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course platforms

Teachable vs. Skillshare vs. MemberPress: Which Is Best in 2026?

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There is no universal winner: Teachable is the clearest fit for selling courses through a hosted platform, Skillshare suits teachers who want to earn through a subscription learning service and qualify for its watch-time-based Teacher Fund, and MemberPress fits creators who want course and membership access on their own WordPress site. The right choice depends on how you want to reach learners, earn revenue and manage the site behind your courses.

Quick comparison: what each platform is for

Platform How it works Best fit Main trade-off
Teachable Hosted course platform with tools for selling courses directly. Creators who want a hosted sales and checkout environment. Plan fees and, on Starter, a base transaction fee; processing or commerce fees may also apply. Teachable plan details
Skillshare Subscription learning service that distributes a portion of subscription revenue to eligible teachers based largely on qualifying watch time. Teachers comfortable with platform-based discovery and variable, activity-based earnings. You do not simply set a per-course price and receive that sale; eligibility and monthly payout depend on platform rules and activity. Skillshare teacher earnings
MemberPress A WordPress plugin for adding membership and course functions to a WordPress site. Creators who want to manage access and sell through their own WordPress site. You operate the broader site and budget separately for hosting and related services. MemberPress pricing

The platforms are not interchangeable software packages: they represent hosted direct sales, subscription-funded teaching and WordPress-based membership/course operations. The distinction matters more than a headline price.

Choose Teachable for hosted direct course sales

Teachable is the most straightforward option here if your priority is to publish courses and sell them through a hosted platform rather than build course access into a WordPress site. You control your offer and audience-building strategy, while Teachable supplies the hosted course-sales environment and checkout features. Its listed plans include tools for a creator’s own affiliate marketing on Builder and higher tiers, but not Starter.

Teachable plans and listed prices

The official plan page lists these prices in US dollars. Monthly figures below are recurring plan prices by billing cadence; the annual-billing figure is the monthly equivalent of an annual commitment.

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Plan Price billed annually Price billed monthly Base transaction fee Creator affiliate tools
Starter $29/month $39/month 7.5% Not included
Builder $69/month $89/month 0% Included
Growth $139/month $189/month 0% Included
Advanced $309/month $399/month 0% Included

These are Teachable’s displayed plan prices and fee terms; confirm the current checkout for your market before subscribing. A 0% base transaction fee on Builder, Growth or Advanced does not mean payment processing or other commerce fees are zero. Teachable describes those plans as having “0% base transaction fees,” while its plan page notes that separate fees can still apply. See Teachable’s plan and fee details.

When Teachable makes sense

  • You want to sell courses directly rather than rely on a shared subscription payout pool.
  • You prefer a hosted platform over maintaining a WordPress installation.
  • You need creator affiliate marketing tools, which are listed on Builder, Growth and Advanced.

Teachable provides the tools and fee schedule, not a guarantee of sales. Your revenue still depends on your offer, audience and marketing.

Choose Skillshare for subscription learning and eligible watch-time earnings

Skillshare is a different kind of choice: learners use a subscription learning service, and teachers can receive a share of subscription revenue through the Teacher Fund if they meet the platform’s eligibility rules. A teacher does not simply name a price for each course and keep each transaction. The model may suit someone seeking discovery within a learning catalog, but monthly earnings are variable rather than a predictable per-course sale.

Rank #2
My First Piano Adventure: Lesson Book C | Beginner Piano Method Book | Learn Skips and Early Staff with Online Audio | Piano Sheet Music Songbook | Faber Piano Book for Kids
  • Published by Faber Piano Adventures 72 Pages
  • Lesson Book C Piano Level Young Beginner - Skips on the
  • Composer: Randall Faber

Current royalty eligibility requirements

Skillshare’s teacher earnings page, last updated September 22, 2026, says that royalty eligibility beginning July 16, 2026 requires at least 50 followers at the end of the month and one of these watch-time/publishing conditions:

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  • Publish a quality class within the previous 18 months and receive more than 400 qualifying minutes watched during the month; or
  • If you have not published a class in that period, receive more than 650 qualifying minutes watched during the month.

Qualifying minutes must come from members with active paid subscriptions. Trailer views, free-trial watch time and views through Free Access Links do not count. Check the Skillshare teacher earnings rules for the current definitions and eligibility terms.

How the Teacher Fund affects earnings

Skillshare places a portion of subscription revenue in the Teacher Fund and distributes it among eligible teachers. Your share depends on qualifying watch time relative to other eligible teachers, as well as factors such as subscription type, trial conversion, geographic pricing and paid-member activity. Skillshare says future payouts cannot be estimated in advance because they depend on platform-wide activity. Eligible Top Teacher and Rising Teacher members who receive at least two new positive student reviews in a month may also receive a $100 engagement reward; this is conditional, not a general or guaranteed payment. Skillshare explains its earnings factors and reward conditions.

Rank #3
Essential Elements for Strings – Violin Book 1 with EEi Online Resources | Violin Method Book and Sheet Music for Students and Teachers | Comprehensive String Method – Newer 2025 Edition Available
  • Features -
  • Book - Same great Essential Elements 2000 method
  • CD - Play-Along Tracks 1-71 (with a professional player for every instrument)
  • DVD - Startup Video (learn the basics - 15 min.); all 193 Play-Along Tracks; More Duets and Trios; Music Listening Library
  • CD & DVD - SmartMusic Software (practice, record, and e-mail a performance, plus on-screen assessment - includes Ex. 1-86 with special offer to continue); Finale NotePad Software; Tempo Adjustment Software (for Play-Along Tracks)

The current customer-facing Skillshare subscription price is not established here for all geographies and billing cadences. Check the subscription offer shown in your market rather than relying on a single global price.

When Skillshare makes sense

  • You want to teach within a subscription learning service rather than build a standalone direct-sales setup.
  • You can meet the follower and watch-time eligibility rules and accept that payouts vary month to month.
  • You value a platform environment for learner discovery, while recognizing that the cited earnings terms do not guarantee a specific income.

Choose MemberPress to run courses and memberships on WordPress

MemberPress is a plugin, not a hosted course marketplace. It adds membership and course functionality to a WordPress-based site, letting you configure access and sell memberships or courses through that site. MemberPress says its Courses add-on is included with all plans. This route offers more control over how your own site is configured, but you take responsibility for running the site and its broader WordPress stack.

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MemberPress plans and fees

The official pricing page displays the following annual promotional or introductory prices. They should not be treated as guaranteed renewal rates: the page also lists higher “normally” prices, so check the checkout and renewal terms. A payment processor’s fees remain separate from MemberPress’s transaction fee.

Plan Displayed annual price MemberPress transaction fee Courses add-on
Launch $199.50/year 4.9% per successful payment Included
Growth $349.50/year None advertised Included
Scale $499.50/year None advertised Included

MemberPress says its Courses add-on is included with all plans; the plan fee does not include every cost of running a WordPress business. Budget separately for hosting, a domain, maintenance and any other services you choose. Check MemberPress’s current pricing and renewal terms and its Courses setup documentation.

When MemberPress makes sense

  • You already have a WordPress site or specifically want your courses and membership rules to run on one.
  • You want to sell access directly through your own site rather than use a subscription marketplace’s teacher payout model.
  • You are willing to manage the WordPress environment and account for costs beyond the plugin license.

If the goal is to avoid site operations entirely, MemberPress is a weaker fit than a hosted option because the plugin does not remove the need to operate a WordPress site.

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Compare total costs, not just the displayed price

The charges are structured differently, so the lowest number in a pricing table is not automatically the least expensive route. For a fair comparison, account for recurring plan or license fees, platform transaction fees, payment processing and, for WordPress, the site costs you will incur.

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Best Value
Sale
Adult Piano Adventures: All in One Course - Book 1 | Faber Beginner Method Piano Book for Adults with Chords and Music Notation | Piano Sheet Music and Theory for Self Learners With Digital Audio
  • Over 90 Songs Illustrating Important Theory and Technique Concepts
  • Arranged for Piano
  • Standard Notation
  • Publisher: Faber Piano Adventures
  • 177 Pages
  • Teachable: compare the plan’s annual or monthly billing cost and its base transaction fee. Starter lists 7.5%; Builder, Growth and Advanced list 0%. Processing and commerce fees may still apply.
  • Skillshare: teacher earnings are a share of subscription revenue distributed under eligibility and activity rules, not a software plan price or a fixed per-course sale. The customer subscription price varies by market and is not given here as a single verified figure.
  • MemberPress: compare its annual license and any applicable MemberPress transaction fee—4.9% on Launch, none advertised on Growth and Scale—plus payment processing and your WordPress operating costs.

Before committing, calculate costs against your expected sales and operating needs. A plan with no listed platform transaction fee can still have payment processing charges, and a WordPress plugin’s license does not cover the entire website stack.

Which platform should you choose?

  • Pick Teachable if you want a hosted platform for direct course sales and prefer not to operate a WordPress site.
  • Pick Skillshare if you want to teach in a subscription learning service and are comfortable with follower thresholds, qualifying watch-time rules and variable Teacher Fund earnings.
  • Pick MemberPress if you want course and membership access on your WordPress site and are prepared to run that site and budget for its supporting services.

None of the three has a universally best revenue model: Teachable and MemberPress give you tools for your own offers, while Skillshare ties teacher earnings to eligible activity within its subscription service. Choose based on where you want the business to run and how much operational control you want.

Quick Recap

Bestseller No. 2
Bestseller No. 3
Essential Elements for Strings – Violin Book 1 with EEi Online Resources | Violin Method Book and Sheet Music for Students and Teachers | Comprehensive String Method – Newer 2025 Edition Available
Essential Elements for Strings – Violin Book 1 with EEi Online Resources | Violin Method Book and Sheet Music for Students and Teachers | Comprehensive String Method – Newer 2025 Edition Available
Features -; Book - Same great Essential Elements 2000 method; CD - Play-Along Tracks 1-71 (with a professional player for every instrument)
$12.99
SaleBestseller No. 5

Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.

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