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CirclevsPodia

Circle runs member communities with spaces, events, courses, and paywalls. Podia sells courses, downloads, coaching, and webinars from one simple site with email.

How Circle and Podia compare

Circle is where serious community hosts go when the community is the business. Spaces for discussion and chat, courses and events in the same place, paid memberships with branded checkout, gamification, workflows, Circle AI, and on Circle Plus your own branded iOS and Android apps. It has grown into an all-in-one for membership businesses, and the Website Builder and Email Hub mean many hosts no longer need a second tool for the front door. If your members log in every week to talk to each other, Circle is built for exactly that.

Podia is the all-in-one that stays friendly. Courses with drip and quizzes, digital downloads delivered the second someone pays, coaching products, events, a community with paid plans, a website with a real blog, and Podia Email with broadcasts and campaigns, all under one login and one bill. Sales tax across 230 jurisdictions, 20 plus currencies, coupons, bundles, and payment plans come standard, and Shaker and Earthquaker drop the transaction fee to zero. For a creator selling digital products, Podia removes a lot of glue.

Where they are different

Circle

  • Circle's pages are the front door to a members-only space.
  • Circle's Email Hub is an add-on priced per contact on top of the plan.
  • Circle's DMs live between members inside the community.
  • Circle has courses, live streams, paid tiers for users, and gamification.

Podia

  • Podia's coaching product takes payment and then hands booking to Calendly, SavvyCal, Acuity, or YouCanBookMe.
  • Podia Email sends from Podia and includes 100 to 1,000 subscribers by plan.
  • Podia's chat inbox gathers chat.
  • Podia gives one assistant on Shaker with full access.

Choose Circle when a paid, private community with courses and events is the product, and you want members in a branded app.

Choose Podia when courses, downloads, and paid memberships are what you sell and you want checkout, tax, and delivery handled for you.

Compare features

What's on Circle and Podia

A check means that capability is available. Circle and Podia are marked only when the offer is comparable, not the same product.

Site and brand

  • Workspace site
    Circle: Included
    Podia: Included
  • Custom domain
    Circle: Included
    Podia: Included
  • Editor Mode
    Circle: Included
    Podia: Included
  • Theme and fonts
    Circle: Included
    Podia: Included

Public content

  • Blog
    Circle: Not included
    Podia: Included
  • Reader engagement
    Circle: Included
    Podia: Included
  • Showcase pages
    Circle: Included
    Podia: Included
  • Shop pages
    Circle: Not included
    Podia: Included

Reach and quality

  • SEO
    Circle: Included
    Podia: Included

Audience and email

  • Audience
    Circle: Included
    Podia: Included
  • Email templates and From addresses
    Circle: Included
    Podia: Included
  • Marketing emails
    Circle: Included
    Podia: Included
  • Bulk email workflows
    Circle: Included
    Podia: Included
  • Campaign workflows
    Circle: Included
    Podia: Included

Messaging

  • Built-in chat
    Circle: Included
    Podia: Included

Commerce

  • Shop payments
    Circle: Included
    Podia: Included

Team

  • Admin users
    Circle: Included
    Podia: Included

* Note: This table does not capture every feature of Circle or Podia, and is not intended as a comprehensive list. We keep this page current, but Circle or Podia may add or remove features that are not shown here.

Circle vs Podia pricing

Compare plans, prices, and what it costs to get started.

  • Circle

    Current plans and prices

    See what Circle charges on their pricing page.

  • Podia

    Current plans and prices

    See what Podia charges on their pricing page.

Cardel: An alternative to
Circle and Podia

You don't pay until you publish.

Cardel provides a home for your craft. Share and sell your work, grow your audience, and bring your community together on a site of your own.

Common questions

  • Is Cardel an alternative to Circle or Podia?

    Cardel is a home for your craft: a site of your own with a blog, newsletter, shop, community, and one inbox. It can replace Circle or Podia when you want your work, audience, and sales in one place. The feature list on this page shows where Circle and Podia are marked.

  • Can I use Cardel with Circle or Podia?

    Yes. Cardel pages can link out to other products, so you can keep Circle or Podia for what it does best and bring the rest of your work to Cardel.

  • How much does Cardel cost compared with Circle and Podia?

    You don't pay for Cardel until you publish. Choose Starter, Pro, or Studio when your site goes live. Circle and Podia set their own prices, so check their pricing pages on this page for current plans.

  • How do I switch from Circle or Podia to Cardel?

    Start with Build Your Site, set up your home, and bring your work over at your own pace. You do not have to move everything on day one.