Skool vs Circle vs HighLevel for coaches (UK)
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HighLevel’s pricing page lists a 14-day free trial on every plan. Billing starts automatically when the trial ends unless you cancel, and usage charges (phone, SMS, email, some AI) can apply during the trial. Checked 1 November 2026 (GMT).
If your coaching offer is really a paid community (a group, a classroom of courses, and regular live calls), three names come up again and again: Skool, Circle and HighLevel. They are not the same kind of tool. Skool is a deliberately simple community-plus-classroom app. Circle is a fuller community platform with courses, events, a website builder and optional email. HighLevel is an all-in-one marketing system (CRM, funnels, email and SMS, booking, payments) that also includes courses and communities.
Disclosure in plain English: CourseSignal is run by Urban Huntsman Ltd, which is a HighLevel agency. We earn a commission if you sign up to HighLevel, Skool or Circle through our links, and those links are marked Ad. Commissions don’t change what you pay or how we compare the three. Every price below comes from the vendor’s own pricing pages, checked 1 November 2026 (GMT). All three price in US dollars.
Short verdict
- Skool if you want the simplest possible paid group with courses and a calendar, and you are happy for members to pay in USD.
- Circle if the community is the product and you want more control: spaces, live streams, a website, branded options and workflows on higher plans.
- HighLevel if the community is one part of a bigger business: discovery calls, funnels, email and SMS follow-up, and a CRM. You will otherwise pay for those separately.
Pricing (official, USD)
| Skool | Circle | HighLevel | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry plan | Hobby: $9 / mo | Professional: $89 / mo (annual billing) | Starter: $97 / mo or $970 / yr |
| Next plan up | Pro: $99 / mo | Business: $199 / mo; Scale: $419 / mo; Circle Plus: custom | Unlimited: $297 / mo; Pro: $497 / mo |
| Fees on what you sell | Hobby: 10% + 30c per transaction. Pro: 2.9% + 30c up to $899, 3.9% + 30c above $900 | Transaction fee of 2% (Professional), 1% (Business and Scale), 0.5% (Circle Plus) | No platform transaction fee is listed on the pricing page. You connect your own payment provider (Stripe, PayPal and others), whose fees apply |
| Usage charges | None listed | Circle AI credits included per plan; extra credits $10 per 1,000 | Usage-based charges for phone, SMS, email and some AI features |
| Members / contacts | Unlimited members on both plans | Unlimited members on every plan | Unlimited contacts and users on every plan |
| Trial | 14-day free trial | 14-day free trial, no card required; 30-day money-back guarantee | 14-day free trial on each plan |
Sources: Skool pricing and Skool payments FAQ · Circle pricing (Circle says its prices are “based on annual billing and do not include applicable taxes”; a month-to-month price is not shown) · HighLevel pricing. Skool’s pricing page also offers yearly billing (“2 months free”).
What each one actually includes
| Job | Skool | Circle | HighLevel |
|---|---|---|---|
| Community feed | Posts, comments, categories, polls, chat and notifications | Spaces (20 on Professional), direct messages, group chat, member directory and profiles | Communities with groups, channels, roles and custom domain |
| Courses | Classroom: courses, pages, videos, resources, searchable transcripts, progress tracking | Courses on every plan | Courses, plus paid courses sold inside a community (one-time or recurring) |
| Live calls and events | Calendar with local-time display and reminder emails | Live events; live streams up to 100 attendees and 10 hours on Professional | Community events (one-off or repeating) with reminders, using your own meeting link |
| Gamification | Points, levels, and courses unlocked by level | Gamification on every plan | Leaderboard levels and rewards, which can be triggered by workflows |
| Email to members | One-click broadcast of a post to all members. No segments or tags | Weekly digest included; Email Hub add-on for broadcasts and automations, +$99 / mo for 10,000 contacts | Email and SMS marketing built in (usage-billed sending) |
| Automations | Not listed on Skool’s features page | Workflows from Business (20); unlimited on Scale | Workflow automation across the whole account |
| CRM, booking, funnels | Not listed on Skool’s features page | Website builder included; no CRM or booking calendar on the pricing page | CRM and pipelines, booking calendars, website and funnel builder, forms and quizzes |
| Apps | Not compared here | iOS, Android and desktop apps; custom branded apps on Circle Plus | HighLevel mobile app; branded client portal app is a $49 / mo add-on per sub-account |
Sources: Skool features · Circle plan comparison · HighLevel core features, HighLevel Communities guide and paid courses in Communities.
UK things to know
- Skool charges your members in dollars. Skool’s payments FAQ says all subscription prices are in USD and members pay in USD. UK payouts arrive in GBP, weekly on Wednesdays.
- Skool is the merchant of record. It says it handles EU VAT and adds it on top of your price, and that it does not collect UK VAT because it is registered as a virtual training business. Check how that fits your own VAT position.
- Skool’s Growth Boost is on by default. If Skool’s own discovery or ads bring you a paying member, Skool takes a 30% cut of that member’s recurring charges. You can switch it off under Settings → Discovery.
- HighLevel lets you choose the currency for paid courses inside a community, and its community checkouts can apply your tax settings (automatic or manual rates).
- Your subscription is in USD on all three. Your card provider’s exchange rate applies, and Circle’s listed prices exclude taxes.
Choose Skool if…
- You want a paid group, a classroom and a calendar live this week, with very little setup.
- You are happy with one-click email broadcasts and don’t need segments, funnels or a CRM.
- Your members are fine paying in USD.
Try Skool (14-day free trial) Ad Commission if you use this link.
Choose Circle if…
- The community itself is the product and you want more structure: spaces, live streams, a member directory and a website.
- You expect to need workflows or APIs later (Business plan and above).
- You already use a separate email tool, or will add Circle’s Email Hub.
Try Circle (14-day free trial) Ad Commission if you use this link.
Choose HighLevel if…
- The community sits inside a bigger sales process: lead magnets, discovery calls, follow-up emails and texts, payment plans.
- You currently pay separately for a CRM, a scheduler, an email tool and a funnel builder alongside your community.
- You are willing to learn a bigger tool, or have someone set it up for you.
If you are on the fence, add up what you pay today with our UK cost worksheet. Then read the HighLevel review for what the course and community tools do in practice.
Official sites
Skool: sign up to Skool Ad Commission if you use this link. · Circle: sign up to Circle Ad Commission if you use this link. · HighLevel: gohighlevel.com/pricing. The Skool and Circle links are our affiliate links (Ad). The HighLevel pricing link is a plain link to HighLevel’s pricing page; HighLevel sign-ups use the trial button above.
Test HighLevel with your real community
Rebuild one group, one course and one welcome sequence during the trial. If it feels like more tool than you need, Skool or Circle is the sensible choice.
HighLevel’s pricing page lists a 14-day free trial on every plan. Billing starts automatically when the trial ends unless you cancel, and usage charges (phone, SMS, email, some AI) can apply during the trial. Checked 1 November 2026 (GMT).
Related: Skool pricing · HighLevel pricing · Skool vs Kajabi · Skool vs Kajabi (UK) · Skool alternatives · Skool pricing UK · HighLevel pricing UK · HighLevel review · HighLevel vs Kajabi · Best course platforms UK · UK cost worksheet.