Head-to-Head Comparison · Alternative to Teachable · 🛍️ creator commerce
Teachable vs CourseLit
Courses, coaching-style communities, downloads and sales pages in one stack; you run the stack. Here is how CourseLit ($0/mo open source) stacks up against Teachable ($39/mo) across cost, hosting, data privacy, and real-world trade-offs.
CourseLit
$0.00/mo · AGPL-3.0
Teachable vs CourseLit Specification Matrix
facts verified 2026-08-10
| Dimension | Teachable (Paid) | CourseLit (Replacement) |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly Price | $39 / mo | $0 / mo |
| 1-Year Cost (1 seat) | $468 / yr | $0 / yr (Save $468) |
| 1-Year Cost (5 seats) | $2,340 / yr | $0 / yr (Save $2,340) |
| 1-Year Cost (10 seats) | $4,680 / yr | $0 / yr (Save $4,680) |
| Source & License | Proprietary SaaS | open source AGPL-3.0 |
| Where It Runs | Vendor Cloud | Local or hosted (your machine or their cloud) |
| Platforms | Web / Cloud | webself-hosteddocker to self-host |
| GitHub Stars | — | ★ 1.2k (active jul 2026) |
Deep Dive: Switching from Teachable to CourseLit
Trade-offs, installation & data architecture
What you trade away
CourseLit has less mature coaching, reporting, marketing automation and creator-commerce polish, while the owner runs the infrastructure.
How to deploy CourseLit
Docker Compose, with SUPER_ADMIN_EMAIL set before first start
What it takes to run
Docker starts the app, but a production setup also needs SMTP for email login and MediaLit/S3-compatible storage for uploads
Where your data lives
Application records in MongoDB; production media uploads use MediaLit plus S3-compatible object storage
Why fork CourseLit instead of vibe-coding a Teachable clone?
A basic course site with Stripe can be built, but student apps, tax/payments, course compliance, certificates, upsells, affiliates, and support make full parity hard.
Teachable vs CourseLit FAQ
Is CourseLit a good free alternative to Teachable?+
Yes. CourseLit is a verified open-source (AGPL-3.0) replacement for Teachable. Courses, coaching-style communities, downloads and sales pages in one stack; you run the stack.
What is the catch when switching from Teachable to CourseLit?+
CourseLit has less mature coaching, reporting, marketing automation and creator-commerce polish, while the owner runs the infrastructure.
How much do you save switching from Teachable to CourseLit?+
Teachable costs $39/mo ($468/yr) per seat, whereas CourseLit is $0/mo. Switching saves $468/yr for a solo user, $2,340/yr for a 5-person team, and $4,680/yr for a 10-person team.
How do I install or self-host CourseLit instead of Teachable?+
Install: Docker Compose, with SUPER_ADMIN_EMAIL set before first start. Setup: Docker starts the app, but a production setup also needs SMTP for email login and MediaLit/S3-compatible storage for uploads
