How to sell online courses

You've created an online course, or you're nearly there, and now you need to decide where to sell it. You'll want somewhere that makes it easy for people to see what they'll learn, buy the course and access their lessons.

But selling a course involves a few more decisions than selling a typical digital product online. As well as choosing where to sell and how much to charge, you need to think about where your lessons will live, how students will access them and how much of the setup you want to manage yourself.

This guide looks at the different ways to sell an online course, from marketplaces like Udemy and platforms like Teachable and Kajabi to using your own checkout. We'll compare how each works, what it costs and what to consider when choosing the right setup for your course.

Quick answer: To sell an online course, choose where the lessons are hosted and how buyers pay. Udemy brings students to your course but pays you 37% of each sale it finds, after taxes and fees. Course platforms such as Teachable and Kajabi host your lessons for a monthly fee. Teachable's cheapest plan also takes 7.5% of each sale. You can also sell through your own checkout with Checkout Page. It takes the payment, offers payment plans and either sends buyers to your course host or delivers the course files.

Where to sell online courses

You can sell an online course on a marketplace, through a course platform that hosts the lessons, or from your own checkout. A marketplace finds students for you. A course platform hosts the lessons and student accounts, while your own checkout lets you keep the most of each sale.

• Udemy: a marketplace where students browse and buy courses, and Udemy keeps a share of each sale.
• Teachable: hosts your lessons and sells them, for a monthly plan. The Starter plan also takes a share of each sale; the higher plans don't when you use Teachable Payments.
• Kajabi: hosts courses alongside your own website, email and a private community, for a monthly plan, and takes no share of your sales.
• Thinkific and Podia: course platforms that also host courses on a monthly plan.

Alternatively, you can take payments through your own checkout and keep the lessons where they already are, whether that's a course platform, a members area on your website or a set of files. You set the price and the payment plan, and the student's email address stays with you.

With Checkout Page, the money goes directly into your own Stripe account. Checkout Page doesn't host lessons, track progress or issue certificates, so a course that needs those still needs a course platform alongside it.

How tax works when you sell online courses

Tax on an online course depends on where the student is. The rules differ between the EU, the UK and individual US states. Some platforms calculate, collect and pay the tax for you. With others, you're responsible for registering, collecting, reporting and paying it.

A merchant of record is the business that sells to the buyer and takes on those tax duties.

• Udemy: handles VAT and GST on purchases made on its website, according to its instructor help center.
• Teachable: with Teachable Payments, it calculates, collects and pays EU and UK VAT, and US sales tax in the states where it applies. If you connect your own payment gateway instead, paying the tax is down to you.
• Kajabi: can calculate and collect sales tax at checkout, but you register, file and pay it yourself.

If you sell through your own checkout, you're responsible for your tax obligations as the seller. Checkout Page can calculate and add tax at checkout through Stripe Tax. You're still responsible for registering, filing returns and paying the tax due.

The table compares the routes on one $199 course sale.

One US card sale at $199, before tax. "You keep" is after card processing at 2.9% + 30¢, the US card rate each platform lists. Udemy's share is of the net amount. Monthly plans billed annually. Checked on each platform's own pages, 3 November 2026.

If you're starting without an audience, Udemy can help students find your course, though you keep much less from each sale. If you already reach people through a newsletter, YouTube or social media, a course platform or your own checkout lets you keep more. Some course creators use both options.

Our comparison of the best platforms to sell digital products has the longer list.

How much to charge for an online course

We couldn't find a sourced average price for online courses. Looking at five or six courses on the same topic, on Udemy and on creators' own sites, and noting what each includes can help you gauge what buyers expect to pay.

A payment plan spreads the cost for the buyer. You can charge a little more in total, such as $207 over three payments instead of $199 at once. The extra $8 more than covers the $2.28 of extra card and Stripe Billing fees on three payments.

At course prices, card fees take a small share. Stripe's fixed 30 cents is 0.15% of a $199 sale, so the percentage part of the fee is the one that adds up.

What it costs to sell online courses

Selling a course means paying a platform's share or monthly plan, card processing and, if you sell from your own checkout, whatever you already pay to host the lessons.

• Udemy: no monthly fee. Udemy keeps 63% of the net sale when it finds the student, and 3% when they buy through your own coupon or referral link.
• Teachable: Starter is $29 a month on annual billing ($39 monthly) plus 7.5% of each sale. Builder is $69 a month ($89 monthly) with no fee per sale on Teachable Payments. Processing is added on top.
• Kajabi: Basic is $143 a month on annual billing ($179 monthly), with no share of sales and Kajabi Payments processing at 2.9% plus 30 cents in the US. Using another processor adds 2% on Basic. Our breakdown of Kajabi pricing covers the other plans and fees.

Selling from your own checkout means paying the processor directly, which on a US Stripe account is 2.9% plus 30 cents per card payment, though Stripe's fees vary by country and card type.

At 10 sales of the $199 course a month ($1,990):

• Kajabi Basic: $143 for the plan plus $60.71 in processing.
• Teachable Starter: $29 for the plan, $149.25 in fees on sales and $60.71 in card processing.
• Teachable Builder: $69 for the plan plus $60.71 in card processing.
• Your own checkout: $60.71 in Stripe processing on Checkout Page's free plan, before whatever you pay to host the lessons.

A payment plan costs a little more to process because each payment has its own card fee. Stripe Billing also adds 0.7% to recurring charges. On three payments of $69, you'd keep $198.65 of $207.

Checkout Page is free up to $3K in monthly sales. Paid plans are a monthly price based on your sales volume. Stripe's processing fees apply.

On the free plan, your pages pause once you pass $3K in a 30-day period and reopen when the period resets or you upgrade.

The free plan shows Checkout Page branding on your pages. Removing it, and redirecting buyers to your course platform after payment, needs the Launch plan, from $24 a month.

The Stripe fee calculator estimates the processing fees for your own price and volume.

How buyers get their online course

After paying, buyers see a confirmation screen and get an email with the login link or the download links, which you set up in step 4 below.

Can buyers share your online course?

Once someone downloads the files, they can forward them to other people. A checkout can't prevent this. A course host with student logins makes sharing harder because each student signs in with their own account. That's one reason longer courses tend to be hosted on a course platform.

A line in the welcome email or the first file saying the course is for the buyer's own use, and can't be shared or resold, makes your terms clear.

How to sell online courses from your own checkout

If you've decided to sell your course from your own checkout, the six steps below take you from a blank checkout page to a link you can share. We've used Checkout Page as the example, so each step shows you the setting to look for.

Step 1: decide how buyers get the course

Checkout Page takes the payment, then sends the buyer to the course or delivers the course files. Start by deciding where the lessons will be.

If you already have a course host, such as a course platform or a members area on your website, keep the lessons there. Checkout Page takes the payment and sends your confirmation message, which holds the login link, so buyers can go straight to the course.

If your course fits in files, such as a workbook, a set of PDF lessons and a few short videos, you can deliver it directly from Checkout Page. The help center recommends keeping each file under 1GB, so a long video course is usually better kept on a course host.

Step 2: create a checkout page

In your Checkout Page dashboard, create a new checkout page for the course. Add the course name and describe who it's for, what it covers, how many lessons it has and roughly how long it takes.

Buyers can't see inside the course before paying, so add a lesson list, a few images from the lessons or sample pages from the workbook. If the lessons are on another platform, mention this on the page so buyers know they'll get a login after paying.

Step 3: set the price

Set a one-time price for the course. If it costs a few hundred dollars, consider offering a payment plan on the same page, such as $199 at once or three monthly payments of $69 ($207 in total). The buyer chooses an option at checkout, and the plan ends automatically after the last payment.

If students get ongoing access to new lessons or a community, you can add a monthly subscription to the page as a third option.

Step 4: add the delivery

For a course hosted on another platform, add the login link and a line explaining how to sign in to the confirmation message and confirmation email. On the Launch plan, you can also redirect buyers to your course platform or members area after they pay. The login link isn't stored in the customer portal, so it's worth asking buyers to keep the confirmation email and sending the link again if someone loses it.

Some course platforms can add new students automatically when they receive the buyer's details through Zapier or a webhook from Checkout Page. It's worth checking whether yours supports this before relying on it.

For a course delivered as files, go to Product → File downloads and upload the files. Buyers get them on the confirmation screen, by email and in the customer portal, where they can download them again later. If you update a lesson, you can upload the new version and existing buyers can download it from the portal.

Step 5: run a test payment

Switch the page to test mode and buy the course with a test card. Check that the login link works in a private browser window, or that every file opens, and try the payment plan option as well.

Once everything works, switch test mode off so the page takes real payments.

Step 6: share the checkout

Publish the page and share it where your students already find you. For example:

• Your course sales page or website, with the checkout embedded or opened from a button
• An email to your newsletter, especially to people who have bought from you before
• The video, post or live session where you introduce the course

Checkout Page can be embedded on sites built with Kajabi, WordPress, Webflow and Framer, among others, so the checkout can sit on the page where you describe the course.

Sell more than online courses

The same checkout account can sell other things to the people who take your course. For example:

• A membership for ongoing lessons, a community or monthly Q&A calls
• A one-to-one call offered as an order bump, an optional add-on shown on the checkout itself
• A live webinar that introduces the course or goes deeper on one module
• A PDF workbook for students who want to work alongside the lessons

If you'd like to try it, you can start selling online courses on the free plan and upgrade once your sales pass $3K a month.

How to sell online courses FAQ

Where do people sell online courses?

You can sell an online course on a marketplace such as Udemy, on a course platform such as Teachable, Kajabi, Thinkific or Podia, or from your own website. Udemy brings students but pays 37% of the net amount on sales it finds. Course platforms host lessons for a monthly fee, and your own checkout keeps the most per sale.

Does selling online courses make money?

It can, though we couldn't find reliable published figures for typical earnings. Earnings depend on how many interested people you already reach, your price, how much you keep through your chosen selling route and what hosting costs. On a $199 sale, Udemy pays 37% of the net amount when it finds the student. Your own checkout keeps $192.93 before hosting.

What is the best platform to sell online courses?

It depends on whether you already have an audience, where the lessons will be hosted and what you're willing to pay each month. Udemy finds students but pays 37% of the net amount on those sales. Teachable and Kajabi host lessons from $29 and $143 a month. Your own checkout keeps $192.93 of a $199 sale, before hosting costs.

Can I sell an online course without a website?

Yes, in two ways. You can sell on a marketplace such as Udemy, where students already browse, or share a hosted checkout page in your emails, videos and social media bio. With Checkout Page, buyers pay on the hosted page and get the course files or your course platform's login link straight after.

Can I sell a course on a payment plan?

Yes. With Checkout Page, you can offer a payment plan next to the one-time price, such as three monthly payments of $69, on every plan, including Free. The plan ends on its own after the last payment. Each payment has its own card fee, plus Stripe Billing's 0.7%, so a plan priced at $207 keeps $198.65.