Kartra vs. Teachable In-Depth Comparison & Review (2020)

Kartra vs Teachable: an ongoing battle of two membership website builders.

Which platform will help you create a high-converting sales funnel? Certainly, both options seem fantastic — they can help you build a website for your products, online courses, etc.

First things first. Both platforms are great tools to host your online courses and memberships behind a paywall.

Tools like Kartra and Teachable make running and marketing your online business easier than ever. These two online funnel building and marketing platforms pack various features.

But choosing the better one between them can be tricky because they have different strengths and weaknesses.

For that reason, it’s important to evaluate and rate them both.

Luckily, I’m here to help you solve this dilemma.

We will take a close look at Kartra and Teachable and I will also answer all these questions:

• What’s similar about Kartra and Teachable?
• How is Kartra different from Teachable?
• Is Teachable cheaper than Kartra?
• Which software is best for you?
• Is GrooveFunnels a better alternative to both Kartra and Teachable

Kartra vs Teachable: What Type of Platforms Are They?

Is this the first time you read a comparison of Kartra and Teachable? If yes, you are in the right place.

I will start by outlining what these platforms are and what they offer.

That should get you up to speed and make the right decision.

Kartra Overview

It is hard to define Kartra with one word. This platform is more than a website and sales funnel builder. In fact, it is an entire ecosystem of tools that owners of online businesses can use to their benefit.

In other words, Kartra is an all-in-one solution. It gives you the full package of features you need to connect with consumers and boost your sales. With it, you don’t need to pay for a long list of services. In other words, it can completely replace stand-alone platforms and software for:

• Affiliate management
• Email marketing
• Video hosting
• Campaign analytics
• Helpdesk systems
• Marketing automation
• Link tracking programs
• Calendar software
• Page builders

But that barely scratches the surface of Kartra’s many features. For a detailed breakdown of all the features from Kartra I recommend to read my 8000-word review of Kartra.

I will discuss them in greater detail further down below.

Without a doubt, this versatility can be overwhelming for some entrepreneurs. “Juggling” with such a wide range of functions and services sounds complicated.

Practice shows that other similar services are rather difficult to use.

Kartra, however, is different because it offers simplicity. All the tools you may need are available in one place. Still, they are quite easy to handle, access, and operate. Therefore, even people with limited website marketing experience won’t find it complicated.

Personally I’ve used Kartra extensively to host my Pareto Sales and Marketing Summit, where I interviewed many of the leading Kartra marketing experts, the CEO of Kartra AJ Roberts and the former Co-Founder Mike Filsaime.

If you choose to try Kartra I offer the best bonus for Kartra.

Teachable Overview

Teachable is a leading course hosting platform. You can use it to create and organize your online courses. Furthermore, it will help you promote and sell them.

This service focuses not only on helping you make money but also on providing your students with many benefits. For example, they can earn certificates when they complete a course.

If you are looking to run a membership program, Teachable is the service you need. It will let you quickly expand your content and build a loyal student community. And like Kartra, it offers a wealth of marketing features.

Although building an engaged community is important, it is not everything. That alone may not be enough to take your online business to the next level.

Kartra vs Teachable: How Are They Alike?

Kartra and Teachable may seem like two completely different platforms. And, in a way, they are and it’s much harder than comparing GrooveFunnels vs Clickfunnels, for example. For starters, one of them offers online course management solutions, while the other lets you build marketing funnels.

Still, they have many things in common, as they offer similar features and benefits. Why is that? It’s because they both aim at helping online businesses.

Hosting Solutions

You can’t run a website without a reliable hosting solution. Clearly, both Kartra and Teachable know that. That’s why they will let clients use their hosting services.

As a result, you won’t need to look for a hosting provider elsewhere. That makes this aspect of running a website more hassle-free.

Most importantly, you can rely on this feature even if you already have a domain. Both platforms will host it. Furthermore, they will provide you with unlimited hosting for free.

Easy-To-Use Builder Pages

Usually, building a website requires programming and design skills. Not anymore! Kartra and Teachable have adopted the drop-and-drag page building trend. So, you can just grab the templates and features you like and add them to your page.

Without a doubt, that will save you time and money, as you won’t need to hire coding experts. Instead, you will be able to do it all by yourself in minutes.

These popular website builders are simple. Yet, they can create complex and visually-pleasing pages. The latter can be further customized with the click of a button.

Professional programmers will also appreciate the page builder function. Features like Kartra Pages allow users to make websites from scratch.

A Selection of Page Templates

Teachable and Kartra will help you create any type of high converting pages. That includes sales pages, video pages, blog pages, etc. Also, you will get access to a long list of templates that are ready-made, responsive, and fully-functioning.

You will have the freedom to customize each page to fit your preference and brand identity. Users can change the colors and fonts of every template, and it’s even possible to pick the skin for the video player.

Kartra gets extra points because it provides over 500 section and page templates. That’s more than Teachable’s current selection. Yet, it’s too early to crown a winner in the Kartra vs Teachable clash.

Email Marketing Tools

Another feature that Teachable and Kartra have in common is email marketing services. They have rich functionality. For example, here are a few ways you can use these tools:

• Create email lists
• Collect email addresses
• Send targeted emails
• Get performance statistics

Kartra Mail is the more advanced of the two. To clarify, it will help you reach both current and future customers. Also, you can rely on its A/B test function to find the best marketing strategy for different target groups.

Teachable’s email feature is well-developed too. Still, its primary goal is to service membership websites. It is an ideal solution for online course management, but other online businesses may need to use more tools.

So far, it seems we have a tie in the Kartra vs Teachable competition.

Freedom to Integrate Your Favorite Marketing Tools

The email marketing functionality of Teachable may be limiting for some. Luckily, the platform lets its users integrate popular email services into its system. What’s more, you can use many of the most popular marketing tools on it, including Google Analytics, Segment, Zapier, etc.

Kartra prides itself on being an all-in-one funnel building platform. But it will also give you the freedom to use integrations. You can link your account to some top marketing tools.

Create and Launch Your Affiliate Program

Affiliate programs are a great way to increase the profit from your membership site.

They will reach more consumers and generate many leads. The problem is that good affiliate and referral programs cost money. For instance, you may need to spend an average of $70 to $120 per month for a starter package for a software like SamCart.

While there are free alternatives to ThriveCart, SamKart or PayKickstart like GrooveSell, I really like to have everything in one place.

Kartra and Teachable will cut this additional cost. They have affiliate programs that you can use to keep track of affiliate performance. Also, it takes one click to generate affiliate links with them.

The Kartra Affiliate Management tool is accessible for all plans. If you want to learn more about becoming a successful Kartra Affiliate I recommend to check out my interview with Kartra’s affiliate manager Jennifer Daniels or watch the video below.

Unfortunately, Teachable’s service is not available for Basic Plan subscribers.

Kartra vs Teachable: How Do They Differ?

The many similarities between the two platforms won’t help you decide which of them to choose. I will now solve that dilemma for you by discussing their differences.

Kartra’s Standout Features

An All-In-One Helpdesk

One of the features that Kartra has and Teachable lacks is a helpdesk, which is an essential service for every online business. With it, you can considerably improve your customer support.

Kartra Helpdesk packs all the must-have tools. Among them are real-time chat and email auto-reply solutions. There are also analytics features and customization options. The platform will store your helpdesk conversations on the cloud for extra convenience.

Teachable, on the other hand, does not have a helpdesk service. You need to use integrations to get that feature.

Convenient Video Streaming and Hosting

Another standout feature of Kartra is its hosted video service. It is fully customizable and optimized for different devices, and you can even create playlists with it. That is a useful option for online course websites, for example.

The best thing about this service is that it is streamed and hosted by Kartra. In other words, you won’t have to use third-party hosting providers; all your product demos or course materials can be uploaded and shared for free.

With the recent changes in Kartra’s pricing, the software offers unlimited video hosting and Streaming on the Silver Plan and above. This is ideal if you want to host membership courses and expect to get many members.

The Ultimate Funnel Building Tool

Unlike Teachable, Kartra is an all-around marketing solution. That fact alone gives it a significant advantage over Teachable. With Kartra, online business owners won’t need to look for additional services or tools, as the platform is packed with in-house funnel building features. You can use them to create pages, sell products, build leads, and more.

This is where Kartra takes the lead in the Kartra vs Teachable race.

In-Built Calendar

Kartra Calendar is not a feature that will be appreciated by all business owners, but those who need a calendar tool will find it helpful. It will give you and your customers an easy way to manage and schedule appointments. 

This functionality is vital for tutors, consultants, or event planners, since it also supports real-time self-booking. Also, you can choose from four types of calendars.

Access to a new-generation marketing technique (BAM)

Behavioral Adaptive Marketing or BAM is a term coined by Kartra. It refers to a new-generation technology that automates and personalizes customer experience. You have to agree t

hat is an effective way to attract new clients and buyers. It also encourages customer engagement.

Sharing and Exporting Your Funnels and Campaigns

Are you an expert in your field of work? If yes, you may want to share your knowledge with the world, and Kartra can help you with that. It will let you share entire campaigns and funnels with other members.

Also, you can ask people to pay for your funnels and campaigns, since Kartra manages the payment process.

You don’t need to send login information and passwords to share your content. The tool will generate a link that you can quickly send to your customers.

Teachable’s Standout Features

Advanced Student Insights and Management

Teachable is a platform that focuses on online course management and membership websites just like Kajabi.

As I pointed out in my comparison between Kartra and Kajabi, a software that focuses on one area will always have an advantage over all-in-one platforms like Kartra.

That’s why Teachable offer additional features in it’s membership area like giving its users the chance to track student progress. It shows you the lectures completed by individual members, thus letting you organize and manage their work.

In addition to that, you can get feedback from students through online surveys. That will give you an insight into members’ preferences and needs. You can then use this information to improve your site and courses.

Course Certificates

Another feature you won’t find on Kartra are Teachable’s course certificates. You can create them yourself using some of the available templates, and your students will get them when they complete the course.

This feature has two main advantages. First, it adds value to your online course. For example, members will use the certificates as proof for their skills. As a result, more agencies and employers will hear about you and your work.

Second, students will feel more motivated to complete your coaching program. That’s because their efforts will be rewarded in the end.

Hopefully, these advantages will increase the demand for your services, and your business may also expand as a result. Eventually, you could increase your membership prices.

That’s another point for the course creation in Kartra vs Teachable battle.

Access to Free Learning Tools

Teachable is an intuitive and easy-to-use platform for online business marketing. However, you may need some help to harness all its capabilities.

Luckily, you will get access to several free learning tools. For starters, Teachable’s official website has a blog page which offers tips on how to improve your marketing strategy, for example.

Also, you can drop by the platform’s Knowledge Base. It features step-by-step guides that will help you set up a page or create a course. Teachable even has a podcast that discusses success stories in Teachable’s community. Most importantly, you can listen to it for free.

Quizz Feature

An essential part of any learning process are examinations. Teachable’s Quizz tool helps course creators test the knowledge of their students. It includes multiple-choice questions. They can be created from a blank canvas or imported from a personal computer.

The tests can be used to track the learning progress of each student. Alternatively, you can also grade your students to assess their performance.

That seems like another great round for Teachable in the Kartra vs Teachable rally.

Course Compliance

Are your students diligent, or are they skipping lectures? Teachable has an “anti-slacker” solution called Course Compliance.

Use this feature to set minimal completion requirements for each part of your course. You can rely on it to enforce video watching, quiz completion, or lecture order. Students won’t be able to get to the next lesson until they meet your requirements.

Kartra vs Teachable: How Much Do They Cost?

Kartra’s Subscription Plans

The subscription plans that Kartra currently offers are Starter, Silver, Gold, and Platinum.

They provide access to all services and tools on the platform. In other words, both Starter and Platinum subscribers can use Kartra’s twelve services. The cheaper the plans, the more limited the functionality of these features will be.

For instance, Starter users get only one custom domain and one additional team member. In contrast, Gold subscribers can have five custom domains and countless team members.

Kartra Agency is not available only for Starter course creators. This master console lets users manage and view each of their client accounts in one place. So, if you want to access it, you need to upgrade to a different plan.

Kartra Pricing

Kartra has an interesting way of billing its clients. Obviously, every plan comes at a different price. For instance, the cheapest of them is Starter and the most expensive is Platinum. The thing is that they all have different monthly and annual subscription costs.

• These are the prices of the subscription plans if you pay them month by month:
• Starter – $99 per month
• Silver – $199 per month
• Gold – $299 per month
• Platinum – $499 per month

Kartra gives its clients the chance to reduce their expenses. Everyone who opts for an annual subscription gets a 25% price cut. That is the cost of the plans with this discount:

• Starter – $79 (saves $240 per year)
• Silver – $149 (saves $600 per year)
• Gold – $229 (saves $840 per year)
• Platinum – $379 (saves $1,440 per year)

You will spend between $948 and $1,118 even with the cheapest subscription option. Also, the platform offers a 14-day trial period for new clients. That should help you decide which plan suits you best. Although the trial is paid, it will cost just $1. 

In addition to that, Kartra has a 30-day money-back guarantee. The platform will fully reimburse you if you ask for a refund within a month after subscribing.

Teachable Subscription Plans and Costs

Teachable has four subscription plans, and those are Free, Basic, Professional, and Business.

What? Did I say “Free”? Indeed, I did! Don’t get your hopes up, though.

The freebie subscription option offers limited opportunities for online course creators. Needless to say, you won’t get a custom domain or integrated email marketing. Also, you are not allowed to have more than ten students.

Therefore, Teachable’s Free plan can be described as an unlimited trial period. It is an excellent way to test the waters. Yet, it packs a lot for a trial subscription. It comes with unlimited hosting, video bandwidth, and courses.

Go for a paid plan if you want to take up online course and membership site management seriously. For one, it will give you access to Teachable’s third-party integrations feature. It’s a must-have for business owners who want to improve the functionality of their website.

Unlike Kartra, the monthly and annual costs of Teachable’s subscriptions are the same:

• Free – $0 (only 10 students)
• Basic – $29 per month
• Professional – $99 per month
• Business – $249 per month

All plans include a small set of services and tools. For instance, every user can rely on email support, lecture comments, and basic quizzes.

The exclusive features on Teachable’s “menu” are reserved for Business plan subscribers. Only these course creators and website builders have access to them. Here’s a list of those tools and services:

• Group coaching calls
• Advanced theme customization
• Bulk student management and imports
• 20 owners/authors
• Custom roles

Kartra vs Teachable: Which Is the More Affordable Option?

Price-wise, Teachable is the more inexpensive solution. Even its Business plan is cheaper than that of Kartra’s Gold subscription option. Furthermore, Teachable users can enjoy an unlimited trial period.

Value-wise, however, Kartra takes the crown.

Although one the surface it costs a bit more than its rival, it almost does not make sense to put these two into the same category.

As an all-in-one platform, it can be used for more than just membership course hosting. It also works as a start-to-finish funnel and website building solution.

To be honest, it is excessive to pay hundreds of dollars per year for a platform like Teachable and all the other software you need to build a functional and high-converting marketing funnel.

Even though it is highly responsive, it focuses solely on online course websites.

In contrast, Kartra can help you build any site of your choosing. That means that it can meet the needs of a broader range of online business.

If Kartra’s price is an issue for you, go with the annual subscription option. It will save you 25%.

New users can also save another 50%. To claim such a discount, you just need to stop by my Kartra Bonus page and use the link provided there.

Is GrooveFunnels a better alternative to both Kartra and Teachable?

If you read my blog you’ll see that I often recommend to use GrooveFunnels as an Alternative to Kartra. Right now GrooveFunnels offers GrooveSell and GroovePages for free.

However the software is still in beta and the membership plattform GrooveMember is not available yet. That’s why GrooveFunnels not a good alternative to Kartra and Teachable (or Kajabi) (or Kajabi).

GrooveMember will be available very soon, and if you have not created your course yet you might want to check out the GrooveFunnels Life-Time deal, that I describe in detail in my GrooveFunnels Pricing Guide.

Kartra vs Teachable: Which Platform to Choose

To sum up, Teachable is a fantastic platform for online courses. It is competitively-priced and easy to personalize. The problem, however, is that it can’t go beyond the membership site niche.

That’s why I agreed with John Adams who posted this in the Kartra Facebook group.

Please note that Adam made this comment before Kartra removed the bandwidth and email-restrictions from their plans.

That means you can now host unlimited videos and sent unlimited emails without any extra charge if you are on the Silver-Plan.

Kartra is much more than a membership solution. It is an all-in-one platform with countless capabilities. The choice of services and tools it offers is hard to beat. Yet, the simplicity of its interface won’t prevent you from making the most of its features.

What if creating and managing membership websites is your main goal? Once again, Kartra is the best solution. Many of the users of this platform work only in this field. So far, their reviews on the platform have been nothing but positive (especially after they removed all the restrictions).

So, don’t let the many tools of Kartra scare you. That is among the easiest to use funnel building software one can find. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same for Teachable.

In conclusion, the winner of the Kartra vs Teachable battle is definitely Kartra.

You can start your 14-day free trial of Kartra here. (This is not available on the official website anymore)