Skool VS Mighty Networks: What Platform Is Right For You?
3. Ratings (from actual users)
Having enjoyed the creation of several communities in the past (like “alphalist”, the leading CTO Community, and “2hearts”, the biggest community of people with immigration backgrounds in Europe), I have used various platforms to run my communities. The same goes for when it comes to operating courses that people can sign up for and learn from. Various platforms exist for keeping course and community in one simple, safe place. Two of the most popular platforms in this niche include Skool and Mighty Networks.
I have used both, and they tend to be very effective tools. However, while both can be used for community and course creation, the features and functions of both vary significantly. In this guide, I will look to help you understand:
In this guide, I will help you to understand:
By the end of this guide, I hope you will feel confident in deciding whether Skool or Mighty Networks is the right choice for you. Let me begin by giving a brief rundown of the platforms.
When reviewing platforms like Skool and Mighty Networks, I love to find out what others think of the same platform. While I always have my own opinions, it pays to know what others think at the same time. Here are some of the most trusted ratings and reviews I have encountered for either platform.
Mighty Networks is a very impressive platform, and other users tend to agree with that consensus. The systems it provides are extremely impressive, which is a big reason why it ranks an average of 4.6 on CapTerra.
Particular praise was given to Mighty Networks for its pricing – starting so cheaply, you might expect a lack of features. However, users still get access to an excellent range of community-focused features. A negative, though, is that the basic plan does not provide live cohort course creation, which means most course creators will need to look at the more expensive ‘Business’ plan.
Some more negative reviews, though, focus on how challenging it can be to set up affiliate programs in course creation. This needs to improve; even as someone quite fluent in course creation, I found affiliate setup to be a jarring and confusing process.
Others have noted that Mighty Networks can be quite confusing to set up, too, given the sheer enormity of options you get upon starting. However, while I agree, the excellent customer support does provide a lot of help in working out your best options.
Overall, the feedback on Mighty Networks is very fair. Most of the complaints revolve around how powerful the platform is, which can make it seem daunting to newbies.
There are plenty of good reviews on Skool, though it is not as commonly rated on review platforms like Capterra as it's a far newer platform. The general feedback is very positive from my reading of various review platforms like SuperFounder. The general user consensus is that the fact Skool keeps everything in-house makes it easier to use for beginners.
There is major praise for the gamification features, too, which I also love. The user-friendly interface was remarked upon regularly, too, which I fully agree with. Skool is one of the easiest course and community builders I have encountered. For pure ease of use, it is arguably the best-in-class solution.
The negative points often raised came from the platform lacking a more advanced side. For those looking to build a course-led community quickly and easily, Skool does a great job. For those looking to integrate more advanced features, though, third-party integrations can offer an easy way to bring in features you might be missing.
Another common complaint from other user reviews revolved around the lack of course creation templates. I found it easy and fast enough to create courses from scratch that this was not a deal-breaker.
Overall, though, like me, the ratings and reviews for Skool are broadly positive. Many negatives could be corrected as the platform grows, expands, and improves.
Value for money is everything in community and course creation. However, I have found that the best services are not always the most expensive. So, what kind of price can you expect to pay if you build your course/community in Mighty Networks and/or Skool?
What I love most about Skool is how easily the pricing system works out. Unlike Mighty Networks, you get one simple price plan: a flat $99/month fee. This comes with a 14-day free trial, too, giving you two weeks to get to grips with the functions and features of Skool.
Other platforms (like Mighty Networks) lock features behind a higher pricing tier. While Skool is more expensive than the basic price for Mighty Networks, you get everything from day one. There are no hidden fees, extra costs, or additional fees accrued as time goes on.
In my opinion, Skool has the simplest – and best – overall pricing structure. You know exactly what you get for your money – every available feature. The pricing has stayed the same for a long time, too, so you can be fairly confident that Skool will not increase in price anytime soon.
Yes, you pay a little more monthly than the Basic option on Mighty Networks. What you get for your money is incredible – especially if you are not looking for extensive third-party integration or overly advanced course-creation features.
When you look at Mighty Networks’ pricing system, it can initially seem slightly confusing. Users can start with their cheapest price range, Community, which is priced at $33/month. This is affordable and offers access to community features like live streaming, chat and messenger platforms, and paid memberships. However, it does not give you access to course creation – this is important to note.
I found that the best option was to look at their $99/month Business option instead. Business gives you all of the same features as Community and access to online course creation, featured pages and events, greater analytics, and APIs via Zapier. You get a lot more bang for your buck with the Business option; for me, it is the best option.
Given that it is the same monthly price as Skool, you can determine whether you need all the offered features. Some will require extra provided features like video hosting/streaming and third-party integration. If you choose to use Mighty Networks, look at the second tier – it is essential if you are building a course for your community.
I always want an easy, stress-free user experience regarding course and community creation. Having suffered with a few of the less intuitive alternatives, I was keen to find out what Skool and Mighty Networks would offer on this front. What did I find about the user experience?
I am a big fan of how easy it is to use Mighty Networks – once you get used to the layout. The developers have worked on creating a powerful yet easy-to-use platform. The first thing I noticed upon creating my Mighty Networks account was how detailed the options were, as other users had noted. The initial options for community and course creation are so varied and vast that they can feel confusing.
Given that this is supposed to operate as an all-in-one place to manage your community, you expect many options. The dashboard that you can work from is very easy to use. On the left-hand side, you have easy ways to look at how your course and community is laid out. You can easily access your overall feed, upcoming events, and members from the left-hand side.
Content creation is nice and easy, too. You can easily create articles, blogs, videos, and podcasts that can be improved by using images, links, and attachments. This makes creating exciting content within the platform nice and easy. Course creation is slick and simple, too, though I will say that I initially found the sheer enormity of options on offer quite daunting.
The main benefit of using Mighty Networks is also potentially its biggest drawback. The sheer numbers for customisation are incredible for experienced course creators and community managers. Every aspect of your ‘Space’ is more or less bespoke to what you want. For beginners, though, this might feel like it might be too much. Once you grasp how it all works, though, you have so much power.
Thankfully, there is an easy-to-use course template builder that you can use to put together quality content quickly and easily. The access to features like built-in video hosting and live streaming is nice, too, which makes it stand out a little bit from other platforms. The user experience on the member side is very easy to work with, so most of the confusion around Mighty Networks is on the creation side.
Speaking of user access, you also get access to a very impressive white-label app builder. I love this feature as it gives you an easy way to build an app that makes your community look more unique instead of simply being part of a network of courses and communities. This is a nice way to boost engagement and ensure that users can join in with the course content and discussion on the go.
One major negative (also shared by Skool) is the lack of community moderation. You cannot block certain terms, you cannot flag posts/comments, and there are no profanity-checking features.
Overall? The user experience on Mighty Networks is outstanding. Its many useful features allow for powerful, adaptive course creation. In terms of scaling your course and community as time passes, Mighty Networks makes it very easy. The major downside is the learning curve: compared to Skool, the extra features add a layer of complexity to getting started.
The Skool user experience is, without a doubt, its primary benefit. Whatever Skool might lack in terms of advanced features, it offers incredible control and ease of use. Even without templates to follow, you can build a very impressive community and course in a short space of time. Everything you need for rapid creation and development is waiting for you here.
Skool makes creation easy, but it also makes member engagement so simple. Not only is accessing Skool easy for your members, but it provides each member with a detailed profile. This profile can easily be filled in with key information such as photos, locations, and social media links. Skool also allows things like follower counts for members, making it easy for members to feel connected to one another.
The gamification approach used by Skool is by far and away one of the best user experience features. With this approach, you are left with a very easy way to encourage your members to participate in courses. As course owner, too, thanks to a great built-in analytics system, you can see who is progressing – and who is not. This makes encouraging progress and knowing where to focus assistance easy.
Encouraging action from your members is so easy with Skool. Thanks to the addition of video and audio transcripts and bespoke calls to action, you can easily keep people engaged and interested in your course and community.
Skool is slick and simple, with very easy designs and layouts for users and creators. The dashboard is very easy to work with and can offer an easy way to explore the features you could add to your course. What Skool lacks in terms of advanced features – and even expected features like video hosting – it makes up for in simplicity of usage.
The primary downside for usability is the lack of mobile app creation. Unlike Mighty Networks, you cannot have your dedicated app. This is a blow as this would make it even easier for members to stay involved. As it is, they will need to visit your community's web page.
Overall, I found the user experience to be exceptional with Skool. The same goes for most reviews: the main complaints about Skool come from reaching a glass ceiling due to feature limits. Regarding usability for both users and creators, I have yet to find a platform that is easier to use.
For me, Skool and Mighty Networks rank highly on the user experience. What are the best features provided as part of each platform? Let me break down the most important features that I believe are crucial to making both platforms worth considering.
Mighty Networks boasts an incredible range of features, of which there are arguably too many to list. This excess of features is arguably a blessing and a curse. For me, the most important features of Mighty Networks include:
Skool might not be as advanced or feature-heavy as Mighty Networks, but many course-focused communities do not need all these features. Skool, though, does offer some great features that I think make creation and management simple, including:
While you could comfortably run everything via Skool as it is, it depends on your ambition. I know many individuals who use Skool as their community hub but also have a third-party landing page and website to help funnel traffic to their community. This, naturally, would cost you more to build and run these additional layers. You can, though, use Skool on its own.
It depends on what you intend to use the platform for. If you are looking to build a simple, user-friendly course that is easily accessible to all without the need for any third-party tools, then yes. If you want more built-in integration with third-party platforms, Mighty Networks might offer you greater long-term value for money. Every course creator is different, though!
In my opinion? Skool is tremendous. It is easy to use and provides a stress-free way to build your community. Yes, in time, you might find that you ‘outgrow’ Skool, but do not let the supposed emptiness of key features put you off. For most course builders and community owners, Skool offers you everything you would realistically need.
Not at present. The hope is that Skool will add this feature in future. For now, users need to funnel people to their Skool platform through the Skool website or app. Mighty Networks allows for fully white-label app development, which is a nice feature. Consider this closely if having a dedicated app for your community is a dealbreaker.
Both offer a 14-day free trial but no permanent free membership. You can try out both platforms and see for yourself, but after 14 days, you will be billed the agreed amount.
Yes, but only on the second pricing tier, Business. The course creation tool is modern, slick, and intuitive, though. I think it is brilliant. If you want a quicker and easier time of building a course, though, Skool is arguably even better. Do not expect the same video hosting and integration features as you get with Mighty Networks.
In my opinion, both platforms offer an excellent place to get started. I have a lot of time for both Mighty Networks and Skool.
What do I think is better? The answer is subjective. If you are looking for a stress-free, simple community and course-building tool, Skool is the way to go. In my experience, no competitor platform is as easy to use or functional. Skool lacks features like video hosting and website integration, which it makes up for in its ease of use, community simplicity, and ease of access for your users.
Mighty Networks is arguably better if you want more advanced features and intend to integrate other platforms and APIs into your course-focused community. Mighty Networks offers an exceptional range of features and functions, including video hosting, live streaming, and app development, that Skool cannot offer.
That being said, given most courses need only what Skool offers, it is my recommended choice overall. Mighty Networks is a fantastic tool for veterans and those who have successfully built and run courses. Skool, for me, is the best place to start for first-time builders and newbies.
While Skool and Mighty Networks are two of the most popular platforms for community creation, other options are present. For example, the other most popular choices include ClickFunnels, Kajabi, Teachable, Podia, and Thinkific. Other popular community-building options include Slack, Discord, and Facebook Groups.
Each platform has features and functions which will differ from how Skool and Mighty Networks operate. I would recommend investigating each option before you make an all-in choice. As per my recommendation above, though, I would choose Skool if you want the best balance between simplicity and functionality.
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