Podia review: $39 a month and a 5% fee on Mover
Podia is the simplest way to sell courses, downloads and a small community from one site, and the decision between its two plans is arithmetic rather than taste. Our last check, on 14 June 2026, recorded Mover at $39 a month with a 5% transaction fee and Shaker at $89 a month with none. That evidence is four months old.
The short answer
Buy Podia if you want one tidy platform for courses, digital downloads, coaching and email without running four subscriptions. Mover was $39 a month, or $33 billed annually, when we checked podia.com on 14 June 2026, with unlimited products and customers. Read those figures as four months old.
Skip it if your curriculum needs graded quizzes, certificates or branching lesson paths. Thinkific at $54 a month on Basic, verified 1 October 2026, has the deeper course builder, and no amount of simplicity makes up for an assessment feature you need and cannot have.
Where Podia fits
Podia fits the creator whose products are varied but whose business is small. Courses, downloads, coaching sessions, a community and email marketing sit in one account, and both recorded plans carry unlimited products and unlimited customers. You can have a thing for sale within an afternoon, which is the real argument for it.
The pricing has two plans and one decision inside it. Our 14 June 2026 check recorded Mover at $39 a month with a 5% transaction fee on every sale, and Shaker at $89 a month with that fee removed. Everything else about choosing a plan is secondary to working out which of those two costs you less.
The arithmetic is simple enough to do in your head. Shaker costs $50 a month more than Mover on the monthly rates we recorded. A 5% fee reaches $50 at $1,000 of monthly sales, so below roughly $1,000 a month Mover is cheaper even with the fee, and above it Shaker is. That threshold is illustrative arithmetic on our own recorded figures, not a Podia published number.
Annual billing is the other lever. Our check recorded Mover at $33 a month billed annually and Shaker at $75. Across a year that is $396 against $468 on Mover, a saving of $72, and $900 against $1,068 on Shaker, a saving of $168. On the annual rates the gap between the two plans narrows to $42 a month.
Email marketing is included, and the snapshot records the first 100 subscribers as free. That is a genuine saving for a creator starting out and a number to watch as the list grows, because email pricing that scales with subscribers is the usual way a bundled platform gets more expensive without a plan change. Our snapshot does not record the rates above 100 subscribers, so this page states none.
There is no free plan. Our 14 June 2026 check recorded a 30-day free trial with full access and no credit card required, which is unusually generous as trials go and is long enough to launch something small and see whether it sells. Use it that way rather than as a tour.
Against the field Podia is a cheap entry with a simple builder. Teachable is $39 a month on Starter and Thinkific is $54 on Basic, both verified 1 October 2026, and both have more course machinery. Kajabi at $179 a month on Basic, same date, is the bundled option for a business with revenue to protect. Our Podia figures are from 14 June 2026 and have not been re-verified, so treat them as several months old. The course and membership platforms category holds the rest.
Podia pricing
Podia charges a flat monthly fee per account, and on the cheaper plan it also takes a percentage of each sale. The figures below come from our check of podia.com on 14 June 2026 and have not been re-verified since, so confirm them before you buy. The Podia pricing breakdown carries the longer version.
| Plan | Price | What it adds |
|---|---|---|
| Mover | $39/mo | $33/mo billed annually, $396 a year against $468 paid monthly. Carries a 5% transaction fee on every sale |
| Shaker | $89/mo | $75/mo billed annually, $900 a year against $1,068 paid monthly. No transaction fee |
Two things are being priced here, the subscription and a cut of your sales. Four factors decide the total:
- Your monthly sales volume, because of the 5% fee on Mover. The fee costs little at low revenue and a great deal at high revenue, which is the entire reason Shaker exists.
- Which plan that pushes you onto. Shaker was $50 a month more than Mover on our check, and 5% of monthly sales reaches $50 at $1,000 of sales, so that is where the two plans cost about the same.
- Billing period. Annual billing saved $72 across a year on Mover and $168 on Shaker on our 14 June 2026 check, and prepays the whole term.
- Your email list size. The first 100 subscribers were free on our check, and our snapshot does not record the rates beyond that, so read them off Podia's own page before the list grows.
- The age of this evidence. These are June 2026 figures, four months old, and a fee percentage or a plan price could have moved since.
Podia pricing against the course platforms
Podia's entry price is at the bottom of the category, with the fee attached. Teachable is also $39 a month on Starter, verified 1 October 2026, and Thinkific is $54 on Basic on the same date, both with deeper course tooling. Teachery charges $49 a month with no transaction fee at all, recorded 15 June 2026, which is the closest thing to Shaker's promise at Mover's sort of price. Kajabi at $179 a month on Basic, verified 1 October 2026, takes no cut either and bundles far more. Those dates differ from Podia's, so this is not a like-for-like comparison.
Podia billing terms worth knowing
One number does most of the work on this rate card: the 5% Mover fee.
- Free plan
- None. Our 14 June 2026 check records a 30-day free trial with no card required.
- Mover
- $39 per month, or $33 per month billed annually. $468 or $396 across a year.
- Shaker
- $89 per month, or $75 per month billed annually. $1,068 or $900 across a year.
- Transaction fee
- 5% of every sale on Mover. None on Shaker, as of 14 June 2026.
- Plan gap
- $50 a month on the monthly rates, $42 a month on the annual rates.
- Annual saving
- $72 across a year on Mover, $168 on Shaker.
- Check date
- 14 June 2026. Four months old and not re-verified, so confirm before buying.
Podia offers two paid plans: Mover at $39/month ($33/month annually) and Shaker at $89/month ($75/month annually). The Mover plan includes a 5% transaction fee on every sale. Shaker removes that fee entirely. Both plans include unlimited products, unlimited customers, and built-in email marketing (first 100 subscribers free). There is no free plan. Podia offers a 30-day free trial instead.
If a Podia bill is larger than you expected, the two likely causes are the 5% Mover fee on a good sales month and email pricing above the free 100 subscribers. Our snapshot does not record the subscriber tiers, so this page states none rather than estimating. Our creator tool cost calculators will run your own revenue against both plans once you have today's rates.
What Podia gives up
The course builder is light. Graded quizzes, certificates and branching lesson paths are not what Podia is for, and a curriculum that needs assessment will hit that wall quickly. If learners must be tested and certified, a dedicated platform is the right purchase even at a higher monthly rate.
The 5% Mover fee is quiet and it compounds. It does not appear on an invoice as a line you notice, it simply reduces every payout, and a good launch month is exactly when it costs most. Run the number against your own sales rather than assuming the cheaper plan is the cheaper plan.
Email marketing is included only up to a point. The first 100 subscribers were free on our 14 June 2026 check, and the cost beyond that is not in our snapshot. A growing list is the most common way a bundled platform's bill rises without you changing anything.
Storefront design is constrained. Podia gets you something presentable fast, and the price of that is a site that looks like a Podia site. If brand presentation is central to what you sell, that limit will show.
Community is a feature rather than a product. It is enough for a small paid group attached to a course, and it is not a match for a platform built around discussion. A membership whose whole value is the community should be priced against Circle instead.
Annual billing saves real money and removes your exit. Prepaying Mover hands over $396 up front for a $72 saving across the year, and the 30-day trial is long enough to test the product but not to prove the business. Run the first couple of months monthly.
Our pricing evidence is from 14 June 2026, which is the weakest part of this page. Four months is long enough for a plan price, a fee percentage or a trial length to change, and we would rather say so plainly than present old figures as current ones.
How Podia compares
The four platforms below are the ones weighed against Podia, and the axis is simplicity against depth of course tooling. Prices are each vendor's published rates with the date we checked them, and those dates differ by up to four months, so read them with that in mind. The wider field sits in the course and membership platforms category.
| Tool | Best for | Price | Where it breaks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Podia | Selling courses, downloads and coaching from one simple site | $39/mo Mover (June 2026) | Mover carries a 5% cut of every sale; the builder is light |
| Teachable | A straightforward paid course with more learning features | $39/mo Starter | No built-in email marketing, so the stack grows around it |
| Teachery | One flat price with no cut of sales at all | $49/mo or $470/year | No quizzes, certificates, community or email tooling |
| Kajabi | An established business wanting courses, email and funnels bundled | $179/mo Basic | The dearest entry point in the category and no free plan |
What to test in the Podia trial
Our 14 June 2026 check recorded a 30-day free trial with full access and no card required. Confirm that it still stands, because the figures on this page are four months old, and use the month to put something real on sale rather than to look around.
- Check the current plan prices, the Mover fee percentage and the trial length on podia.com. Our figures are from June 2026 and this is the one step not to take on trust.
- Build one complete product and take a test payment through checkout. Podia's claim is speed, so time how long that takes you.
- Apply the recorded 5% to your real monthly sales. If the result is more than the $50 monthly gap between Mover and Shaker, Shaker is the cheaper plan for you.
- Test the course builder against your actual curriculum, especially anything needing a quiz or a certificate. That is where Podia is thinnest and where you will know quickly.
- Send a campaign from the built-in email tool and check the pricing beyond the free 100 subscribers on Podia's own page. Our snapshot does not record it.
- Decide whether the community feature covers what you promised members, or whether you want Circle for that part instead.
- Total a year of each plan, $468 on Mover paid monthly or $1,068 on Shaker, and set it against Teachable at $39 a month and Thinkific at $54 a month, both verified 1 October 2026. The cost calculators will add the fees.
Podia questions buyers ask
How much does Podia cost per month?
Podia offers two plans: Mover at $39/month ($33/month billed annually) and Shaker at $89/month ($75/month billed annually). The Mover plan includes a 5% transaction fee on all sales, while Shaker has 0% transaction fees. Both plans include unlimited products, customers, and built-in email marketing for the first 100 subscribers. Email costs increase as your subscriber count grows.
Does Podia have a free plan or free trial?
Podia retired its free plan in late 2024. It now offers a 30-day free trial with full access to all features: no credit card required to start. This gives you enough time to build a course, set up your community, test the email tools, and make some real sales before committing to a paid plan.
Who is Podia best for?
Podia is best for solo creators and small business owners who sell a mix of courses, digital downloads, coaching, and community memberships and want everything in one platform. It's ideal for creators who prioritize simplicity over advanced features. If you need powerful course-building tools with graded assessments and certificates, Teachable or Thinkific will be a better fit.
Podia vs Teachable: which is better for course creators?
Teachable has a stronger course builder with graded quizzes, completion certificates, and more advanced student management. Podia is simpler and includes email marketing and community built in. On fees, Podia's Mover plan takes 5% of every sale and Shaker takes nothing, while we hold no verified transaction fee rate for Teachable, so check Teachable's current terms if fees drive your decision. Choose Podia if you want one platform for courses plus community plus email. Choose Teachable if course quality and student experience are your top priorities.
What can you sell on Podia?
Podia supports online courses (video, text, quizzes, drip content), digital downloads (ebooks, templates, audio, presets), coaching packages (one-on-one and group sessions), webinars (live and pre-recorded), community memberships, product bundles, and subscriptions. Both plans include unlimited products with no cap on customers or file sizes.
Is Podia good for selling digital downloads?
Yes, Podia is one of the simpler platforms for selling digital downloads. You upload your file, write a sales page, set a price, and publish: it takes about 10 minutes. There are no limits on file size or number of products. The main drawback is the 5% transaction fee on the Mover plan. For pure digital download selling, also compare Gumroad, which takes 10% plus $0.50 on a direct sale with no monthly fee, verified 1 October 2026, and Payhip, which charges 0% on its Pro plan at $99/month, verified 11 June 2026.
Does Podia include email marketing?
Yes. Podia Email is built into both plans and includes broadcast emails, drip campaigns, automation sequences, subscriber tagging, and segmentation. The first 100 subscribers are free. Beyond that, email is charged separately and the cost scales with your list size. We hold no verified figure for those tiers, so check Podia's current email pricing before you plan a budget around it. It's capable enough for newsletters and basic automations but less powerful than ConvertKit or ActiveCampaign for complex workflows.
Can I build a community on Podia?
Yes. Podia includes a built-in community feature on both plans. You can create topic-based spaces, run discussions, post updates, and gate access behind paid memberships or course purchases. It's simpler than dedicated community platforms like Circle or Skool (no live events, no gamification, no leaderboards), but it works well for lightweight discussion communities attached to your courses or memberships.
Is Podia worth the money compared to other course platforms?
It depends on what you're comparing. Podia's Mover plan at $33/month on annual billing is cheaper than Thinkific Basic at $40/month annually and much cheaper than Kajabi Basic at $143/month annually, both verified 1 October 2026 against our 14 June 2026 Podia check. Kajabi takes no transaction fees on any plan and includes marketing funnels and unlimited email, while Podia's Mover plan takes 5% of sales. Podia's value is strongest when you factor in what it replaces: a separate course platform, email tool, community platform, and website builder. If you'd otherwise be paying for four separate tools, Podia likely saves you money.
Can I cancel Podia anytime?
Yes. You can cancel your Podia subscription at any time with no cancellation fees. If you're on a monthly plan, you keep access until the end of your billing period. If you're on an annual plan, you keep access for the remainder of your year but won't get a partial refund for unused months. Your content and customer data remain accessible for export after cancellation.