Best CRM for Online Course Creators in 2026: 6 tools priced

What a CRM for course creators is (and what it is not)

For a course creator, a CRM is the record of who is interested, who applied, who bought, what they bought and what they still need from you. Most course platforms keep a contact list that does part of this. A client-work CRM for course creators goes further on discovery calls, quotes and invoices but knows nothing about lessons or learner progress. This guide is written for a solo creator or a team of two to five selling self-paced courses, cohorts, memberships and some coaching, and it treats course delivery as non-negotiable.

How we compared these tools

We compared each tool on the same five points, using only the vendor's own pricing and product pages:

1. Entry price for one creator, monthly and billed yearly, as listed on October 27, 2026.
2. Contact, product and student limits on the entry plan.
3. Offer types on the plan: courses, cohorts, coaching, memberships and communities.
4. Plan structure: which tier unlocks the products, admins and features you would need.
5. Trial terms: length, and whether the vendor says a card is needed.

We did not test lesson quality, video hosting, speed, support or mobile apps, and did not use third-party ratings. Order reflects documented fit for course, cohort and membership sellers who want contacts and sales in one place. Workspace369 is covered after the ranked tools for the client and billing side.

The best CRM for online course creators in 2026

1. Kajabi, best for an all-in-one creator business

Kajabi lists Contact CRM, email marketing, funnels and automations, courses, communities, coaching, memberships, newsletters and payments as products on one platform. Basic is $143 a month billed annually ($179 monthly) with 5 products, 2,500 contacts and 2 admin users; Growth is $199 billed annually ($249 monthly) with 50 products and 25,000 contacts. Its feature comparison lists cohort courses. Every plan has a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Limitations: it is the most expensive entry price of the six, and contacts above your plan come in blocks of 25,000 for $125 a month. The page offers a free trial but does not state its length or whether a card is needed. It lists no proposals or time-based invoicing.

Best for: creators who want courses, email, community and a contact list in one login and are already earning from the audience.

2. Thinkific, best for cohorts and paid programs

Thinkific Start is $82 a month billed annually ($109 monthly) and lists live cohorts and coaching, payment plans, 1 community and 2 administrators. Grow is $164 billed annually ($219 monthly) and adds API access and webhooks, 3 communities and 6 administrators. Expand is $374 billed annually ($499 monthly); Plus is custom-priced. The page states a 30-day free trial on Start, Grow and Expand and no free plan, and every priced plan lists 10,000 current students.

Limitations: Start is the entry plan, so there is no cheaper tier to try, and API and webhook access starts at Grow. Card terms for the trial are not stated, and the page lists no contact pipeline.

Best for: creators selling cohort programs or payment-plan offers who want a dedicated learning platform.

3. Podia, best for simple all-in-one selling

Podia lists courses, digital downloads, coaching, community, events, a website and blog, email and a built-in checkout as its products. Mover is $49 a month billed monthly or $42 billed annually ($504 a year) and includes up to 100 email subscribers and 50 products; Shaker is $99 monthly or $84 billed annually, with 500 subscribers and 150 products. It offers a 14-day free trial and says no credit card is needed. A monthly price is not shown on the page.

Limitations: subscriber limits are low on Mover, and the page names no pipeline, quotes or invoicing.

Best for: solo creators who sell courses, downloads and a few coaching slots and want one simple tool with a no-card trial.

4. Systeme.io, best for the lowest price

Systeme.io lists a free plan with 2,000 contacts, 3 sales funnels, 1 course and up to 500 students, and says it needs no credit card and does not expire. Startup is $17 a month for 5,000 contacts, 10 funnels and 5 courses; Webinar is $47 a month; Unlimited is $97 a month. Its comparison table has a Contacts & CRM section with CRM pipelines, and paid plans list unlimited students (the free plan caps them at 500), with affiliate program features.

Limitations: the pricing page does not describe cohorts or coaching programs, so confirm those before you commit. Check the plan limits against your list size, because the plans step up by contact count.

Best for: price-sensitive creators who sell self-paced courses through funnels and want contacts, email and checkout in one place.

5. Teachable, best for a straightforward course business

Teachable Starter is $39 a month ($29 billed annually) with 5 products, 1 admin user and student apps. Builder is $89 ($69 billed annually) with 10 products. Growth is $189 ($139 billed annually) with 50 products and 5 admin users. The page lists coaching as a product type counting toward the product limit, with a 7-day free trial and a 30-day guarantee listed per plan (a notice on the page mentions the trial being extended to 30 days).

Limitations: Starter allows 5 products and 1 admin user, so a growing catalog pushes you to Builder. The page names no contact pipeline, and card terms for the trial are not stated.

Best for: creators who mainly want a hosted course store with minimal setup and plan to move to Builder as sales grow.

Where Workspace369 fits: the client side beside a course platform

Workspace369 is a client-work system, not a course platform. It suits the part of a creator business that runs on people rather than checkout: coaching clients, consulting add-ons, sponsorship deals and done-with-you programs. Cadet is $29 a month ($23.25 billed yearly) for one seat and lists CRM and client records, public intake forms, proposals with deposit on acceptance, invoices, payment links, split payments, retainers and recurring invoices, a client portal and one live funnel with 100 leads a month. Email automations are included, with up to 3 active workflows. The screenshot is a demo record, not a customer result.

Limitations: lesson hosting, cohorts, quizzes, memberships and student progress come from the five platforms above, and each of them sells the course itself. Cadet is one seat with unlimited projects; Voyager ($74 a month, two seats) adds calls and texts, and online booking and payment plans start at Specialist ($149 a month). The 14-day trial needs a card.

Best for: creators who already have a course platform and also sell 1:1 coaching, consulting or sponsorships that need proposals, invoices and a portal.

Also worth a look: Kit for email-led creators

If your audience lives in an email list, Kit sells email and audience tools to creators; its pricing page blocked our check on October 27, 2026, so see kit.com/pricing for current plans and trial terms. It is an email and audience tool that sells digital products and subscriptions, not a lesson host, so pair it with a course platform if you teach through video lessons.

Side-by-side comparison

Which tool fits your course business?

Run a launch test during the trial

Take two fictional people through each tool you shortlist:

1. A buyer who joins your list, buys a course and gets access. Check that the contact, the order and the access all appear together.
2. A coaching enquiry that asks for a custom package. Check how you would quote it, collect a deposit and invoice the balance.
3. A buyer who needs a payment plan or a refund. Find where each is recorded and who can see it.
4. A tagged contact segment you can email, such as everyone who bought but has not started.
5. Export the contact list and confirm what comes out.

If a platform handles the first and fourth well but the second awkwardly, that is the case for a separate client tool. Cost the combination against the full stack with the software stack cost calculator.

When to keep it simple

If you sell one self-paced course through checkout, the platform's own contact list is enough, and a second system adds work. Add a client tool when applications, discovery calls and custom quotes appear around the course. The online course creator page shows how Workspace369 handles that work with Scheduling, Communications and invoices. The coaching business page covers the adjacent coaching workflow, and the funnel builder with CRM shows how leads reach the contact record. The consultant CRM comparison helps when your course sits beside advisory work, and the pricing page has current plans.

Keep your course platform for lessons and access, and run one full coaching enquiry on demo data before importing real clients.