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Last updated: May 2026
If you’ve been looking at community platforms recently, you’ve almost certainly had Skool on your list.
It’s been everywhere. Alex Hormozi invested. Creators have been talking about it constantly. And the community-first approach is really good. I’ve enjoyed using it as a community member inside other communities.
So when Thrive Academy launched – ThriveCart’s new community and courses platform – the obvious question was how it stacks up against Skool.
Knowing that I wanted to bring more community & gamification into my own offers, I’ve done a deep dive on Thrive Academy vs Skool to determine which is the better platform and the best value for money.
In this article, I’m sharing my personal thoughts and reflections with you so that you can decide if Skool or Thrive Academy is a better fit for your courses and community or membership!
Quick Answer: Thrive Academy vs Skool
Skool wins on simplicity and maturity. Thrive Academy wins on price, course builder quality, checkout power and video hosting.
If you’re already a ThriveCart user, Thrive Academy is the clearer choice. If you want something more established and are happy paying $99/month for a single community, Skool is solid.
Pricing: The Biggest Difference
Let’s start here because it’s significant.
Skool has two tiers. There’s a Hobby plan at $9/month – but it comes with a 10% transaction fee on every sale, which only makes financial sense until you’re doing up to around $1000/month in revenue. After that, you’re better off on the Pro plan at $99/month (no transaction fees, one community).
Thrive Academy starts at $37/month (Starter, up to 2,000 members, 10 communities), $67/month (Growth, up to 10,000 members), or $97/month (Scale, unlimited members). No transaction fees on any plan – because it runs on ThriveCart’s native checkout.
| Feature | Thrive Academy | Skool |
|---|---|---|
| Entry price | $37/month | $9/month (10% fees) / $99/month (no fees) |
| No transaction fees | ✅ All plans | ✅ Pro plan only |
| Multiple communities | ✅ 10 on Starter | ❌ 1 per plan |
| Annual discount | ✅ ~20% | ❌ |
If you want to run multiple communities – or you’re planning to grow – Thrive Academy is significantly more affordable.
Skool vs Thrive Academy For Community Features
Both platforms are community-first. But they approach it differently.
Skool is deliberately simple. It feels a bit like a private Facebook group – in a good way.
There’s a community feed, a classroom for courses and a calendar for events. The community tab is where members spend most of their time. It’s clean, it’s familiar and that familiarity is actually a feature – members know how to use it without a tutorial.
Gamification in Skool is solid. Members earn points for engaging, which puts them on a leaderboard. It’s simple but it works – people get really competitive about their position!
I know it works because I’ve found myself getting competitive over points inside Skool recently!
Thrive Academy is built around six spaces that are ready to go from day one:
- Q&A (with voting so the best answers rise to the top)
- Announcements (great for promoting new content to your warmest audience)
- Course Space (where courses live inside the community)
- Resource Hub (everything in one place)
- Quiz Hub (all quizzes together in one space)
- Lounge (for premium tier or cohort members)
Gamification goes further than Skool – XP points, badges, leaderboards with actual podiums, streaks, and level-up prompts. More granular and more motivating for some learners.
Both platforms let members search and connect with each other. Both have activity feeds. The main difference is Thrive Academy gives you more dedicated space types, Skool gives you something more immediately familiar.
Winner for community: It’s a tie.
Skool wins on simplicity and familiarity. Plus it’s really gathering momentum right now.
Thrive Academy wins on gamification depth and space structure. There are also lots more really fun features on the road map!
Thrive Academy vs Skool for Course Features
This is where the gap opens up.
Skool’s course builder is functional but basic.
You get modules, lessons, and basic drip content. That’s about it. No quizzes (at the time of writing), no certificates, limited layout options. It works for simple course delivery – but it’s not a patch on Thrive Academies course builder!
Thrive Academy rebuilt its course builder from the ground up and you now get…
- Drag-and-drop builder
- Built-in video hosting (100GB on Starter – no Loom/Vimeo needed)
- Multiple layout templates
- Sophisticated drip content – time-based, date-specific, or progression-based
- Quizzes and interactive elements
- Certificates
- Progress tracking and bookmarking
- Course cloning and templates
- Version control and rollback
- Blueprints – pre-built lesson templates you fill in
The fact that video hosting is built in is a big deal. Skool doesn’t include it – you’re hosting elsewhere and embedding which means another monthly cost. Thrive Academy removes that step entirely.
Winner for hosting courses: Thrive Academy – not even close.
Thrive Academy vs Skool for Checkout and Commerce
This is Thrive Academy’s biggest advantage.
Skool has checkout functionality, but it’s relatively basic. No upsells on the checkout page, limited payment structures. You’re also paying hefty transaction fees – a whopping 10% on the hobby plan!
Thrive Academy runs on ThriveCart natively. That means…
- ThriveCart’s industry-leading checkout pages
- One-click upsells and bump offers
- Full affiliate management
- All the payment plan and subscription options ThriveCart supports
Currently no other community platform gives you this out of the box.
Winnerfor checkouts: Thrive Academy – comprehensively.
Which Has Better Analytics? Thrive Academy or Skool?
Skool shows basic community engagement data – member activity, leaderboard stats. Course analytics are limited.
Thrive Academy gives you per-course completion rates, lesson-by-lesson drop-off data, and community dashboards. You can see which module loses people. You can spot which courses students actually finish. Growth plan users also get CSV exports to build automations based on engagement data.
Winner for analytics: Thrive Academy
Maturity and Stability
Skool has been around longer and is a more mature product. The community-first UX has been refined over time. It’s well-documented, well-known, and a lot of creators have built successful communities on it.
The key benefit here is the more people who are already familar with it, the easier it is to promote it to your audience.
Thrive Academy launched in 2026. It’s brand new. That means some rough edges are possible and some features on the roadmap aren’t live yet. ThriveCart has 24,000+ Learn accounts and 13M+ student enrolments behind it, so this isn’t a tiny startup but Skool still wins on maturity – for now at least!
Winner: Skool on maturity.
Who Should Choose Thrive Academy?
- You’re already on ThriveCart – the native integration is too good to ignore
- You want a proper course builder alongside your community
- You want built-in video hosting without paying for Vimeo separately
- You want to run multiple communities without paying per community
- You want ThriveCart’s checkout power (upsells, bumps, affiliates) without stitching tools together
- Budget matters – $37/month vs $99/month
Who Should Choose Skool?
- You want the most battle-tested, familiar community platform available right now
- You don’t need a sophisticated course builder
- You’re comfortable with $99/month for one community
- Simplicity is your priority
- You don’t use ThriveCart and don’t plan to
So which did I choose? Thrive Academy or Skool?
I love how fun Skool is and I admit it is tempting. But for me the more powerful course builder and gamification features made me choose Thrive Academy.
I also think it’s very likely in the future that I will want more than one community or membership so even at the highest tier, Thrive Academy works out more cost effective for me.
I’m inside and testing, experimenting and getting to know the platform for now. I want to make a few tweaks before launch my community platform so only time will tell if it was a good call!
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Thrive Academy better than Skool?
It depends what you need. Thrive Academy has a stronger course builder, built-in video hosting, better checkout integration, and a lower starting price.
Skool is more established, simpler, and more familiar to many creators. For ThriveCart users, Thrive Academy is the better fit.
Can I switch from Skool to Thrive Academy?
Yes. You’d export your content from Skool and rebuild inside Thrive Academy. Your member list would need to be migrated and re-invited. It’s some work but very doable and Thrivecart have said they offer migrations for you.
Does Skool have video hosting?
No. Skool doesn’t include built-in video hosting. You’d host your videos elsewhere (Vimeo, Loom, YouTube) and embed them. Thrive Academy includes video hosting on all plans.
Does Thrive Academy have transaction fees?
No. All Thrive Academy plans have no transaction fees. Sales go through ThriveCart’s native checkout.
Which is better for a coaching program – Thrive Academy or Skool?
Both work well for coaching. Skool’s simplicity and community-feel suit coaching communities that don’t need complex course structures.
Thrive Academy suits coaching programmes that also deliver structured course content alongside community.
One thing to keep in mind is that Skool charges per community so if you have more than one program, you might want to consider Thrive Academy!
What does Thrive Academy cost compared to Skool?
Thrive Academy starts at $37/month (Starter). Skool’s meaningful plan (without transaction fees) is $99/month. Thrive Academy is significantly cheaper for equivalent functionality.
If you want to check out Thrive Academy through my link, I’ve put together a bonus package specifically for getting your community set up – including a membership hub Airtable template, email sequences, and guides.
See my Thrive Academy bonus package here →
Read other articles about Thrive Academy…
👉 Thrive Academy Launch – everything you need to know!
👉 Thrive Academy vs Thrivecart Learn/Learn+ – see what’s changed and if you need to upgrade
👉 Thrive Academy Pricing plans explained.
Drop any questions about Thrive Academy in the comments.