A Skool alternative for programs with structure and visible results.
Skool is a community with a classroom, a calendar and a discovery marketplace. upcoach is built around the program itself: program types, check-ins with trend graphs, assignments, and reports on each participant.
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 each participant
Skool may fit better if you
- Want new members to find you through Skool's Discovery marketplace
- Run a community where points, levels and leaderboards drive engagement
- Want to start at $9 a month, with unlimited members
Pick a format. The program is set up for you.
upcoach program types generate the curriculum, events, channels and settings for the format you pick. When the next cohort starts, duplicate the program and every section's release date moves with the new start date.
Skool's Classroom courses can be duplicated in the same group or into another group, and pages can drip by the number of days since a member joined. Skool help: Duplicate a course · checked Oct 21, 2026 · Skool help: Drip content · checked Oct 21, 2026
See program typesSee who is doing the work
Check-ins, task lists and assignments sit inside the program, so the work between calls is visible to you and, when you choose, to the group.
Check-ins with trend graphs
Up to 10 questions, including numbers with a unit label and linear scales. A trend graph appears from the second submission, and you see who went quiet.
Task lists
Actions participants check off, with progress visible to you, or to the whole group when you want accountability to be social.
Assignments with review
Approve or request changes, add an optional 0 to 100 score, and track due dates and late work.
Skool's help center describes Classroom as pages that can be documents, lessons or resources, with videos, files and transcripts. Check-ins and assignments are not documented in Skool's help center. Skool help: What is Classroom? · checked Oct 21, 2026 · Skool help search: check-in · checked Oct 21, 2026 · Skool help search: assignment · checked Oct 21, 2026
A report on the program, and on each person in it
Space reports show who started, average progress and completion, section by section, with each participant's last active date. Participant reports add time spent and activity detail. Events add RSVP, attendance and feedback.
A progress report on each member is not documented in Skool's help center. Its articles mention course progress as something a member keeps when they leave and rejoin. Skool help search: progress · checked Oct 21, 2026
See progress trackingWhat a cohort costs to run on each
Both sides with their published prices and fees, on monthly billing, with Stripe's US card rate on the upcoach side. No rounding in either direction.
Example: 25 participants at $2,000 = $50,000 in sales a year, one card charge each.
upcoach Pro
- Subscription$119/mo billed monthly · upcoach pricing
- $1,428
- Platform fee1% of sales
- $500
- Stripe card processing2.9% + $0.30 per US card charge · Stripe pricing
- $1,457.50
- Total for the year
- $3,385.50
$1,428 + 3.9% × sales + $0.30 × charges
Skool Pro
- Subscription$99/mo billed monthly · Skool pricing
- $1,188
- Skool transaction fee, processing included3.9% + $0.30 per charge above $900 · Skool help: Payments FAQs
- $1,957.50
- Total for the year
- $3,145.50
$1,188 + 3.9% × sales + $0.30 × charges
- At $899 a charge or less, Skool Pro's fee is 2.9% + $0.30, 1% less per sale than upcoach Pro. On upcoach Scale the platform fee is 0%, so you pay Stripe's card processing only.
- Skool's fee includes card processing for every card. Stripe's 2.9% + 30¢ is for US domestic cards; Stripe adds 1.5% for international cards.
- Skool's Growth Boost is on by default: for a member Skool brings you, it keeps 30% of their payments while they stay. You can turn it off.
- upcoach Pro covers 100 active participants. Skool's plans include unlimited members.
What Skool does better
If these matter most to your business, Skool is a strong choice.
A discovery marketplace
Groups that meet Skool's thresholds are listed in Discovery, ranked by member growth, engagement and retention.
Skool help: Discovery FAQs · checked Oct 21, 2026Growth Boost
Skool can show your group at the top of Discovery and run off-site ads for it at its own cost, taking 30% only on members it brings you.
Skool help: Payments FAQs · checked Oct 21, 2026Points, levels and leaderboards
Members earn a point for each like on their posts and comments, level up, and can unlock courses at a level.
Skool help: Points and levels · checked Oct 21, 2026Skool help: Level-locked courses · checked Oct 21, 2026A low entry price
Hobby is $9 a month, or $7.50 a month on yearly billing, with unlimited members, courses and live calls.
Skool pricing · checked Oct 21, 2026EU VAT handled for you
Skool is the merchant of record: it adds EU VAT to the price, collects it and remits it, and handles sales tax.
Skool help: Payments FAQs · checked Oct 21, 2026Built-in live calls
Skool Call is included on both plans, with screen sharing and recording. Webinars are on Pro.
Skool help: Create an event · checked Oct 21, 2026Skool help: Skool Call · checked Oct 21, 2026Skool help: Webinars · checked Oct 21, 2026upcoach and Skool, fact by fact
Every Skool cell links the Skool page it comes from. Checked on October 21, 2026.
| What you need | upcoach | Skool |
|---|---|---|
| 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 | Classroom courses built from pages, folders, videos and files, alongside the group's community and calendar Skool help: What is Classroom? · checked Oct 21, 2026Skool help: Create an event · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Lowest plan | Starter, $49/mo billed annually ($59 monthly). Every format on every plan upcoach.com/pricing | Hobby, $7.50/mo billed yearly ($9 monthly), with a 10% + $0.30 transaction fee Skool pricing · checked Oct 21, 2026Skool help: Payments FAQs · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Running the next cohort | Duplicate the program; section release dates are recalculated from the new start date upcoach.com/help/programs-and-spaces/duplicate-a-program | Duplicate a course in the same group or into another group. Pages can drip by days since a member joined Skool help: Duplicate a course · checked Oct 21, 2026Skool help: Drip content · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Recurring check-ins with trend graphs | Number (with unit label) and linear-scale questions; a trend graph per participant from the second submission upcoach.com/features/accountability-activities | Not documented in Skool's help center Skool help search: check-in · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Reviewed work | Assignments: approve or request changes, optional 0 to 100 score, due dates with late tracking upcoach.com/features/accountability-activities | Assignments are not documented in Skool's help center Skool help search: assignment · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Progress reporting | Space report by section, participant table with last active date, participant reports with time spent upcoach.com/features/progress-tracking-reporting | A progress report on each member is not documented in Skool's help center Skool help search: progress · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Quizzes | Coming soon upcoach.com/pricing | Not documented in Skool's help center Skool help search: quiz · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Live sessions | One-off events or recurring series, 1:1 booking with session packages, automatic reminders, Google Calendar and Outlook sync upcoach.com/features/events-scheduling | Recurring events in the group calendar, on Skool Call (both plans), Zoom or Meet. Webinars on Pro Skool help: Create an event · checked Oct 21, 2026Skool help: Webinars · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Where payments go | A Stripe account you create or connect; buyers are enrolled the moment they pay upcoach.com/help/payments-and-checkout/set-up-payments-with-stripe | Skool's own merchant account; an existing Stripe account can't be used. Payouts to your bank every Wednesday Skool help: Payments FAQs · 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 | Pro: 2.9% + $0.30 up to $899, 3.9% + $0.30 above $900. Hobby: 10% + $0.30. Processing included Skool help: Payments FAQs · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Finding new members | Not part of upcoach; you sell through your own offer pages upcoach.com/features/sell-programs-bundles | Discovery, ranked by member growth, engagement and retention; Growth Boost takes 30% on members it brings Skool help: Discovery FAQs · checked Oct 21, 2026Skool help: Payments FAQs · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
| Gamification | Not part of upcoach upcoach.com/features | Points from likes, nine levels, leaderboards, and courses that unlock at a level Skool help: Points and levels · checked Oct 21, 2026Skool help: Level-locked courses · checked Oct 21, 2026 |
Questions about switching
Do upcoach and Skool charge the same fees?
On a program priced above $900, yes, per sale. upcoach Pro charges a 1% platform fee plus Stripe's 2.9% + $0.30, and Skool Pro charges 3.9% + $0.30 with processing included. At $899 or less, Skool Pro charges 2.9% + $0.30, which is 1% less per sale than upcoach Pro. On upcoach Scale the platform fee is 0%. The subscriptions differ too: upcoach Pro is $1,428 a year on monthly billing and Skool Pro is $1,188.
Can I bring my members over from Skool?
Yes. Invite them by email, up to 20 addresses at a time, and each person gets a link to join. We help you migrate from another platform, and setup guides are in the help center, on every plan.
Does upcoach have a discovery marketplace like Skool?
No. upcoach doesn't list your program in a marketplace. Every offer has its own shareable sales page with checkout, and you bring buyers to it.
Can I run a community in upcoach?
Yes. Every program runs its own channels and feed, next to the curriculum and the events. You can split a large cohort into sub-groups, each with its own channel, events and content, and checkout can place buyers in the right one.
Run your next cohort in upcoach.
Pick a format, invite your participants, and see who is doing the work.
upcoach is not affiliated with Skool. Facts checked on October 21, 2026. Skool is a trademark of its owner; every Skool fact on this page comes from Skool's own pricing page and help center, and the card rate from Stripe's pricing page.