COMPARE · COMMUNITY.IO VS SKOOL
Everything you love about Skool. Minus the fees they hide.
The same engagement engine — algorithm-free feed, points, levels. Side-by-side fee math including the 3.9% cliff over $900 and $99-per-community stacking, plus the feature list Skool won't build.
Verified against live pricing pages · July 7, 2026
The feature ledger
Verified against live pricing pages · July 7, 2026
| Feature | community.io | Skool |
|---|---|---|
| Engagement engine (points, levels, leaderboards) | Skool-grade gamification: points, levels, leaderboards, level-gated content | The benchmark — this is what Skool got right |
| Course tools (quizzes, certificates, drip, progress) | Built in on every tier — a classroom, not a video list | None — requested since 2021 |
| Member tiers & gated spaces | Tiers + gated spaces in one community, one price | One feed; a second tier = a second $99/mo community |
| Multiple communities | Per account — unlimited communities on one subscription | $9/$99 per community — two paid tiers + a funnel group = $297/mo |
| High-ticket transactions (over $900) | 2.9% + 30¢ flat on Pro — no cliff at any transaction size | 3.9% + 30¢ over $900 — not shown on the public pricing page |
| Branding & white-label | Custom domain on Pro; full white-label + branded app on Scale ($199) | skool.com/your-name, forever |
| AI operations | AI onboarding, churn-risk flags, moderation, health digest — every tier | Zero AI features |
| Public API & webhooks | Open API + webhooks on Scale ($199) | No public API — Zapier only |
| Data export & lock-in | Full export — posts, courses, members, history. No exit penalty. | A CSV of member emails only |
| India & multi-currency | INR member pricing; payouts in 40+ countries, including India | Members always pay USD; India payouts unsupported |
The fee math, all-in
Total monthly cost — fees + subscription. Computed, not quoted.
| Platform | Starting out — $1k/mo · $50 avg | Growing — $10k/mo · $50 avg | Two communities — $25k/mo · $50 avg | High-ticket — $100k/mo · 50 × $2,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Skool Hobby$9/mo per community + 10% + 30¢ | $115/mo | $1,069/mo | $2,668/mo | $10,024/mo |
| Skool Pro$99/mo per community + 2.9% + 30¢ · 3.9% over $900 | $134/mo | $449/mo | $1,073/mo | $4,014/moincl. 3.9% over $900 |
| community.io Free$0 + 4.9% + 30¢ all-in | $55/mo | $550/mo | $1,375/mo | $4,915/mo |
| community.io Pro$49 + 2.9% + 30¢ all-in — flat, no $900 cliff | $84/mo | $399/mo | $924/mo | $2,964/mo |
| Switching to community.io Provs Skool’s cheapest setup at each point | keeps $372/yr | keeps $600/yr | keeps $1,788/yr | keeps $12,600/yr |
Where Skool wins
Both columns of the ledger — strengths first.
Their column
- Engagement engine that converts lurkers into contributors — points, levels, leaderboards
- Paid community live in under an hour; radical simplicity
- Algorithm-free feed and mobile apps members actually open
- Discovery marketplace and a huge creator ecosystem
What it costs you
- No quizzes, certificates, drip, or progress tracking — a classroom in name only
- One feed per community: no tiers, gated spaces, scheduling, or post approval
- $99/mo per community, no bundling — two paid tiers plus a free funnel group = $297/mo
- 3.9% + 30¢ on any transaction over $900 — not shown on the public pricing page
- Export is a CSV of member emails only — no posts, courses, or history
- Members always pay in USD; India payouts unsupported
- No white-label, no public API, no AI features
pricing source: skool.com↗ · Verified against live pricing pages · July 7, 2026
Run the numbers at your revenue.
The same math behind every table on this page — every formula published at /fees.