Skool Free Trial (2026): Length, Card Rules and What It Costs

The Skool free trial lasts 14 days. As of October 2026, Skool's pricing page advertises "a 14-day free trial" and "Cancel anytime", and its help center says both plans, Hobby at $9 a month and Pro at $99 a month, become recurring subscriptions once the 14 days end. There is no permanent free plan for running a group, so the real question is not whether you can try Skool for free but what you will pay on day 15, and whether Skool is the right home for a coaching business once the trial clock runs out.

This guide covers how the trial works, whether you need a card, how to cancel, what each plan costs afterwards, the transaction fees that matter more than the subscription, and where coaches tend to outgrow a community platform. We make Coachful, a coaching platform, so we compare it throughout; every Skool figure below comes from Skool's own pricing page and help center as listed in October 2026.

How long is the Skool free trial, and what does it include?

The trial is 14 days, and it gives you a working group on the plan you choose. Skool's pricing page meta text reads "Get started for $9/month with a 14-day free trial. Cancel anytime.", and the payment terms in its help center state that "Both are recurring subscriptions after 14 day free trial."

During those two weeks you can set up the same things a paying owner gets, because Skool's two plans share one feature list. Skool describes both plans as including unlimited members, unlimited courses, unlimited videos and unlimited live calls. In practice that means you can build:

• A community feed with posts, comments, categories and the leaderboard that rewards members for activity.
• A Classroom for courses and lessons, which you can lock behind levels or payment.
• A Calendar for scheduled group calls and events.
• Paid access through Skool Payments, with membership prices, tiers and even free trials for your own members (Skool's settings list "Free trials, subscriptions, tiers, lifetime, annual, affiliates").

One detail is easy to miss: older write-ups describe a "2 months free" offer. In October 2026 that phrase sits on the yearly billing toggle, not the trial. The trial is 14 days; "2 months free" is the discount you get for paying a year in advance.

Does the Skool free trial need a credit card?

Plan on entering one. Skool's pricing page and subscriptions FAQ do not spell out a card requirement, but its payment terms say the group owner "authorizes Skool to charge the payment method in advance for the selected plan," and the sign-up copy on the pricing page reads "Free for 14 days, then [price]/month. Cancel anytime." That is the language of a trial that converts automatically, which requires a payment method on file.

So treat the trial like a subscription with a delayed first charge:

1. Put the end date in your calendar the day you start.
2. Decide by day 12 whether you are staying on Hobby, moving to Pro, or cancelling.
3. If you are unsure, cancel before the 14 days end. Skool's payment terms are blunt about refunds: "No refunds will be provided for full or partial billing periods or for the non-use of the platform."

What happens when the Skool trial ends?

The plan you picked starts billing, and it auto-renews monthly or yearly until you cancel. Skool's payment terms say subscriptions "automatically renew for successive indefinite renewal terms of the same duration as the initial term," and that fees "accrue from the first day of each term ... regardless of whether the owner actually uses the group."

If a charge fails, the same terms allow Skool to "modify, suspend, or cancel the group owner's access" without notice. If you cancel, you keep access to the end of the period you paid for. After that, Skool archives the group: "the current content will be available read-only; no new content may be added."

That read-only archive matters for coaches. Your members can still see what was there, but you cannot keep teaching, and you need to plan where your members and course material go before you cancel. Skool lets you export members to CSV (name, email, join date and membership answers), but our earlier check of Skool's export found that posts, DMs and course progress do not come with it. Our guide on how to migrate from Skool walks through that move step by step.

How do you cancel a Skool free trial?

Cancel from inside the group's settings. Skool's help article on cancelling a group subscription or free trial (admins only) gives the path:

1. Open the group and go to its settings.
2. Choose the Billing tab.
3. Click Manage subscription and cancel.

Two quirks are worth knowing. Each Skool community is a separate subscription, so if you started trials on two groups you need to cancel both. And if you joined through someone's affiliate link but the referral did not register, Skool's help center says the only fix is to cancel your current free trial and start a new one through the link.

What does Skool cost after the free trial?

Skool has two plans, and the only difference between them is the transaction fee (plus a couple of Pro-only account features). Here is the full price list as shown on Skool's pricing page in October 2026.

Skool's pricing page no longer prints the yearly totals; the per-month figures above are ten months of the monthly price spread over twelve, which is what "2 months free" means and what Skool's yearly prices were in its earlier listing.

What does each Skool plan add?

Hobby is the low-subscription, high-fee plan. Pro is the high-subscription, low-fee plan. Feature-wise they are almost the same product.

Hobby ($9 a month)

You get the full community, classroom, calendar and gamification, unlimited members and unlimited courses. Skool lists affiliates among Hobby's features. The catch is the 10% + 30¢ fee Skool takes on every paid transaction in your group.

Pro ($99 a month)

You get the same features with a far smaller fee: 2.9% + 30¢ on transactions up to $899 and 3.9% + 30¢ above $900. Skool's payment terms add two Pro-specific notes. Changing your group URL on Pro counts as a one-time, non-refundable purchase, and transferring a group to another owner requires the group to be on Pro, with any upgrade charge from Hobby also non-refundable.

If you plan to charge members, Pro usually wins once your monthly sales pass roughly $1,270. Below that, the extra $90 subscription costs more than the 7.1 percentage points of fee you save. Our full Skool pricing breakdown runs the numbers at more revenue levels.

Which fees apply after the Skool trial?

The subscription is the smaller cost for most coaches who sell through Skool. The transaction fee is the bigger one. Here is every fee Skool documents.

• Transaction fees. Hobby: 10% + 30¢ on all transactions. Pro: 2.9% + 30¢ up to $899, 3.9% + 30¢ above $900. Skool's help center states these fees are non-refundable, so if you refund a member you do not get Skool's cut back.
• Payment processing. Skool Payments is the only way to charge members inside Skool. You cannot connect your own Stripe or PayPal account to sell group access.
• Payouts. Skool pays out weekly, on Wednesdays, in your local currency. Its help center notes funds settle after 8 to 14 days before they are available for payout.
• Add-ons and overages. None listed. There are no member caps, video storage overages or seat charges on either plan.
• Extra communities. Each group is a separate subscription. Running a free community plus a paid mastermind means two subscriptions.
• Refunds on the subscription. None, for full or partial periods.

The simplicity is real: two prices, no add-ons, no seat math. That is one of the things public reviewers consistently credit Skool for.

What does a coach actually pay on Skool after the trial?

Here are three example coaching businesses selling a $49-a-month membership through Skool. The member counts and price are illustrative, not data from real coaches; the fees are Skool's published rates applied to each monthly payment. The last column lists the jobs Skool does not do, which most coaches pay for elsewhere.

How the fees were calculated: Hobby is 10% of sales plus 30¢ per payment (15, 40 or 100 payments). Pro is 2.9% plus 30¢ per payment, since each $49 charge sits under the $899 threshold. If you sell a $1,500 program instead, Pro's rate rises to 3.9% + 30¢ on each of those sales.

The fourth column is the part people forget during a trial. Skool does not include 1:1 booking with calendar sync, coaching agreements, intake forms, a website on your own domain, funnels or email sequences, so a coach who needs those adds a scheduler, an e-signature tool and an email platform on top of Skool's bill.

What should you test during the 14 days?

Fourteen days is enough to judge Skool if you test the parts of your business that will actually run there. A practical checklist:

1. Build one real course module. Upload two or three lessons and look at them as a member on the mobile app.
2. Run a test payment. Set a price, buy access with a second account, and check how the fee shows up in your payouts view.
3. Schedule a group call. Add it to the Calendar and see how members are reminded.
4. Try your 1:1 workflow. If you sell private coaching, walk a pretend client from sign-up to first session. Note every step that leaves Skool: booking, agreement, intake, invoice.
5. Export your members. Run the CSV export once so you know what comes out, and what does not.
6. Read the leaderboard rules. Gamification suits some audiences and puts off others; decide whether it fits yours.

If step 4 sends you to three other tools, that is the signal to compare platforms that hold the whole client journey. Our list of Skool alternatives with 1:1 coaching is built around exactly that test.

What does Skool do well?

Skool is good at one job: running a lively group with courses attached. Being fair about that is the starting point for deciding whether it fits.

• Community. The feed is simple, fast and familiar to anyone who has used a Facebook group, which keeps members posting.
• Classroom. Courses sit inside the community, so learning and discussion happen in one place.
• Gamification. Points, levels and a leaderboard reward activity, and you can unlock content by level.
• Discovery. Skool runs a public directory of groups, which can send new members to your community.
• Simple pricing. Two plans, unlimited members, no add-ons and no seat charges.

Public reviews are mixed. Skool's Trustpilot score was 1.6 from 54 reviews as listed in October 2026, and older profiles found it absent from G2 and Capterra, so there is little third-party review data to lean on. Read the reviews yourself during the trial and look for patterns that match how you work. Our Skool review covers the platform in more depth.

Where do coaches outgrow Skool?

Coaches outgrow Skool when the business is more than a group. The gaps are consistent across coaching niches:

• 1:1 booking. Skool's Calendar is for group events. There is no booking page with availability rules, calendar sync or paid sessions.
• Agreements. No coaching contracts or e-signature.
• Programs with habits and check-ins. No per-client plans, daily check-ins, habit tracking or client records with notes and intake answers.
• Payment options. Skool Payments only, with fees on both plans; no payment plans through your own Stripe account.
• A branded website. No website on your own domain, no funnels, no blog.
• Email. No email lists, broadcasts or automated sequences, and no public API to connect one deeply.
• A client app with your brand. Members use the Skool app with Skool's branding around your group.

None of that makes Skool bad. It makes it a community tool, and a coaching practice needs a back office as well.

Coachful: the all-in-one alternative to try instead

Coachful is a coaching platform where one subscription covers booking, payments, contracts, program delivery with habits and check-ins, courses, a community, a website with funnels and email, and an AI assistant. The coach has one login; each client gets one app with the coach's branding. It is built for coaches who deliver programs rather than only sessions, solo coaches growing into a small team, and coaches replacing four to six separate tools. Coachful offers a free trial, and every plan includes the white-glove build described below (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).

Here is how it covers the gaps a Skool trial tends to reveal.

Booking, payments and agreements in one place

Booking pages handle availability rules, buffers, minimum notice and time-zone detection, with two-way Google, Apple/iCloud and Outlook calendar sync. Sessions get built-in video or auto-created Zoom, Meet or Teams links, plus email reminders, and SMS and WhatsApp reminders once messaging is enabled. You can sell paid sessions and session credits and ask intake questions at booking.

Payments run through your own Stripe Connect or Razorpay account: one-time, subscriptions, payment plans, order bumps, coupons, refunds, Apple Pay and Google Pay, and Stripe Tax. Coachful has taken a 0% platform fee since August 2026, so the only deduction is Stripe's or Razorpay's processing. Coaching agreements with e-signature go out before the first call and are stored on the client record. See coaching contracts for how that works.

Programs with habits and check-ins

This is the part Skool does not attempt. Coachful runs multi-week programs with weekly goals, daily tasks, habits, morning and evening check-ins, goals with progress bars and streaks. Each client record holds goals, check-ins, habits, notes, intake answers, tags, payments and sessions, with a status of thriving, active, quiet or at risk so you can see who needs a message.

Here is a short walkthrough of how programs are built and delivered:

Community and courses, still included

If the Skool community is what drew you in, you keep that. Coachful includes a community feed, group chat, direct messages and video events, and cohort groups are created automatically when clients enroll in a program. Courses support modules, lessons, drip and completion tracking, delivered into the client's branded home and app. More on that in our guide to group coaching software.

Website, funnels and email

The section-based website builder includes a blog, custom domain, SEO settings and 30 designed homepage templates, plus booking, application, lead-magnet and checkout funnels with pixels and UTM tracking. Email lists, broadcasts and multi-step sequences with triggers, delays, branching and A/B splits are built in.

Why Coachful stands out: a free white-glove service. From Create, a coach describes what they want built (a website, funnel, sales page, program, course outline, email sequence, form or event) and attaches up to 8 reference links and 10 files. The Coachful team builds it inside the coach's own account, usually within about 24 hours. Nothing is invented: no fake credentials, testimonials or prices, and gaps are left for the coach to fill. One somatic coach leaving Kajabi had the homepage and About page rebuilt and the contact form connected; a business mentor for beauty professionals got a 12-week mentorship sales page, a free start-up-guide funnel and rewritten follow-up emails. It does not cover recording videos, logo design, ad management or ongoing marketing. Read more about the free white-glove service.

What Coachful does not do

Coachful is not HIPAA-certified and is not for clinical record-keeping. It has no PayPal and no permanent free plan. The client app ships under the Coachful listing with your branding, not under your own App Store account. It is not a course marketplace, so it has no public directory sending you members the way Skool's discovery does. If discovery inside a large platform is your main growth channel, weigh that honestly.

How to start: begin a free trial, then use the white-glove build to have your site, funnel or first program set up while you test. Clients, programs and content are imported for you during onboarding, which matters if you are leaving Skool with a member list and courses.

Is Skool worth it after the trial, by coach type?

It depends on how much of your income comes from the group versus from individual clients.

• Community-first creators with a paid group. Skool is a strong fit. Choose Pro once monthly sales pass about $1,270.
• Group coaches running cohorts with calls. Workable, but you will add a booking tool and email. Compare options in our Skool alternatives for group coaches.
• 1:1 coaches (life, executive, career, business). Usually not. Your core workflow (booking, agreements, notes, invoices) happens outside Skool.
• Health, fitness and habit-based coaches. Not on its own. Skool has no habits, check-ins or per-client plans, which are the heart of this work. See Skool alternatives for fitness coaches.
• Coaches building a brand. Skool gives you a group inside Skool, not a website on your domain, funnels or email.

How does the Skool free trial compare with other platforms?

Most platforms coaches compare with Skool offer a trial too, but the lengths, card rules and what you pay afterwards vary a lot. Vendor figures below are as listed in October 2026.

Skool's trial is the same length as most of the field. What separates the options is what you pay once you sell: Skool takes a share of every sale on both plans, Mighty Networks and Circle take a smaller share, and Coachful takes none. For the community-platform comparisons in detail, see Skool vs Mighty Networks and Kajabi vs Skool, and for a wider view, our roundup of coaching software with a free trial.

A side-by-side of the two platforms on every feature is on our Coachful vs Skool comparison.

How can you save money on Skool after the trial?

A few choices make a real difference to the bill:

1. Pick the plan by revenue, not features. The features are the same. Stay on Hobby while member sales are under about $1,270 a month; switch to Pro above that.
2. Pay yearly once you are sure. Yearly billing gives you two months free. Only commit after the trial, since Skool does not refund unused time.
3. Run one group, not several. Each community is its own subscription. Use categories and course access levels inside one group where you can.
4. Price above the 30¢ problem. The flat 30¢ per transaction hurts small charges most. A $5 membership loses 16% to fees on Hobby; a $49 one loses about 10.6%.
5. Watch the $899 line on Pro. Sales above $900 move from 2.9% to 3.9%. For high-ticket programs, compare that with a platform that takes no fee at all.
6. Avoid refund losses. Skool's transaction fees are non-refundable, so a clear sales page and a written agreement reduce costly refunds.
7. Count the tools beside it. If you pay separately for booking, e-signature and email, add those to Skool's cost before you compare.

Before the trial ends, you can also compare the total with our guide to what is genuinely free coaching software and what is a trial in disguise.

Skool free trial FAQ

Does Skool have a free trial in 2026?

Yes. Skool offers a 14-day free trial on both the Hobby and Pro plans, as shown on its pricing page and help center in October 2026. After 14 days the plan becomes a recurring subscription unless you cancel.

Is the Skool free trial really 2 months?

No. "2 months free" is the label Skool now uses for yearly billing, where you pay for ten months and get twelve. The trial itself is 14 days.

Do I need a credit card for the Skool free trial?

Skool's pricing page does not say so explicitly, but its sign-up text describes the trial converting to a monthly charge and its terms authorize Skool to charge your payment method in advance. Expect to add a card and set a reminder before day 14.

Can I get a refund if I forget to cancel the Skool trial?

Skool's payment terms say no refunds are given for full or partial billing periods or for non-use. Cancel before the trial ends if you are not staying.

What happens to my group if I cancel Skool?

You keep access to the end of the paid period. Then the group is archived read-only: members can view existing content, but no new content can be added. Export your member CSV before then.

Which Skool plan should I pick when the trial ends?

Both plans have the same features. Hobby ($9 a month, 10% + 30¢ per sale) is cheaper while your member sales are under roughly $1,270 a month; Pro ($99 a month, 2.9% + 30¢) is cheaper above that.

Can I use my own Stripe or PayPal account on Skool?

No. Skool Payments is the only way to charge members inside Skool, and it applies Skool's transaction fee on both plans. Payouts arrive weekly on Wednesdays.

Is Skool good for 1:1 coaching?

Not on its own. Skool has no booking pages with calendar sync, no agreements, no intake forms and no per-client habits or check-ins. Coaches who sell private coaching usually pair it with other tools or use a coaching platform such as Coachful that includes those.

What is Coachful's free white-glove service?

Every Coachful plan includes a white-glove build: you describe a website, funnel, program, email sequence or other asset, attach references, and the Coachful team builds it inside your account, usually within about 24 hours. It does not include recording videos, logo design or ad management.

Can I move from a Skool trial to Coachful?

Yes. Export your members from Skool as a CSV, and during Coachful onboarding your clients, programs and content are imported for you. Our Skool migration guide covers the order of steps.