Graphy vs Thinkific

ByObeydul Haque Reading Time: 8 minutes

Graphy, formerly known as Spayee, is a cloud-based learning management system (LMS) developed by Unacademy, one of India’s leading online education platforms. Launched in 2018, Graphy is designed to empower educators and creators by offering an all-in-one solution for course creation, marketing, and community building. It emphasizes affordability, scalability, and features tailored for the Indian market, such as support for Indian payment gateways. Graphy is particularly appealing to creators who want a branded, secure, and feature-rich platform without relying heavily on third-party tools.

Thinkific, established in 2012, is a well-known LMS platform headquartered in Canada. It focuses on simplicity, flexibility, and customization, making it a popular choice for creators worldwide. Thinkific allows users to build professional online courses and branded websites with minimal technical expertise. It is praised for its user-friendly interface and extensive integrations with third-party tools, catering to both beginners and experienced course creators.

While both platforms aim to simplify online course creation, their approaches differ in terms of functionality, pricing, and target audiences. Let’s dive into a detailed comparison across key categories.

1. Course Creation and Customization

Graphy

Graphy offers a versatile course creation experience with a drag-and-drop builder that supports multimedia content, including videos, audio, text, quizzes, surveys, and assignments. Its course builder is intuitive, allowing creators to design engaging courses without coding knowledge. Graphy stands out with its multimedia course options, enabling dynamic learning experiences. Features like drip content (scheduled content release) and exams/question banks enhance student engagement and learning outcomes.

Graphy also provides robust customization options, allowing creators to build branded websites and mobile apps. Its templates are designed for various industries, ensuring flexibility for different types of courses. The platform’s built-in live class and webinar hosting capabilities eliminate the need for external tools like Zoom, making it a seamless all-in-one solution.

Thinkific

Thinkific’s course creation tools are equally robust, with a drag-and-drop builder that supports multimedia lessons, quizzes, assignments, and live lessons. It offers customizable course templates and drip content scheduling to keep learners engaged over time. Thinkific’s strength lies in its simplicity, making it ideal for beginners who want to create professional courses quickly.

In terms of customization, Thinkific allows creators to design branded course pages and websites with options for colors, logos, and layouts. However, some users note that its customization options are less extensive compared to platforms like Kajabi or Graphy. Thinkific relies on third-party integrations for advanced features like live webinars, which can add complexity and cost.

Verdict

Graphy takes the lead in course creation due to its powerful multimedia options and built-in live class capabilities, which reduce dependency on external tools. Thinkific is a strong contender for beginners due to its simplicity but may require additional integrations for advanced features.

2. Pricing and Affordability

Graphy

Graphy offers three pricing plans, designed to be cost-effective and feature-rich:

  • Launch Plan: $49/month (0% transaction fees, unlimited products, 10,000 contacts, 300 webinar participants).
  • Rise Plan: $99/month (includes branded mobile apps, 25,000 contacts, 10 admins, 500 webinar participants).
  • Scale Plan: $249/month (100,000 contacts, 25 admins, 500 webinar participants).

Graphy’s pricing is competitive, with no revenue-sharing model, meaning creators keep 100% of their earnings. The inclusion of branded mobile apps in higher plans (at no extra cost) and support for Indian payment gateways like Razorpay, Paytm, and Instamojo make it particularly attractive for Indian creators. Additionally, Graphy’s highest plan ($299/month in some sources) is significantly more affordable than Thinkific’s top tier.

Thinkific

Thinkific offers a free plan and three paid plans:

  • Free Plan: Limited to three courses, with transaction fees on sales.
  • Basic Plan: $49/month ($39/month annually), includes basic features but lacks advanced tools.
  • Pro Plan: $99/month ($79/month annually), offers more features like assignments and priority support.
  • Premier Plan: $499/month ($399/month annually), includes advanced features but is expensive.

Thinkific’s free plan is appealing for beginners, but it comes with limitations and transaction fees. The paid plans are straightforward, with no revenue-sharing, but advanced features like affiliate marketing and branded mobile apps (priced at $199/month extra) are reserved for higher tiers or require additional costs.

Verdict

Graphy is more affordable overall, especially for creators targeting Indian audiences, due to its lower top-tier pricing and inclusion of branded mobile apps in mid-tier plans. Thinkific’s free plan is a good starting point, but its higher plans and additional fees for premium features make it less cost-effective for scaling businesses.

3. Payment Gateways and Global Reach

Graphy

Graphy excels in payment processing, particularly for Indian creators. It supports major Indian payment gateways (Razorpay, Paytm, Instamojo, PayU) alongside international options like PayPal and Stripe. This is a significant advantage for Indian audiences, as many learners may not have access to PayPal accounts. Graphy also offers country-specific pricing, allowing creators to set prices based on learners’ currencies, enhancing global accessibility.

Thinkific

Thinkific supports Stripe and PayPal for global transactions, which are secure and widely used. However, it lacks integration with Indian payment gateways, which can be a drawback for creators targeting Indian audiences. This limitation may lead to higher costs or lost sales due to payment accessibility issues.

Verdict

Graphy is the clear winner for payment gateways, especially for Indian creators, due to its support for local payment options and country-specific pricing. Thinkific’s reliance on PayPal and Stripe is sufficient for global markets but less ideal for India.

4. Marketing and Sales Tools

Graphy

Graphy provides a robust suite of built-in marketing tools, including:

  • Affiliate Marketing: Available on all plans, allowing creators to convert learners into affiliates and track conversions.
  • SEO Optimization: Tools for blogs, meta tags, and keywords to drive organic traffic.
  • Email Campaigns and Automation: Built-in email engine for lead nurturing and cart recovery.
  • Conversion Pixels: For tracking and refining marketing campaigns.

Graphy’s all-in-one approach reduces the need for third-party tools, making it easier to manage marketing efforts from a single platform.

Thinkific

Thinkific offers marketing tools like landing pages, email integrations (e.g., Mailchimp, ConvertKit), and sales funnels. However, advanced features like affiliate marketing are only available on higher plans (Pro and above), and email marketing capabilities are limited without third-party integrations. Thinkific’s app store provides additional marketing tools, but these often come at an extra cost.

Verdict

Graphy’s built-in marketing tools, including affiliate programs on all plans and advanced automation, give it an edge over Thinkific, which relies heavily on third-party integrations for similar functionality.

5. Community Building and Engagement

Graphy

Graphy emphasizes community engagement, offering features like discussion forums, chat communities, and push notifications. Its branded mobile apps enhance accessibility, allowing learners to engage with courses and communities on the go. Graphy’s live class and webinar hosting capabilities (up to 5,000 attendees) foster real-time interaction, creating a college-like social experience that boosts retention.

Thinkific

Thinkific provides community features such as discussion forums and membership sites, which encourage interaction among learners. However, its community tools are less advanced than Graphy’s, and mobile app access comes at a steep additional cost ($199/month). Thinkific’s reliance on third-party tools for live sessions can disrupt the seamless engagement experience.

Verdict

Graphy outperforms Thinkific in community building due to its integrated live class features, branded mobile apps, and robust engagement tools. Thinkific’s community features are solid but less comprehensive.

6. Customer Support

Graphy

Graphy is praised for its excellent customer support, offering live webinars, email, chat-based support, and dedicated account managers for all users, regardless of plan. This personalized approach ensures creators receive timely assistance, making it easier to set up and manage courses.

Thinkific

Thinkific provides support through email, community forums, and a help center with guides and tutorials. However, priority support is reserved for Pro plan users and above, and free plan users rely solely on self-help resources. Some users report slower response times during peak periods.

Verdict

Graphy’s dedicated and accessible support for all users gives it an advantage over Thinkific, where support quality varies by plan.

7. Security and Analytics

Graphy

Graphy prioritizes content security with Digital Rights Management (DRM) to prevent unauthorized sharing. Its analytics tools provide real-time insights into user behavior, conversion rates, and course performance, eliminating the need for third-party analytics platforms.

Thinkific

Thinkific offers secure hosting and detailed analytics on student engagement, course performance, and revenue. However, it lacks advanced DRM features, which may concern creators worried about content piracy.

Verdict

Graphy’s advanced DRM and real-time analytics make it the stronger choice for security-conscious creators. Thinkific’s analytics are comprehensive but less robust in terms of content protection.

8. Usability and Learning Curve

Graphy

Graphy’s interface is clean and intuitive, with quick navigation for managing courses, sales, and community engagement. However, some users note a slight learning curve due to its extensive features, particularly for beginners unfamiliar with LMS platforms.

Thinkific

Thinkific is renowned for its user-friendly interface, making it accessible for creators with no technical skills. Its straightforward design ensures a minimal learning curve, even for first-time users.

Verdict

Thinkific is easier to use for beginners, while Graphy’s slightly steeper learning curve is offset by its feature-rich platform and comprehensive support.

9. Integrations

Graphy

Graphy minimizes the need for third-party integrations by offering built-in tools for marketing, payments, and analytics. It supports integrations with tools like Zapier, Razorpay, and PayPal, ensuring flexibility for advanced users.

Thinkific

Thinkific’s app store offers integrations with tools like Zapier, Mailchimp, ConvertKit, and Zoom, providing extensive customization options. However, reliance on third-party tools can increase costs and complexity.

Verdict

Graphy’s all-in-one approach reduces the need for integrations, while Thinkific’s extensive app store caters to users who prefer a modular setup. The choice depends on whether you prioritize simplicity (Graphy) or flexibility (Thinkific).

10. Target Audience and Use Cases

Graphy

Graphy is ideal for:

  • Indian course creators targeting local audiences due to its support for Indian payment gateways.
  • Creators seeking an affordable, all-in-one platform with branded mobile apps.
  • Businesses prioritizing content security and community engagement.

Thinkific

Thinkific is best suited for:

  • Beginners looking for a user-friendly platform with a free plan.
  • Creators who prefer extensive third-party integrations for customization.
  • Global audiences comfortable with PayPal and Stripe payments.

Conclusion

Both Graphy and Thinkific are powerful platforms for creating and selling online courses, but they cater to different needs. Graphy stands out as the more affordable, feature-rich option, particularly for Indian creators, with its support for local payment gateways, branded mobile apps, and built-in marketing tools. Its all-in-one approach minimizes reliance on third-party tools, making it ideal for creators who want a streamlined, scalable solution.

Thinkific, on the other hand, excels in simplicity and flexibility, making it a great choice for beginners and creators who value a user-friendly interface and extensive integrations. However, its higher pricing for advanced features and lack of Indian payment gateway support may limit its appeal for certain audiences.

Ultimately, the choice between Graphy and Thinkific depends on your budget, technical expertise, target audience, and business goals. If you’re an Indian creator or prioritize affordability and community engagement, Graphy is the better option. If you’re a beginner or need a highly customizable platform with global payment options, Thinkific is a strong contender.

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