Heartbeat vs Skool
Heartbeat and Skool are both community platforms tools. Heartbeat is aimed at creators and small businesses, while Skool is aimed at creators. Skool costs less, from $9/mo versus $49/mo for Heartbeat.
Community platform with chat, events and courses
Community + courses + gamification in one
| Pricing | Paid · $49 | Paid · $9 |
| Starting price | $49/mo | $9/mo |
| Free plan | No | No |
| Free trial | 14 days | 14 days |
| Built for | Creators, Small businesses | Creators |
| Platforms | web, ios, android | web, ios, android |
| Country | US · 2020 | US · 2019 |
| Rating | — | — |
Choose Heartbeat if
Community builders wanting flexibility.
- Lightweight
- All-in-one
- Customizable
Look elsewhere if: Large enterprise communities.
Choose Skool if
Coaches and creators who want a simple, engaging paid community.
- Simple and fast to launch
- Gamification drives engagement
- Flat pricing on Pro
Look elsewhere if: Brands wanting custom design or complex learning features (Circle, Thinkific).
Heartbeat vs Skool pricing
Heartbeat
- Build$49/mo$40/mo billed annually; 350 members, 5% transaction fee
- Grow$149/mo$124/mo billed annually; 5,000 members, 2.5% fee
- Scale$849/mo$766/mo billed annually; unlimited members, 1.25% fee
Skool
- Hobby$9/mo10% transaction fee; unlimited members and courses
- Pro$99/mo2.9% transaction fee, custom URL
Heartbeat · Key features
- Threads and chat
- Events
- Courses
- Documents
- Payments
- Custom branding
Cons
- Smaller ecosystem
- Mobile maturing
- Fewer integrations
Skool · Key features
- Community feed with categories
- Classroom for courses and lessons
- Calendar for events and calls
- Gamification with points and leaderboards
- Paid memberships via built-in payments
- Skool discovery network
Cons
- Limited branding and customization
- Basic course features
- No native email marketing
Heartbeat vs Skool: FAQ
Which is cheaper, Heartbeat or Skool?
Skool starts at $9/mo and Heartbeat at $49/mo. Both prices are checked on the vendors' own pricing pages.
Do Heartbeat and Skool have a free plan?
Heartbeat has no free plan, a 14-day free trial. Skool has no free plan, a 14-day free trial.
Which is better for small businesses, Heartbeat or Skool?
Heartbeat lists small businesses as a core audience, while Skool is aimed more at creators.