The Hidden Cost of Course Platform Transaction Fees

When course creators compare platforms, they usually start with the monthly subscription price. Teachable’s Basic is $59/month. Kajabi starts at $149/month. Thinkific has a free plan.

But the monthly price isn’t the real cost of a course platform. The real cost — the one that compounds in ways most creators don’t calculate — is the transaction fee.

How Transaction Fees Work

Most course platforms charge a percentage of every sale on top of the monthly subscription. This is separate from the payment processor fee (Stripe or PayPal, which charge ~2.9% + $0.30 per transaction regardless of platform).

Here’s what the major platforms charge as of 2026:

Platform	Monthly Price (Lowest Paid Tier)	Platform Transaction Fee	Notes
Teachable	$59/month (Basic)	5%	Drops to 0% on Pro plan ($159/month)
Thinkific	$49/month (Basic)	0%	But charges on the free plan
Kajabi	$149/month (Basic)	0%	Higher subscription, no transaction fee
Podia	$39/month (Mover)	0%	But limited features on lower tiers
Ruzuku	$99/month (Core)	0%	Flat rate, no transaction fees on any plan

The platforms that charge 0% transaction fees aren’t being generous — they’ve priced the transaction cost into the subscription. The question is which pricing model costs you less at your revenue level.

The Math Most Creators Don’t Do

Let’s run the numbers on a course creator earning $50,000/year in course sales — a realistic milestone for someone a year or two into course creation.

Teachable Basic ($59/month + 5% transaction fee):

• Monthly subscription: $59 x 12 = $708/year
• Transaction fees: $50,000 x 5% = $2,500/year
• Total platform cost: $3,208/year

Teachable Pro ($159/month + 0% transaction fee):

• Monthly subscription: $159 x 12 = $1,908/year
• Transaction fees: $0
• Total platform cost: $1,908/year

Ruzuku Core ($99/month + 0% transaction fee):

• Monthly subscription: $99 x 12 = $1,188/year
• Transaction fees: $0
• Total platform cost: $1,188/year

At $50,000 in annual revenue, the Teachable Basic plan (which looks cheaper at $59/month) actually costs $2,020 more per year than Ruzuku. The transaction fee makes the cheaper-looking plan the expensive one.

And the gap widens with scale. At $100,000 in annual revenue:

Platform + Plan	Total Annual Cost
Teachable Basic ($59/mo + 5%)	$5,708
Teachable Pro ($159/mo + 0%)	$1,908
Kajabi Basic ($149/mo + 0%)	$1,788
Ruzuku Core ($99/mo + 0%)	$1,188

At six figures, Teachable Basic’s transaction fees alone ($5,000) exceed Ruzuku’s entire annual cost.

The Break-Even Point

At what revenue level does the transaction fee start to matter? The formula is simple:

Break-even = (Higher subscription – Lower subscription) / Transaction fee rate

For Teachable Basic ($59/mo) vs. Ruzuku Core ($99/mo):

• Monthly difference: $40
• Transaction rate: 5%
• Break-even: $40 / 0.05 = $800/month in course sales

If you’re earning more than $800/month from courses — which is $9,600/year, or roughly 20 students at a $497 course — you’re already paying more on Teachable Basic than you would on Ruzuku.

You can model your own scenario with Ruzuku’s free course pricing calculator, which helps you project revenue at different price points and student volumes.

Beyond the Math: What Transaction Fees Signal

Transaction fees create a misalignment between you and your platform. When the platform takes a percentage of your revenue, it’s incentivized to optimize for your sales volume — not your students’ learning outcomes. Features that increase conversion (upsells, checkout optimization, urgency timers) get prioritized over features that increase completion (discussion, feedback, structured pacing).

This isn’t sinister. It’s just economics. Platforms build what their business model rewards.

Flat-rate platforms are incentivized differently. Their revenue comes from keeping you as a subscriber — which means keeping your students happy, which means investing in the teaching and learning experience.

What to Consider When Comparing Platforms

Transaction fees are one factor. Not the only factor. When comparing platforms, also consider:

• What features do you actually need? If you need sales funnels and a landing page builder, that may justify a higher total cost on Kajabi or Teachable Pro.
• What do you need your students to experience? If engagement and completion are your priority, evaluate the learning experience, not just the feature list.
• Where are you headed? If you plan to scale beyond $50K/year in course revenue, transaction fees will compound. Factor that into your 2-3 year cost projection, not just month one.

For a structured decision framework, see Ruzuku’s platform comparison guide — it covers features, pricing models, and which platform fits which course type.

The cheapest-looking platform isn’t always the cheapest platform. Do the math on your actual revenue projections before you commit.