Skool vs Whop (2026): Pricing, Fees and Which to Pick
Whop costs $0 a month and Skool $9, but Whop makes it back on fees: 2.7% + $0.30 per transaction, a further 3% on sales using its automations, and roughly 1.5% more on international cards. Whop is built to sell access to Discord and Telegram groups. Skool is built to host the community itself.
Prices taken from skool.com and whop’s own pricing page on 16 August 2026.
Whop vs Skool: the short answer
Pick Skool if…
The community is the product. You want members posting, taking a course and joining calls in one place, and you would rather pay a small fixed fee than a growing percentage.
Pick Whop if…
You are selling access to a Discord or Telegram group you already run, you want zero fixed cost while you test an offer, or you sell one-off digital products rather than a membership.
Pricing and fees compared
| Skool | Whop | |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly subscription | $9 (Hobby) / $99 (Pro) | $0 |
| Payment processing fee | Included in the platform fee | 2.7% + $0.30 |
| Platform fee | 10% Hobby / 2.9% Pro | 3% on sales using automations |
| International cards | No stated surcharge | ~1.5% extra |
| Currency conversion | No stated surcharge | ~1% extra |
| Marketplace commission | None | Removed in May 2025 |
| Free trial | 14 days | Not needed — free to start |
Headline prices tell you less than the fee structure does. Work your own numbers through the Skool fee calculator before you commit either way.
Features compared
| Skool | Whop | |
|---|---|---|
| Hosted community feed | Yes | Via Discord/Telegram |
| Native courses | Yes | Limited |
| Live calls | Yes | No |
| Gamification (points, levels) | Yes | No |
| Public discovery directory | Yes | Yes |
| Sells one-off digital products | No | Yes |
| Discord / Telegram access control | No | Yes |
| Zero fixed monthly cost | No | Yes |
Where Skool loses
Every comparison you will read is written by someone with a preference. Here is the case against Skool, stated plainly:
- You pay $9 or $99 before you have earned anything; Whop costs nothing until you sell.
- No way to gate an existing Discord or Telegram group — you have to move people into Skool.
- Poor fit for one-off product sales; Skool assumes a recurring membership.
- No branding control, no email marketing, no automation.
Where Whop loses
- The fees stack. 2.7% + $0.30 processing, plus 3% on automated sales, plus ~1.5% on international cards and ~1% on currency conversion — published breakdowns put the real cost near 7%.
- There is no community product: you are still running Discord, with its lack of courses and structure.
- No live calls and no gamification.
- Free at the start is the expensive option at scale — the percentage never stops growing with you.
Skool vs Whop FAQ
- Is Whop cheaper than Skool?
- Only at low revenue. Whop has no monthly fee, so it wins while you are earning little. Once a community bills a few thousand a month, Skool Pro's flat $99 plus 2.9% costs less than Whop's stacked percentages.
- What does Whop actually charge?
- Whop's pricing page states $0 a month and 2.7% + $0.30 per transaction. A further 3% applies to sales that use its automations for Discord, Telegram or TradingView, and international cards add roughly 1.5% with about 1% more for currency conversion.
- Can you use Whop and Skool together?
- Some creators do: Whop to sell and gate access, Skool to host the community. It works, but you pay both platforms and split your member experience across two products. Most people pick one.
- Does Whop still take 30% of sales?
- No. Whop removed its 30% marketplace commission in May 2025. Older comparisons that still quote it are out of date.
Other Skool comparisons
Try Skool before you decide
Fourteen days, both plans, and you can switch tiers at any time. Cheaper than being wrong about Whop for a year.
Start your free Skool trial (opens in a new tab)