Kajabi has always been one of the top contenders for hosting digital products, courses or membership sites, But in real life, which is best? In the battle of Membership.io (formerly Searchie) Vs Kajabi, is Kajabi really the best platform? We think not! This article will explain why we no longer use it and find Membership.io a far superior Kajabi alternative.

[AD] First, a quick disclaimer: We are affiliates for Membership.io, and all links to Membership.io are affiliate links. We have learned from Stu McLaren in the past, and we are big fans of Membership.io and use it daily in our business. It does mean that if you purchase Membership.io through our link, we’ll get a small commission. In return, we are here to answer any questions you have.

We switched our membership from Kajabi to Membership.io.

As the owners of a large membership, it was essential for us to have a professional hosting site for the member's hub. We also have several digital courses and online products and wanted to provide the best digital experience for students.

So, following all the rave reviews about Kajabi, we moved everything to the platform from MemberPress in late 2020. Turned out, switching to Kajabi was a terrible idea! Six months later, we were no longer using Kajabi at all.

Instead, we have moved everything onto Membership.io and have never looked back.

What is Membership.io?

Membership.io is a web-based software platform that allows you to create, manage, and sell your content all in one place. Designed with content creators in mind, it is really easy to use to deliver your digital course or membership.

Created by our business mentor, Stu McLaren, who also previously founded WishList Member, Membership.io has everything an online business owner needs to host video, audio and written content. 

Searchie is the world’s first search engine for video content, and that feature alone creates an incredible user experience for your customers. There are so many reasons to use Membership.io, even if you don't have a course or membership site.

Kajabi Vs Membership.io Simplicity of use

Winner – Membership.io!

We are not web developers! We have minimal design skills and are not interested in spending hours of valuable time making a membership site look good.

Having worked in MemberPress, Membership.io and Kajabi, we found Membership.io the most simple to use and easiest to adapt.

Even with our minimal tech skills, we created a beautiful membership site that functions just as well on mobile as on desktop, with no need for coding. Membership.io has a Canva integration that makes it super quick and simple to add images and graphics to your site.

Membership.io Hubs:

One of the main reasons we switched to Membership.io from Kajabi is the speed at which you can build a course or secure a member’s area in a Membership.io Hub.

Kajabi was clunky and required a lot of tech know-how to make your course or membership look good and function well for your customer. In Membership.io, you can quickly create playlists from your video library to create a slick course or membership site in a matter of minutes.

Uploaded video and audio content to your Membership.io account is quick and simple & the integrations with Zoom, Facebook, YouTube and more mean you can even automate this process!

Each section of a Membership.io hub can be protected only to be shown to specific people in your audience. So you can easily hide materials from people who don’t qualify for them.

But, it is brilliant for more than just memberships and courses. A public Membership.io Hub is the perfect solution when you don’t want to hide your content. For example, create a Membership.io podcast hub to get more podcast listeners.

Watch me create a membership site in less than 14 minutes using Membership.io

This video is hosted in Membership.io & embedded in this site using the HTML code – tap the magnifying glass icon to search for any keyword in the video to see how the search function works.

Kajabi Vs Membership.io User Experience

Winner – Membership.io!

With so much choice in the online learning industry, user experience is even more important than ever.

The video search functionality in Membership.io has dramatically improved the learning experience for our students and members.  Students can easily search the course content for any keywords or phrases in your video content. This function helps students quickly refer back to group coaching calls, masterclasses, and other content to find the necessary information without watching the whole video again.

This unique search function adds true value to our courses and membership by making the learning experience far superior to any other platform. If you, like us, want to make your content easy to consume then Membership.io is the winner.

Membership.io does integrate with Kajabi should you wish to make Kajabi content searchable. But, in our opinion, you'd be paying for two systems when you really only need one.

Kajabi Vs Membership.io Accessible Course Content

Winner – Membership.io!

As a business owner, it is your responsibility to do everything you can to make sure your content is accessible to everyone regardless of accessibility needs and caters for different learning styles.

Membership.io automatically adds closed captions to all video and audio content, making your video and audio content accessible to everyone, regardless of someone's ability to hear. Membership.io also creates a downloadable transcription to allow people to read the content if they prefer (this is a function you can disable should you wish).

If your customers prefer to learn on the move, Membership.io automatically creates an audio file for students to download, and you can create a private podcast feed from any file or playlist to provide even more learning options for your students.

Every hub has the option to disable downloads should you prefer to protect your content.

Kajabi Vs Membership.io Analytics

Winner – Membership.io!

With Membership.io analytics, you can quickly see how often videos have been watched, where people are dropping off and discover the keywords people are searching for in your hubs.

This valuable information means you can create more relevant content based on those keywords for your customers and also make informed changes to your video titles to help users find the information they are looking for more easily.

We also use Membership.io analytics to inform our free content. Search queries from our paying customers can provide valuable insight we can use for podcast and blog content.

Kajabi V Membership.io Cost

Winner – Membership.io!

On price, Membership.io wins hands down. Here's the breakdown on pricing [Sept 2024)

Cost for hosting 1 x digital product

• Membership.io – $41/m
• Kajabi – $55/m

Cost for hosting 3 x digital product

• Membership.io – $81/m
• Kajabi – $119/m

Cost for hosting 10 x digital product

• Membership.io – $183
• Kajabi – $159 (15 products)

Of course, Kajabi's prices include website hosting and email marketing. But, even with this in mind, you might still be better off financially using a combination of Membership.io, Mailerlite and WordPress or Showit.

What is the difference between Kajabi and Membership.io?

The main difference between Kajabi and Membership.io is that as well as offering a lot of the features in Membership.io, it also offers email marketing.

Does Membership.io integrate with Kajabi?

Membership.io integrates well with Kajabi and you can include searchable videos in your Kajabi-based course or membership.

Who is Kajabi's competitor?

Kajabi has several competitors. In the course and membership hosting space, Membership.io is Kajabi's competitor. When it comes to email marketing, Kajabi's competitors include ActiveCampaign and ConvertKit.

Is Membership.io a course platform?

Membership.io is a course and membership platform. You can host videos, text-based lessons and upload attachments in PDF and image format. The power of Membership.io also makes your course lessons searchable inside an easy-to-create course hub.

Does Membership.io have email marketing?

Membership.io does not have email marketing built into its platform, but it integrates directly with Kit (formerly ConvertKit) and with most other email marketing platforms using Zapier.

Can you drip content on Membership.io?

You can drip content on Membership.io according to your student's progress or by date. This means you can provide access to dripped content based on a timeline which you control of, be it by module or by date.

Who owns Membership.io?

Membership.io is created and owned by Stu McLaren who is known for his expertise in helping people start and grow profitable membership sites. He is also the host of the popular Plan It Build It program, which helps people turn their knowledge and know-how into a profitable digital product. Find out more here.

In conclusion

If you want an all-in-one solution then Kajabi is still a strong contender. But if your priority is simplicity, ease of use and user experience, then Membership.io wins on all counts.

Now you know why we think Membership.io is a better solution than Kajabi (or MemberPress) you might want to try it for yourself. If you’d like to hear more about Membership.io and whether it might be right for you, don’t hesitate to reach out. Laura Moore loves to geek out over Membership.io, so feel free to DM her for a chat about Searchie anytime!

If you're keen to get started and plan and build your course or membership on Searchie, check out their Plan It, Build It program here.