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Systeme.io or Kajabi: tight budget, or a premium course platform?
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Systeme.io and Kajabi both host courses, but they target different budgets and depth. Systeme.io is a general-purpose, all-in-one platform with a free plan and paid tiers starting at $17 per month, built to sell any kind of offer. Kajabi is a premium course and coaching platform starting at $179 per month, with products, websites and admin users capped per tier. Starting out on a tight budget: Systeme.io. Established course creator wanting a deeper, dedicated platform: Kajabi.
Our pick for most readersSysteme.io
Pick it for: A first offer you want to validate before paying; Solo founders who want funnels, email and a course in one tool
Free plan, paid from $17/mo · Free plan, no card requiredStart free on Systeme.ioPick it ifKajabi
Pick it for: Selling courses, coaching or a community as the core offer; Creators who want the course player and the funnel in one tool
From $179/mo · Free trialTry KajabiSame category, different price floor
Systeme.io and Kajabi both let you sell a course, but they start from opposite ends of the market. Systeme.io is a general-purpose, all-in-one platform, funnels, email, courses and webinars, aimed at solo founders selling any kind of offer, with a free plan to start. Kajabi is a premium platform built specifically for course, coaching and community businesses, per its official positioning, and its entry tier already costs more per month than Systeme.io's top Unlimited plan. The gap isn't a rounding error, it reflects two different products.
Systeme.io: free to start, courses included on every paid plan
$17 per month is the entry paid tier, but the Free plan already includes 2,000 contacts, 3 sales funnels, 1 course and 1 custom domain at no cost, per the official pricing page. Course limits loosen with each tier: 5 courses on Startup, 20 on Webinar, unlimited on Unlimited.
| Systeme.io | Free | Startup | Webinar | Unlimited |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | free | $17/mo | $47/mo | $97/mo |
| Billed annually | · | · | · | · |
| Contacts | 2,000 | 5,000 | 10,000 | unlimited |
| Sales funnels | 3 | 10 | 50 | unlimited |
| Courses | 1 | 5 | 20 | unlimited |
| Custom domains | 1 | · | · | unlimited |
| Evergreen webinars | · | · | included | · |
| Automation rules | · | · | · | unlimited |
| Webinars | · | · | · | unlimited |
| Communities | · | · | · | unlimited |
Annual billing is advertised as 2 months free; the pricing page does not itemise annual per-plan amounts. Current amounts: the official Systeme.io pricing page.
The Startup price displayed may reflect a promotional rate.
Full detail: Systeme.io plans.
Kajabi: fewer products and sites per tier, positioned for depth
$179 per month is Kajabi's entry tier, capped at 5 products, 1 website and 2 admin users, with unlimited funnels and 2,500 contacts included. Growth and Pro raise those ceilings, up to unlimited products and 100,000 contacts on Pro, but the price rises with them.
| Kajabi | Basic | Growth | Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $179/mo | $249/mo | $499/mo |
| Billed annually | $143/mo | $199/mo | $399/mo |
| Products | 5 | 50 | unlimited |
| Funnels | unlimited | unlimited | unlimited |
| Contacts | 2,500 | 25,000 | 100,000 |
| Websites | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Admin users | 2 | 11 | 26 |
Annual billing lowers the effective monthly price. Current amounts: the official Kajabi pricing page.
Full detail: the Kajabi guide.
What the price gap buys you
Kajabi's positioning is coaches, educators and service professionals selling courses and digital products, per its official positioning, and the platform is built solely around that job: course player, coaching sessions and community live inside the same account as the funnel. Systeme.io's course module sits alongside funnels, email and webinars built for any offer, not tuned specifically for a course business. The extra cost buys focus, not necessarily more raw features.
Free plan vs premium trial: how each lets you test before paying
Systeme.io's Free plan is a real product tier with no card required and no time limit, capped at 2,000 contacts, 3 funnels, 1 course and 1 custom domain. Kajabi's entry point is a free trial rather than a permanent free tier, so testing the platform means committing to a paid plan once the trial ends. Anyone unsure they'll stick with course creation has more room to explore without spending on Systeme.io first.
Verdict by profile
A creator starting out on a tight budget, or unsure the course will sell yet: Systeme.io, free to start and flat as it scales. An established course creator or coach who wants a platform purpose-built for products, coaching and community, and can absorb a higher monthly cost from day one: Kajabi. Anyone weighing a wider mandate than just courses should also read the course creator funnel builder guide before deciding.
What the two products actually look like
Questions people also ask
Does Systeme.io's free plan include course hosting?
Yes, the Free plan includes 1 course alongside 2,000 contacts, 3 sales funnels and 1 custom domain, per the official pricing page. Additional courses require a paid tier.
Is Kajabi's entry plan a free trial or a free tier?
A free trial. Kajabi does not offer a permanent free tier the way Systeme.io does; testing the platform means starting a trial that leads into a paid plan.
What does Kajabi's higher price buy over Systeme.io?
Focus rather than raw feature count: a course, coaching and community platform built specifically for knowledge businesses, with a course player, coaching sessions and community integrated into the same account.
Can I move from Systeme.io to Kajabi later?
Yes, many creators start on a free or low-cost plan to validate an offer, then move to a platform like Kajabi once the course business is established enough to justify the higher monthly cost.