So, you’ve got what it takes to make a name for yourself in educational entrepreneurship. But have you found the right platform that allows you to do so?
Course management or LMS services let you create meaningful content, share them with your students and potential customers, and make substantial profits from selling them. Today, there are hundreds of online LMS platforms out there, each with impressively convincing features that are hard to beat. But, with this influx, it can be pretty hard to choose which one suits you best.
Since I began selling courses, I have had many struggles finding the right place to learn my entrepreneurial skills. I jumped from platform to platform until I settled down with Kajabi once I became more confident. Although I might have found the right one for me, that doesn’t mean I can’t give sound advice to help you on your journey.
I’ll be sharing with you brief rundowns on Kajabi as well as its other alternative LMS services. We’ll take a close look at their distinct assets, the pros, the cons, what makes each other different or similar, and my opinion on whoever gets to use any of them!
For those of you who prefer a more visual experience, here is a video review from Legit Marketing Reviews’ YouTube channel. To get a comprehensive overview of Kajabi, you may still want to check out our article below.
Kajabi: A Brief Overview Rainmaker Platform Vs Kajabi
Some of you may have recognized the name “Kajabi” in passing. It is an online course management platform that is popular and well-known. You can create and sell courses with almost any solution you want.
Course builder? Got it. You need a reliable website builder. It’s there. Are you looking for a wide selection of pre-made templates or themes? Certainly. A range of excellent sales and marketing tools, including fully functional sales funnel blueprints? Sure thing! Kajabi has the right tool for you, no matter how complex your content management and sales needs.
Kajabi‘s claim to be a one-stop shop is enough for established and developing edupreneurs to love. It has received many glowing reviews, although there are some valid points of criticism. It’s no wonder why Trustpilot has scored Kajabi an outstanding 4.6 out of 5.
Kajabi’s Top Features
Kajabi is primarily known for its simple yet intuitive interface, generous range of customization, and flexible editing capabilities. Its course builder is designed to give you the tools needed to cultivate a convenient educational experience between you and your students. Meanwhile, its website editor and free hosting allow you to have a fully personalized space where you could share what you have with anyone.
And it doesn’t stop here, because Kajabi has so much more to offer – its built-in suite of marketing tools, on one hand, works as impressively as most third-party providers combined. The inclusion of sales pipelines, for instance, is noteworthy, as other LMS platforms would have required you to connect with a standalone service that has the feature. On the other, Kajabi’s learning and support resources are as reliable as you could expect.
The Pros and Cons of Using Kajabi
Kajabi has a unique business model that isn’t often found on other LMS platforms. It’s all-in-one and offers many perks. Another benefit is that you don’t have to integrate with third party apps. Nearly all course management and marketing tools can be found within Kajabi. Another is revenue. Kajabi does not take any of its shares. This means that you keep 100% of the profit from content sales.
While it’s worth noting the benefits of Kajabi’s business model, we shouldn’t fully ignore its downsides. Pricing is a major problem. Plans start at over $100 more than other services. It doesn’t help that there is no free plan. Many users aren’t happy with the absence of essential course management tools, especially certifications, on the platform. However, the cons, fortunately, don’t greatly outweigh the pros, and, despite the few inconveniences, Kajabi is still worth trying. Rainmaker Platform Vs Kajabi
Pricing plans begin with: Kajabi Basic, as low as $119/month
Is there a free plan? No, but it offers a 14-day free trial
Kajabi is a great choice because you don’t need third-party integrations or platforms, it offers very affordable but very valuable plans, reliable user communities, and amazing customer support.
Kajabi is more suitable for Established professionals, newbies with enough financial resources to afford Kajabi’s features, experienced edupreneurs
Kajabi vs. Thinkific
Joining the likes of Kajabi in the lineup of leading online LMS platforms, Thinkific allows you to focus on the task at hand by exploring a diverse range of course-building tools and using it to your advantage to create content to share with your students. The Thinkific App Store allows you to connect with thousands of third-party platforms and offers a wide range of industry-level tools.
> > Click Here to Check Out Kajabi < <
Thinkific has been my tool for creating and selling course content since before Kajabi. Although my needs might have outstripped the capabilities of Thinkific, I was able to appreciate how it allowed me to manage my courses throughout my tenure. With a free plan and a little cheaper premium one, Thinkific is seen by many as a solid Kajabi alternative for those with limited resources, particularly financial ones.
The Similarities
Thinkific is a one-stop shop that offers intuitive course management tools and a great learning experience. It is similar to Kajabi and offers a course builder, customizable website editor and a range of business tools. You can also create a community for your students.
Both platforms excel in the area of course options. No matter which you prefer, you have the chance to create stable online courses and/or membership pages. Even better, you can create assessments in them that are rich with variety. As for teacher-student interactions, I’ve found that my subscribers had little to no issue at all navigating their version of the Thinkific interface just like with Kajabi.
The Differences
Thinkific provides a range of industry-level features at an affordable price, even though it borrows the Kajabi 0% transaction fee model. If you can compare the cost of its premium entry-level plan to the other, you’ll see the difference right away. The former does not offer a free plan, but it offers a functional, though limited, one.
Apart from the value pricing, other bonuses from Thinkific have to be its miles-more-accurate reporting and analytics as well as how it takes care of security measures within the service.
The Pros and Cons of Thinkific
One thing that I like about Thinkific is that it’s user-friendly for both me and my students. Another that I didn’t enjoy as much is the lack of depth some of its features have. I don’t mind its built-in credential tool as much, but the lack of advanced business tools and theme options for websites was certainly a downer, though all of it has been made up for with a wider range of integrations.
Pricing plans start at: Thinkific Start as low as $74/month
Does it have a free plan? Yes
Why Thinkific? A premium starter plan that offers smooth career progression, superior analytics and reporting capabilities, and a super-intuitive user interface.
Thinkific is more suitable for Newbie edupreneurs with limited skills, those who wish to sell courses without any complex marketing jargon
Kajabi vs. Teachable
Teachable, another popular service, shares the same premise of Thinkific in that you can create a fully integrated learning experience. At the same time, it takes care of the rest, i.e., the technical stuff. It’s established by course creators for fellow course creators, so it makes sense that the focus at hand here is concentrated on course management.
Teachable has been lauded by beginners and bona fide creators alike. Beginners, particularly, stand by it due to the insanely cheap price range and extreme ease of use. Its extensive course management tools, rich content analytics, well-versed editing, customization, and editing capabilities are what keep pros returning to it. Teachable, like Thinkific, offers a fully functioning built-in certification tool, something Kajabi, unfortunately, does not have.
The Similarities
Teachable’s course building features are of the same quality as Kajabi’s. Both ways you would be happy with the ease with which you can create memberships, courses, and other products with seamless versatility. Although you could technically use these with either of the two, it is clear that Teachable has the advantage. Rainmaker Platform Vs Kajabi
Accessibility is a key component in course creation. Therefore, it’s important that students can access your content from any device at all times and places. This is addressed by both Teachable and Kajabi with mobile apps that can be downloaded on any device powered by Android or iOS.
The Differences
Teachable is a great course creator and manager, but it’s not as good in other areas. Its native marketing suite, for example, doesn’t bear the same weight as Kajabi’s – it’s obvious that the latter gives its version the same attention as its course-building tools. Despite this, I gotta admire how well both platforms hold up in terms of reporting and analysis, though Teachable is a bit more detail-oriented.
> > Click Here to Check Out Kajabi < <
Teachable’s interface is simpler and more intuitive. Even though you won’t have to code a lot, especially if it’s new to the process, Teachable gives you the freedom to go beyond its limitations with its Power Editor.
The Pros and Cons of Teachable
Teachable is, and remains to be, extremely affordable, making it a solid hit for newbies and budget-conscious pros alike – so much so that I was strongly considering hopping on it when I entered into the course business! The platform’s course management features, which are robust and simple to use, are also a strong point. It lacks in customization options and marketing tools. However, this is where the platform really shines.
Pricing plans start with Teachable Basic starting at $29/month
Is there a free plan? Yes
Reasons to choose Teachable: Extremely beginner-friendly user interface, extensive course management and analytics, simple interface that also allows for advanced-level adjustments
Teachable is more suitable for Absolute beginner edupreneurs, established business professionals, budget-conscious power users
Kajabi vs. ClickFunnels
ClickFunnels is a top online service used by entrepreneurs and businesses all over the world. Although this sounds great, ClickFunnels operates in a different way than Kajabi or the other LMS platforms we have covered. Instead of offering the usual suite of course management, marketing, and analytics tools, it leans heavily on the marketing aspect. Rainmaker Platform Vs Kajabi
Simply put, ClickFunnels is primarily a digital marketing platform that allows users to have their products/content spread throughout the internet, with potential profits expected at their doorstep. It offers a variety of business features that are competitive and can be used for any purpose. It is versatile too. You can use it to promote both your courses and your physical products, if you have them. ClickFunnels is best recognized for its rich library of sales funnel templates, split testing, and intuitive landing page builder.
The Similarities
One factor that ClickFunnels and Kajabi have in common is the sales funnel feature. Both platforms offer a wide range of templates each strategically designed to encourage a bountiful flow of profit and optimized for any objective. While their respective versions do leave an impression, ClickFunnels has comparatively more to deliver, since sales pipelines are their main strategy, after all.
The general interface of ClickFunnels is as easy to navigate as Kajabi. Both services are top-notch when it comes marketing and sales. The checkout and payment tools in particular are as intuitive as you would expect. Plus, their customer service is equally top-notch!
The Differences
In digital marketing, making an effective landing page is as important as sending automated e-mails and crafting well-designed pipelines. Kajabi and ClickFunnels both have page-building abilities, but Kajabi only allows you to create a fully functioning website. ClickFunnels, however, limits you to a handful of page options, including the landing page.
Hiring affiliates within your member base is a guaranteed way to collect more leads and both services allow you to do just that with simple yet industry-grade tools. With ClickFunnels, you get to use this function if you have either a physical or digital product. With Kajabi, meanwhile, you’re essentially only limited to your digital content, including your courses.
The Pros and Cons of ClickFunnels
I may not be that knowledgeable with deep marketing/sales jargon, but some of my colleagues who are can attest that ClickFunnels excels when it comes to delivering what it’s supposed to do. ClickFunnels guarantees entrepreneurs a higher conversion rate. The funnel-building and landing pages creation tools are also outstanding. It doesn’t excel in course-building, which is why it’s not as important for developers.
> > Click Here to Check Out Kajabi < <
Pricing plans begin with: ClickFunnels Basic, as low as $127/month
Does it have a free plan? It does not offer a free plan, but you can try it for 14 days.
Reasons to choose ClickFunnels: Strategic focus on digital marketing, the guarantee of a bigger sales turnout, flexible integration with other apps such as LMS platforms
ClickFunnels is more suitable for Edupreneurs with big budgets, individuals who want to sell both digital courses and physical products Rainmaker Platform Vs Kajabi
Kajabi vs. Kartra
Kartra is another popular option for market-savvy edupreneurs, as it specializes best in product selling, marketing campaigns, and other fail-proof schemes. This one is very interesting. It functions in a similar way to Kajabi, allowing you to create courses and memberships right away. However, it also works similarly to ClickFunnels with other aspects such as page building and marketing tools. You can sell physical and digital products.
With an eye for increased engagement, Kartra helps you leave your subscribers begging for more through its archive of pre-made full sales campaigns or pipelines, a uniquely convenient scheduling system, and additional website widget options. Kartra allows you to share your campaigns with other users and get a 360-degree view on where your leads are headed.
The Similarities
Both Kartra and Kajabi excel when it comes to offering a hefty load of industry-grade business features. You’d be able to succeed no matter where you are because both have optimized templates. On the other, you’d get to enjoy an excellent array of marketing tools, notably the automations.
Similar results can be made about their page-building capabilities. Although you may have more options to explore with Kartra, both platforms take the cake in terms of performance and flexibility. Here’s my opinion: While there are many similarities between Kartra and Kajabi, ClickFunnels has some characteristics that are similar to each other.
The Differences
Kartra may have the upper hand over ClickFunnels as it manages to have a decent amount of course management tools. However, if you pit it against Kajabi’s version, you may find that Kartra can’t keep it up as well as it could. Despite this, Kartra does exceedingly well in its marketing, lead generation, and customer retention capabilities.
If you take a look at the widget options in its website builder, you may find stuff like countdowns, pop-ups, and anything that can easily convince potential customers. This is what happens when you have a platform that puts one thing above all others. There may be some cons, but there will always be pros. Rainmaker Platform Vs Kajabi
Kartra’s Pros and Cons
Kartra is robust in its offering of features from business to page creation, and its set of plans is worth great value as you could make the most out of its core tools no matter where you look. Although Kartra is a great tool for business, it’s not as good at course building. It can also be difficult to navigate, especially for beginners.
Pricing plans start at: Kartra Starter as low as $79/month
Is there a free plan? No, and it doesn’t offer a free trial either
Kartra is a top-quality business tool that doesn’t always need code, enhanced customer retention options and powerful video hosting.
Kartra is better suited for individuals who want to sell digital and physical products. It’s also more appropriate for entrepreneurs with an eye for marketing.
Kajabi vs. Podia
Podia, a fan favorite and underrated LMS platform, is well-known for its low price, easy-to-use user interface, and list of useful yet functional course and business features. It is similar to Kajabi but a lighter and more accessible version. Podia, along with the previously mentioned Teachable, has been seen by many course creators as a great starting point in their careers.
This is something I can attest to as Podia helped me to get into the field. Without Podia, I wouldn’t have learned about course-building and wouldn’t use Kajabi or other high-end services. Course management aside, Podia takes one step ahead of the rest in communication, as it offers users the ability to directly message their customers with no fuss. Rainmaker Platform Vs Kajabi
The Similarities
Podia, a type of LMS, is expected to be all-in-one, similar to Kajabi and Thinkific. While the other two are renowned for their premium-level advanced tools, Podia adjusts its version to be more budget-friendly and easy to use. But, no matter where you look, you’ll find a ton of functionality whenever you use any of their feature offerings.
Podia offers a variety of flexible and dynamic functions that cover nearly every aspect of course management. These include the course builder, player, page themes, sales funnels, and even sales funnels.
The Differences
The idea of a budget-friendly all-in-one platform may sound promising; however, since Podia is structured to be this way, you and I can guess now that it’s always bound to have limits. Compare its features to Kajabi’s, and you’ll notice one is less high-end than the other.
Podia may be the best platform for beginners, but it doesn’t have enough to make them experts. I switched to Thinkific when I felt it was right. Podia may certainly not be as advanced as Kajabi, but it sure is straightforward and functional for its price. Its interface is so easy to use that it’s loved by both beginners and professionals.
The Pros and Cons of Podia
You can create unlimited courses with Podia. This is great for power users or if you are a beginner. You get to pay zero transaction fees as well, but keep in mind that all these are accessible in any of its premium plans. Although Podia offers a free plan with no restrictions, there may be some limitations that could hinder your ability to use it. Rainmaker Platform Vs Kajabi
> > Click Here to Check Out Kajabi < <
Pricing plans start at: Podia Mover, starting at $33/month
Is there a free plan? Yes
Reasons to choose Podia: Flexible and convenient ease of use, creator-friendly course management features, great affiliate marketing and drip campaign tools
Podia is more suitable for DIY entrepreneurs, absolute newbies, those looking for a test drive in course management
Kajabi vs. Mighty Networks
Mighty Networks started as a social media network. It has since grown to be a popular platform with a large following.
It places a strong emphasis upon forging connections and building community. You can also use its marketing and course-building functions. And you can share what you have made through your customizable social media feed, which you can personalize. You can also use your feed to share updates, let your members sound off in the comments, and even inform them you’re holding a live stream if you want. Mighty Networks is a similar to Facebook, I would say.
The Similarities
Similar to Kajabi, Mighty has enough tools to let you create courses, memberships, and other kinds of content in-house. Both have decent video hosting and live-streaming, which means, if you’re into teaching through the video format, you could film and upload them to any either platform scot-free.
Both services offer mobile apps that you, or your students, can download to interact with your content anywhere and anytime. This is a great advantage because they are compatible with both iOS and Android devices. Accessibility is high assured. Mighty recently added an affiliate program. However, because it is new, it may take years for it to become as robust as Kajabi. Rainmaker Platform Vs Kajabi
The Differences
The major distinction between Mighty and Kajabi has to be what it specializes best – the former focuses more on community-building, and the other on the courses, coupled with a bunch of other things. As you can see, Mighty’s ability to build courses is not as good as it could be. They may be functional, at least, but not as advanced as Kajabi’s.
Kajabi‘s communication tools, meanwhile, are decent enough, but they’re not as dynamic as Mighty’s. Although Kajabi claims to be a one-stop platform, I find it hard to believe that it can keep up with Mighty’s messaging, social feed, and comments capabilities. I am a Kajabi user, so I can attest to this!
The Pros and Cons of Mighty Networks
It’s obvious by now that Mighty Networks shines best in its community-building skills. It has been deemed an ideal platform for networking. You can use it not just for course content, but for a lot of other products as well. Speaking of course content, it’s also established that Mighty’s course-building is limited. To add insult to injury, this feature is only available to subscribers to higher business plans.
Pricing plans begin with: The Community Plan, as low as $33/month
Does it offer a free plan? It does not offer a free plan, but you can try it for 14 days.
Reasons to choose Mighty Networks: Highly-optimized social feed for you and your members, a better-functioning mobile app, minimal course-building and marketing tools
Mighty Networks is more suitable for Edupreneurs who believe that communication is at the heart of course management, professionals looking to integrate it with other services
Conclusion Rainmaker Platform Vs Kajabi
This comprehensive review has come to an end. I hope you found it helpful in making your final decision. Picking the most suitable LMS platform can be somewhat of a rough task but with enough credible resources and opinions from other users, it may be less cumbersome.
If you’re considering a service that I use, Kajabi, I can assume that your professional skills are developed enough to make you want to try it out if you’re planning on stepping into the edupreneur’s world. You will also likely have the finances to pay for it. With the grand array of features and a hefty price tag, you can sense that Kajabi’s offerings may be worth the investment, despite the reservations – and you may be right about this one.
If you don’t feel confident with your current resources – whether it’s monetary funds or professional skills – and you feel that Kajabi may be too difficult for you, you might not be ready. If that’s the case, I’m always glad to let you try out any of my other suggestions.
If you’re into connecting with your members yet don’t mind about the barebones course tools, Mighty Networks may be your best bet. It’s possible to choose between Teachable and Podia if you have a tight budget. Better marketing and sales tools? Either between ClickFunnels or Katra. Affordable alternatives to Kajabi itself? Then look no further than maybe Thinkific or Podia.
No matter what you choose, what matters most is that you have a platform to mold you into a better edupreneur. Again, I am glad that I was able to help you select the right LMS for your course business career.
