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Cheaper Kajabi alternatives exist for every part of the bill. Kajabi Basic is $179 a month today for 5 products and 2,500 contacts. systeme.io runs courses, funnels, email, and checkout from free to $97. Thinkific and Teachable cost less than Kajabi and do the course player better than systeme.io, and both cost more than systeme.io. Which one fits depends on whether your students or your marketing drive the business.
Kajabi vs the cheaper alternatives: side-by-side comparison
| systeme.io | Kajabi | |
|---|---|---|
| Entry price | Free, then $17/mo | $179/mo ($143 annual) |
| Contacts on entry plan | 2,000 free / 5,000 on $17 | 2,500 |
| Products on entry plan | 1 course free / 5 on $17 | 5 |
| Students | 500 free / unlimited on paid | Not capped by plan |
| Email marketing | Unlimited sends, every plan | Included |
| Community | 1 free / 5 on $17 | 1 |
| Mobile app for students | No | Yes |
| Transaction fee | 0% | 0%, plus 2% if you use your own Stripe on Basic |
| Free plan | Yes, no end date | No, 30-day trial |
The other cheaper picks:
| Alternative | Price today | Pick it if |
|---|---|---|
| Thinkific | $54/mo ($40 annual) | The course player and quizzes matter most; no free plan |
| Teachable | $39/mo with a 7.5% fee, $89 at 0% | You want a simple course store and can live with the fee or the $89 |
| Podia | $42/mo with a 5% fee | You want the simplest all-in-one; 100 email subscribers on that plan |
| Skool | Not verified today | Community is the product |
Prices checked September 17, 2026. Full comparisons: Thinkific alternatives, Teachable alternatives.
What you give up when you leave Kajabi
The student mobile app. The coaching product type with scheduling built in. A polished course player with certificates and better quizzes. systeme.io’s course area is plain: lessons, drip, right-or-wrong quizzes, a forum-style community. If your students judge you by the app, that matters.
The fee math on $5,000 a month
On Kajabi Basic, Kajabi Payments takes 2.9% plus 30 cents per sale, and using your own Stripe instead adds a 2% platform fee on top of Stripe’s. On systeme.io the platform fee is 0% on every plan; you pay only Stripe or PayPal. On $5,000 a month that 2% alone is $100, on top of the $162 difference in subscription.
Cheaper alternative to Kajabi: what the same setup costs
Moving students without losing them
Export contacts with tags. Download your course videos and copy the lesson text. Rebuild the course on the free plan, then send students a free enrollment link and run both platforms for a month. Cancel Kajabi before the renewal date and keep the confirmation. Nothing exports pages, on either side.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest Kajabi alternative?
systeme.io at $0, then $17 a month. Teachable Starter is $39 but takes 7.5% of sales.
Is there a free Kajabi alternative?
systeme.io is the only one with a free plan that includes a course, a checkout, and email. Thinkific, Teachable, and Podia offer trials only.
Is Thinkific cheaper than Kajabi?
Yes. Thinkific Basic is $54 a month against Kajabi Basic at $179, and it includes unlimited courses.
Does Kajabi charge transaction fees?
No platform fee if you use Kajabi Payments, which charges 2.9% plus 30 cents on Basic. Using your own processor adds 2% on Basic.
Related: systeme.io vs Kajabi, systeme.io pricing, systeme.io review.