports the kind of learning experience you want to create: live sessions, community, exercises, the teaching features that actually determine whether your students succeed. The money you save on fees is only valuable if you're on a platform that helps you build a business worth growing.