
If you’ve been thinking about launching your own online community or digital course, there’s never been a better time. Skool just released its new Hobby Plan — and it’s only $9/month.
This new pricing tier lowers the barrier to entry for creators, coaches, and hobbyists everywhere. Whether you’re into chess, fitness, crypto, calligraphy, or coaching — the Skool Hobby Plan gives you access to powerful tools to build, grow, and monetize your community online.
In this article, we’ll dive deep into:
The Skool Hobby Plan is a new, budget-friendly tier that gives you full access to Skool’s core features — for only $9/month. It’s perfect for people just starting out or running a hobby community that doesn’t yet generate serious revenue.
Skool’s mission is to help 1 billion people find community online. And with the Hobby Plan, they’ve made that vision radically more accessible.
💬 “It’s cheaper than a McDonald’s meal — and you get unlimited members, unlimited courses, and native video hosting.”
Despite the low cost, the Skool Hobby Plan is stacked with features:
With all of these features bundled in, the Skool Hobby Plan is easily one of the best-value offers in the online community software space.
To keep the price low, the Hobby Plan has a few trade-offs compared to the $99/month Pro Plan.
| Feature | Hobby Plan | Pro Plan |
|---|---|---|
| Admins | 1 (you only) | Unlimited |
| Transaction fee | 10% | 2.9% |
| Custom domain (URL) | ❌ | ✅ |
| Hide suggested communities | ❌ | ✅ |
| Affiliate auto attribution | ❌ | ✅ |
| Pro plugins | ❌ | ✅ |
| Leaderboard visibility | ❌ (has suggestions) | ✅ |
Still, the Skool Hobby Plan includes all essential tools, and none of these limits will hold you back from launching and growing a successful community or course.
The Skool Hobby Plan was built for creators at the beginning of their journey. If you fall into one of these categories, it’s likely a perfect fit:
Whether you’re into MMA, dating advice, parenting tips, or even beekeeping — the Skool Hobby Plan gives you everything you need to bring people together online.
Some may ask — why is Skool doing this when most software companies are raising prices?
The answer is simple: Skool is serious about helping more people build communities.
A $99/month fee was a blocker for many hobbyists and aspiring creators. The Skool Hobby Plan removes that friction — making it easy for anyone to start building without high upfront costs.
You can always upgrade later when your group grows and revenue increases. Until then, this plan gives you everything you need to get moving.
With your Skool subscription, you also get access to the Skoolers community — an exclusive space where the top community builders hang out, share strategies, and support each other.
Here’s what’s inside:
Actionable content on how to launch, grow, and scale a paid community — from $0 to $10k+/month.
Stay updated with weekly live calls, special guests, and juicy community insights.
Find other Skool Hobby Plan users near you and attend in-person meetups.
Quarterly competitions with real-time leaderboards, all-expenses-paid prizes, and status badges that show up next to your name.
Skoolers is more than a support forum — it’s a movement of people turning passion into profit.
One key difference with the Skool Hobby Plan is the 10% transaction fee. This is higher than the 2.9% on the Pro Plan, but still competitive for early-stage creators.
Most importantly — you’re not locked in. When your group scales and your revenue increases, you can upgrade anytime to lower your fees and unlock pro features.
In comparison, many platforms like Patreon or Substack keep you stuck with high fees forever. Skool gives you freedom and flexibility.
Let’s see how the Skool Hobby Plan compares to other community platforms:
| Feature | Skool Hobby Plan | Patreon | Circle | Kajabi |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly Cost | $9 | Free (14% fee) | $49+ | $149+ |
| Courses + Community | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ (limited) | ✅ |
| Native Video Hosting | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ (3rd party) |
| Transaction Fee | 10% | 14%+ | 4%+ | 5%+ |
| Built-In Discovery | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Gamification + Leaderboards | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
In short, Skool Hobby Plan gives you more functionality than tools 5x the price — plus built-in discovery and gamified community tools.

One major advantage of using Skool, even on the Hobby Plan, is distribution.
Skool suggests your community to users in other groups. And because people are already logged in, with a card on file, and familiar with the platform, they’re 350% more likely to convert into paying members.
Plus, when your members join multiple Skool communities, their engagement and retention goes up significantly — reducing your churn and boosting your revenue long-term.
Skool isn’t just resting on what it has — it’s building fast. Upcoming features include:
And yes — all of this will be available on the $9/month Hobby Plan.
Here’s the bottom line:
The Skool Hobby Plan gives you:
And with a 14-day free trial, there’s zero risk in testing it out.
👉 Click here to join the Skool Hobby Plan now
The Skool Hobby Plan isn’t just a cheaper version of Skool — it’s a movement to democratize community building.
By offering pro-level tools at hobby-level prices, Skool has opened the door for millions of creators to finally start their journey — without breaking the bank.
If you’ve ever wanted to:
Then the Skool Hobby Plan is for you.
Start building today. Your community is waiting.
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