Circle vs. Kajabi: Which Is the Best Choice for You? |

Oct 8, 2024

Circle was created in the year 2020 from some Teachable employees who realized the need for an online community platform to complement Teachable's courses. Over time, it added a course platform of its own. Kajabi launched a decade earlier in 2010. Kenny Rueter wanted an online selling platform for the lawn mower he had designed, but over time it morphed into a popular course platform.

Both Circle and Kajabi take up a lot of the real estate market within the creation economy. Therefore, if you're searching for the perfect location for your business and you're wondering what is the best fit.


In this piece we'll look at the differences between Circle with Kajabi. There's plenty of similarities in the services they have to offer, we'll look at both on the basis of:


 

  • Courses        
  • Communities and Memberships        
  • Business and Marketing Tools        
  • Apps        


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Circle vs. Kajabi: Comparison Chart


Circle

Kajabi

Asynchronous Course Platform

Live Courses

It is possible to mix two platforms

Livestreaming Native

Advanced Marketing Features

Integrated Funnels

Page Building

The Course and Community Together?

Email Support

Zapier Only

Built-In

Apps for every device

Yes (2 separate apps to manage course and community)

Branded Apps

Basic

Branded Apps

Additional Cost

Additional Cost

Pricing From...

$29/mo + $5/course sale

$69/mo





What is the best way to determine


It is important to recognize the fact that these platforms were made for various things, such as Communities vs courses. Each one works better for what it was designed to be. So the main question will always be what you're creating:


 

  • Circle is a better platform for communities and the ability to join.        
  • Kajabi is an overall more efficient platform for asynchronous courses and marketing.      


However, if you're crossing the line between these two types, continue reading to find a deeper analysis of how they compare in terms of the different features.


Circle vs. Kajabi


Courses


Kajabi


Kajabi is well-known for its course-building, and the LMS offers a wide range of content to do with. It is compatible with various types of content including audio, video and text, as well as quizzes, surveys, and even downloads. The table of contents format is well-suited as well, and it allows you to preview lessons before launch. The LMS has options for dripping content and adding questions and evaluations.


Kajabi app


Kajabi can also be used (sort of) to stream live classes however there are a few limitations. It doesn't have native livestreaming capabilities within the Kajabi course platform, so you'd have to utilize a third-party program similar to YouTube. However, Kajabi does have a distinct application - Kajabi 2.0-that includes livestreaming as well as live meetings (we'll discuss it in the following section). This does make it possible to add the option of livestreaming to your course (it is opened in a separate screen) The recording can be pinned to the course's webpage. As Kajabi has email incorporated, members can get alerted when livestreams are going to begin and join.


Finally, Kajabi was an early user of some AI tools to generate content. You can use it to produce:


 

  • Lesson Content        
  • Descriptions of Course        
  • Sales Email Copy        
  • Landing Page Copy        
  • Media Content Media Content        
  • Sales Video Script        


Kajabi AI tools


These features, however, aren't embedded in the platform. They're accessible to the public (which is awesome) However, they do not offer anything you couldn't accomplish with the ChatGPT account. ChatGPT account.


One final stand-out feature of Kajabi is its course pages, which Circle doesn't have. The ability to personalize your course pages using drag-and-drop, adding sections and building courses under your personal brand. It's a little like making a site for your course. It's a great way to showcase it in (Circle utilizes Course Spaces instead). We'll talk more about these below.


Circle


circle Courses


In Circle offering the course is accomplished by creating a course space. Course experiences are built by constructing a table of contents (an the LMS design) which can then be integrated with different community spaces. Course platforms can be used to support audio videos, text as well as downloadable content for various types of education. Course instructors are able to create asynchronous course material and preview it before it goes live.


Notably, Circle can handle live courses with its built-in livestreaming and community feature (more about this later). This opens up a lot of possibilities for synchronous interactions as well as things such live classrooms, office hours and Q&As.


Which is better?


As course platforms as platforms for teaching, both Circle and Kajabi both have pros and cons. Therefore, the best option for a specific use probably will depend on the type of class you want to offer.


Kajabi is a better choice for... Course creators that want to design simple courses (asynchronous) featuring built-in marketing pages and website design flexibility. Kajabi isn't as effective in live-based courses or experience because of the gap between the course and community options (which we'll talk about next ).


Circle is ideal to... teachers of courses that want live classes in a group or online courses that offer live experience. If you're planning live interaction with your students, Circle has a better integration between live features and courses than Kajabi. If you're looking for an online community, it's even stronger.


But one thing to note is that Circle is more limited in its storage space and additional costs. Because courses count towards the limit, you may pay extra for large course libraries.


Community and Memberships


Kajabi


Kajabi community - Circles


Kajabi does do communities and memberships but they're not its best feature. for a while the community function of Kajabi was restricted to the forum function which was part of Kajabi's course platform. It was very basic, but could include a basic discussions forum on an existing course.


But Kajabi recently acquired a company named Vibely to give it essential community functions.


Kajabi live rooms


The good:


 

  • This adds an upgraded chat component to Kajabi as well as a range of synchronous and asynchronous tools to connect. The newsfeeds included events, newsfeeds, chat and DM, and live rooms. The link to your online community is possible to add on the landing page of a course.      
  • Kajabi is a tool to organize content. They call circles (not to be confused with Circle.so). Circles are distinctive areas that are able to hold various types of information.      
  • Kajabi 2.0 provides improved member directories, with customized profiles that highlight the interests of members and achievements.        


The negative:


 

  • It's a separate platform (not part of Kajabi). Kajabi 2.0 needs a different sign-in and distinct app. Members need 2 different apps to access a course and a community.      


Circle


Circle Livestreaming


Circle's communities are based on a feature known as Spaces. We discussed a course Space in the previous post. Creators on Circle can also add an event space, along with community, post and chat spaces. Content can be posted such as audio, videos, podcasts as well as files and other media from other platforms through Circle's embed capabilities. Every community-generated content is searchable.


Circle Spaces


In contrast to Kajabi, Circle has embedded AI writing tools into its course platform, meaning that it will improve writing and conversations. Circle comes with profile pages for members that are switched off or on; members lists may be set up all-inclusive or for a particular area.


Then, the Circle community includes personalized home feeds as well as automated weekly digests that let members know what's happening in the community. Additionally, Circle has moderation and administrative tools to help scale a community.


Which one is more effective?


Circle is a more community-oriented platform. It was created for community as well as memberships. Kajabi is working to get up with these features, but using 2 different apps to do the same thing that Circle does in one is a dealbreaker for most creators.


Marketing & Business


Kajabi


Kajabi has some great marketing features for hosting courses and creating sales. The page builder includes drag-and-drop construction (we mentioned earlier) and pages for different purposes: opt-in pages download pages, sales page, etc.


Kajabi integrated marketing


Kajabi also has integrated marketing and emails for selling classes, as well as already-designed sales funnels. And the funnels connect to email that can handle the segmentation of audiences, automated processes, and subscriber management. Kajabi is a platform for sales, Kajabi offers bundles, free trials, coupons, and subscriptions, with tools to boost revenue, such as sales, abandoned carts recovery, as well as multi-currency assistance.


Circle


Circle isn't equipped with a lot of built-in marketing tools it, so it's not as robust as Kajabi here. There is the possibility of adding a landing page to an existing course by making some adjustments of both the layout and content; these can include an overview of the content. But Circle isn't designed to create a simple site like Kajabi's.


Once someone's inside, Circle has some integrated emails and digests which will keep people up to date on what's going on within the community. These messages could be white-labeled to the higher levels of Circle's service. Other than these, Circle doesn't have a integrated email program, which means you'd need to connect to the email program using Zapier.


Similar to Kajabi, Circle can manage bundles and payments in different currencies. It is easy to connect courses and community (end events) in order to increase sales.


Price


    Kajabi Price


 

  • $69/mo - Kickstarter (1 product, 1 funnel + 250 contacts)        
  • $149/mo - Basis (3 products three funnels plus 10,000 contact)        
  • $199/mo - Growth (15 products, 15 funnels, + 25,000 contacts)        
  • $399/mo - Pro (100 products, 100 funnels + 100,000 contacts)        


    Circle


 

  • $49/month + 4transaction charges the Basic Plans (Community only)        
  • $99/mo plus 2% fees Pro Plan (add Livestreaming, courses as well as branding)        
  • $219/month plus 1 percent fees Business plan (add workflows including custom fields, white-labels for emails, as well as AI helper)        
  • $399 per month + .5 per cent fees for Enterprise (add SSO and analytics, 10 admin and 100 mods)        


Which is better?


Kajabi is undeniably better when it comes to course features. It comes with integrated funnels for marketing designed for a variety of applications. It has a basic email program which lets you label and market to subscribers in a way you can't on Circle. And it has more sales features built in the platform that help creators earn.


But, Kajabi is also more expensive. Therefore, if you're planning to purchase it, be sure that you're in need of the extra options it has to offer.


Apps


Kajabi


Kajabi is actually home to two main apps. The Course app and The Community app. However, it requires an additional app to perform Community analytics. Here are the app offerings:


Courses: This is Kajabi's main app which contains the course infrastructure, including video, text, as well as the LMS. Also, it includes the older Kajabi community function. It is ideal for synchronous course.


Kajabi main app


Community: This was the Vibely app. It's changed to Kajabi 2.0. It provides community-related tools like chat, conferencing, and real-time engagement.


Kajabi 2.0 - app screens


Kajabi Creator  It is an app for managing your Kajabi company, that provides statistics and analytics to let you know what's happening in a company and administration.


Kajabi Branded Apps It's a new feature for Kajabi that offers branded apps on the App Store as well as the Google Play Store. This includes branded push notifications. It's also important to note that branded apps provide the sole way to access courses and community all in one place.


Circle


Circle was a company that had an iOS application for several years, however their Android application was introduced in 2023. It's a good app (4.5 rating for Google Play and 4.9 on the App Store). And unlike Kajabi it's all in Circle happens in the same app (courses and communities ).


Circle App -


Circle has also recently launched the option of branded apps for its app which means you are able to get the app with your own name. The Circle Plus app brings together all of the courses and community in one place. Circle Plus comes with branded push notifications. It's early days however, Circle has developed an application for Exit Five (a B2B community for marketing). ).


Which is better?


Both have good apps. But the issue that Kajabi requires a number of apps for what Circle does with one is an attack against it. If you only wanted an asynchronous course, Kajabi's app would be fine. If you're looking for groups of students and courses, Circle is probably a better choice. With Kajabi, members would have to install two apps, which could be detrimental to participation.


In the case of the app with a brand name, Circle gets the slight advantage too. They've got a better track record (Kajabi has just started). Plus, Kajabi makes you pay for an app that is branded for your classes as well as a community-something Circle already does.


The verdict


So back to where we started. Which one is superior, Circle vs. Kajabi? Both platforms have strong points. However, both platforms possess some major flaws.


 

  • Kajabi has a fantastic synchronous course delivery and solid marketing skills, however it requires it possible to deliver live events using a separate platform and app. What you gain in revenue, you sacrifice on engagement. Kajabi's AI capabilities don't have anything that you can be proud of- basically a white labeled ChatGPT.    
  • Circle: Doesn't have as much course or marketing power as Kajabi, but offers a simpler community features. However, it is still Circle has to host community as well as courses within separate areas (AKA different parts in your local community). Members have to click around to find the right places.    


Want a better option?





is the top-rated platform for community on G2's website. It offers courses and communities for brands and figures like Tony Robbins, Mel Robbins, Jim Kwik, Marie Forleo, Matthew Hussey, TED, nuun, and Mindbody.


What sets Mighty different from Circle and Kajabi.


streamlined experiences


Both Kajabi as well as Circle have disjointed UX between community and courses. Kajabi due to the fact that these events are hosted in different apps and platforms. Also, Circle as they are held within different spaces-members must look around for the correct event or Space to go with the course.


With Mighty Spaces, they are built to hold any type of content that you would like. With an on/off toggle for options like Activity Feed, Chat, Table of Contents (traditional LMS), People Explorer (Members) Recurring Events, One-time Events or a Page (an article) or highlighted hashtags.


This is what this looks like:


MN - 2024 - Graphics - Space Templates


It's all happening all in one location. Events and courses. Chat and community.


It turns into way higher engagement and better UX for members who don't need to navigate around to find the information they're looking for.


 - Graphics - 2024 - Livestreaming GIF


Software specifically designed to engage


The year before We discovered that we could predict with a 93% accuracy, which communities would be successful and which failed.


The whole thing came down members. Do they meet each other? Do they talk to each other?


Connection to a member is a better indicator of success than the content Hosts create.


Therefore, we created our program to increase members' connections.


This is the result:


 

  • The HTML0 is a People Explorer that helps members discover others with similar experiences and backgrounds and even reside in the same town.        
  • Welcome checklist as well as profile assistance function that will help members start right.        
  • A "Show Similarities" feature that uses AI to display what you have in common with your fellow users. You can also start an online conversation by clicking.      


MN - Graphics - 2024 - Profiile + similarities


Helping hosts improve their home
Engagement features aren't only focused on members.


Mighty also comes with software that can help hosts increase engagement, like it's...


 

  • Infinite Question Generator that creates discussion-related questions and automatically posts approved ones. The engagement continues even when you're not online.    
  • "Activity Assist" to display members that are gone and then automatically reconnect by clicking.      


MN - Graphics - 2024 - Animation Conversation-Starter


A second awesome community as well as course features


 

  • Instant community building. Enter a few phrases into Mighty Co-Host(tm) and immediately have a Big Idea, basic brand identity, and your first Space. (Try it free)    
  • Writing prompts, as well as improvements using"make-it-better" text editor "make-it-better" Text editor.        
  • Instant course outlines and hashtag suggestions.        
  • An native ConvertKit integration that allows for courses and community, email, and more than 2,000 integration embeds.        



MN - Graphics - 2024 - Apps


Additionally, you can purchase your classes and communities on your own customized apps that are under your brand within the App Store as well as Google Play Store. Mighty Pro has built 400+ branded apps for many of the top brands and creators.


Get branded notifications and livestreaming, design assistance and proactive enhancements from the world's top community-focused app development team: Learn more here .


If you're ready to launch courses and/or community with Mighty Try it! Give it a go! The trial is cost-free for 14 days (no need for credit cards). ).