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Best community platforms in 2026

On score, Nas.com comes out on top: one platform for products, courses, memberships and community, from $20.75/mo billed annually, with a 0% platform fee on most sales (2.9% on digital products) and a 4.5 rating on G2. It has pivoted toward AI-built storefronts, though, so if the community itself is what you sell, compare Skool and Circle.so: Skool for flat pricing and gamification that drives activity, Circle for a more polished, customizable, branded space. Mighty Networks is best if you need native mobile apps plus courses, and Discord stays the free choice for a chat community that doesn't charge members.

Watch the fees as well as the monthly price: Skool's $9 Hobby plan takes 10% + $0.30 of each sale (the $99 Pro plan takes none), and Circle adds a 1-2% transaction fee on top of Stripe processing. Here's how they compare on cost, fees, and fit.

19 tools compared, with prices checked against each vendor's pricing page.

Affiliate disclosure

Some links below are affiliate links: if you sign up, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. It never changes our rankings or what we recommend. How this works →

Our top pick: Nas.com

Best overall fit for a typical communities buyer. Here's why, and when something else wins.

Top pick

Nas.com

AI commerce platform (formerly Nas.io) to launch a storefront and sell products, courses and memberships

Why it fits: Highest TryToolFit score in this category (4.2 of 5). Best for: Solopreneurs who want a storefront and marketing built for them by AI.

From $20.75/mo
Score
Txn fee 0% platform fee on sales; 2.9% on digital products; + payment processing
  • 0% platform fee on most sales, a big shift from the old per-sale cut
  • AI does the heavy lifting: builds the store, the ads and the content
  • No free plan: 7-day trial only, then $20.75/mo
Solopreneurs who want a storefront and marketing built for them by AICreators selling a mix of products, courses and memberships
Visit Nas.com Read review

Quick pick by situation

All 19 communities compared

Tool Score From Free Txn fee Best for Visit
Discord Free real-time chat and voice for communities. Monetize with add-on tools.
Free Lowest ✓ N/A (use 3rd-party) Free communities and engaged real-time chat Visit
Nas.com Top pick AI commerce platform (formerly Nas.io) to launch a storefront and sell products, courses and memberships
$20.75 No 0% platform fee on sales; 2.9% on digital products; + payment processing Solopreneurs who want a storefront and marketing built for them by AI Visit
Circle.so Polished, customizable community platform with courses and built-in monetization.
$89 No 2% (Pro) / 1% (Business) Established creators and brands wanting a premium feel Visit
Skool Dead-simple paid communities with courses, live calls, and gamification.
$9 No 10% + $0.30 (Hobby); ~2.9% processing only (Pro) Coaches selling paid communities Visit Skool (affiliate link, opens in a new tab)
Kajabi All-in-one platform to build, market, and sell courses, coaching, and communities.
$143 No 0% revenue share; payment processing 2.9% + $0.30 (Basic), 2.8% (Growth), 2.7% (Pro) Established creators and coaches Visit
Whop All-in-one platform to sell digital products, memberships, and gated communities
Free Lowest ✓ 2.7% + $0.30 card processing Creators selling gated Discord/Telegram communities Visit
Thinkific Polished course and community builder with zero platform transaction fees.
$36 No 0% via Thinkific Payments; external Stripe/PayPal gateway adds 5% (Basic), 2% (Start), 1% (Grow) until $1M in sales Serious course creators Visit
Patreon Membership and recurring-payment platform with a trusted creator brand.
Free Lowest ✓ ~10% + processing (new creators) Content creators monetizing a fan base Visit
Uscreen All-in-one video membership platform with a branded site and OTT/TV apps.
$49 No 10% (Starter); 5% higher tiers Creators building paid video memberships Visit
Mighty Networks All-in-one community, courses, and memberships with native mobile apps.
$79 No 0.5-2% + processor Creators wanting courses + community in one Visit
Graphy All-in-one platform to create, market, and sell online courses and communities
$37 No 0% platform fee (processor fees apply) Creators selling premium courses with a community Visit
BuddyBoss WordPress-based platform to build communities, membership sites, and LMS courses
$16.58 No None (you keep your own payment processor) Course creators wanting community + LMS on WordPress Visit
Heartbeat All-in-one platform to build, manage, and monetize online communities and courses
$49 No 5% (Build), 2.5% (Grow), 1.25% (Scale) + processor Creators and coaches monetizing memberships and courses Visit
Honeycommb White-label, all-in-one community platform with branded web and mobile apps
$89 No 5% on paid memberships Brands and creators wanting a fully branded community Visit
Disciple Build your own fully branded community app for web, iOS and Android, no code
$505 No 0% Disciple fee (Stripe ~3% on web; app-store fees apply) Established creators and brands wanting a native app Visit
Bettermode All-in-one customer community platform for branded, no-code online communities
$149 No None SaaS and B2B companies launching branded communities Visit
Memberful Membership and subscription platform for creators, publishers, and podcasters
$49 No 4.9% + Stripe processor fees Creators and publishers selling gated content Visit
Hivebrite All-in-one platform to build, manage, and monetize alumni and member communities
$895 No ~1.5% on paid memberships (verify current plans) Universities and alumni networks Visit
Mastermind.com All-in-one platform to build courses, communities, and masterminds with AI tools
$35 No Not publicly disclosed Coaches building masterminds and communities Visit

Score is our composite of independent user ratings, value, and feature breadth (how we score). Prices are entry-tier estimates; verify current pricing on each site.

What you'll actually pay as you grow

Cost changes as your members grow. Drag to your size to compare.

Estimate by members

Set your size and monthly sales. We fold each platform's transaction fees into the true monthly cost, cheapest first.

Exact:
Exact $/mo:

    The rest, ranked & compared

    2

    Discord

    Free real-time chat and voice for communities. Monetize with add-on tools.

    Free plan
    From Free
    Score
    Txn fee N/A
    • Completely free to run a community
    • Best-in-class real-time chat and voice
    • No native paid memberships or courses
    Free communities and engaged real-time chatBolting on a free member perk
    Visit Discord Read review
    3

    Circle.so

    Polished, customizable community platform with courses and built-in monetization.

    From $89/mo
    Score
    Txn fee 2%
    • Highly polished, customizable interface
    • Strong all-in-one feature set with monetization
    • No free plan; entry floor now $89/mo
    Established creators and brands wanting a premium feelCourses + events + community
    Visit Circle.so Read review
    4

    Skool

    Dead-simple paid communities with courses, live calls, and gamification.

    Recurring
    From $9/mo
    Score
    Txn fee 10% + $0.30
    • Extremely simple all-in-one (community, courses, payments)
    • Strong gamification drives engagement
    • Limited design and white-label customization
    Coaches selling paid communitiesEngagement-first course + community creators
    Visit Skool (affiliate link, opens in a new tab) Read review
    5

    Kajabi

    All-in-one platform to build, market, and sell courses, coaching, and communities.

    From $143/mo
    Score
    Txn fee 0% revenue share; payment processing 2.9% + $0.30
    • Genuinely all-in-one, no separate email or funnel tools needed
    • Strong marketing automation and funnels
    • Expensive entry point ($89/mo billed monthly)
    Established creators and coachesCreators wanting courses + email + funnels in one
    Visit Kajabi Read review
    6

    Whop

    All-in-one platform to sell digital products, memberships, and gated communities

    Free plan
    From Free
    Score
    Txn fee 2.7% + $0.30 card processing
    • No monthly fee: free to start, pay per transaction
    • Strong for gated Discord/Telegram communities
    • Effective rate climbs once automation/FX/payout fees stack
    Creators selling gated Discord/Telegram communitiesDigital product sellers wanting zero upfront cost
    Visit Whop Read review
    7

    Thinkific

    Polished course and community builder with zero platform transaction fees.

    Recurring
    From $36/mo
    Score
    Txn fee 0% via Thinkific Payments; external Stripe/PayPal gateway adds 5%
    • 0% platform transaction fees across all plans
    • Strong, polished course-building experience
    • No permanent free plan (30-day trial only)
    Serious course creatorsCoaches building a course + community
    Visit Thinkific Read review
    8

    Patreon

    Membership and recurring-payment platform with a trusted creator brand.

    Free plan
    From Free
    Score
    Txn fee ~10% + processing
    • No upfront cost; pay only when you earn
    • Trusted, recognized brand for fan support
    • High effective take rate (platform + processing)
    Content creators monetizing a fan basePodcasters, artists, and YouTubers
    Visit Patreon Read review
    9

    Uscreen

    All-in-one video membership platform with a branded site and OTT/TV apps.

    Recurring
    From $49/mo
    Score
    Txn fee 10%
    • Purpose-built for paid video memberships and OTT
    • Native iOS, Android and TV apps for your brand
    • Real video-business pricing starts at $149-199/mo plus per-subscriber fees
    Creators building paid video membershipsBrands wanting their own streaming apps
    Visit Uscreen Read review
    10

    Mighty Networks

    All-in-one community, courses, and memberships with native mobile apps.

    Recurring
    From $79/mo
    Score
    Txn fee 0.5-2% + processor
    • True all-in-one: community, courses, events, payments
    • Branded native mobile apps available
    • Transaction fees on most plans plus processor fees
    Creators wanting courses + community in oneBrands needing native mobile apps
    Visit Mighty Networks Read review
    11

    Graphy

    All-in-one platform to create, market, and sell online courses and communities

    From $37/mo
    Score
    Txn fee 0% platform fee
    • 0% platform transaction fees on all plans
    • Backed by Unacademy with strong feature set
    • No permanently free plan
    Creators selling premium courses with a communityEducators wanting branded web and mobile apps
    Visit Graphy Read review
    12

    BuddyBoss

    WordPress-based platform to build communities, membership sites, and LMS courses

    From $16.58/mo
    Score
    Txn fee None
    • Self-hosted on WordPress, so you own your data and revenue
    • Deep LMS and membership integrations
    • Requires WordPress hosting and technical setup
    Course creators wanting community + LMS on WordPressBrands wanting a self-hosted community with native apps
    Visit BuddyBoss Read review
    13

    Heartbeat

    All-in-one platform to build, manage, and monetize online communities and courses

    From $49/mo
    Score
    Txn fee 5%
    • All-in-one: community, courses, events, and payments
    • Custom domain and white-label branding included
    • No permanent free plan
    Creators and coaches monetizing memberships and coursesConsultants running branded client communities
    Visit Heartbeat Read review
    14

    Honeycommb

    White-label, all-in-one community platform with branded web and mobile apps

    From $89/mo
    Score
    Txn fee 5% on paid memberships
    • True white-label across web and native apps
    • Proven at large scale (brands, celebrities)
    • Branded apps and white-label raise the price
    Brands and creators wanting a fully branded communityOrganizations needing native iOS/Android apps
    Visit Honeycommb Read review
    15

    Disciple

    Build your own fully branded community app for web, iOS and Android, no code

    From $505/mo
    Score
    Txn fee 0% Disciple fee
    • Truly white-label apps under your own brand
    • No Disciple cut of revenue (0% platform fees)
    • Expensive relative to web-only platforms
    Established creators and brands wanting a native appMembership businesses monetizing courses at scale
    Visit Disciple Read review
    16

    Bettermode

    All-in-one customer community platform for branded, no-code online communities

    From $149/mo
    Score
    Txn fee None
    • Highly customizable, developer-friendly with robust API
    • Strong feature set for SaaS/B2B customer communities
    • Expensive entry point with no free tier
    SaaS and B2B companies launching branded communitiesTeams needing API/SSO and deep customization
    Visit Bettermode Read review
    17

    Memberful

    Membership and subscription platform for creators, publishers, and podcasters

    From $49/mo
    Score
    Txn fee 4.9% + Stripe processor fees
    • Simple flat monthly fee with unlimited members
    • Owned by Patreon with deep integrations
    • 4.9% fee stacks on top of Stripe fees
    Creators and publishers selling gated contentPodcasters and newsletter publishers
    Visit Memberful Read review
    18

    Hivebrite

    All-in-one platform to build, manage, and monetize alumni and member communities

    From $895/mo
    Score
    Txn fee ~1.5% on paid memberships
    • Highly customizable with white-label branding
    • Strong fit for alumni, associations, and nonprofits
    • Expensive with a high entry price and no free tier
    Universities and alumni networksProfessional associations and large nonprofits
    Visit Hivebrite Read review
    19

    Mastermind.com

    All-in-one platform to build courses, communities, and masterminds with AI tools

    From $35/mo
    Score
    Txn fee Not publicly disclosed
    • Built-in community plus marketplace for discovery
    • Low $47 entry with a $1 trial
    • Community partly relies on Facebook group + live check-ins
    Coaches building masterminds and communitiesCreators wanting an AI-assisted all-in-one
    Visit Mastermind.com Read review

    Head-to-head comparisons

    Skool Circle.soSkool Mighty NetworksCircle.so Mighty Networks

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    Community platforms guides

    Frequently asked questions

    Is Skool worth $99/month?

    If you're charging for your community, yes. Skool Pro has no platform fee and unlimited members, so it pays for itself past a handful of paying members. If you're testing an idea, the $9 Hobby plan works but takes 10% + $0.30 of each sale.

    Skool vs Circle: which should I choose?

    Skool is simpler and more engagement-focused (gamification, leaderboards); Circle is more customizable and polished but pricier with paid add-ons. Pick Skool for a coaching/course community, Circle for a branded membership. See Skool vs Circle.

    Can I run a paid community on Discord?

    Not natively. Discord is free and has no built-in payments. You can bolt on Whop, Memberful, or Patreon to charge for access, but you'll pay their fees (often ~10%) and lose the structured course/classroom experience that Skool or Circle give you.