Systeme.io vs Thinkific: Pricing and Plan Limits Compared

This comparison covers two course-selling platforms, Systeme.io and Thinkific, using only what each vendor’s pricing page states. Prices were last verified on 2026-10-28. Other vendors are not covered here. Note that the two pages use different currencies, so the figures are not directly comparable without conversion, which we have not done.

Systeme.io plans

According to the vendor’s pricing page, Systeme.io has a free plan and three paid tiers:

• Free: $0, never expires, no credit card needed. Up to 2,000 contacts, 3 sales funnels, 1 blog and 1 course.
• Startup: $17/month, with 5,000 contacts, 10 sales funnels and 5 courses.
• Webinar: $47/month, with 10,000 contacts, 50 sales funnels, 20 courses and evergreen webinars.
• Unlimited: $97/month, with unlimited contacts, funnels, courses and automation rules.

Annual billing is offered with the label “2 months free”, but the page does not list annual prices per plan, so we cannot say what you would pay on that option.

Thinkific plans

The Thinkific pricing page shows prices in EUR (the page currency may vary by location, and we did not verify USD prices):

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Course video bandwidth is 200 GB/mo on Start, 400 GB/mo on Grow and 1000 GB/mo on Expand. Drip content and live Zoom lessons are included on all plans. There is no free plan, but there is a 30-day free trial. Thinkific Plus pricing is custom and not stated.

Fees on payments

Systeme.io states no transaction fees, with Stripe or PayPal available at no extra cost from the platform. That does not mean payments are free: payment-processor fees and any taxes are separate and may still apply, and the vendor’s page does not state what the processors charge.

Thinkific lists 2.9% on Thinkific Payments, and says no third-party gateway fee applies when you use it. The page does not separately state a transaction fee charged by Thinkific itself, and Stripe or PayPal rates vary by plan and country without being itemised.

Pros and cons

Systeme.io

• Pro: a free plan with no expiry, and paid tiers with stated contact, funnel and course counts.
• Pro: no transaction fees stated.
• Con: annual prices, refund terms and a time-limited trial are not stated on the page.
• Con: video hosting or storage limits are not stated.

Thinkific

• Pro: drip content and live Zoom lessons on every plan, plus a 30-day trial.
• Pro: bandwidth allowances are listed per plan.
• Con: no free plan, and the monthly prices are shown in EUR only in what we verified.
• Con: refund terms are not stated.

Who it suits, and who should look elsewhere

Systeme.io may suit someone who wants to start at $0 and test a single course before paying, or who wants a clear contact and funnel count at each tier. If you need confirmed video storage limits, live-class support or VAT handling from the pricing page alone, it does not answer those questions, so check with the vendor before committing.

Thinkific may suit creators who want drip schedules and live Zoom lessons included from the first paid tier, and who are happy to trial for 30 days before paying. It is probably not the right pick if you want a permanent free plan, since none exists. The page also does not state VAT handling per plan.

Neither product is the right pick for everyone. Podia is another option we have not compared here.

What we could not verify

• Systeme.io annual prices per plan, refund terms and any time-limited trial.
• Systeme.io payment processing fees, video hosting or storage limits, live-class support, drip content and VAT or sales-tax handling.
• Thinkific refund terms, VAT handling per plan, and USD prices.
• Thinkific Plus pricing, which is custom.

Plans and prices change, so confirm current figures on each vendor’s own pricing page before you buy.