Skool vs OpenEscool: what 12 months really costs
Prices on a pricing page don't tell you the bill. Here are three scenarios worked out for a full year, with the assumptions shown.
Skool's pricing at the time of writing
| Plan | Per group | Transaction fee |
|---|---|---|
| Hobby | $9 a month | 10% + 30¢ |
| Pro | $99 a month | 2.9% + 30¢ up to $899; 3.9% + 30¢ above $900 |
Skool prices are from Skool's public pricing page and help centre at the time of writing (November 2026) and may change. OpenEscool is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Skool.
An important detail: Skool's fee includes card processing. With OpenEscool you pay Stripe or Razorpay directly, and Stripe's standard card rate is close to Skool Pro's 2.9% + 30¢. So against Pro, the saving is the $99 a month per group, not the fee. Against Hobby, the saving is mostly the difference between 10% and about 2.9%.
Assumptions
- Monthly billing. (Skool's yearly billing is a little cheaper.)
- OpenEscool on a $10 a month VPS, plus a $12 a year domain.
- Card fees at about 2.9% + 30¢ on both sides, so they cancel out against Pro.
Scenario 1: one community, $1,000 a month in sales
| Skool Hobby | Skool Pro | OpenEscool | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Platform, 12 months | $108 | $1,188 | $132 |
| Extra fee above card processing | about $852 (7.1% of $12,000) | $0 | $0 |
| Year total | about $960 | $1,188 | $132 |
Scenario 2: three communities
A free community, a paid one and a course cohort, $3,000 a month in sales together:
| Skool Hobby | Skool Pro | OpenEscool | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Platform, 12 months | $324 | $3,564 | $132 |
| Extra fee above card processing | about $2,556 | $0 | $0 |
| Year total | about $2,880 | $3,564 | $132 |
Scenario 3: high-ticket sales
Skool Pro's fee rises to 3.9% + 30¢ on sales above $900. On a $1,500 programme, that's about $15 more per sale than Stripe's standard rate. Ten sales a month adds about $1,800 a year on top of the plan.
Costs OpenEscool adds
- Your time: about 30 minutes to install, a few minutes per update.
- Backups: a VPS snapshot add-on, if your provider charges for it.
- A bigger server later, if you grow to thousands of active members.
Where Skool still wins
No setup, no server, native mobile apps, and a Discovery page that can bring you new members. If you run one small community and never want to touch a server, Hobby may be the simpler choice.
Verdict
- One community, low sales, no tech interest: Skool Hobby is simple.
- Two or more communities: OpenEscool saves the per-group plans.
- Strong sales on Hobby: OpenEscool saves most of the 10%.
- Members in India: OpenEscool adds UPI through Razorpay.
Try your own numbers on the pricing calculator, or read the full OpenEscool vs Skool comparison.
Questions
How much does Skool cost per month?
At the time of writing, $9 a month per group on Hobby or $99 on Pro, plus a transaction fee on each sale.
Does Skool charge per community?
Each group has its own plan, so several communities mean several subscriptions.
Is OpenEscool really free?
The software is free. You pay for a VPS and domain.
Do Stripe fees still apply with OpenEscool?
Yes. Stripe or Razorpay charge their normal fee. OpenEscool adds no platform fee on top.
Run it on your own server
Free, open source, and live in about 30 minutes.