For experts
Teachable Alternatives for Live Classes with Tickets and Replays
By Masterclass.tv 8 min read
Short answer. The best Teachable alternative for live classes is a platform where the live room is part of the product, not a Zoom link pasted into a lesson. For single paid classes and workshops, Masterclass.tv sells the ticket, runs the room, answers questions on air and sells the replay. For live cohorts inside a community, Mighty Networks or Circle fit. For a course business that also teaches live, Kajabi fits.
Teachable is very good at one thing: hosting a self paced course and taking payment for it. Plenty of instructors build a solid business that way. The search for Teachable alternatives usually starts later, when the instructor notices that the sessions people rave about, and pay the most for, are the live ones. Then the stack gets awkward: the course on Teachable, the session on Zoom, the recording on a drive, and a support inbox full of "where is the link".
Why instructors look for a Teachable alternative for live classes
Teachable's public pricing page lists three things you can sell: courses, coaching and digital downloads. It does not list live video. Instructors who teach live usually paste a Zoom or Google Meet link into a lesson or a coaching booking, and that is where the friction starts.
- Two tools for one product. The buyer pays on Teachable and then joins a meeting in another app, with its own account, limits and bill.
- Links that travel. A meeting link in a lesson can be forwarded to people who never bought a seat.
- No single class offer. Each course, coaching offer or download counts toward a product limit, 5 on Starter, 10 on Builder and 50 on Growth. A one off 49 USD workshop uses up a slot like a full course does.
- The Starter fee. Starter costs 39 USD a month, or 29 USD billed yearly, and charges a 7.5 percent transaction fee. Builder and Growth drop the fee to 0 percent with Teachable Payments, at 89 and 189 USD a month.
- No buyers you did not bring. Teachable is a storefront for your own audience. Nobody browses it looking for a class to join tonight.
None of this is a flaw for a self paced course. It only bites when the live session is the thing you sell.
Teachable alternatives for live classes compared
| Platform | Best for | Live room | How it charges | Brings new buyers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masterclass.tv | Single paid live classes and workshops | Built in, 1,000 on Pro, 5,000 on Studio, upvoted Q&A | 25 percent per ticket, Pro 99 USD a month or 49 USD billed yearly | Yes, class schedule, categories and All Access viewers |
| Kajabi | Course businesses with website, funnels and email | Built in, up to 200 people | From 179 USD a month, or 143 USD billed yearly, no platform fee with Kajabi Payments | No, your own audience |
| Mighty Networks | Community led cohorts and memberships | Native livestreaming and events | Monthly subscription plus transaction fees | Limited |
| Circle | Paid communities with live sessions | Live streams and rooms inside the community | Monthly subscription plus transaction fees | No |
| Maven | Multi week cohorts at higher price points | Built in classroom | A share of each enrollment | Yes, a course marketplace |
| Teachable plus Zoom | Self paced courses with occasional live calls | Zoom or Meet, linked from a lesson | From 39 USD a month with 7.5 percent fee, plus your Zoom plan | No |
Kajabi and Teachable prices come from their public pricing pages. Community platform fees vary by plan, so check each vendor before you decide.
Masterclass.tv, for experts who sell single live classes
Masterclass.tv is built around the live session. Each class has its own event page and ticket at whatever price you set. Buyers enter a live room that only ticket holders can reach, post and upvote questions, and the class ends with a replay on the same page plus a certificate of attendance with a public verification link. You can keep selling the replay to people who missed the night.
The other difference is discovery. Classes appear in a public schedule and in categories such as AI, marketing, design and cooking, and viewers on the All Access plan can join included classes. That gives a newer instructor a shot at buyers who never heard of them, which Teachable cannot offer.
Where it does not fit: self paced course libraries. If 90 percent of your revenue is a recorded course, keep it on Teachable and run only the live sessions here. Read the full platform for experts overview, or see how a paid webinar runs from ticket to replay.
Kajabi, for a course business that also teaches live
Kajabi is the obvious upgrade from Teachable for instructors who want everything under one roof: website, funnels, email marketing, courses, coaching and community. Its built in live video runs inside Course and Coaching products and holds up to 200 people, with breakout rooms, according to Kajabi's help center.
The catch is price. Kajabi Basic costs 179 USD a month, or 143 USD billed yearly, which is a lot to carry if live classes are a side line. We compare the two in detail on our Kajabi alternative for live classes page.
Mighty Networks and Circle, for live cohorts inside a community
If your live sessions are part of an ongoing membership, where the same people meet every week, a community platform fits better than a ticketing one. Mighty Networks offers native livestreaming, events and courses inside a community. Circle offers live streams and rooms inside a paid community. Both charge a monthly subscription plus transaction fees that depend on the plan. If you want to sell single classes to people outside the membership, see our Mighty Networks alternative for paid live classes.
The tradeoff is that every session belongs to the community. Selling one standalone class to someone who does not want a membership is clumsy on both.
Maven, for multi week cohorts
Maven built its name on cohort courses taught by operators, with a classroom and a marketplace that sends students. It fits programs that run over several weeks at a higher price. It is a poor fit for a 49 USD evening session. We cover that gap in our Maven alternatives for live workshops guide.
What is the best alternative to Teachable?
The best alternative to Teachable depends on how you teach. For self paced courses with more design control, Thinkific or Kajabi. For live classes sold one at a time, Masterclass.tv. For live cohorts inside a membership, Mighty Networks or Circle. Many instructors keep Teachable for the recorded course and move only the live sessions.
Can you do live classes on Teachable?
Not natively. Teachable's pricing page lists courses, coaching and digital downloads but no built in live video, so instructors usually link a Zoom or Google Meet session from a lesson or coaching booking. It works for small groups. Access control, replays and certificates are then handled outside Teachable.
Is Teachable cheaper than Kajabi?
Yes. Teachable Starter costs 39 USD a month, or 29 USD billed yearly, and Builder costs 89 USD a month, against 179 USD a month for Kajabi Basic. Teachable Starter adds a 7.5 percent transaction fee, though, and neither price includes a live room on Teachable. For live classes alone, Masterclass.tv Pro at 49 USD a month billed yearly is the lower base cost.
How to move live sessions off Teachable
- Keep the course where it is. Your recorded lessons and existing students stay on Teachable.
- Create the live class. Set the title, outcome, date, length and ticket price on Masterclass.tv.
- Send the event link. Email it to your Teachable students and list, and give affiliates tracked links.
- Teach and reuse. The replay publishes itself and keeps selling. Many instructors also turn the recording into short posts for each social channel to promote the next class.
If you are still weighing price per seat, our guide on how to price a live masterclass ticket walks through the math, and the best platforms to sell live classes roundup compares the wider field.
