Why this decision is harder than it looks: You’re trading Kajabi’s all-in-one convenience for Skool’s community focus, which means accepting a multi-tool setup and potential operational complexity.
⚡ Quick Verdict
Best for: Course creators who prioritize interactive community engagement and gamification over integrated marketing automation.
Skip this if: You rely heavily on Kajabi’s email sequences, sales funnels, or website builder—Skool doesn’t replace these.
Key trade-off: You gain community depth but lose marketing integration, requiring external tools or a hybrid approach.
Migration reality: Expect manual data transfer and member re-enrollment; there’s no one-click solution.
If I had to decide under time pressure, I would export my member list from Kajabi, set up Skool in parallel, and communicate the transition clearly before flipping the switch—never migrate silently.
Why This Topic Matters Right Now
Creators are shifting from all-in-one platforms to dedicated community hubs because engagement drives retention better than content alone. Kajabi (an all-in-one platform for online entrepreneurs, coaches, and educators focused on selling digital products and courses) provides robust course hosting and marketing, but its native community features are generally less sophisticated and engaging compared to dedicated community platforms. Skool (a focused platform for community building, course hosting, group chat, and gamification with levels and points) addresses this gap by prioritizing interactive member progression and live events.
The challenge isn’t just choosing a new platform—it’s executing a migration without losing members, their progress, or their trust. Direct one-click migration of members and their progress from Kajabi to Skool is not natively supported, which means you’re facing manual work and potential disruption.
What the Tool or Category Actually Solves
Skool solves the problem of shallow community interaction by providing gamification (levels and points), structured learning environments (Classrooms), and group chat designed for real-time engagement. Kajabi solves the problem of running an entire online business from one dashboard, offering course creation, website building, email marketing, and sales funnels in a single platform.
The migration process itself solves the strategic problem of transitioning from a broader platform to a specialized community hub when your business model shifts toward engagement over automation. Manual export of member lists from Kajabi and import into Skool is a common method for member transfer, though preserving member progress, payment subscriptions, and historical data requires careful planning and potentially third-party tools or manual re-enrollment.
Who Should Seriously Consider This
This migration makes sense for online course creators and coaches whose primary focus is building a highly engaged community, not just delivering content. If you’re finding Kajabi’s native community features insufficient for your engagement goals, or if you’re drawn to gamification and simpler course delivery within a community context, Skool is worth the operational shift.
- Creators running group coaching programs where interaction is the product, not just the course content
- Entrepreneurs willing to manage a multi-tool setup (Skool for community, external tools for marketing)
- Community leaders who want members to progress through structured levels and earn recognition
- Those who can dedicate time to a phased migration and clear member communication
⛔ Dealbreaker: Skip this if you need advanced email automation, sales funnels, or a fully integrated website builder—Skool lacks these features entirely.
Who Should NOT Use This
Stay on Kajabi if you rely heavily on its advanced email marketing, sales funnels, and website builder features. Individuals seeking a fully integrated, hands-off solution for their entire online business without external tool reliance will find Skool’s focused approach limiting. Those unwilling to manage a multi-tool setup or a potentially complex migration process should avoid this transition.
If your business model depends on automated evergreen funnels or sophisticated email sequences, migrating to Skool means rebuilding those workflows in external tools like ConvertKit or ActiveCampaign—adding cost and complexity.
Top 1 vs Top 2: When Each Option Makes Sense
Kajabi excels for all-in-one business management, marketing, and robust course hosting. It’s the right choice when you need integrated sales pages, email broadcasts, and membership site management without juggling multiple subscriptions. Skool shines for dedicated community building, member engagement through gamification, and streamlined course access within a social context.
Feature Showdown
This grid compares the core capabilities of Kajabi and Skool platforms.
💡 Rapid Verdict:
Best for course creators prioritizing community interaction, but SKIP THIS if you need integrated email marketing or sales funnel automation.
Bottom line: Choose Skool if community engagement is your primary revenue driver; stay with Kajabi if marketing automation and all-in-one convenience matter more than social features.
Key Risks or Limitations
The biggest risk is losing member data, progress, or subscriptions during an unmanaged migration. You’ll need manual data transfer and potential re-enrollment for members, which introduces friction and the possibility of churn. Skool’s simpler course features (organizing content into Classrooms) may not suit complex course structures from Kajabi, especially if you use advanced drip scheduling or conditional logic.
- No native migration tool means exporting CSVs and manually importing member lists
- Payment subscriptions don’t transfer automatically—members may need to re-subscribe
- Course progress and completion data typically don’t migrate, requiring fresh starts
- Increased operational complexity by separating marketing (external tools) and community (Skool)
Setting up a parallel operation or phased migration can help minimize disruption to existing members during the transition, but it requires running both platforms simultaneously for a period—doubling your workload temporarily.
How I’d Use It
Scenario: an online course creator and community builder
This is how I’d tackle this workflow.
- I would export my complete member list from Kajabi as a CSV, including email addresses, subscription status, and any custom fields I need.
- I’d set up Skool completely—create the community structure, upload course content to Classrooms, and configure gamification levels—before announcing anything to members.
- I’d send a clear email via Kajabi’s robust email broadcast capabilities explaining the transition, the benefits (better engagement, gamification), and the exact steps members need to take (new login, what stays, what changes).
- I’d import the member list into Skool and send personalized invitations, acknowledging that course progress won’t transfer and offering a grace period or bonus for early adopters.
- I’d run both platforms in parallel for 30 days, using Zapier or webhooks to sync new sign-ups if I’m still selling through Kajabi during the transition.
- I’d monitor engagement closely and address friction points immediately—members migrating from Kajabi to Skool expect a seamless transition without losing their access or community connections, and any confusion kills momentum.
One hypothetical failure point: if I don’t communicate the loss of course progress clearly, members will feel blindsided and some will churn, blaming me for the disruption rather than seeing it as a strategic upgrade.
My Takeaway: I’d treat this as a relaunch, not just a migration—use the transition to re-engage members with fresh energy and clear value, not just move them from one login to another.
Pricing Plans
Below is the current pricing overview for the main contenders. Pricing information is accurate as of April 2025 and subject to change.
| Platform | Starting Price (Monthly) | Free Plan |
|---|---|---|
| Skool | $99/mo (Pro); $9/mo (Hobby) | No |
| Kajabi | Not publicly listed (typically starts ~$149/mo) | No |
Skool’s pricing is straightforward and lower than Kajabi’s entry point, but remember you’ll likely need to add external tools for email marketing and sales automation, which increases your total monthly cost.
🚨 The Panic Test
You have 24 hours to decide and execute. Forget perfection. Export your Kajabi member list right now—CSV with emails and names. Set up a basic Skool community with your core course content uploaded to one Classroom. Don’t overthink the structure. Send one email to your members: “We’re moving to a better community platform tomorrow. Here’s your new login link. Your course progress resets, but here’s a bonus to make it worth it.” Import the CSV into Skool and send invitations. Turn off Kajabi community access. Done.
Just use Skool’s built-in email invitation system for the initial import—don’t waste time configuring Zapier under time pressure. Communicate the change clearly and own the disruption. Members will forgive a rough transition if you’re honest and fast, but they won’t forgive silence or confusion.
Public Feedback Snapshot
Creators often migrate to Skool to enhance community engagement beyond what Kajabi’s built-in features offer, citing gamification and real-time chat as key motivators. Common friction points include the manual nature of data transfer and the need to rebuild marketing workflows in external tools. Some users report that Skool’s simpler course structure (Classrooms) feels limiting compared to Kajabi’s advanced drip and conditional logic, but others appreciate the reduced complexity.
Insights are based on publicly available platform documentation and reported user feedback in online communities and forums.
Final Decision Guidance
Assess your core business needs honestly: is community engagement or all-in-one marketing more critical to your revenue model? If engagement drives retention and referrals, Skool’s focused approach justifies the migration effort. If automated funnels and email sequences are your primary growth engine, stay on Kajabi or consider a hybrid approach—use Skool for community and Kajabi for sales and marketing.
Plan a phased migration strategy starting with data export and member communication. Never migrate silently or assume members will figure it out. Prioritize clear communication with members to ensure a smooth transition and maintain trust—this is where most migrations fail, not in the technical execution.
The downstream inconvenience you must accept: you’ll be managing multiple tools (Skool for community, something else for email and sales), which means more logins, more billing, and more potential integration headaches. If that trade-off feels worth it for better engagement, proceed. If it feels like unnecessary complexity, reconsider whether Kajabi’s community features are truly insufficient or just underutilized.
