Kajabi vs Thinkific: Which Online Course Platform Is Better in 2026?
Choosing between Kajabi vs Thinkific is not just a software decision. Online courses, programmes, masterminds and digital products are big revenue-drivers for a lot of my clients.
Because of this, they care a lot about choosing the best platform to support them. They care about how smoothly clients move through their world, how much manual work sits on their plate, and whether their systems can support what they’re building next.
That’s where looking at Kajabi vs Thinkific usually comes in.
Both platforms are widely used. Both allow you to sell and deliver online education. But they support businesses in very different ways, and those differences start to matter once you’re past scrappy setup mode.
This comparison breaks down how Kajabi and Thinkific actually work so you can decide which one fits your offers, your standards, and the way you want to run your business going forward.
Kajabi vs Thinkific: A Complete Platform Comparison
This is for founders who are already selling online courses or coaching and are thinking beyond setup.
We are not comparing which platform is easiest for beginners. We are comparing which platform supports:
Sustainable revenue growth
Automated sales and onboarding
Consistent student experiences
Fewer tools and fewer breakpoints
At a high level, Kajabi positions itself as an all-in-one business platform, while Thinkific takes a course-first approach with flexible integrations. That core difference shapes everything from pricing to marketing to automation.
Platform Overview and Core Focus
Kajabi: All-in-One Business Platform
Kajabi is designed to house your entire digital business in one platform.
It combines:
Courses and digital products
Coaching programmes and memberships
Email marketing and automation
Sales funnels and offers
Website pages and client portals
The goal is simplicity at scale. Instead of connecting multiple tools, Kajabi keeps everything under one roof so your marketing, email, sales, and content work together.
For founders running programmes, group coaching, or layered offers, Kajabi is built to support complex client journeys without constant manual work.
Thinkific: Course-First Learning Platform
Thinkific focuses primarily on structured course delivery.
It provides:
A clean course builder
Clear learning paths
Student progress tracking
Strong training and education tools
Rather than bundling marketing and email tools into the platform, Thinkific integrates with external tools. This gives flexibility but also requires more setup and ongoing management.
Thinkific works well for businesses that prioritise education delivery over automation-heavy marketing systems.
Course Creation and Content Delivery
Both platforms allow you to create courses and deliver content, but the experience differs significantly.
Kajabi Course Creation
Kajabi supports:
Video, audio, text, and downloadable content
Drip scheduling and locked modules
Programmes, memberships, and coaching portals
Branded client dashboards
Kajabi works best when your offer goes beyond a single course. If your business includes coaching, community access, or multiple digital products, Kajabi allows you to organise everything into a cohesive experience for students.
Thinkific Course Creation
Thinkific excels at:
Structured lesson-based learning
Assessments, quizzes, and certificates
Clear progress tracking for students
Focused training environments
If your priority is delivering educational content in a clean, distraction-free format, Thinkific’s course builder feels intuitive and straightforward.
Student Experience, Community, and Learning Environment
When comparing Thinkific and Kajabi platforms, student experience is often overlooked, but it plays a huge role in retention and satisfaction.
Kajabi Student Experience and Community
Kajabi is designed for businesses where learning, coaching, and community overlap.
Students can:
Access courses and digital products in one portal
Receive automated email communication
Participate in built-in community spaces
Navigate content without switching tools
Kajabi’s community features are integrated directly into the platform. This supports engagement for memberships, coaching programmes, and ongoing learning environments.
Because everything lives in one platform, students experience fewer logins, clearer navigation, and a more connected learning journey.
Thinkific Student Experience and Learning Focus
Thinkific provides a more traditional learning environment.
Students move through structured training content with a strong focus on lessons and progress. Community features exist, but many businesses pair Thinkific with external tools for deeper interaction.
If your primary goal is delivering training rather than facilitating community-led learning, Thinkific offers a focused experience for students.
Marketing, Email, and Sales Features
This is where the difference between kajabi vs thinkific becomes most obvious.
Kajabi Marketing and Sales Features
Kajabi includes native marketing tools designed to automate sales and onboarding.
Inside the platform, you can:
Build email sequences and broadcasts
Automate follow-ups based on student behaviour
Create sales funnels and offers
Add upsells, subscriptions, and order bumps
Manage payments without third-party checkout tools
Because email, marketing, and sales features are built into Kajabi, everything connects directly to your courses and digital products. This reduces reliance on additional tools and simplifies automation.
Thinkific Marketing and Sales Tools
Thinkific supports selling courses but relies on integrations for advanced marketing.
Most businesses using Thinkific connect:
Email marketing platforms
CRM tools
Funnel builders
Analytics tools
This modular setup works well for teams with an established tech stack. However, it also introduces more tools to manage and more potential points of failure.
Pricing Plans and Overall Value
Pricing is often a deciding factor when comparing thinkific vs kajabi features, but cost should always be weighed against operational efficiency.
Kajabi Pricing
Kajabi pricing starts higher but includes more built-in functionality.
Plans include:
Course and digital product hosting
Email marketing
Automation
Sales features
Client portals
There are no transaction fees, and many founders find Kajabi replaces several standalone tools.
Thinkific Pricing
Thinkific offers:
A free plan for basic use
Lower-cost paid plans
Add-ons for advanced features
Thinkific may appear cheaper initially, but total cost depends on how many tools you need to integrate for email, marketing, and sales.
Ease of Use and Setup Experience
Kajabi Setup and Learning Curve
Kajabi has more features, which means a steeper initial learning curve.
Once systems are set up correctly, the platform supports automation and scale with fewer moving parts. Many founders find Kajabi easier long-term once workflows are established.
Thinkific Setup Experience
Thinkific is quicker to set up and easier to understand at the start.
Its interface is clean and intuitive, making it accessible for founders who want to launch quickly without complex automation.
Integrations, Tools, and Scalability
Kajabi Scalability
Kajabi scales best for businesses that want:
Fewer tools
Centralised systems
Automated onboarding and delivery
Because marketing, email, and sales features are native, Kajabi reduces integration maintenance as your business grows.
Thinkific Scalability
Thinkific scales through integrations.
This allows flexibility and customisation, but also requires ongoing oversight to ensure tools stay connected and functional.
The trade-off is flexibility versus simplicity.
Kajabi vs Thinkific: Pros and Cons Summary
Kajabi Pros
All-in-one platform
Strong marketing and email automation
Integrated community features
Ideal for coaching, programmes, and memberships
Kajabi Cons
Higher upfront cost
More complex setup initially
Thinkific Pros
Clean, course-focused learning environment
Lower starting price
Strong training and education tools
Thinkific Cons
Limited built-in marketing
Requires multiple tools for automation and email
Which Platform Is Right for You?
Choose Kajabi if you:
Run coaching programmes or memberships
Want to automate sales and onboarding
Prefer fewer tools and fewer integrations
Value community and ongoing student engagement
Choose Thinkific if you:
Focus primarily on structured courses
Prefer a modular tech stack
Want lower upfront software costs
Do not rely heavily on automation
There is no single winner in the kajabi vs thinkific debate. The right choice depends on how you want your business to operate.
Conclusion
The difference between Kajabi and Thinkific is not about which platform has more features. It is about how much of your business you want to automate and centralise.
Kajabi supports founders who want an integrated system for marketing, email, sales, content, and community. Thinkific supports educators who want focused course delivery with flexible integrations.
Before choosing a platform, map your business model, revenue goals, and capacity. The right platform removes friction and supports growth rather than creating more work.
Ready to Stop Overthinking Kajabi Setup?
If you are leaning toward Kajabi but feeling the weight of how to actually set it up properly, this is where most founders get stuck.
Hollie Griffiths works with successful female coaches who are sitting at the £10K–£30K mark and know there’s more available to them. She becomes your strategic partner, thinking with you and executing for you, building the operational backbone that allows your business to grow without you managing every detail.
Our Kajabi Done-For-You service is designed for established founders who want:
A clean, professional Kajabi build that reflects their brand
Sales, email, and automation set up correctly from day one
A backend that can handle growth without breaking
Zero guesswork, late nights, or duct-taped systems
If you’re leaning toward Kajabi but know your current setup doesn’t meet your standards, a done-for-you Kajabi build gives you the structure, flow and systems your programmes, courses and digital products need to grow cleanly. Your content already works. The question is whether your backend supports delivering it properly as you scale.
If you’re ready for a backend that matches the level you’re playing at, the next step is a Disco Call.
We’ll talk through your business, your offers and what will actually move things forward, then decide whether a Kajabi build is the right fit.
