Skool takes a cut of every sale.
We take nothing.
Skool charges a transaction fee on every paid community sale — 2.9% on the Pro plan ($99/mo), 10% on the Hobby plan ($9/mo). Simplero starts at $59/month with zero transaction fees on every plan, every processor, every sale.
The fee
on every community sale.
At $5,000/month in community revenue:
At $10,000/month in community revenue:
On Hobby ($9/mo), Skool charges 10% — at $5K/mo revenue that's $500/month in fees alone. Either way, Simplero takes nothing.
Skool is a community.
Not a business platform.
No native email marketing.
Skool has no email marketing. You'll need ConvertKit, Mailchimp, or ActiveCampaign — $30–$100/month on top of Skool. And then Zapier to glue them together. Simplero includes full email marketing with automations and segmentation on every plan.
No landing pages. No funnels.
Skool gives you one community page. No landing pages, no opt-in forms, no funnels, no checkout pages. To sell anything beyond your community subscription, you need separate page-builder and checkout tools. Simplero ships landing pages, forms, and checkout natively.
No automations. No CRM. Limited affiliates.
Skool doesn't do marketing automation, doesn't have a CRM, and offers only basic member referrals on Pro. Simplero ships automations and a full CRM on every plan from $59/month, plus a native affiliate program on Scale and above.
In their own words.
“The allure of an all-in-one solution is compelling: a single platform with one login and seamless integration. However, the downside is that you often end up with subpar features across the board rather than top-notch tools tailored for specific tasks.”
“I'm going to be paying $149 a month to literally just host my digital products and to be able to have a way for people to pay for them.”
“The issue of data ownership is huge. Many creators underestimate the danger of building on platforms where they don't truly control the emails or the relationship. Sharing revenue is one aspect — but failing to own your audience over time is the real price.”
“Skool held my payouts for 6+ months and now wants me to PAY to get my own money back. Stay away from this platform — especially if you're from outside the US.”
“If I'm moving my email marketing over to Kit, then what am I using this platform for?”
“I think using skool.com is one of the most expensive things you can do — once you add the email sending, the landing pages, and the video hosting slices, you quite literally need to go out and buy a whole other pizza that does do those things.”
Side by side.
No spin.
| Skool | Simplero | |
|---|---|---|
| Plans available | Hobby $9/mo (10% fee) · Pro $99/mo (2.9% fee) | Starter $59/mo · Scale $149/mo · Skyrocket $249/mo |
| Transaction fees | 10% on Hobby · 2.9% on Pro — on all paid community revenue | 0% on every plan, every processor, every sale |
| True cost at $5K/mo revenue | $2,928/yr on Pro ($1,188 plan + $1,740 fees) · $7,188/yr on Hobby ($108 plan + $6,000 fees) | $708/yr on Starter — no fees, ever |
| True cost at $10K/mo revenue | $4,668/yr on Pro ($1,188 plan + $3,480 fees) · $13,188/yr on Hobby ($108 plan + $12,000 fees) | $1,788/yr on Scale — no fees, ever |
| Community / forums | ✓ Yes — Skool's strength | Native community on every plan |
| Courses | ✓ Basic course hosting | Full course hosting + drip + certificates + multiple courses per product |
| Email marketing | — No native email — needs ConvertKit / Mailchimp / etc. | Full email + automations + segmentation on every plan |
| Landing pages / funnels | — No landing page builder, no opt-ins, no funnels | Full drag-and-drop page builder, multi-site, opt-in forms |
| CRM | — No CRM | Full native CRM on every plan |
| Marketing automation | — No automations | Native automations + triggers + workflows |
| Affiliate program | Basic member referral commissions (Pro only) | Full affiliate program — multi-tier, JV partners, custom commissions, on Scale and above |
| Video hosting | Basic, native | Native video hosting on every plan |
| AI features | Limited | AI transcripts & subtitles, AI-enhanced search, custom AI bots, Simplero.coach |
| Tools you still need | Email tool, page builder, CRM, automation tool, affiliate platform — plus Zapier to glue it together. $200–$400/mo on top of Skool. | None. Everything is in the platform. |
| Support | Community-based, in-app messaging | Real humans answer fast. 232 of 289 testimonials mention support. |
| Company | Founded 2019. Backed by investors. Heavily promoted by Alex Hormozi. | Founded 2009. Bootstrapped. Profitable. Independent. |
Skool does community well. But you'll still need 4–5 other tools to actually run a business — and you'll pay a transaction fee on every dollar of community revenue, forever.
The plan sounds simple.
The fee is the trap.
The transaction fee is a tax on your success. Skool only profits when you do — which sounds aligned, until you realize they're taking a cut forever, on every renewal, every new member, every dollar. At $10K/month on Pro, that's about $3,480 a year in fees. On Hobby, $12,000. Simplero takes 0%, at any revenue level.
Skool does one thing: community. For email, landing pages, automations, CRM, and a real affiliate program, you're buying 4–5 separate tools and paying $200–$400/month on top. Simplero ships all of it in one platform for $59–$249/month.
Skool is a venture-backed startup founded in 2019, growing fast on Alex Hormozi's marketing and investor money. Simplero has been bootstrapped, profitable, and independent since 2009. We didn't take outside money. We answer to customers, not investors. The founder still answers customer emails.
What Simplero
customers say.
“I scored 12 platforms on a spreadsheet. Simplero won. I have never worked with a software company whose support team is fast, courteous, and knows what they're talking about.”
“When I found Simplero, it literally changed my life. I migrated my entire business and never looked back. My income tripled, quadrupled in the last six years.”
“I ended up paying my annual plan for Simplero in what I was paying for one month of all my subscriptions. And I had it just in one place.”
“Over the years Simplero has become increasingly easier to use. What I love most is access to personal professional support. There are no chatbot-gates you have to get through to get support from an actual human.”
Simple, honest
pricing.
Starter
$59 /mo
billed annually · or $70/mo monthly
10 products, 10 courses, 2 sites, 500 contacts. Email, courses, payments, website, automations, community — all in one place. 0% transaction fees.
Choose StarterScale ✦
$149 /mo
billed annually · or $179/mo monthly
Unlimited products, courses, and sites. Affiliates, help desk, upsells, text messages, API. Where most growing businesses land. 0% transaction fees.
Choose ScaleSkyrocket
$249 /mo
billed annually · or $299/mo monthly
Everything in Scale plus unlimited storage, AI transcripts, AI bots, split testing, sales pipelines. The full power of the platform. 0% transaction fees.
Choose SkyrocketAll plans include email delivery, video hosting, and zero transaction fees. Pay annually, save 17%.
Stop paying 10%
on your own community.
14 days. Every feature unlocked. We'll help you migrate, answer questions in plain English, and won't charge you a dime if it's not a fit. And we'll never charge you a percentage of what you earn.
Founded 2009 · Bootstrapped · Proud of it.
Make it simplero™
