A Circle alternative for programs with structure and visible results.
upcoach is built around the program itself: program types, check-ins with trend graphs, reviewed assignments, and reports a sponsor can read.
Weekly check-in · Leadership Circle
Two good tools for different jobs
upcoach fits if you
- Run cohorts, masterminds, group coaching or challenges, priced as programs
- Need participants to do work between sessions, and to see who did it
- Have to show a client or sponsor what changed for the group
Circle may fit better if you
- Want unlimited members on every plan, with iOS, Android and desktop apps
- Want new members to find you through Circle Discover
- Run a community where points, levels and a leaderboard drive engagement
Pick a format. The program is set up for you.
upcoach program types build the curriculum, events, channels and settings for the format you pick. When the next cohort starts, duplicate the program: section release dates are recalculated from the new start date, and participants and progress are not copied.
Circle documents the same move for a new group: duplicate the course space, and lessons, quizzes and settings copy over while member progress does not. Cohorts can be organised as space groups, and courses can be self-paced, structured or scheduled, with drip by section. Circle help: Duplicate courses, lessons and quizzes · checked Oct 21, 2026 · Circle help: Spaces for interest groups · checked Oct 21, 2026 · Circle help: Courses overview · checked Oct 21, 2026 · Circle help: Drip for structured and scheduled courses · checked Oct 21, 2026
See program typesSee who is doing the work
Check-ins and assignments sit inside the program, so the work between calls is visible to you.
Check-ins with trend graphs
Up to 10 questions, including number and linear-scale questions. Trend graphs appear from the second submission, and you see who responded and who went quiet.
Assignments with review
Approve or request changes, with optional 0 to 100 scoring, and due dates with late and overdue tracking.
Circle's course help describes lessons that can be labeled Activity, Assignment, Challenge and other names, and a course dashboard with each student's lessons completed, completion percentage and last active date. Circle help: Course space settings · checked Oct 21, 2026 · Circle help: Course dashboard · checked Oct 21, 2026
Reports on the program that a sponsor can read
Space reports and participant reports show where the group and each person stand, and export to CSV. On Pro and up, add a sponsor as a Reporting Sponsor and they see the program's content and reports, and none of the answers, journals or conversations. The AI impact report is a summary where every statement points to the figure it rests on, shared by a private link that expires after 7, 30 or 90 days, with group totals only.
Circle's course dashboard shows students in progress and completed, the average completion rate and, per student, lessons completed, completion percentage, last active and start date, with a CSV export. Its course analytics track enrollments, completion rates, dropout trends and quiz performance. Circle help: Course dashboard · checked Oct 21, 2026 · Circle help: Course analytics · checked Oct 21, 2026
See progress trackingWhat a cohort costs to run on each
Both sides with their published prices and fees, on annual billing, with Stripe's US card rate on both sides. No rounding in either direction.
Example: 25 participants at $2,000 = $50,000 in sales a year, one card charge each.
upcoach Pro
- Subscription$99/mo billed annually · upcoach pricing
- $1,188
- Platform fee1% of sales
- $500
- Stripe card processing2.9% + $0.30 per US card charge · Stripe pricing
- $1,457.50
- Total for the year
- $3,145.50
$1,188 + 3.9% × sales + $0.30 × charges
Circle Professional
- Subscription$89/mo billed annually · Circle pricing
- $1,068
- Platform fee2% of sales
- $1,000
- Stripe card processing2.9% + $0.30 per US card charge · Stripe pricing
- $1,457.50
- Total for the year
- $3,525.50
$1,068 + 4.9% × sales + $0.30 × charges
Circle Business
- Subscription$199/mo billed annually · Circle pricing
- $2,388
- Platform fee1% of sales
- $500
- Stripe card processing2.9% + $0.30 per US card charge · Stripe pricing
- $1,457.50
- Total for the year
- $4,345.50
$2,388 + 3.9% × sales + $0.30 × charges
- Circle's pricing page shows prices based on annual billing. Circle's transaction fee is charged on top of Stripe's processing, and upcoach's platform fee is too. Circle pricing · checked Oct 21, 2026 · Circle help: Paywall transaction fees · checked Oct 21, 2026
- upcoach Pro covers 100 active participants. Circle's plans include unlimited members. Circle pricing · checked Oct 21, 2026
- Circle's workflows, API and MCP start on Business. upcoach's MCP, to run upcoach from Claude or ChatGPT, is on every plan. Circle pricing · checked Oct 21, 2026
- On upcoach Scale the platform fee is 0%. Circle's Email Hub is an add-on, from $99/mo at 10,000 contacts, charged on top of the plan. Circle pricing · checked Oct 21, 2026
- Stripe's 2.9% + 30¢ is for US domestic cards.
What Circle does better
If these matter most to your business, Circle is a strong choice.
Unlimited members and apps
Every plan has unlimited members and iOS, Android and desktop apps. Circle Plus adds custom-branded iOS and Android apps.
Circle pricing · checked Oct 21, 2026A discovery marketplace
Circle Discover is a marketplace where members find their next community or course.
Circle Discover · checked Oct 21, 2026Quizzes and course analytics
Quizzes are graded automatically against a passing grade, or by hand. Course analytics track enrollments, completion rates, dropout trends and quiz performance.
Circle help: Set up quizzes · checked Oct 21, 2026Circle help: Grade quizzes · checked Oct 21, 2026Circle help: Course analytics · checked Oct 21, 2026Ways to pay
Installments, buy now pay later with Affirm, Afterpay and Klarna, and free or paid trials, through your own Stripe account.
Circle help: Installments · checked Oct 21, 2026Circle help: Buy now, pay later · checked Oct 21, 2026Circle help: Paywall trials · checked Oct 21, 2026Circle help: Connect a Stripe account · checked Oct 21, 2026Points, levels and a leaderboard
Members earn points, move through nine levels and appear on a leaderboard.
Circle help: Gamification · checked Oct 21, 2026A 30-day money-back guarantee
A 14-day free trial with no credit card, and a 30-day, 100% money-back guarantee.
Circle pricing · checked Oct 21, 2026upcoach and Circle, fact by fact
Every Circle cell links the Circle page it comes from. Checked on October 21, 2026.
| What you need | upcoach | Circle |
|---|---|---|
| Program formats | Program types: Group Coaching, Cohort-Based Course, Self-Paced Course, Challenge, Bootcamp, Mastermind, Membership, 1:1 Coaching, 1:1 Program upcoach.com/help/programs-and-spaces/understand-program-types | Courses that are self-paced, structured (drip by days since enrollment) or scheduled (drip on dates); each course uses one of the plan's spaces Circle help: Courses overview · checked Oct 21, 2026Circle help: Drip for structured and scheduled courses · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Plans | Starter $49/mo, Pro $99/mo, Business $199/mo, Scale $399/mo, billed annually upcoach.com/pricing | Professional $89/mo, Business $199/mo, Scale $419/mo, billed annually; Circle Plus custom Circle pricing · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Members per plan | Starter 25, Pro 100, Business 250, Scale 500 active participants upcoach.com/pricing | Unlimited members on every plan; 20, 30 or 100 spaces Circle pricing · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Running the next cohort | Duplicate the program; section release dates are recalculated, and participants and progress are not copied upcoach.com/help/programs-and-spaces/duplicate-a-program | Duplicate the course space; lessons, quizzes and settings copy over, member progress does not. Cohorts can be organised as space groups Circle help: Duplicate courses, lessons and quizzes · checked Oct 21, 2026Circle help: Spaces for interest groups · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Recurring check-ins with trend graphs | Up to 10 questions, number and linear-scale; trend graphs from the second submission; see who went quiet upcoach.com/features/accountability-activities | Circle's course help describes a course dashboard with each student's lessons completed, completion percentage and last active date Circle help: Course dashboard · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Reviewed work | Assignments: approve or request changes, optional 0 to 100 scoring, due dates with late and overdue tracking upcoach.com/features/accountability-activities | Circle's course help describes lessons that can be labeled Activity, Assignment, Challenge and other names Circle help: Course space settings · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Progress reporting | Space reports and participant reports, exported to CSV upcoach.com/features/progress-tracking-reporting | Course dashboard with average completion rate and per-student progress, with CSV export; course analytics with dropout trends Circle help: Course dashboard · checked Oct 21, 2026Circle help: Course analytics · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Quizzes | Coming soon upcoach.com/pricing | Quizzes with automatic or manual grading Circle help: Set up quizzes · checked Oct 21, 2026Circle help: Grade quizzes · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Live sessions | 1:1 booking with session packages inside the curriculum, reminders, Google Calendar and Outlook upcoach.com/features/events-scheduling | Recurring events: daily, every weekday, or on set days of the week Circle help: Recurring events · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Where payments go | A Stripe account you create or connect upcoach.com/help/payments-and-checkout/set-up-payments-with-stripe | Your own Stripe account; Circle creates a sub-account under it Circle help: Connect a Stripe account · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Payment options | One-time payments, installments and subscriptions, with coupons and bundles upcoach.com/pricing | Installments, buy now pay later (Affirm, Afterpay, Klarna) and trials Circle help: Installments · checked Oct 21, 2026Circle help: Buy now, pay later · checked Oct 21, 2026Circle help: Paywall trials · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Fees on your sales | 2% on Starter, 1% on Pro and Business, 0% on Scale and Enterprise. Stripe card processing is separate upcoach.com/pricing | 2% on Professional, 1% on Business and Scale, 0.5% on Circle Plus, on top of Stripe's processing Circle pricing · checked Oct 21, 2026Circle help: Paywall transaction fees · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Automation and AI | Run upcoach from Claude or ChatGPT (MCP), on every plan upcoach.com/pricing | Workflows and the Circle MCP and API start on Business Circle pricing · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Trial and guarantee | 14-day free trial, no credit card; 14-day money-back guarantee; migration help on every plan upcoach.com/pricing | 14-day free trial, no credit card; 30-day money-back guarantee Circle pricing · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
Questions about switching
What does upcoach charge on my sales?
A platform fee of 2% on Starter, 1% on Pro and Business, 0% on Scale and Enterprise. Stripe's card processing is separate and paid to Stripe. The subscription for upcoach Pro is $1,188 a year on annual billing.
Can you help me move from Circle?
Yes. We help you migrate, and setup guides are in the help center, on every plan.
How do I run the next cohort?
Duplicate the program. Section release dates are recalculated from the new start date, and the new program starts empty: participants and their progress are not copied.
Can I split a big cohort into smaller groups?
Yes. Split a large cohort into sub-groups, each with its own channel, its own events and its own slice of the content. Checkout can assign buyers to the right pod automatically.
Can a sponsor see the results?
Yes, on Pro and up. Add a sponsor as a Reporting Sponsor and they see the program's content and reports, and none of the answers, journals or conversations.
Run your next cohort in upcoach.
Pick a format, invite your participants, and see who is doing the work.
upcoach is not affiliated with Circle. Facts checked on October 21, 2026. Circle is a trademark of its owner; every Circle fact on this page comes from Circle's own pricing page, help center and Discover page, and the card rate from Stripe's pricing page.