12 Best Payment Platforms for Course Creators (2026 Guide)

The best payment platforms for course creators do more than take a card. They sell a course, a bundle or a cohort seat at a price the buyer can manage (one payment, a payment plan or a subscription), and then hand the buyer straight into the lessons without a second login or a manual "here is your access" email. So the deciding question is simple: where does the buyer land after paying, and how many tools sit between the checkout and the first lesson?

Our pick is Coachful, because the checkout, the course, the community and any coaching you sell on top all live in one account, and the payments run through your own Stripe or Razorpay account with a 0% Coachful platform fee. We make Coachful, so weigh that, but the eleven other tools below are described from what each vendor lists on its own pricing page, and every entry ends with the situation where you should pick it instead.

This guide is about payment platforms. If you are still choosing where the lessons themselves live, start with our best course creation platforms roundup and the online course platform comparison, then come back here to decide how the money moves.

What do course creators need from a payment platform?

Course creators need a checkout that matches how courses actually sell: launches with deadlines, bundles, payment plans for higher-ticket programs, and recurring billing for memberships. Generic payment tools handle the charge; the hard part is everything around it.

Here is what separates a course business from a shop that happens to sell PDFs:

• Access on payment. A buyer who pays at 11 p.m. on launch night expects to be inside module one a minute later. If your payment tool and your course tool are different products, something (Zapier, a webhook, you) has to grant that access, and revoke it when a payment plan stops.
• Payment plans and subscriptions. A $900 cohort often sells as three monthly payments. A membership bills monthly or yearly. The platform needs to handle both and tie each to the right access.
• Bundles, order bumps and coupons. Launches lean on "add the workbook for $27" at checkout, an early-bird coupon and a bundle of two courses at a discount.
• Tax on digital products. Selling a downloadable course to buyers in the EU, the UK or certain US states can create VAT or sales tax obligations. Some platforms act as the merchant of record and handle this for you; others calculate tax but leave filing to you. Rules vary by country and state, so check with an accountant before you pick.
• Refunds and receipts. A refund window is standard in course sales. You want refunds issued in two clicks and an invoice per transaction for buyers who expense training.
• What comes after the course. Many course creators add a cohort, group calls or 1:1 coaching as the upsell. If the payment tool cannot sell a session or a package, you end up with a second checkout.
• Fees that grow with you. A 5% to 10% platform cut is small at $500 a month in sales and painful at $20,000. Read the transaction fee line before the monthly price.

If you also sell coaching packages, our guide to the best platforms to sell coaching packages covers that side, and the broader best payment platforms for coaches roundup covers the category without the course angle.

Which payment platform should a course creator pick? Quick picks

Ranking criteria: one login for checkout, course and community; delivery after the sale (drip, cohorts, coaching); total stack cost including platform fees; and setup effort, with the free white-glove build counted for Coachful.

How did we choose and rank these platforms?

We ranked tools by how well they handle the whole course sale, from the checkout page to the moment the student opens a lesson. A tool that only processes the card scores lower than one that also grants access, runs the payment plan and keeps the buyer's history in one record.

Prices for Stan Store, Kajabi, Podia, Paperbell and HoneyBook are as listed in October 2026. Prices for Teachable, Thinkific, SamCart, Lemon Squeezy, Gumroad and Stripe come from their pricing pages as listed in November 2026, when we checked them for this guide. We did not run test purchases on every platform; where a page is unclear or contradicts itself, we say so. Fitness-first apps such as ABC Trainerize and Everfit were left out because their payments are paid add-ons built around client seats, not course sales.

1. Coachful: best overall for course creators who sell more than one thing

Coachful wins when your course is the front door to something bigger: a cohort, a membership, a group program or coaching. The checkout, the course, the community and the client record sit in one account, so a buyer pays once and lands in your branded home and app with the course already unlocked.

Payments run through your own Stripe Connect or Razorpay account. You can sell a course as a one-time purchase, as a subscription, or on a payment plan, and add order bumps and coupons to the checkout. Buyers can pay with Apple Pay or Google Pay, Stripe Tax can calculate tax, and every transaction gets an invoice, with manual invoices available for a company buying seats for its team. Refunds are issued from the same place. Since August 2026 there has been a 0% Coachful platform fee, so the only per-sale cost is what Stripe or Razorpay charges.

For course creators, the delivery side is what removes tools. Courses have modules, lessons, drip schedules and completion tracking. You can sell downloads, videos, books, AI tools and events alongside them, and package any of these into bundles. When someone enrolls in a program, a cohort group is created automatically, with a community feed, group chat and video events for live Q&A. That replaces the usual chain of checkout tool, course host, community app and calendar link.

Here is a short walkthrough of how bundles are put together and sold:

Selling happens through the section-based website builder (with a blog, custom domain and SEO settings) and through checkout, lead-magnet, application and booking funnels with Meta Pixel, GA4 and UTM tracking. About 25 funnel templates and 48 course templates with quizzes give you a starting structure. Email lists, broadcasts and multi-step sequences with triggers, delays, branching and A/B splits handle the launch sequence and the abandoned-interest follow-up. If you sell from Instagram, a keyword comment can trigger a DM with the checkout link, and that person lands in the same lead and client records as everyone else.

The client record ties it together: each buyer's payments, sessions, course progress, check-ins, tags and notes in one place, with a status of thriving, active, quiet or at risk. Michelle, the built-in AI assistant, works from that live data. It can draft launch emails, outline a course or program, and brief you before a group call. Questions and planning are included in your Coachful membership; confirmed builds and changes use AI credits.

Why Coachful stands out: a free white-glove service. From Create > We'll build it for you · FREE, you describe what you want built (a sales page, a checkout funnel, a course outline and written lesson material, an email sequence, a website) and attach up to 8 reference links and up to 10 files such as your logo, photos and existing copy. The Coachful team builds it inside your own account, usually within about 24 hours. Nothing is invented: no fake testimonials, credentials or prices, and gaps are left for you to fill. A business mentor for beauty professionals, for example, got a 12-week mentorship sales page, a free start-up-guide funnel and rewritten follow-up emails. It does not include recording your videos, logo design or running ads. Read more about the free white-glove service.

What Coachful is, in one paragraph. Coachful is a coaching platform where one subscription covers booking, payments, contracts, courses, programs with habits and check-ins, a community, a website with funnels and email, and an AI assistant, with one login for you and one branded app for your students and clients. It suits course creators who also deliver programs, cohorts or coaching, and anyone replacing four to six separate tools. It does not offer PayPal, it is not a course marketplace that brings you buyers, it has no third-party plugins, and its affiliate program tracks links, clicks, conversions and revenue but payouts are recorded manually rather than sent by Coachful. To start, take a free trial and ask for the free white-glove build. Plans are flat monthly, lower plans cap the number of clients and Pro is unlimited (current plans: Lite: $29/month for up to 5 clients; Solo: $49/month for up to 20 clients; Pro: $99/month with unlimited clients; Studio: $199/month with unlimited clients). See the payment software and course platform pages for the full feature list.

Where it falls short for some course creators: if you need PayPal at checkout, a marketplace audience, or affiliate commissions paid out automatically, look at the tools below.

2. Kajabi: the pick for a big catalog on one vendor

Kajabi wins for course creators running many products and a sizeable email list who want courses, community, website, funnels and email from one company and are happy to pay for it. It is the most established all-in-one in this category.

As listed in October 2026, Basic is $179 a month ($143 billed annually) for 5 products, 2,500 contacts, 1 community and 0 AI credits. Growth is $249 ($199 annually) with 50 products, 25,000 contacts and 500 AI credits. Pro is $499 ($399 annually) for unlimited products and 100,000 contacts. On Kajabi Payments in the US, processing is 2.9% + $0.30 on Basic, 2.8% + $0.30 on Growth and 2.7% + $0.30 on Pro. If you use another processor (other than PayPal), Kajabi adds its own fee of 2% on Basic, 1% on Growth and 0.5% on Pro.

For a course business, the Basic caps bite quickly: five products disappear once you have a flagship course, a mini course, a membership, a bundle and a lead magnet. Most creators with a real catalog end up on Growth. The standard trial is 14 days; a card is optional, and if entered, Kajabi places an authorization hold. Some features, such as bulk contact import, stay locked until a paid plan starts.

What you do not get is per-student coaching delivery. Kajabi treats coaching as products and communities, with no daily check-ins, habit tracking or per-client plans. Public reviews are mixed: Trustpilot showed 3.4 from 2,347 reviews in October 2026.

Pick it over Coachful if you have tens of thousands of contacts, need PayPal at checkout, and your business is products only, with no coaching or cohort delivery that needs per-student tracking.

3. Stan Store: the link-in-bio launch

When your audience lives on Instagram or TikTok and your first course is a $49 mini course, Stan Store gets you selling fastest. It is a link-in-bio storefront for digital products, courses, memberships and paid calls.

As listed in October 2026, Creator is $29 a month ($25 billed annually) with unlimited products and customers and one store. Creator Pro is $99 a month ($79 annually). Stan takes 0% of sales ("keep 100% of every sale"), so you pay only standard Stripe or PayPal processing. There is a 14-day free trial on either plan, with the first month charged when it ends.

The catch for course creators is where the growth features sit. Email marketing, upsells, discount codes and affiliates are only on Creator Pro. A launch without a coupon or an order bump is a weaker launch, so most course sellers will pay the $99. Stan also has no contracts, no invoices and no client records; it is not a CRM, and it has no programs with student tasks, habits or check-ins. No team seats are advertised.

Reviewers like it: Trustpilot showed 4.7 from 2,205 reviews in October 2026, the highest score of any tool here with a published rating. The praise is mostly about speed of setup, which matches what the product is built for.

Where it gets stretched is the second year. Once you add a cohort, a live call series or a higher-ticket program, you are bolting on a scheduler, a community app and an email tool, and the "one link" promise turns into four logins.

Pick it over Coachful if you only sell low-priced digital products from social media, want PayPal, and have no plans to add cohorts, coaching or a full website.

4. SamCart: for creators who live and die by the launch page

SamCart is a checkout specialist. It wins when your course already lives somewhere and your main lever is conversion on launch day: order bumps, one-click upsells and testing two versions of the checkout.

As listed on its pricing page in November 2026, Core is $79 a month, with unlimited pages, products and checkouts, an AI assistant, a courses app, cart abandonment and one team seat. Pro is $199 a month and adds one-click upsells and order bumps, A/B testing, Subscription Saver, an affiliate center, advanced analytics, API access, third-party processors and 10 team seats. A Done For You tier is custom priced through a sales call. Yearly billing is listed at 25% off. SamPay processing is 2.9% + 30¢ on both plans, with "no added fees on SamPay", and tax collection is listed at 50 basis points on Core and 35 on Pro. The page offers a 7-day free trial.

For course creators, note what sits on Pro: order bumps and upsells, the two features most launches depend on, are not on Core. That makes the realistic price $199 a month before your course host, email tool and community. SamCart does list a courses app, but it is a checkout company first, and creators with cohorts or community usually still pair it with a separate platform.

Subscription Saver, on Pro, is aimed at recovering failed recurring payments, which matters for memberships and payment plans where a declined card means lost revenue and a student stuck in limbo.

We could not find public review scores in our packet for SamCart, so we do not quote one.

Pick it over Coachful if you run frequent paid-traffic launches, want A/B testing on the checkout itself, and are happy to keep your course and community on separate tools.

5. Teachable: a school with student apps

Course creators who want a dedicated course school, with iOS and Android student apps and a well-known brand behind it, are Teachable's core market. It handles payments and taxes globally inside the platform.

As listed in November 2026, Starter is $39 a month ($29 billed annually) for 5 products, with a 7.5% transaction fee. Builder is $89 ($69 annually) for 10 products, 0% transaction fee, an affiliate program and real-time support. Growth is $189 ($139 annually) for 50 products, adding course certificates, removal of Teachable branding, imported students and custom admin permissions. Every plan lists a 7-day free trial and a 30-day guarantee, plus "upsells and cart recovery". Teachable invites sellers over $12,000 a year to contact sales for special conditions.

The fee structure is the decision point. At $2,000 a month in course sales, 7.5% on Starter is $150 a month, which makes Builder cheaper in practice. Treat Starter as a test plan.

Teachable is built around courses rather than ongoing client work. If your upsell is a cohort with weekly calls or 1:1 coaching, check how much of that you would run in other tools. Its product caps (5, 10, 50) also count bundles and mini courses, so plan your catalog before you choose a plan.

Teachable's student apps are a real plus for creators whose students learn on their phones, and the global payments and tax handling saves setup work if you sell internationally.

Pick it over Coachful if your business is courses only, you want a course-school brand students already recognize, and you need course certificates out of the box.

6. Thinkific: cohorts and a branded academy at scale

Thinkific suits established course businesses that want a full learning site with live cohorts, communities and, on the top plan, their own branded mobile app.

As listed in November 2026, Start is $109 a month ($82 billed annually) with unlimited courses, video lessons, student discussions, live cohorts and coaching, Zoom sessions and a custom domain. Grow is $219 ($164 annually), removing Thinkific branding and adding 3 communities, deeper analytics and professional support. Expand is $499 ($374 annually), with 10 communities and 200 spaces, more video bandwidth, unlimited group sizes and email white-labeling. Each plan offers a free trial.

On payments, Thinkific's page says customers processing on Thinkific Payments do not pay a third-party gateway fee; if you use another gateway, a fee applies that varies by plan, and standard processing fees still apply. Apple Pay and Google Pay transaction fees vary, per the same page. If you sell in a currency or country where Thinkific Payments is not available, check that gateway fee before you commit.

For course creators the appeal is cohort-friendly structure: live cohorts and coaching are on the entry plan. The trade-off is price; Start costs more than many all-in-one tools, and the plan that removes the Thinkific brand is $219 a month.

It is a learning platform first. Per-student habits, daily check-ins and a coaching client record are not what it is built around.

Pick it over Coachful if you run a large academy with many communities, need email white-labeling for corporate clients, and want your own branded app listing rather than your branding inside a shared app.

7. Paperbell: when 1:1 packages matter more than the course

Paperbell suits creators whose course is small and whose real income is coaching packages. It is built for solo coaches: booking, packages, payments, contracts, a client portal and a simple website under one price.

As listed in October 2026, Paperbell has a single plan at $97 a month ($80.83 billed annually), with unlimited clients, sessions, files, packages and traffic. It lists "no additional transaction fees"; Stripe or PayPal processor fees apply. There is a "Try For Free" button, with the trial length not on the pricing page (an older help-center note from July 2026 described a 7-day trial with the public site offline). A 30-day money-back guarantee is listed.

For course creators, the limit is the course itself. Our older profile shows no courses or LMS, no community and no goal or habit tracking. You can sell access to files, but modules, drip and completion tracking need another tool, and so does a cohort group. There is also no native mobile app, only the mobile browser, per that older profile.

What it does well is the coaching sale: a client picks a package, signs the contract, pays (PayPal included) and books, without you stitching tools together. Trustpilot showed 3.5 from 14 reviews in October 2026, a small sample.

If you sell a course today and plan to add a group program, expect to pair Paperbell with a course host and a community, which pushes the stack cost well past the single plan.

Pick it over Coachful if your offer is purely 1:1 packages, you need PayPal, and any "course" is a few downloadable files rather than a structured curriculum.

8. Podia: one simple storefront

Podia fits creators who want one tidy storefront for courses, downloads, webinars, coaching sessions and a community, with very little to configure.

As listed in October 2026, Mover is $49 a month ($42 billed annually) with 50 products, 500 videos, 25 community spaces and 100 email subscribers, plus a 5% Podia transaction fee. Shaker is $99 ($84 annually) with 150 products, 1,000 videos, 500 email subscribers and 0% Podia fee. Earthquaker is $179 ($150 annually) for unlimited products and 1,000 email subscribers. Stripe or PayPal processing (2.9% + 30¢ standard) applies on top. The trial is 14 days with full access and no card required.

The numbers to watch are the email allowances. A course creator launching to a list of 2,000 people has outgrown every plan's included subscribers, so budget for more email capacity or a separate email tool. On Mover, the 5% fee on a $5,000 launch is $250, which is more than the jump to Shaker.

Per our older profile, Podia has no mobile app and no native video calls, and no student habits, check-ins or per-student plans. Trustpilot showed 4.1 from 153 reviews in October 2026.

Pick it over Coachful if you want PayPal, a small list, and the simplest possible storefront with no coaching delivery to manage.

9. Lemon Squeezy: let someone else carry the tax

Selling a course worldwide means VAT and sales tax on digital goods. Lemon Squeezy is a merchant of record: it is the legal seller, collects and remits tax, and you receive the payout.

As listed in November 2026, there is no monthly fee for its ecommerce features, and the transaction fee is 5% + 50¢, with a note that some payments may be subject to additional fees and that transactions outside the US may carry small extra fees. Email marketing is free for up to 500 subscribers, then priced by list size. The page lists PayPal among its payment methods, support for many currencies, subscriptions, discount codes, bundles, upsells and lead magnets. A 2026 banner on the site announces an update tied to Stripe Managed Payments; read it before you build on Lemon Squeezy long term.

For a course creator, the trade is percentage versus paperwork. At $3,000 a month, 5% + 50¢ per sale costs far more than processing alone, but it can replace hours of tax registration and filing. Whether that is worth it depends on where your buyers are, which is a question for your accountant.

Lemon Squeezy is a store and checkout, not a course host. You will deliver lessons elsewhere and connect the two, and someone has to grant and revoke access on payment-plan changes.

Pick it over Coachful if you sell mostly to international buyers, do not want to register for VAT or sales tax yourself, and are fine hosting the course on another platform.

10. Gumroad: the zero-commitment test

Gumroad is the cheapest way to find out whether anyone will pay for your course idea. There is no monthly charge; you pay only when you sell.

As listed on its pricing page in November 2026, the fee is 10% + $0.50 per transaction on sales through your profile or direct links, and 30% when new customers find and buy from you through the Gumroad Discover marketplace. Since January 1, 2025, Gumroad acts as merchant of record and handles sales tax collection and remittance worldwide.

For a validation sale (a $29 pre-sale of a course you have not filmed yet), that is a fair deal. At scale it is the most expensive line in this guide: on $5,000 a month of direct sales, the platform fee alone is $500 plus the per-sale 50¢. The Discover marketplace can bring buyers you would not reach otherwise, but at 30%.

Course delivery is basic compared with a dedicated course platform, and there is nothing for cohorts or coaching. Many creators start here and move once sales are steady.

Pick it over Coachful if you have not sold a single course yet, want zero fixed cost while you test demand, and value the tax handling more than the fee.

11. Stripe Payment Links: pay-as-you-go on a site you already have

If your course is hosted somewhere already and you just need a way to charge, Stripe Payment Links are the bare minimum: a no-code link you paste into a sales page, email or DM.

As listed in November 2026, standard Stripe pricing is 2.9% + 30¢ per successful domestic card transaction, plus 1.5% for international cards, 1% if currency conversion is needed and 0.5% for manually entered cards, with no setup or monthly fees. Recurring billing (Stripe Billing) on pay-as-you-go is 0.7% of billing volume, and Stripe Tax on no-code integrations such as Payment Links is 0.5% per transaction where you are registered to collect.

For course creators, Stripe gives you the lowest per-sale cost in this list and complete control. What it does not give you is anything after the payment: no course access, no student record, no community, no launch emails. You or an automation tool has to connect the payment to the course, and each extra Stripe product (Billing, Tax) adds its own percentage. Stripe also does not file your taxes; Stripe Tax calculates and collects where you are registered.

Worth knowing: several platforms in this list, Coachful included, run on Stripe underneath, so you get the same processing rate with the delivery side attached.

Pick it over Coachful if you already have a course host you love, sell only a handful of products, and are comfortable wiring payments to access yourself.

12. HoneyBook: for training sold by proposal

Some course creators sell their curriculum to companies as a training engagement: a proposal, a contract, an invoice in three installments. HoneyBook is a client-management CRM built for exactly that service-business flow.

As listed in October 2026, Starter is $29 a month billed annually (the monthly price was not shown), with unlimited clients and projects and 2 live lead forms. Essentials is $59 a month ($49 annually) with up to 2 team members, and Premium is $129 ($109 annually) with unlimited team members. A 30-day free trial with no card is listed. HoneyBook is the payment processor; its page is inconsistent on the card rate, listing 2.7% + 10¢ in the FAQ and 2.9% + 25¢ in the plan comparison. ACH is 1.5%, and instant deposit is 1%.

For course creators, HoneyBook covers the B2B paperwork well: proposals, contracts, invoices and a client portal. It does not deliver anything: no courses, programs, habits, check-ins or community. The scheduler and automations are not on Starter. Trustpilot showed 4.1 from 748 reviews in October 2026.

If you sell both to companies and to individuals, you will run HoneyBook next to a course platform, with two sets of client records.

Pick it over Coachful if most of your revenue is corporate training sold by proposal, you need ACH payments, and your course delivery happens in a client's own learning system.

How do these payment platforms compare feature by feature?

The matrix below shows which tools sell and deliver the things course creators actually sell. "Partial" means the vendor documents something close but not the full feature.

What does a full payment stack cost? Three example stacks

Here are three common course-creator setups with monthly software cost. These are examples, not quotes: processing fees are left out because they are similar across Stripe-based tools, and platform percentage fees are shown separately because they depend on your sales.

Stack A, the all-in-one: course, bundles, payment plans, cohort community, email and website in one account, with no platform fee on sales.

Stack B, the separate-tools route: Stan Store Creator Pro ($99) for checkout and upsells, Teachable Builder ($89) for the course, and a community or email tool on top. That is $188 a month before the third tool, with three logins and a connection between checkout and course access to maintain.

Stack C, the heavyweight: Kajabi Growth ($249) plus SamCart Pro ($199) for launch-page testing. That is $448 a month, which buys strong marketing tools but still no per-student coaching delivery.

On Coachful, the client cap applies to people you deliver programs and coaching to; if you need more room, the unlimited plan is Pro: $99/month with unlimited clients.

How does a course creator set up payments in Coachful, step by step?

Here is how a course creator selling a $297 course, with a $97 workbook as an order bump and a three-payment option, would set it up. The numbers are an example.

1. Connect Stripe. Link your own Stripe Connect account (or Razorpay if you sell mainly in India). Payouts go straight to you, and Stripe Tax can be switched on for tax calculation.
2. Build or import the course. Create modules and lessons in the course builder, set a drip schedule if you want weekly release, or start from one of the 48 course templates. Existing content can be imported for you during onboarding.
3. Create the offer. Set the course price as a one-time payment and add a payment plan of three monthly installments. Add the workbook as an order bump and create an early-bird coupon for launch week.
4. Bundle the upsell. Package the course with a cohort or a block of group calls as a bundle. When someone enrolls in the program, the cohort group is created automatically.
5. Build the checkout funnel. Pick a checkout or lead-magnet funnel template, add your Meta Pixel and GA4 tracking, and publish it on your custom domain. Or ask the white-glove team to build the sales page and funnel for you.
6. Write the launch sequence. Set up an email sequence with a delay and a branch: buyers get onboarding emails, non-buyers get the cart-close reminders. Michelle can draft the first version from your course outline.
7. Watch the numbers. Every sale creates an invoice on the buyer's record. The Analytics tab shows revenue collected, product sales and retention, and each student's status tells you who is quiet or at risk of dropping off.

For the membership side of the same business, see our guide to membership platforms for course creators; for launch emails, the email marketing platforms for course creators roundup.

What mistakes do course creators make when choosing a payment platform?

• Comparing monthly prices and ignoring the percentage. A $0 plan at 10% is the most expensive option once sales are steady. Work out your fee at your expected monthly revenue, not at zero.
• Selling payment plans without access rules. If a student stops paying installment two, what happens to their access? On a split stack, the answer is often "nothing, until you notice". Pick a tool where the plan and the course access are linked.
• Skipping the tax question. Digital course sales across borders can create VAT and sales tax duties. Decide early whether you want a merchant of record or your own registrations, and check with an accountant.
• Buying the starter plan for launch week. On several tools, order bumps, upsells and coupons sit on the higher plan. Check that the plan you buy has the features your launch relies on.
• Forgetting the after-sale. Most course creators eventually sell a cohort, a community or coaching. If your payment platform cannot sell those, you will rebuild your checkout in a year.
• Losing the buyer record. When checkout, course and email are separate tools, a student's history is split three ways. One record per buyer makes refunds, support and upsells easier.

Which payment platform is best for course creators? Our verdict

For most course creators who sell a course and something beyond it (a cohort, a membership, group calls or coaching), Coachful is the strongest pick: payment plans, subscriptions, order bumps, coupons and bundles sold through your own Stripe or Razorpay account with a 0% platform fee, and the course, community and student record in the same account. The free white-glove build removes most of the setup work.

Pick Kajabi if you have a very large list and sell products only. Pick Stan Store for a fast, low-priced first course from social media. Pick SamCart if checkout testing is your main lever, Lemon Squeezy or Gumroad if you want someone else to carry sales tax, and plain Stripe if you already have a course host and want the lowest per-sale cost. Compare more options on our comparison hub or the coaching platforms with payment plans roundup.

Frequently asked questions

What is the cheapest way for a course creator to accept payments?

With no monthly fee, Stripe Payment Links cost the least per sale at 2.9% + 30¢ for domestic cards as listed in November 2026, but you connect payment to course access yourself. Gumroad and Lemon Squeezy also have no monthly fee, but take 10% + 50¢ and 5% + 50¢ respectively. Once sales are steady, a flat monthly plan with no platform fee usually costs less overall.

Can I sell an online course on a payment plan?

Yes. Coachful supports payment plans alongside one-time and subscription pricing, and many course and checkout platforms offer some form of installments; confirm it on the vendor's current plan page. Check that access is tied to the plan, so a student who stops paying loses access automatically, and that the plan is on the tier you are buying.

Do I need a merchant of record to sell courses internationally?

Not necessarily, but it changes who handles tax. Lemon Squeezy and Gumroad act as merchant of record and collect and remit sales tax and VAT for you. With Stripe-based platforms, including Coachful, you are the seller, and Stripe Tax can calculate tax where you are registered. Rules vary by country and state, so check with an accountant.

Does Coachful take a cut of my course sales?

No. Since August 2026 Coachful charges a 0% platform fee on sales. You pay only Stripe or Razorpay processing on your own account, and your plan covers the software.

Does Coachful support PayPal?

No. Coachful takes payments through Stripe Connect or Razorpay, with cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay. If PayPal is essential for your buyers, Kajabi, Stan Store, Podia, Paperbell and Lemon Squeezy list it.

What is Coachful's free white-glove service?

It is a done-for-you build included on every plan. You describe what you need, such as a sales page, checkout funnel, course outline or email sequence, and attach up to 8 links and 10 files; the Coachful team builds it inside your account, usually within about 24 hours. It does not include filming videos, logo design or ad management.

Can I sell a course and 1:1 coaching from the same checkout?

On Coachful, yes: courses, bundles, paid sessions and session credits are sold from the same account and appear on one client record. Paperbell handles coaching packages well but has no course builder, and most course-first tools treat coaching as a product or leave booking to another tool.

Is Gumroad good for selling an online course?

Gumroad is good for testing demand, because there is no monthly fee and it handles sales tax as merchant of record. At steady volume its 10% + 50¢ fee on direct sales gets expensive, and course delivery is basic, so many creators move once a course sells reliably.

Which platform is best if I already host my course on Teachable or Thinkific?

Both handle payments inside the platform, so you may not need a separate tool. Teachable's Starter plan carries a 7.5% transaction fee, so Builder is usually cheaper once you sell regularly. Thinkific charges no extra gateway fee on Thinkific Payments. Add a checkout specialist like SamCart only if you need A/B tests or advanced upsells.

Still weighing community features? Our community platforms for course creators guide and the list of Skool alternatives for course creators cover that side.