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The cheapest platform to sell online courses is systeme.io: no monthly fee on the free plan and a 0% platform fee on every plan, so the only cost is card processing. At $500 a month of sales that is about $15 to Stripe and nothing to the platform. The same $500 costs $76 on Teachable Starter, $55 on Gumroad, and $54 on Thinkific Basic before processing. The table shows the maths.
- 1Our pick
systeme.io Free
$0/mo, 0% fee
Best for: one course, 500 students, a funnel and email included
The catch: one course and one automation rule until the $17 plan
Try systeme.io free - 2
Gumroad
$0/mo, 10% + 50c per sale
Best for: zero setup, sell today
The catch: the fee grows with you; 30% on marketplace sales
- 3
Teachable Starter
$39/mo, 7.5% fee
Best for: a better course player and certificates
The catch: you pay the fee and the subscription; 0% only from $89
- 4
Thinkific Basic
$54/mo, 0% platform fee
Best for: video-heavy courses with quizzes
The catch: no free plan; 2.9% via Thinkific Payments
- 5
Podia Mover
$42/mo, 5% fee
Best for: a clean storefront with downloads
The catch: only 100 email subscribers on this tier
- 6
Kajabi Basic
$179/mo
Best for: polish and a member app
The catch: the highest fixed cost here
Prices and free-plan limits checked 2026-09-19 on each vendor's pricing page.
What “cheapest” means: platform fee vs processor fee
Every platform pays a card processor, usually 2.9% plus 30 cents on a US card. That fee is unavoidable. The platform fee is the extra cut the host takes on top: 7.5% on Teachable Starter, 5% on Podia Mover, 10% plus 50 cents on Gumroad, 0% on systeme.io and on Thinkific. When a page says “no fees” check which fee it means.
Cost at $500 a month of sales
Ten sales of a $50 course, subscription plus platform fee, processing excluded:
| Platform | Subscription | Platform fee | Monthly cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| systeme.io Free | $0 | 0% | $0 |
| Gumroad | $0 | 10% + 50c | $55 |
| Thinkific Basic | $54 | 0% | $54 |
| Podia Mover | $42 | 5% | $67 |
| Teachable Starter | $39 | 7.5% | $76.50 |
| Kajabi Basic | $179 | 0% | $179 |
Prices from each vendor’s pricing page on 2026-09-19. At $2,000 a month Gumroad reaches $205 and Teachable Starter $189, while systeme.io stays at $0 or $17.
How to sell online courses without a platform fee
Use a host that charges 0% and connect your own Stripe or PayPal. On systeme.io that is the default on every plan. On Teachable it means the $89 Builder plan. Marketplaces such as Udemy set the price and keep a share of each sale they bring, which is why they are not on the table above.
Course platforms with a free plan, and the catch in each
systeme.io’s free plan is a real one: a course, 500 students, 2,000 contacts, unlimited emails. The catch is one course and one automation rule. Gumroad is free to start but the fee scales with revenue. Teachable, Thinkific, Podia and Kajabi have trials, not free plans, so a zero-sale month still bills you.
The simplest way to sell one course
Course area, one sales page, one order form, one welcome email. That is inside the systeme.io free plan and takes an afternoon with a template. The course builder guide walks through it.
Free plan, no card. Affiliate link; we earn a commission on paid plans.
Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest platform to sell online courses?
systeme.io: $0 on the free plan and a 0% platform fee on every plan. Only card processing applies.
What is the cheapest way to host an online course?
A free plan with no transaction fee. systeme.io hosts one course with 500 students free; video is embedded from YouTube or Vimeo.
Which course platforms have no transaction fees?
systeme.io on all plans, Thinkific on all plans, Teachable from the $89 Builder plan, Podia from the $84 Shaker plan.
Is Gumroad cheaper than a subscription?
Below about $400 a month of sales, yes. Above that its 10% plus 50 cents per sale costs more than a $39 to $54 subscription, and far more than systeme.io.
Related: Teachable pricing, Podia pricing, Kajabi alternatives.