Community apps for iPhone and Android: what members need, and what a branded app costs
What members need from a community app, what a branded app costs on Circle, Mighty, Heartbeat, and Kajabi, and how the Eden app works for your community.
Most members check a community on their phone, so the app matters more than the website. They need fast chat, quiet notifications, events with reminders, and a way to find old answers. Every big platform has a free app with its own name on it. An app in your own name costs a lot more: Kajabi Pro at $499 a month is the cheapest listed price, Heartbeat Scale is $849, and Circle Plus and Mighty Pro are priced by quote. On Eden, members use the Eden app on iPhone and Android, included on every plan that sells. It carries Eden's name and icon, and your community lives inside it.
Full disclosure: we make Eden. Prices were checked on each company's pricing page on October 8, 2026.
What members need from a community app
From reviews of community apps and what members complain about most:
| Need | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Quiet notifications | Members who get pinged for every message mute the group, then forget it. |
| Fast catch-up | Seeing which rooms have something new, and the last message in each, saves the "where was I" scroll. |
| Easy replies | Swipe to reply, voice notes, and photos make posting from a phone feel natural. |
| Events and reminders | A reminder before the call, and the call in their own calendar, is what gets people to show up. |
| Find old answers | Search and a forum stop the same question from coming up every week. |
| One app for every group | Members in several communities don't want an app for each one. |
| It works | Crashes and slow push come up again and again in one-star reviews. |
The last one is easy to check. Skool's iPhone app sits at 3.8 stars from 776 ratings on the App Store.
What a branded app costs
| Platform | App members use on base plans | Your own branded app | Cheapest plan with one |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kajabi | Kajabi app | Yes | Pro, $499/mo ($399 billed yearly) |
| Heartbeat | Heartbeat app | Yes, white-label | Scale, $849/mo ($766 billed yearly) |
| Circle | Circle app | Yes | Circle Plus, custom price |
| Mighty Networks | Mighty Networks app | Yes | Mighty Pro, by quote |
| Skool | Skool app | No | None |
| Discord | Discord app | No | None |
| Eden | Eden app | No | None. The Eden app is on every selling plan |
Kajabi lists its branded app as a $199 a month value inside Pro. Circle's Professional plan starts at $89 a month billed yearly, so going to Circle Plus for an app is a big jump. See Circle pricing and Mighty Networks pricing.
Do you need a branded app?
A branded app is worth it when:
- You have thousands of paying members and your brand is the product.
- You want your icon on their home screen and push notifications in your name.
- You have the budget and the time for App Store reviews and updates.
You probably don't need one when:
- Your community has fewer than a few thousand members.
- Your members are in more than one community and would rather keep one app.
- You'd rather spend $500 to $850 a month on the community itself.
One more thing to know: Apple has rules for apps that sell subscriptions. Most community apps, branded or not, have members join on the web and use the app to take part. That's how Eden works too.
The Eden app for your community
On Eden, a community is a product in your store. Members join on the web, then open it in the Eden app, where it sits under Your purchases with everything else they bought from you. The apps are built natively for iPhone and Android.
What members can do on their phone:
- Chat. Channels that show their last message, bubbles with theirs on the right, up to 4 photos per message, and voice notes (hold the mic to record, or tap for hands-free) with 1.5x and 2x speed and a button that turns one into text.
- Reply fast. Swipe right to reply, double-tap to like, long-press for reply in thread, forward, copy, and report.
- Keep up. A bell for mentions, replies, threads, and events, plus a badge on the app icon. Members pin their own channels to the top. Drafts are saved per channel on the device.
- Stay quiet. Notifications start on Smart: one heads-up when people start talking, pings for mentions and replies, nothing for joins or likes. Switch to all messages, mentions only, or off for each community.
- Read and write in the Library. Eden's forum for guides, breakdowns, and wins, with categories, covers and videos, hearts, and best answers.
- Go to events. Say you're going, get reminders a day before, an hour before, and at the start, and sync every event to their calendar.
- Open their courses. Courses included with the community open right in the app.
- Search. One search covers messages and Library posts.
What hosts can do on their phone: chat, post, and handle reports, held messages, and members from the Admin shield. Setting up the community, its channels, Library categories, and welcome pop-up happens on the web.
Where to get it. The Eden app is on Google Play. On iPhone, it's in open beta through Apple's TestFlight while the App Store release finishes. See downloads.
Price. The app costs nothing extra. Create communities on Starter ($29 a month, 1 community), Pro ($79, 3), or Max ($199, unlimited). No member caps. 5% per sale, or 2% on Max, plus Stripe. See Communities.
What the Eden app doesn't do
- It isn't your brand. Members see Eden's name and icon on their home screen.
- No buying inside the app. Members join and pay on the web. The app never shows prices.
- No private messages between members.
- Some things are web only: setting up the community, sharing boards and notes into chat, adding covers and videos to posts, and leaving a community.
Choose a branded app or Eden
Choose a branded app (Kajabi Pro, Heartbeat Scale, Circle Plus, Mighty Pro) if your brand on the home screen is worth $500 or more a month to you.
Choose Eden if you want a fast, native community app for members on every plan, next to your store, courses, and email.
Frequently asked questions
Which community platform has the best mobile app?
Discord's and Telegram's apps are the most polished for chat, but neither has a store or courses. Among paid community platforms, Circle and Mighty Networks both have their own apps. Eden's app is native on iPhone and Android, with Telegram-style chat, a Library (Eden's forum), and events.
How much does a branded community app cost?
Kajabi includes one on Pro at $499 a month. Heartbeat includes a white-label app on Scale at $849 a month. Circle (Circle Plus) and Mighty Networks (Mighty Pro) price theirs by quote.
Can I have my own app on Eden?
No. Members use the Eden app, and your community lives inside it with your name, icon, and cover.
Can members pay inside the Eden app?
No. Members join and pay on the web. In the app, they use what they already have.
Sources
- Kajabi pricing, Heartbeat pricing, Circle pricing, Mighty Networks plan details
- Skool on the App Store
All checked October 8, 2026.
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