Circle alternatives in 2026: 6 community platforms compared
Circle alternatives compared on price, fees, add-ons, email, and phone apps: Eden, Skool, Mighty Networks, Heartbeat, Kajabi, and Discord. Checked October 2026.
Circle starts at $89 a month billed yearly, plus 2% of each sale and card fees, and the add-ons stack up: $99 a month for email, $10 for each extra admin, and an app in your own name only on custom-priced Circle Plus. The best Circle alternative is Eden if you want chat, a Library (Eden's forum), and events next to your store and email, from $29 a month plus 5%. Skool is cheaper on fees with a simpler feed, Mighty Networks is closest in feel, Heartbeat suits small groups, and Discord is free.
Full disclosure: we make Eden, which is first on this list, and we say plainly where the others are the better pick. Every price was checked on each company's own pricing page on October 8, 2026.
What Circle does well
- Polish. Clean, calm, and ad-free. Members find it easy.
- Structure. Spaces for posts, chat, events, and courses, with private spaces and member tags.
- Events and live. RSVPs, time zones, and live streams.
- Points and levels. Gamification on every plan, with a leaderboard.
Why people look for Circle alternatives
- The add-ons. Email Hub is $99 a month for 10,000 contacts. On Professional, branded email notifications are $40 a month and custom profile fields are $49. Extra admins are $10 each.
- Yearly billing up front. The prices on the page are billed yearly. Paying monthly costs more.
- No store. Circle sells access to the community and its courses. Coaching, downloads, and a link in bio live elsewhere.
- An app in your own name costs the most. Only Circle Plus includes it, at a custom price.
- Too many empty rooms. Members say a community split into many spaces makes each one look quiet.
The short version
| Platform | Best for | Price from | Platform cut per sale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eden | Chat, Library, and events next to your store | $29/mo (Starter) | 5%, or 2% on Max |
| Skool | A simple feed and the lowest fees | $9/mo | 10%, or 2.9% on Pro, all-in |
| Mighty Networks | A community-first business | $79/mo | 2% |
| Heartbeat | A small, organized group | $49/mo (up to 350) | 5% |
| Kajabi | The full suite: site, funnels, email | $179/mo | 0% (card fees 2.9% + 30¢) |
| Discord | A big free group | Free | 10% on Server Subscriptions |
| Circle | For reference | $89/mo, billed yearly | 2% |
What it costs with email
Say your community, The Writing Room, has 100 members at $29 a month ($2,900 a month), and you email a list of up to 10,000 people. Card fees included:
| Setup | You pay a month | Email included |
|---|---|---|
| Skool Pro + Kit Creator (1,000 subscribers) | $252 | Through Kit |
| Eden Starter | $288 | 10,000 contacts, 10,000 sends |
| Kajabi Basic | $293 | 2,500 contacts |
| Circle Professional + Email Hub | $360 | 10,000 contacts |
Without email, Circle Professional is $261 a month here and Eden Starter is $288. Eden Starter costs less than Circle Professional below about $2,000 a month in sales. Past that, Circle's 2% wins on fees alone.
What each one has
| Platform | Group chat with channels | Forum or feed | Events | Courses | Email marketing | App in your name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eden | Yes | Library | Yes | Yes | Yes | No (Eden app) |
| Skool | No (DMs only) | One feed | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Mighty Networks | Yes | Feed | Yes | Yes | Connects to Kit | Mighty Pro |
| Heartbeat | Yes | Channels | Yes | Yes | Digests, automations | Scale ($849/mo) |
| Kajabi | Yes | Feed | Yes | Yes | Yes | Pro ($499/mo) |
| Discord | Yes | Forum channels | Yes | No | No | No |
| Circle | Yes | Spaces | Yes | Yes | Add-on, $99/mo | Circle Plus |
1. Eden
Eden is a creator store with communities built in. A community is a product in your store, sold next to your courses, coaching, downloads, and newsletter, with one checkout and one customer list.
What it does well:
- Chat that feels like Telegram. One chat with channels, each showing its last message. Threads with an inbox, @mentions, photo grids, voice notes, and typing dots. Members start in General, and channels show up once you add a second one, so a new community never looks empty.
- A Library for posts worth keeping. Guides, breakdowns, and wins in categories, with pinned posts, covers, and video. Members can post, and you can lock a category to hosts.
- Events on their calendar. One-off or repeating, in an Eden live room or on your call link, with Sync to calendar.
- Email with no add-on. A welcome email, announcement emails, a weekly digest for members who've been away, and store email filters and sequences for people who join. Starter includes 10,000 contacts and 10,000 sends a month.
- Roles and safety included. Your store's team become admins automatically. Moderators, reports, slow mode, and held links for new free members come on every plan.
- On phones. Members chat, read the Library, and see events in the Eden app for iOS and Android.
Where it falls short: no app in your own name, no leaderboards, and no direct messages between members. Setup and admin tools are on the web. On fees alone, Circle's 2% keeps more of a community that earns over about $2,000 a month.
Price: Starter $29 a month (1 community), Pro $79 (3), Max $199 (unlimited, 2% per sale). No member caps. See Eden vs Circle.
Best for: creators who sell more than the community and don't want to pay for email on top.
2. Skool
One feed, a classroom, a calendar, and leaderboards. Skool runs the payments, so its fee includes card processing.
Where it falls short: no group chat or channels, no email marketing, and no store beyond the group and its courses.
Price: Hobby $9 a month with 10% + 30¢, Pro $99 with 2.9% + 30¢.
Best for: a simple group on Pro, where fees matter most. See Skool vs Circle.
3. Mighty Networks
The closest to Circle in feel: a feed, chat spaces, events, courses, challenges, and live streams.
Where it falls short: no email marketing of its own (it connects to Kit), and an app in your own name needs custom-priced Mighty Pro.
Price: Launch $79 a month with 2%, Scale $179 with 1%, Growth $354 with 0.5%.
Best for: a business where the community is the whole product.
4. Heartbeat
Chat channels, post channels, documents, courses, and events with reminders.
Where it falls short: Build stops at 350 members and takes 5%. An app in your own name needs Scale at $849 a month.
Price: Build $49 a month with 5%, Grow $149 with 2.5%, Scale $849 with 1.25%.
Best for: a small group that wants channels and a place for docs.
5. Kajabi
A website, funnels, unlimited email, courses, coaching, and communities in one suite.
Where it falls short: $179 a month to start, 1 community on Basic and Growth, and 2,500 contacts on Basic.
Price: Basic $179, Growth $249, Pro $499 a month. See Kajabi alternatives.
Best for: creators who'll use the website, funnels, and email every week.
6. Discord
Free text channels, forum channels, voice rooms, and events on an app most people already have.
Where it falls short: answers get lost in fast chat, and there's no checkout of its own beyond Server Subscriptions (10%, launched for owners in the US), no courses, and no email.
Price: free.
Best for: a large free community.
Which one should you pick?
- Choose Eden if you want the community next to your store and email, and members on iOS and Android, without add-ons.
- Choose Skool if one feed and a course are enough and you want the lowest fee.
- Choose Mighty Networks if you want something close to Circle and the community is the business.
- Choose Heartbeat if your group is small and likes channels and docs.
- Choose Kajabi if you want the full suite and will use it.
- Choose Discord if the community is free.
- Stay on Circle if you run a big community with a team, you use its spaces and workflows, and you earn well over $2,000 a month from it.
How to move from Circle to Eden
- 01
Make the community
In Your store, go to Communities and click New community. Set the price on the Offer step.
- 02
Rebuild your spaces
On the Community step, turn your chat spaces into Channels and your post spaces into Library categories. Add your courses on the Courses step.
- 03
Invite your members
Publish, then import your member emails as contacts and send them the link. Keep Circle open until people have moved.
Full steps in how to start a paid community.
Frequently asked questions
What's the cheapest Circle alternative?
Discord is free. For a paid community, Skool Pro's 2.9% + 30¢ includes card fees and costs less than Circle at most sizes. Eden Starter costs less than Circle Professional below about $2,000 a month in sales.
Which Circle alternative has email built in?
Eden and Kajabi. Circle's Email Hub is a $99 a month add-on.
Which Circle alternative has a branded app?
Mighty Networks (Mighty Pro), Heartbeat (Scale), and Kajabi (Pro). Eden members use the Eden app for iOS and Android.
Does Eden have spaces like Circle?
Eden has channels in one chat and categories in the Library, its forum for posts worth keeping. Channels can be for hosts only, or only for members with a tag, like VIP.
Sources: Circle pricing, Skool pricing, Skool payments FAQ, Mighty Networks pricing, Heartbeat pricing, Kajabi pricing, Kit pricing. Checked October 8, 2026.
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