Thinkific review
Updated September 30, 2026 · AcademyCue Editorial Team · Facts checked September 30, 2026
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Our verdict
Thinkific suits creators who bill yearly and want assessments and a team plan in a single platform, and its free trial of 30 days gives room to test a course before paying. The trade-off is a paid entry point with no free tier, so browse-first buyers should look at Hotmart.
Key facts
- Best for
- Course creators who bill yearly and want assessments and a team plan in a single place.
- Price from
- €39 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Price per month
- €53 to €213 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Price per year
- €39 to €159 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Free tier
- No (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Free trial length
- 30 days (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Graded assessments
- Yes (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Team plan
- Yes (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Legal entity
- Thinkific Labs Inc. (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Headquarters
- Canada (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Founded
- 2012 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Support channels
- Email, Chat, Phone, Help-centre (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Certificate types
- Completion
- Official website
- thinkific.com
Apps and profiles
- Get the app
- Google Play
Pros and cons
Pros
- A free trial of 30 days gives a creator room to build a course and test it with real learners before paying.
- Assessments are part of the platform, so graded work can sit inside a course rather than in a separate tool.
- A team plan is available, so collaborators can build courses in the same account.
- Support runs on email, chat and phone, putting phone help next to email, chat and a help centre.
Cons
- There is no free tier, so a creator pays from €39 before anything is published.
- Monthly plans reach €53 to €213, above the yearly range of €39 to €159, so short commitments cost more.
- Hotmart lists $0 at entry against Thinkific's €39, so opening a storefront is cheaper elsewhere.
Who it suits
- Creators who sell their own courses and want assessments, a team plan and a completion certificate in a single platform.
- Builders who plan to pay yearly, since yearly plans run €39 to €159 against €53 to €213 for monthly billing.
- Small teams that need help beyond email, since support also covers email, chat and phone.
Who should look elsewhere
- Buyers who want to browse and buy courses rather than sell them; Hotmart lists $0 at entry.
- Anyone who needs a free starting point, because there is no free tier and entry starts at €39.
- Learners after a professional certificate in a single field, where Academy for Health and Fitness starts at £25.
Plans and prices
Thinkific's lowest plan starts at €39. Plans billed monthly run €53 to €213, and plans billed yearly run €39 to €159. The gap between those ranges is what a buyer weighs at renewal, because the yearly range sits below the monthly one and is the figure that comes round again on later billing periods. Prices are quoted in euro, which matters for anyone budgeting in another currency.
How it compares on our data
On the site's platform data, Thinkific sits at 6 of 78 for yearly pricing, 64 of 78 for monthly pricing, 104 of 220 for entry pricing, and 1 of 63 for trial length. The split is informative: the platform looks strong once you commit to a yearly term and ordinary once you price the starting plan.
Core features
Assessments are included, so graded work can sit inside a course rather than in a separate tool. A team plan is available, which keeps several people building in one account. The free trial runs 30 days, long enough to publish a course, invite a test group and fix what does not land. There is no free tier, so what the trial covers is temporary rather than a permanent free version.
What you get free
There is no free tier here, so the offer for trying before paying is time rather than product. The free trial runs 30 days, enough to build a course, publish it and watch how it performs with a small audience. When the trial ends, the tools move to a paid plan and the free access ends with it.
The company behind it
Thinkific is operated by Thinkific Labs Inc., which is based in Canada and was founded 2012. Support runs on email, chat and phone, so a learner or creator can reach a person by phone as well as by email, chat or a help centre. Buyers weighing a platform for the long term can weigh the trading history and the named legal entity against the channels they will actually use.
How Thinkific compares
9.1 vs 9.0
9.1 vs 8.8
9.1 vs 8.6
9.1 vs 9.1
9.1 vs 8.7
Frequently asked questions
What does Thinkific cost to get started?+
Thinkific's entry price for its lowest plan is €39. Plans billed yearly run €39 to €159, and plans billed monthly run €53 to €213. Anyone weighing a purchase should look at the yearly range, since it sits below the monthly one and sets the figure that recurs on renewal.
Is there a free tier or only a trial?+
There is no free tier on Thinkific, so the platform itself is not free to keep. The route in is a free trial of 30 days, which is long enough to build a course and put it in front of a test group. When that period ends, the features move to a paid plan.
Is a monthly plan cheaper than a yearly one?+
No. Monthly plans on Thinkific run €53 to €213, while yearly plans run €39 to €159, so billing yearly costs less across the published range. That gap matters most for a creator who plans to keep the platform running, since the annual figure is the one that comes round again on later periods.
What certificate do learners get at the end of a course?+
The certificate listed for Thinkific is a completion certificate, which marks finishing the course rather than a professional qualification. Learners who need a licence-grade credential for regulated work should look at a specialist provider instead, since a completion record does not carry that weight.
Are assessments and team features included?+
Assessments are part of what Thinkific offers, so course work can be graded inside the platform. A team plan is also available, which lets several people build and manage courses in one account. Buyers who only need a single course for themselves can weigh whether those extras earn their keep.
How do I get help, and is phone support offered?+
Support runs on email, chat and phone, so phone, chat, email and a help centre are all listed. That is a wider spread than a help centre alone, and it means a builder can pick the channel that suits the problem rather than waiting on a single queue.
Who runs Thinkific and where is it based?+
The platform is operated by Thinkific Labs Inc., which is based in Canada and was founded 2012. A long trading history is useful context when a buyer is committing to a platform for the long term, since the named legal entity is the party carrying the terms.
How does Thinkific compare with Hotmart on cost?+
Hotmart lists $0 at entry, where Thinkific starts at €39. The difference is about what the entry fee buys: Hotmart takes no charge for opening a storefront, while Thinkific charges for hosting and course-building tools. Compare what sits on each side of that purchase.
Sources
- thinkific.com checked September 30, 2026
Backs: Founded, Headquarters
“Founded in 2012 in Vancouver, Canada”
- thinkific.com/pricing checked September 30, 2026
Backs: Graded assessments, Certificate types, Free tier, Free trial length, Price from, Price per month, Price per year, Support channels, Team plan
“Quizzes Create assessments to test understanding”
- thinkific.com/terms checked September 30, 2026
Backs: Legal entity
“Your contract and Account is with Thinkific Labs Inc.”
Compiled from 3 source pages, checked September 30, 2026. We did not open an account.
Not confirmed yet: Money-back period, Platform type.
Related by the facts
Thinkific
Course creators who bill yearly and want assessments and a team plan in a single place.