Skillshare vs Thinkific (2024 Comparison)
Skillshare offers a diverse range of courses with engaging community features. Its user-friendly interface makes it an excellent choice for learners seeking variety and interaction.
- Wide range of courses available
- User-friendly interface
- Engaging community features
- Limited course customization
- Royalty-based payment system
Free plan?
NoStarting price
$159 per year
Thinkific provides extensive customization options and robust monetization tools, making it ideal for course creators looking to design unique learning experiences and generate revenue.
- Extensive customization options
- Robust monetization tools
- Comprehensive analytics
- Niche course variety
- Higher learning curve
Free plan?
YesStarting price
$36 per monthWhat is Skillshare?
Skillshare is an online learning community offering thousands of classes on a wide range of topics, from design and photography to business and technology. It helps users enhance their skills through engaging video lessons taught by industry experts. Whether you're looking to learn a new hobby or advance your career, Skillshare provides a flexible and accessible platform to achieve your goals.
What is Thinkific?
Thinkific is a comprehensive platform designed for creating, marketing, and selling online courses. It empowers educators and entrepreneurs to build their own branded learning experiences with ease. With Thinkific, you can create multimedia-rich courses, manage student progress, and monetize your expertise. It's an ideal solution for anyone looking to share knowledge and generate income through online education.
Pros and Cons of Skillshare vs Thinkific
Pros & Cons of Skillshare
- Skillshare offers a vast array of courses across multiple disciplines, catering to a wide range of interests and skill levels. This diversity makes it an excellent choice for learners seeking variety.
- Skillshare fosters a sense of community through class projects and discussions, encouraging collaboration and interaction among learners. This engagement enhances the overall learning experience.
- Skillshare's intuitive interface makes it easy for users to navigate the platform and find courses of interest. This simplicity is particularly beneficial for new users unfamiliar with online learning platforms.
- Skillshare offers limited options for course customization, which may not meet the needs of creators looking to design highly personalized learning experiences.
- Skillshare's payment model is based on royalties, which may not be as lucrative for instructors compared to platforms offering direct monetization options.
Pros & Cons of Thinkific
- Thinkific provides course creators with a wide range of customization options, allowing them to design unique and branded learning experiences tailored to their audience.
- Thinkific offers powerful monetization tools, including various payment gateways and subscription models, enabling creators to effectively generate revenue from their courses.
- Thinkific's detailed analytics and reporting tools provide valuable insights into student progress and course performance, helping creators optimize their offerings for better results.
- Thinkific's course variety may be more niche-focused, which could limit options for learners seeking a broader range of topics.
- Thinkific's extensive features and customization options may present a steeper learning curve for new users unfamiliar with online course creation platforms.
Skillshare vs Thinkific: At A Glance
Value to Price
Skillshare offers a wide range of classes at a reasonable subscription fee, making it a great value for learners seeking diverse topics. Thinkific, on the other hand, provides a robust platform for course creators with flexible pricing options, offering excellent value for those looking to monetize their expertise. If you're a course creator, Thinkific's pricing structure may offer more value.
Ease of Use
Skillshare's user-friendly interface makes it easy for learners to navigate and find courses of interest. Thinkific also excels in ease of use, providing intuitive tools for course creation and management. If you're new to online course creation, Thinkific's straightforward setup process is a significant advantage.
Functionality
Skillshare focuses on delivering a seamless learning experience with features like offline viewing and community engagement. Thinkific, however, offers advanced functionality for course creators, including customizable course pages and multimedia support. If you need comprehensive course creation tools, Thinkific is the better choice.
Scalability
Skillshare is ideal for individual learners and small groups, while Thinkific is designed to scale with your business, supporting large student bases and multiple instructors. If you're planning to grow your online education business, Thinkific's scalability is a key benefit.
Integrations
Skillshare integrates with popular tools like Google Calendar and Slack, enhancing the learning experience. Thinkific offers a broader range of integrations, including marketing and analytics tools, which are crucial for course creators looking to expand their reach. If integrations are a priority, Thinkific is the superior option.
Customer Support
Skillshare provides responsive customer support through email and community forums. Thinkific offers more comprehensive support options, including live chat and phone support, ensuring course creators receive timely assistance. If you value robust support, Thinkific is the better choice.
Security
Skillshare ensures a secure learning environment with data encryption and privacy controls. Thinkific also prioritizes security, offering SSL certificates and secure payment processing, which are essential for course creators handling sensitive information. If security is a top concern, Thinkific provides a more secure platform.
Overall Rating
Skillshare is a fantastic platform for learners seeking diverse courses, while Thinkific excels as a comprehensive solution for course creators. If you're focused on creating and selling courses, Thinkific's overall features and support make it the superior choice.
Skillshare vs Thinkific: A Detailed Breakdown of Key Features
Course Variety
Skillshare offers an extensive range of courses across various subjects, making it a go-to platform for learners seeking diverse learning opportunities. Thinkific, while not as broad in course variety, allows creators to design unique courses tailored to specific niches. If you're looking for a wide array of learning topics, Skillshare is the better choice.
Customization Options
Thinkific shines in customization, offering course creators the ability to design personalized learning experiences with customizable themes and branding options. Skillshare, while offering some customization, is more limited in this regard. If you need extensive customization for your courses, Thinkific is the superior option.
Community Engagement
Skillshare fosters community engagement through class projects and discussions, creating a collaborative learning environment. Thinkific also supports community building with features like discussion forums and student groups. If community interaction is a priority, both platforms offer valuable tools, but Skillshare's focus on projects may appeal more to creative learners.
Monetization Tools
Thinkific provides robust monetization tools, including payment gateways and subscription models, enabling course creators to generate revenue effectively. Skillshare offers a royalty-based payment system for teachers, which may not be as lucrative. If maximizing course revenue is your goal, Thinkific's monetization features are more advantageous.
Mobile Accessibility
Skillshare offers a user-friendly mobile app, allowing learners to access courses on the go. Thinkific's mobile accessibility is also commendable, with responsive design ensuring courses are accessible on various devices. If mobile learning is essential, both platforms provide solid options, but Skillshare's dedicated app may offer a slight edge.
Analytics and Reporting
Thinkific excels in analytics, providing detailed insights into student progress and course performance, which are invaluable for course creators. Skillshare offers basic analytics, but Thinkific's comprehensive reporting tools are more beneficial for those looking to optimize their courses. If data-driven decision-making is crucial, Thinkific is the better choice.
Pricing Comparison of Skillshare and Thinkific
To assist you in making an informed choice, we’ve outlined the pricing plans and essential features of Skillshare and Thinkific. This comparison will highlight the best option for your online learning or course creation needs.
Skillshare Pricing Plans
- Customized learning paths tailored to your team's needs.
- World-class teachers providing industry insights and expertise.
- Powerful analytics to track engagement and optimize learning.
- Easy-to-use platform ensuring seamless onboarding and adoption.
Thinkific Pricing Plans
- Includes 1 course and 1 community with 2 spaces per community.
- Offers 1 digital download and 1 coaching & webinar session.
- Allows unlimited students with email (30 days) and chatbot support.
- Provides 100% ownership of content and drag and drop course builder.
- Unlimited courses and 1 community with 5 spaces per community.
- 5 digital downloads and 5 coaching & webinar sessions.
- Custom domain, coupons & discounts, and affiliate selling.
- Email and live chat support with branded mobile as an add-on.
- Unlimited digital downloads and coaching & webinars.
- Assignments, bundles and add-on packages, memberships & payment plans.
- Live lessons and advanced course-building options.
- Advanced website code editing and branded mobile as an add-on.
- 3 communities with 20 spaces per community and 2 administrators.
- Phone and priority email support with branded mobile as an add-on.
- Remove Thinkific branding and access Thinkific Analytics.
- Bulk student emailer, bulk enrollments, and API access.
- Unlimited products and administrators with single sign-on (SSO).
- Advanced analytics and dedicated customer success team.
- 1:1 onboarding and launch support with CRM integration.
- Multiple separate Thinkific sites and SCORM compliance.
Our Rating Methodology
We thoroughly evaluate each online learning platform, focusing on key aspects like functionality, ease of use, and scalability. By analyzing user feedback and expert reviews, we ensure our recommendations align with your needs. Each factor is weighted to provide an accurate final rating, helping you choose the best tool for your online education goals.
Skillshare or Thinkific: Which One Matches Your Business Needs?
Choose Skillshare If You Need ...
- Diverse Learning Opportunities
If you are a learner seeking a wide range of courses across various subjects, Skillshare's diverse offerings make it an excellent choice for expanding your knowledge and skills.
- Engaging Community Features
If you value community interaction and collaboration, Skillshare's class projects and discussions provide a vibrant learning environment that encourages engagement and creativity.
Choose Thinkific If You Need ...
- Comprehensive Course Creation
If you are a course creator looking for extensive customization options and robust monetization tools, Thinkific's platform provides the features you need to design and sell unique learning experiences.
- Data-Driven Decision Making
If you prioritize analytics and reporting to optimize your courses, Thinkific's comprehensive tools offer valuable insights into student progress and course performance, helping you make informed decisions.
Frequently Asked Questions
What types of courses are available on Skillshare?
How does Thinkific support course creators?
Which platform is better for community engagement?
What are the monetization options on Thinkific?
How does Skillshare's payment system work for instructors?
Which platform offers better mobile accessibility?
Martin Lunendonk
Martin Lunendonk is a senior tech writer specializing in website builders, web hosting, and ecommerce platforms. With a background in finance, accounting, and philosophy, he has founded multiple tech startups and worked in medium to large tech companies and investment banking, bringing deep expertise and reliable insights to his software reviews.
