Skool pricing: Hobby vs Pro and when Pro pays off

01 / PLANS

Skool pricing starts with two plans, but sales volume decides

Two owner plans exist, Hobby at $9 and Pro at $99 a month (checked Oct. 23, 2026 on Skool's official pricing page), and the right one is whichever leaves you more money after fees. If you want to run your own community, compare the current plans on Skool before you build your offer.

Skool's payment terms, updated Feb. 19, 2026, say both plans are recurring subscriptions after the 14-day free trial and renew automatically, monthly or yearly. Plan fees are non-refundable, with no refunds for full or partial billing periods.

Yearly billing advertises "2 months free". Confirm the exact dollar total on the checkout screen before you approve it.

Start with your expected paid sales, not the sticker price. A low plan fee can cost more once transaction fees grow.

See Skool's current plans →

02 / FEATURES

Skool features on both plans include members, courses and live calls

The pricing page shows unlimited members, courses, videos and live calls on both plans. A Custom URL change is a one-time, non-refundable purchase that is "included with the Pro plan", and group transfers require Pro, according to Skool's payment terms.

Skool's pricing setup article, updated Oct. 28, 2025, lists these group pricing models:

• Free group.
• Monthly or annual subscription.
• Subscription with an optional 7-day member trial.
• Freemium.
• Tiers.
• One-time payment.

If the owner raises a group's price later, existing members keep the price they joined at, according to Skool's Payments FAQ. That helps when you launch at an early price and plan to increase it after the first cohort.

Skool works as an all-in-one community checkout, not a bring-your-own-payments stack. If your workflow depends on separate tools, also price your operations workspace with guides such as Notion pricing or ClickUp pricing.

03 / FEES

Skool transaction fees make Pro cheaper as revenue grows

Hobby takes 10% + 30¢ on every sale. Pro takes 2.9% + 30¢ on transactions up to $899 and 3.9% + 30¢ on transactions above $900. These rates come from Skool's Payments FAQ, last updated Sept. 29, 2026. The page does not say which rate applies between $899 and $900, so check it before pricing an offer near that line.

Card processing is included on both plans. Skool uses Stripe Express only for payouts, so you cannot connect your own Stripe account. Prices are in USD only, and the maximum is $100,000 per charge.

The table uses Skool's published rates and our math. Transaction fees are non-refundable and stay with Skool even if you refund a member.

Other payment rules to plan around:

• Skool is the merchant of record and handles sales tax and VAT.
• Payouts go out every Wednesday, and the first payout can take up to 14 days.

If your community also needs email broadcasts, compare those costs separately in our email marketing for small business guide.

04 / BREAK EVEN

Break-even is about $1,268/month in Skool sales

Skool Pro becomes cheaper than Hobby at about $1,268/month in sales when every sale is in Pro's lower fee band and you pay monthly. The 30¢ fixed fee is the same on both plans, so it cancels out. The calculation is the $90 plan-fee gap divided by the 7.1-point fee gap.

• Monthly billing: $90 ÷ 0.071 = about $1,268/month in sales.
• Yearly billing: if annual prices are $90 and $990, the monthly gap is $75, so break-even is about $1,056/month.

Here is the same math with members paying $29/month, billed monthly, all found by you and not through Growth Boost:

Total cost means the plan fee plus fees on every payment. At $29/month, Hobby's fee per payment is $3.20 and Pro's is $1.14. The crossover is about 44 paying members.

Use the member scenario only when your price matches it. If your membership price is different, redo the math with your own offer price before choosing a plan.

05 / FREE PLAN

Is Skool free? Owners pay, but groups can be free

Skool is not free for community owners based on the pricing page checked Oct. 23, 2026. The page shows paid owner plans and a trial, with no permanent free owner plan. A group can still be free for members if the owner chooses that pricing model.

Free is a group pricing model, not an owner plan. The same Skool pricing setup article says a group can be free, subscription, freemium, tiered or one-time payment.

Growth Boost is a separate discovery commission. Skool takes 30% on customers it brings in, on top of the plan's fees. The Payments FAQ says it is on by default, applies to recurring charges while that member stays subscribed, and can be turned off under SETTINGS > Discovery. On a $10 sale, for example, Skool deducts $3 plus fees.

Members pay the price the owner sets. Fees are deducted from the creator's payout; Skool's example says a $9 membership pays out $7.80 on Hobby. Members you bring in yourself carry no Growth Boost commission.

According to the help center's billing flow, billing sits in each group's settings. Plan on one subscription per group and confirm in the app before opening a second community.

Check Discovery before you invite members. Open SETTINGS > Discovery before launch.

06 / CANCELLATION

Cancelling Skool: members cancel in group settings, owners under Billing

Members and owners cancel in different places. Members cancel inside their community settings on web or in the app. Owners cancel the group's plan under Billing, and access lasts until the end of the billing period. After that, the group is archived and stays read-only.

Members pay whatever the owner set for that community. That can be nothing for a free group, a recurring subscription or a one-time payment.

Refunds are the creator's decision. The Payments FAQ says Skool "reserves the right" to refund, but in most cases does not refund on a creator's behalf. Ask the group admins first if you want a refund.

Cancel a paid Skool membership on web

These steps come from Skool's cancel guide, updated May 13, 2026.

1. Click your profile picture.
2. Open Settings.
3. Go to the Communities tab.
4. Click SETTINGS next to the group.
5. Choose Manage membership and cancel.

Cancel a paid Skool membership in the app

1. Tap the three-dot menu.
2. Open Group Settings.
3. Tap Manage Membership.
4. Finish the cancellation.

Skool says you are removed at the end of the billing cycle and recommends cancelling at least 24 hours before renewal. If you paid outside Skool, contact the group's admins instead. Skool's transaction terms also point members to the community admin or [email protected].

Cancel a Skool plan as an owner

Open the group's SETTINGS, then Billing, then Manage subscription, and cancel.

07 / VERDICT

Is Skool worth it? Hobby for testing, Pro past 44 members at $29

Skool is worth considering if you want one community platform with courses, videos, live calls and built-in checkout. Below the break-even in the table above, Hobby's low fixed fee wins. Its main constraints: USD-only pricing and no own Stripe account.

Turn off Growth Boost under SETTINGS > Discovery if you don't want that commission.

Use this decision rule:

• Pick Hobby if you want the lowest fixed cost while testing demand.
• Pick Pro if monthly sales are likely to pass the break-even line, or if you sell higher-priced memberships.

Check the current plan page and Payments FAQ before you choose Hobby or Pro.

Check Skool plans before you choose →