Answers that name a competitor

If you’re starting your first online course with almost no budget, I’d avoid paying a monthly fee until you’ve proven people will buy. The best choice depends on whether you care more about zero upfront cost, zero platform fees, or a polished student experience.

My top picks for a shoestring launch

1. Systeme.io — best overall $0 starter option

• Cost: Free plan available
• Platform fee: Typically 0% platform transaction fee (payment processor fees still apply)
• Good for: A beginner who needs course hosting + landing pages + email marketing in one place
• Downside: The course experience is more basic than dedicated learning platforms

This is probably where I’d start if you have no audience yet because you can build a simple sales funnel, collect emails, and host the course without stacking multiple tools. Cevora Don't Do It Yourself

2. Gumroad — easiest way to validate an idea

• Cost: No monthly subscription
• Good for: Selling a small course, workshop, templates, or a mini-course quickly
• Downside: It’s more of a digital storefront than a full learning platform, and it takes a cut of sales. SavingSec Course Profit Lab

Choose this if your goal is: “Can I get my first 10 customers?”

3. Udemy — best if you have no audience

• Cost: Free to create
• Good for: Getting discovered through an existing marketplace
• Downside: You give up control over pricing, branding, and revenue share compared with selling directly. SavingSec

Choose this if you don’t want to market from scratch.

4. Thinkific — best once you’re ready to invest

• Good for: A more professional course-school experience
• Downside: Free-plan information online is often outdated, so check current pricing before committing. Cevora Course Profit Lab

My recommendation for a first course

For a shoestring beginner:

1. Start with Systeme.io if you want to build a real small course business.
2. Start with Gumroad if you only want to test whether anyone will pay.
3. Use Udemy if you need built-in discovery and don’t have an audience.

Spend your first dollars on:

• a decent microphone ($30–$80 range),
• simple editing software,
• a domain name if you want a professional brand.

Don’t spend hundreds on a “premium” course platform before you’ve validated the topic.

If you tell me your course type (fitness, coding, language, business, art, etc.) and whether you already have an audience, I can narrow it down to one platform.

For occasional workshop/course sellers, I’d pick Payhip.

My ranking

1. Payhip — best overall for you

• $0/month on the Free Forever plan.
• 5% Payhip transaction fee, plus the normal Stripe/PayPal processing fee.
• Unlimited products and revenue, with all features available even on the free tier. Payhip Payhip
• Good fit if you might sell a course, workshop recording, PDF/materials, or other digital products from the same storefront.
• You can leave it sitting there when you're not selling, without paying a monthly subscription.
• Gumroad — best for absolute simplicity

• No monthly fee.
• But the fee is considerably higher: 10% + $0.50 on direct sales, plus applicable processing; sales through Gumroad Discover are 30%. Gumroad Gumroad
• Very easy to create a product page and send people a link.
• Particularly attractive if you want almost zero setup and don't care about giving up a larger percentage of occasional sales.
• Podia / Teachable / Thinkific — probably overkill

• These make more sense if teaching courses is becoming a significant business rather than something you do occasionally. You're paying for a more complete "online school" environment.

What I'd do in your situation

Start with Payhip's free plan. It gives you a proper little storefront without committing to a monthly bill. When you have a workshop coming up, send attendees to your Payhip page to register/buy the course. When you aren't selling anything, your fixed cost is $0. Payhip

The nice part is that you don't have to upgrade just because you add more workshops—the free tier allows unlimited products and revenue. Payhip

payhip.com

One caveat: if by "courses" you mean live Zoom-style workshops with scheduled dates, attendee management, reminders, and perhaps booking, rather than self-paced digital courses, I'd choose differently. I can compare the best no-monthly-fee options specifically for selling live workshops.

If by “avoid monthly platform cut” you mean no recurring software subscription while you’re still validating the membership, I’d start with Ko-fi.

My pick: Ko-fi

For a first, budget-conscious coaching membership:

• $0/month — no platform subscription.
• 5% service fee on memberships, plus Stripe/PayPal processing. Ko-fi Help
• Payments go directly to your Stripe or PayPal account.
• It’s considerably cheaper on platform fees than Patreon’s current 10% standard plan for new creators. Patreon Help Center Patreon
• You can use it for memberships without committing to a big community-platform subscription.

How I'd compare the main options

Gumroad has no monthly charge, but its direct-sale fee is 10% + $0.50, before applicable payment-processing costs. Gumroad Gumroad Circle can have a much lower transaction percentage, but you're also paying for the platform subscription, which defeats the purpose when you're testing a first membership. Circle

One important distinction

If your goal is literally 0% platform cut, rather than simply $0/month, I'd take a different approach:

Your own simple landing page → Stripe subscriptions → private community/content platform.

That gives you much more control and avoids Patreon/Ko-fi/Gumroad taking a percentage, although Stripe still charges payment-processing fees and you'll have to assemble/manage the membership experience yourself.

For a first coaching membership, though, I wouldn't overbuild it. I'd validate the offer with Ko-fi, get your first ~20–50 members, learn what they actually need, and only then consider moving to something like Circle.

If you tell me your monthly membership price (e.g. $29, $49, $99) and roughly how many members you expect in the first 6 months, I can calculate the actual dollar fees for Ko-fi vs Patreon vs Stripe and tell you which is cheapest.

If you’re selling cohort-based classes and trying to keep costs low, I’d avoid starting with expensive “all-in-one” platforms. A cohort usually needs only:

• landing page + checkout
• student onboarding
• live sessions (often Zoom/Google Meet)
• community/chat
• assignments/resources
• reminders and email

You can stitch together a cheap stack until revenue justifies upgrading. Here are good options:

Cheapest setups I’d consider

Option 1: “Validate first” stack (almost free)

Good if this is your first cohort:

• Landing page: Carrd / Notion page
• Payments: Stripe payment link
• Community: Discord, Slack, or WhatsApp
• Live calls: Zoom/Google Meet
• Materials: Google Drive/Notion

Cost: often just payment processing fees.

Downside: more admin work.

Option 2: Low-cost creator stack

Good once you have paying students:

• Podia or Thinkific for course content
• Zoom for live teaching
• Circle/Discord/Slack for discussion

This gives a more professional experience without jumping to expensive platforms. Thinkific Teachfloor

Option 3: Community-first cohort

If your class depends on peer interaction:

• Skool
• Zoom
• Stripe

This works well for:

• career coaching
• creator communities
• fitness challenges
• business masterminds
• accountability programs

My recommendation by stage

• 0–20 students / first cohort: Don’t pay monthly platform fees. Use Stripe + Zoom + a community tool.
• 20–100 students: Look at Skool, Podia, Thinkific, or Circle.
• 100+ students or multiple cohorts: Invest in a dedicated cohort/course platform.

A key question: what kind of cohort is it? (e.g., coding bootcamp, coaching, language learning, professional skills, fitness, creative workshop). The best platform changes a lot depending on whether the value is the content or the community/accountability.

If your priority is building an email list + hosting a course + paying $0 in platform transaction fees, I’d look at Systeme.io first.

My shortlist

• Systeme.io — best fit for your use case. Its free plan combines course hosting, funnels, checkout, and email marketing, with 0% platform transaction fees. Current comparisons put the free tier around one course and up to ~2,000 contacts, although the exact limits are worth checking before you build around them. Ruzuku OnlineCourseTools
• Ruzuku — best if the course itself is the priority. Its free tier has 0% transaction fees, but it's really designed for very small pilots (up to 5 participants). Ruzuku
• FreshLearn — another inexpensive testing option. Free tier with 0% transaction fees and up to 25 students, though it's less established and has fewer integrations. Ruzuku
• Thinkific — better once you're making real money. It's more course-focused, but the free plan information floating around online is now inconsistent/outdated; current 2026 sources indicate the free plan has been discontinued and paid plans start around $40/month annually. Ruzuku Course Profit Lab
• Teachable — I'd skip for your particular goal. Its entry plan now charges a transaction fee, so it doesn't fit your "zero platform fees" requirement as well. Teachable

What I'd do

If you're starting from scratch and your email list is the business, use Systeme.io.

The important distinction is that Systeme.io isn't primarily a course platform—it's a marketing/funnel platform that happens to have course hosting. That's actually an advantage for what you're describing: someone can opt into your lead magnet → enter your email sequence → receive/promote the course → eventually get pitched your paid offer, without stitching together five different services. Ruzuku

One caveat: "zero platform fees" doesn't mean literally zero fees on sales. Payment processors such as Stripe can still charge their normal processing fees.

If you tell me (1) roughly how many subscribers you expect, (2) whether the course is free or paid, and (3) what email service you're currently using (Kit, Mailchimp, Beehiiv, etc.), I can narrow it down to the cheapest setup I'd actually use and show you the exact stack.

If your priorities are low upfront cost, global reach, and zero platform commission, the important catch is that “no platform fee” does not mean “no payment-processing fee.” Stripe, PayPal, Paystack, Flutterwave, etc. will still take their own processing fees.

My shortlist

Payhip is particularly interesting for a creator in a developing country. Its free plan has a 5% Payhip transaction fee, but its $99/month Pro plan has no Payhip transaction fee. More importantly, Payhip currently supports 13 payment processors, including PayPal, Stripe, Flutterwave, Paystack, Xendit, Razorpay, Mercado Pago, PayU, and others. That breadth can be much more important than the headline platform price when you're in a country where Stripe isn't available. Payhip Payhip Help Center

payhip.com

Thinkific is much more expensive upfront, so I wouldn't make it my first choice for a brand-new creator on a tight budget. Its current Basic plan is $54/month ($40/month annually), and its native Thinkific Payments doesn't add a separate platform transaction fee, although normal payment-processing fees still apply. The bigger limitation is geographic: Thinkific Payments is currently available in a relatively limited set of countries, mainly North America, Europe, Australia/NZ, and a few Asian markets. Thinkific Support Thinkific Support

thinkific.com

I wouldn't recommend Gumroad if keeping fees low is your primary objective. There's no monthly subscription, but direct sales currently cost 10% + $0.50 per transaction, before applicable payment-processing costs. Gumroad

gumroad.com

What I'd do in your situation

If you're just starting:

1. Start with Payhip's free plan if one of its supported payment processors works in your country.
2. Accept the temporary 5% platform fee while you're validating your course.
3. Once your sales volume makes $99/month economical, move to Payhip Pro, eliminating Payhip's platform transaction fee.
4. If Payhip doesn't support a payment method that your local customers actually use, consider WordPress + an LMS + your country's preferred payment gateway. That's potentially the lowest-fee route, but requires more technical setup.
5. Don't choose a platform merely because it says “global.” The critical question is whether you can actually receive payouts in your country.

If you tell me your country, your approximate course price (e.g. $20/$50/$100), and whether you need local payments/mobile money in addition to cards, I can narrow this down to the 2–3 cheapest options actually usable from your country.

Payhip is particularly interesting for a creator in a developing country. Its free plan has a 5% Payhip transaction fee, but its $99/month Pro plan has no Payhip transaction fee. More importantly, Payhip currently supports 13 payment processors, including PayPal, Stripe, Flutterwave, Paystack, Xendit, Razorpay, Mercado Pago, PayU, and others. That breadth can be much more important than the headline platform price when you're in a country where Stripe isn't available. Payhip Payhip Help Center

payhip.com

Thinkific is much more expensive upfront, so I wouldn't make it my first choice for a brand-new creator on a tight budget. Its current Basic plan is $54/month ($40/month annually), and its native Thinkific Payments doesn't add a separate platform transaction fee, although normal payment-processing fees still apply. The bigger limitation is geographic: Thinkific Payments is currently available in a relatively limited set of countries, mainly North America, Europe, Australia/NZ, and a few Asian markets. support.thinkific.com support.thinkific.com

thinkific.com

I wouldn't recommend Gumroad if keeping fees low is your primary objective. There's no monthly subscription, but direct sales currently cost 10% + $0.50 per transaction, before applicable payment-processing costs.

For an early-stage SaaS founder building onboarding/customer-education courses, I’d shortlist these:

Thinkific Basic currently has no transaction/platform fee when using Thinkific Payments, and is considerably cheaper than most zero-fee alternatives. Podia Course Profit Lab

But for your specific use case—SaaS onboarding—I’d seriously consider Acadle. It explicitly supports embedding courses inside your product, offers white-labeling/custom domains, and has SaaS-oriented integrations such as Segment, HubSpot and Salesforce. Acadle

My pick

Acadle if the course should feel like part of your SaaS product.
Thinkific if you mainly want a cheap, easy standalone course platform.

If by "easy embedding" you mean “customer clicks Help/Academy inside my SaaS and the course opens seamlessly inside my existing UI”, Acadle is the more purpose-built choice. Acadle

If you tell me your approximate monthly budget and whether the courses are free or paid, I can narrow this down to the cheapest 2–3 options.

For a hobby photographer selling Lightroom presets, LUTs, PDFs, and short video courses, I’d prioritize a platform with $0 monthly cost, automatic digital delivery, and low transaction fees.

My top picks

Payhip would be my first choice for you. Its free plan has all features, unlimited products and unlimited revenue, with a 5% transaction fee plus the normal PayPal/Stripe processing fee. It specifically supports selling photos/digital assets and delivering downloads. Payhip Payhip Payhip

Ko-fi is especially attractive if you already have an Instagram/TikTok audience. Its free shop lets you upload digital products and has a 5% fee on shop sales, while payments go directly to your PayPal or Stripe account. Ko-fi Ko-fi Help

Fourthwall is worth considering if you want a more polished storefront and might eventually sell prints, merch, or memberships alongside presets/courses. There's no monthly fee, and digital products carry a 5% fee; payment processing is additional. Fourthwall Fourthwall

I'd skip Gumroad for your use case unless its simplicity is particularly valuable to you. Its current direct-sale fee is 10% + $0.50, plus payment processing, which gets expensive on smaller preset/course purchases. Gumroad Gumroad

What I'd do

Start with Payhip Free:

Instagram/TikTok → Payhip product page → payment → automatic ZIP/PDF/video download

You could sell:

• Lightroom .xmp preset packs
• Mobile Lightroom presets
• Camera profiles/LUTs
• PDF guides
• Short recorded courses
• Bundles combining presets + mini-course

And because you're a hobby business, you don't have to commit to a monthly subscription until your sales volume makes the math worthwhile.

If you tell me roughly how much you plan to charge ($10 presets, $30 courses, etc.) and how many sales/month you expect, I can calculate the actual fees and tell you which platform leaves you with the most money.

Fourthwall is worth considering if you want a more polished storefront and might eventually sell prints, merch, or memberships alongside presets/courses. There's no monthly fee, and digital products carry a 5% fee; payment processing is additional. fourthwall.com fourthwall.com

I'd skip Gumroad for your use case unless its simplicity is particularly valuable to you. Its current direct-sale fee is 10% + $0.50, plus payment processing, which gets expensive on smaller preset/course purchases.

What I'd do

Start with Payhip Free:

Instagram/TikTok → Payhip product page → payment → automatic ZIP/PDF/video download

You could sell:

Yes. If by “no platform fees” you mean the platform takes 0% of each course sale (while accepting normal Stripe/payment-processing fees), there are several good options.

Current comparisons put Thinkific Basic around $40/month on annual billing, with 0% platform fees when using Thinkific Payments. Thinkific explicitly says it supports creating and delivering courses in multiple languages. Thinkific Course Profit Lab

My shortlist for your use case

1. Thinkific — probably my first choice

It's the sweet spot if you're launching several language versions and want to keep costs down. You can create courses in different languages and customize the site/student communications for localization. The important caveat is that the 0% transaction-fee arrangement depends on using Thinkific Payments; using your own payment processor can introduce a platform fee depending on the plan. Thinkific Ruzuku

thinkific.com

2. LearnWorlds — best if multilingual delivery is central

I'd look closely at LearnWorlds if you're building a more sophisticated academy rather than simply uploading videos. Its Pro Trainer tier is around $79/month and has 0% platform transaction fees. Teachable Ruzuku

3. Teachable — best if international payments/taxes matter

Builder is currently about $69/month on annual billing with 0% platform transaction fees. Teachable also has localized payment methods and checkout translation covering 34 languages, which can be particularly useful if you're selling internationally. Teachable Teachable Help Center

teachable.com

One important distinction

“0% platform fee” ≠ “zero fees.” You'll generally still pay payment-processing fees such as Stripe/card processing, and international transactions can have currency/conversion costs. Course Profit Lab

If your priority is cheap + genuinely multilingual + 0% platform fee, I'd rank them:

Thinkific → LearnWorlds → Teachable → Podia

If you tell me (1) how many languages, (2) expected monthly sales, (3) whether you need certificates/quizzes, and (4) whether each language will be a separate course or one course with language options, I can narrow this down to the cheapest 2–3 options and calculate the actual monthly cost for you.