Skool vs. Circle: Which Platform is Best for Managing and Scaling Your Online Community?

Over the last few years, I’ve been running my course business and mastermind using a mix of tools like Podia, Slack, and Zoom. And while each tool has worked well on its own, as my community has grown, managing everything across multiple platforms has started to become a bit of a nightmare.

That’s why I decided it was time to streamline my setup and move everything to a single platform. After doing my research, two clear contenders stood out: Skool and Circle. Both platforms offer solid solutions for hosting courses and managing communities, but I wanted to find out which one was best suited for long-term growth and managing a large community.

Today, I’m going to break down everything you need to know about these two platforms. Whether you’re looking to simplify your community management or scale a growing membership, this post is for you. Here’s what we’ll be going over:

1. Feature Comparison: A side-by-side look at what Skool and Circle offer.
2. Key Differences: How each platform handles navigation, automation, and customization.
3. Pricing Breakdown: A comparison of costs and transaction fees for both platforms.
4. My Final Decision: Which platform I chose and why it could be the right choice for your community.

By the end of this post, you’ll have a clear understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of both platforms and how they might fit your specific needs. Whether you’re running a small, intimate community or looking to scale a larger group, this guide will help you make the best choice for your business. Let’s dive in!

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Feature Comparison: Skool vs. Circle

When comparing Skool and Circle, both platforms offer a lot of the same core features to help streamline community management. Here’s a look at the key similarities and differences.

Course Hosting
Both Skool and Circle provide a great experience for hosting courses. This was important for me since all my courses are currently hosted on Podia. Both platforms allow you to:

• Upload course content
• Track student progress
• Offer downloadable resources

This makes the transition smooth and provides a solid learning experience. No big difference here—both are solid options.

Gamification
Keeping your community engaged is critical, and both platforms offer gamification features. As members interact—by posting, commenting, or reacting—they earn points, which help them level up and unlock rewards. For example, in one of my Skool communities, I’ve earned perks like discount codes and free courses just by being active.

Both Skool and Circle deliver similar gamification experiences, making them equally good at keeping members motivated.

Event Management
Currently, I use Zoom and Google Calendar to host and organize live events. Both Skool and Circle offer built-in event management tools, allowing you to host live webinars or events directly on the platform. This simplifies things and reduces the need for third-party tools. Once again, both platforms handle this feature well.

Real-Time Chat
Both platforms include real-time chat features, which can replace tools like Slack. This centralizes all communication within one platform, making it easier for members to interact without switching apps. It’s a straightforward feature, but essential for keeping engagement high.

Core Feature Summary

• Course Hosting: Both platforms offer a seamless experience.
• Gamification: Both keep members engaged with point systems and rewards.
• Event Management: Both allow you to host live events directly.
• Real-Time Chat: Both provide a built-in chat system for smoother communication.

While the core features of Skool and Circle are very similar, the real difference lies in how they handle things like navigation, automation, and customization—areas that matter more as your community scales. Let’s explore those next.

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Key Differences: Navigation, Automation, and Customization

While Skool and Circle share a lot of similarities in their core features, the real differences start to show in areas that matter most as your community grows—navigation, automation, and customization.

Navigation
Both platforms display content in a single feed, where posts, announcements, and discussions are listed. However, Circle takes navigation to another level with its spaces and space groups. These let you organize your content into separate sections, which is a game-changer for large communities. For example, you could have a space dedicated to general discussions, another for courses, and another for announcements. This makes it much easier for members to find what they’re interested in, rather than sifting through one long feed.

In comparison, Skool’s single feed works well for smaller groups, but as the community grows, it can feel cluttered. Circle’s ability to organize content into spaces is especially valuable when scaling, making it easier for new members to jump into relevant conversations without getting overwhelmed.

Automation
Automation is crucial when you’re managing a larger community, and Circle shines here. Circle offers built-in automation tools, strong integrations with Zapier and Make.com, and access to a custom API. These tools allow you to automate repetitive tasks like:

• Sending messages to re-engage inactive members
• Awarding certificates when someone completes a course
• Unlocking new features when members hit engagement milestones

Skool, on the other hand, has more limited automation capabilities. While it does integrate with Zapier, the options are fewer and less flexible compared to Circle. If automation is important to you, especially as your community scales, Circle’s more robust toolset will save you a lot of manual work.

Customization
If branding and customization are priorities for your community, Circle stands out. It allows you to:

• Customize layouts
• Use your brand colors
• Upload custom icons

This level of control gives your community a unique look and feel, which can be important for building a cohesive brand experience. Skool, on the other hand, is more limited in this area. Most Skool communities look and feel similar, which might be fine if branding isn’t your top concern. But if you want a more personalized community space, Circle offers more flexibility.

Key Takeaways

• Navigation: Circle’s spaces and space groups make it easier to organize content, especially as your community grows.
• Automation: Circle offers better automation tools and integrations, making it more scalable.
• Customization: Circle provides more options to customize your community's look and feel, which is important for branding.

In the next section, we’ll dive into pricing and break down what you’ll actually be paying for each platform.

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Pricing Breakdown: Skool vs. Circle

Now that we’ve looked at the features and differences, let’s talk about pricing. Understanding the cost structure is key, especially if you’re running a business or scaling a large community.

Skool Pricing
Skool keeps things simple with one plan:

• $99 per month
• This includes unlimited members, unlimited courses, and all features.

The only additional cost is the 2.9% transaction fee on payments made through the platform. So, if you’re charging for memberships or courses, you’ll pay that fee on every transaction. Let’s say you sell 10 memberships at $100 each per month—that’s $12,000 in total sales per year. With Skool’s transaction fees, you’d pay around $348 in transaction fees, plus the $1,188 annual cost for Skool, bringing your total to $1,536 per year.

Circle Pricing
Circle’s pricing is a bit more flexible, but also more complex. Their Professional Plan starts at:

• $99 per month
• This includes up to 20 spaces (for courses, groups, discussions, etc.).

If you need more than 20 spaces, you can upgrade to Circle’s Business Plan at $219 per month. Circle also charges a 2% platform fee on top of Stripe’s transaction fee of 2.9% + 30 cents per transaction, which adds up to around 4.9%.

Using the same example of 10 memberships at $100 per month, Circle’s transaction fees would be about $624 per year. Combined with the $1,188 annual platform fee, your total comes to $1,812 per year—slightly higher than Skool.

Key Pricing Differences

• Skool is straightforward: one plan, $99/month, with 2.9% transaction fees.
• Circle is more flexible, starting at $99/month, but its transaction fees are higher, and if you need more spaces or features, you’ll likely be looking at a higher monthly cost.

It’s also worth noting that as you scale up and move to higher Circle plans, the platform fee decreases, and you unlock additional features like the AI Co-Pilot or advanced single sign-on options.

Which is More Cost-Effective?While Skool is slightly cheaper overall, Circle offers more flexibility and features for larger or more complex communities. If you’re just getting started or managing a smaller group, Skool’s pricing will likely be easier to manage. But if you need more space, advanced integrations, or customization, Circle’s higher cost might be worth it.

Next, I’ll share my final decision and explain why I ultimately chose one platform over the other.

My Decision: Why I Chose Circle

After spending time testing both Skool and Circle, I ultimately decided to go with Circle. While both platforms offer solid features and could easily replace the mix of tools I was using, Circle came out on top for a few key reasons that aligned better with my long-term needs.

1. Navigation
As my community grows, I need an intuitive way to organize content and discussions. Circle’s spaces and space groups make it much easier to segment the community. Instead of one large feed (like Skool’s setup), I can create dedicated areas for courses, general discussions, announcements, and specific topics. This helps members find what’s relevant to them without being overwhelmed by unrelated posts.

The navigation structure is also more welcoming for new members. Instead of being dropped into an active feed full of ongoing conversations, they can easily locate the “Start Here” section or focus on specific topics of interest, which smooths out the onboarding process.

2. Automation
For me, automation is crucial, especially as my community scales. Circle’s built-in automation tools, along with its powerful Zapier and Make.com integrations, offer the flexibility I need to manage tasks without increasing my workload. I can automate things like:

• Sending reminders to inactive members
• Unlocking features or content when someone reaches certain milestones
• Sending automated welcome messages

While Skool has some basic Zapier integrations, Circle’s deeper automation capabilities give me more control over managing the community without having to be hands-on all the time.

3. Customization
I wasn’t originally going to include this as a deciding factor, but after talking with a few other community founders, I realized the value of having a more customizable platform. Circle’s layout customization and branding options allow me to create a space that aligns with my brand. While I don’t consider this a must-have, it does help create a more professional and cohesive experience for community members.

On the other hand, Skool communities all look and feel the same, which is fine if you’re not concerned with branding. However, as my community grows, I think the ability to make it feel more personalized will pay off in the long run.

4. Long-Term Flexibility
Over the years, I’ve learned that going with the cheapest option upfront doesn’t always save you money in the long run. As my community continues to scale, I need a platform that can grow with me. While Skool may add more features in the future, Circle already offers the tools and flexibility I need to keep my community running smoothly as it expands—even if it comes at a slightly higher price.

Final Thoughts
At the end of the day, Circle offers more long-term flexibility with its robust navigation, automation, and customization features. For me, those elements outweigh the higher price. If your community is small or in the early stages, Skool is a great option at a lower cost. But if you’re thinking about scalability and flexibility, Circle provides the edge.

If you want to learn more about Circle and try it out for yourself, you can use my affiliate link to get started.

For a deeper dive into how I’m building communities, check out my post introducing MVMP Labs: A Community for Non-Technical Founders Building MVPs with No-Code.

So, that’s why I chose Circle. If you’re still on the fence, I recommend trying both platforms out for yourself and seeing which one fits your needs better. And if you have any questions, feel free to drop them in the comments—I’d be happy to help!