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BEST-OF · 2026

The Best Way to Sell Courses on WordPress

If you already run WordPress, you can host your course on your own site and skip the monthly platform fees entirely. These are the best options for selling courses on WordPress, where you own the platform.

Scored by the EverythingLMS review panel · how we score · Updated June 2026 · affiliate disclosure

1
PICK
Thrive Apprentice logo Thrive Apprentice 82/100 · EXCELLENT BEST FOR WORDPRESS

Thrive Apprentice is the pick for people who already live in WordPress and want to own their course platform outright. Instead of renting space on a hosted tool and handing over a monthly fee plus a slice of sales, you run everything on your own site for a flat annual licence. Over a few years, that maths gets very appealing.

✓ PROS
  • Runs on your own WordPress site
  • One annual fee, no per-student or per-sale cut
  • Full design control via Thrive tools
✕ CONS
  • Needs WordPress and hosting to run
  • Not a hosted, set-up-for-you platform
Best for: WordPress users who want to own their platform and pay no per-student fees
No per-student fees
from ~$99/yr
See pricing ↗ Read full review →
2
PICK
Kajabi logo Kajabi 92/100 · EXCEPTIONAL EDITOR'S CHOICE

Kajabi is the platform we point most serious course creators toward, and the reason is simple: it replaces about five separate subscriptions. You get the course builder, the website, the email tool, the sales funnels and the checkout in one account, and they actually talk to each other. For someone running a knowledge business rather than just publishing a single course, that consolidation is worth real money.

✓ PROS
  • Courses, website, email and funnels in one place
  • 0% transaction fees on every plan
  • Strong marketing and automation tools
✕ CONS
  • Pricier than single-purpose course tools
  • Course-design depth trails LearnWorlds
Best for: Serious creators who want to run their whole business from one platform
0% transaction fees
from $89/mo
Start free trial ↗ Read full review →
3
PICK
Thinkific logo Thinkific 90/100 · EXCEPTIONAL BEST FREE PLAN

Thinkific is the platform I most often suggest as the Teachable alternative, and for a lot of people it is the better choice. The course builder is clean and quick to learn, it charges 0% transaction fees on paid plans, and its free plan is the most genuinely usable of any tool here. You can build and launch a real course without paying a cent.

✓ PROS
  • 0% transaction fees, even on paid plans
  • One of the most generous free plans available
  • Clean, intuitive course builder
✕ CONS
  • Marketing and email tools are lighter
  • Fewer advanced design options than LearnWorlds
Best for: Creators who want a solid course builder with no transaction fees, free to try
0% transaction fees
from $49/mo
Try free ↗ Read full review →
4
PICK
Teachable logo Teachable 88/100 · EXCEPTIONAL BEST FOR BEGINNERS

Teachable is the platform I recommend to anyone launching their first course who does not want to think about the tech. You can go from a blank account to a published, payable course in an afternoon. The interface gets out of your way, the course player is clean, and it quietly handles the annoying parts like EU VAT and payouts.

✓ PROS
  • Genuinely easy to set up your first course
  • Free plan to start with zero cost
  • Clean, reliable course player for students
✕ CONS
  • Transaction fees on the free and lower tiers
  • Site design and customisation are limited
Best for: First-time creators who want to launch a course quickly without a learning curve
Free plan (high fees)
from $39/mo
Try free ↗ Read full review →
5
PICK
LearnWorlds logo LearnWorlds 86/100 · EXCELLENT BEST COURSE DESIGN

LearnWorlds is for creators who think of a course as a teaching product, not just a stack of videos. It does things the others do not: interactive video with questions baked into the timeline, rich assessments, proper certificates, and SCORM support for selling into companies. If learning outcomes matter to you, this is the platform that takes them seriously.

✓ PROS
  • Interactive video with in-video questions
  • Strong assessments, certificates and SCORM
  • The most flexible course design on this list
✕ CONS
  • Starter plan adds a $5 per-sale fee
  • Steeper learning curve than Teachable
Best for: Creators who want genuinely interactive, well-designed courses
Starter +$5/sale
from $29/mo
Start free trial ↗ Read full review →

At a glance

ToolIndexEaseFromFreeBest for
Thrive Apprentice 827.6from ~$99/yrWordPress users who want to own their platform and pay no per-student fees
Kajabi 928.8from $89/moSerious creators who want to run their whole business from one platform
Thinkific 908.8from $49/moCreators who want a solid course builder with no transaction fees, free to try
Teachable 889.0from $39/moFirst-time creators who want to launch a course quickly without a learning curve
LearnWorlds 867.9from $29/moCreators who want genuinely interactive, well-designed courses
HOW TO CHOOSE

Choosing the right tool

Decide if owning the platform is worth the upkeep. Running your course on WordPress means no monthly platform fee and no cut of your sales, but you are responsible for hosting, updates and maintenance. For self-reliant WordPress users that trade is usually worth it.

Price the long game. A hosted platform charges every month forever; a WordPress plugin like Thrive Apprentice is largely an annual licence. Over a few years the WordPress route often wins on cost, especially as your sales grow.

Check the design and funnel tools. The appeal of WordPress is control, so look at how much you can customise the course experience and whether you can build landing pages and funnels on the same site.

Be honest about your tech comfort. If you do not want to touch hosting, plugins or updates, a hosted platform that sets everything up for you is the safer pick. WordPress rewards people who like owning their stack.

FAQ

What is the best LMS for WordPress?

Thrive Apprentice is our pick for selling courses on WordPress. It runs on your own site for an annual licence with no per-student fees, and pairs with Thrive Suite for funnels and landing pages.