TL;DR. Skool costs $99 USD per month, flat. One plan. No tiers, no per-member fees, no upsells. 14-day free trial, no credit card to start. Plus Stripe takes ~3% on member payments you receive separately.
The price — fastest version
- $99/mo — that’s the whole platform fee
- 14-day free trial — no card needed
- No annual discount — monthly only
- No per-member / per-admin / per-course fee — unlimited everything
- No setup fee — you can launch on day 1
The full cost picture
You pay $99 to Skool. That’s it from Skool’s side.
You also pay:
- Stripe, ~2.9% + $0.30 per member transaction (when members pay you)
- Optional automation — if you connect Skool to n8n/Make/Zapier/Python via the Apify Skool API actor, expect $1.50-$5/mo
- Optional LLM API — if you use Claude/GPT for member screening or comment drafting, $5-30/mo
For a typical paid community: $100-$135/mo total + 3% of member revenue to Stripe.
For a free community (you pay Skool, members pay nothing): $99/mo total.
What’s included for the $99
Everything. Skool only has one plan. The $99 unlocks:
- Unlimited community members
- Unlimited admins / moderators
- Unlimited courses in the classroom
- Built-in gamification (levels 1-9, leaderboard)
- Auto DM for new members
- Native DMs (1:1 and group)
- Calendar + Zoom embed for events
- Mobile apps (iOS + Android)
- Stripe-native member payments
- 40% recurring affiliate program
No features locked behind upgrades. No “Plus” tier. The flat $99 is the entire offering.
Pricing vs competitors at the same feature level
| Platform | Equivalent plan | Monthly cost |
|---|---|---|
| Skool | (only plan) | $99 |
| Circle | Professional (courses + 10 admins) | $199 |
| Mighty Networks | Business (community + courses + memberships) | $99 |
| Kajabi | Growth (community + courses + email) | $199 |
| Thinkific + Discord | Thinkific Pro + Discord (free) | $74 + $0 = $74 (but two separate tools) |
| Patreon | 8% revenue cut, no community feed | varies |
At feature parity with Skool, you’re typically paying $99-$199/mo on alternatives. Skool’s $99 sits at the lower end.
Different question: how much can YOU charge?
The flip side of “how much is Skool?” is “how much should I charge my members?” This depends on your audience and offering, not on Skool’s pricing.
Common patterns for Skool communities in 2026:
| Community type | Member price |
|---|---|
| Beginner / general knowledge | $19-$39/mo |
| Specialized expertise / niche | $49-$99/mo |
| Coaching / mastermind | $99-$497/mo |
| High-touch group coaching | $497-$2,000/mo |
| One-time course (in addition to community) | $99-$5,000 |
| Annual membership (with discount) | 10-20% off monthly rate |
If you can charge $30+ per member and have 10+ paying, Skool’s $99 is trivial. Below that, you’re either pre-product-market-fit (use a free platform first) or you should consider whether community is the right vehicle for you yet.
Hidden costs to know about
- Stripe processing fees: ~3% on every member payment. Budget this from day 1.
- Annual cards: if you offer annual billing, Stripe takes the fee once (cheaper for you per dollar of revenue) but you commit a year of cash flow to keeping members happy.
- VAT/sales tax: Skool charges VAT on EU customers. US customers see sales tax in some states.
- Currency conversion: Skool bills in USD. Your bank may add 1-3% foreign transaction fees if you pay in another currency.
- Skool affiliate referral: if you signed up via someone’s affiliate link, Skool routes 40% of your $99 to them every month. You still pay $99 — nothing changes for you. (Want to be the one earning? See Skool affiliate program.)
How to evaluate “is $99/mo too much for me”
The trial answers it empirically. In 14 days:
- Sign up free → here
- Build community basics
- Invite 5-10 people
- By day 14: are members posting weekly? Is the gamification creating return visits? Is the live event filling?
If yes → $99 is forgettable. Convert.
If no → $99/mo doesn’t fix audience-readiness. Move to Discord (free) until you have signal.
Common questions
Is there a Skool Plus or Skool Pro plan?
No. Single plan, $99/mo.
Can I pay yearly to get a discount?
No annual billing option. Skool deliberately keeps it monthly.
What if my community grows to 10,000 members?
Still $99/mo. The flat fee doesn’t scale up. (Same the other direction — you don’t get a discount if you have 5 members.)
Are there discounts for non-profits or students?
No public discount programs.
Will the $99/mo go up in the future?
No price increase announced as of May 2026. Skool has held $99 since launch in 2019. Existing customers would typically be grandfathered on any change.
Related
- Skool pricing — full breakdown
- Skool cost — TCO analysis
- Is Skool free?
- Is Skool worth it?
- Skool free trial
- Skool vs Circle
Try Skool — 14-day free trial
→ Start your Skool community — no credit card, $99/mo after the trial.
Want to automate? Use this Apify actor — ~$1.50/mo, no code required.