April 9th, 2021 | Updated on April 3rd, 2024
Patreon is a website where artists and creators can get money from their fans to support their work. It’s popular because it lets creators connect with fans and get paid regularly.
But it has some problems like privacy concerns and no built-in ways to market. So, creators are searching for other options. If you’re one of them, keep reading.
In this post, we’ll talk about the best Patreon alternatives. We’ll explore what they offer and how much they cost. This will help you choose the right one for you.
What Is Patreon?
Patreon is a website where fans can give money to support creators. Unlike other sites, it didn’t begin by giving perks for fees. It began as a way for supporters to fund creators they believed in and later added more features. Jack Conte and Sam Yam started Patreon in 2013. They created it because they had trouble making money from their music and thought creators could be financially supported directly by their fans.
Let’s Talks About The Best Features Of Patreon:
- It has social media integration
- It helps you find out if any creators that you follow on YouTube or Twitter have a Patreon.
- You can charge per completed work, instead of a monthly fee.
- It provides a convenient means of monetizing output that was previously unavailable
- The creator base has grown very diverse
Finding a Patreon Alternative
- Community Engagement: Look for a platform where you can interact with other creators and members to improve your content.
- Marketing Tools: Find a platform with tools like email lists, discounts, and social media integration to attract and engage new audiences.
- Payment Options: Choose a platform with secure and fast payment methods so your audience can easily buy your work.
- Fee Structure: Check for reasonable subscription fees and fair payouts for creators. Avoid platforms with hidden fees or high commissions.
- Analytics: Seek a platform that offers analytics to help you understand your audience better and adjust your content strategy accordingly.
Best Patreon Alternatives
Although this subscription crowdfunding platform has many attractive features, but it is not without fault. Have a look at 10 Patreon alteratives:
1. Kickstarter
Kickstarter is a well-known platform for raising funds. Creators can launch one-time projects to collect money. To start a campaign, you introduce your idea, set a funding target, and decide on a time limit. People pledge money to support your project.
Pros:
- Large user base makes it easy to find supporters.
- Covers various categories like art, film, technology, and music.
- Provides tools such as a mobile app and project editor, along with guidelines.
- Creators can offer rewards like personalized merchandise or early access.
Cons:
- If you don’t reach your funding goal, you won’t get any money.
- Projects might fail due to competition.
- Kickstarter doesn’t guarantee project delivery, so backers could be disappointed.
- It takes 3-5 days for the review process, so plan ahead before launching your project
2. Indiegogo
Indiegogo started in 2008 and has helped launch over 800,000 projects. Every month, 19,000 campaigns are launched. Here’s what you get with Indiegogo:
Pros:
- You can keep raising funds after reaching your goal through their InDemand program.
- Two types of funding: “fixed” and “flexible.”
- Fixed funding needs you to surpass the goal to get the money.
- Flexible lets you get the money even if you don’t hit your goal.
- Can raise money for charity with GoFundMe.
- Projects are instantly approved without waiting for Indiegogo’s team.
- Partnerships with manufacturers, fulfillment, and retailers make delivery easier.
Cons:
- You must fulfill promises to backers even if you can’t ship your project.
- Backer community is smaller than Kickstarter, so there’s less visibility.
3. Podia
Podia is a platform where creators can sell online courses, memberships, and digital downloads all in one place. It’s a good alternative to Patreon for those who want everything in a single spot for their online business.
Unlike Patreon, Podia helps creators with email marketing, webinars, and more, all in one platform. Its interface is simple to use and provides a clean, minimalist look.
Pros:
- Unlimited file hosting.
- Supports Stripe and PayPal payments.
- Easy-to-use course platform with a clean interface.
- Known for great customer service.
- No transaction fees on sales with paid plans.
Cons:
- Plans are pricier compared to similar platforms.
- Limited customization options.
- Free plan has high transaction fees.
- No built-in community feature for members to interact.
4. Sellfy
Sellfy is an online store platform where users can sell digital and physical items directly.
Pros:
- Quick store setup in under 5 minutes.
- Built-in marketing tools like discounts, email marketing, ad tracking, and upselling.
- Customize your store to match your brand.
- Automatically translate languages based on location and optimize for mobile.
- Sell items like t-shirts, mugs, hats, and hoodies with print-on-demand (managed by Sellfy).
Cons:
- Few app integrations available.
- Limited to PayPal and Stripe for payments.
- No affiliate marketing feature.
5. Teachable
Teachable offers an alternative to Patreon focused solely on courses. It’s a platform where you can host and sell pre-recorded courses, offering various content options, certificates, and assessment features. Additionally, it includes built-in marketing tools and an affiliate program, allowing supporters to sell courses and earn commissions.
Pros:
- Create pre-recorded courses with different evaluation options.
- Build landing pages and utilize marketing tools.
Cons:
- No course community or live engagement options.
- Lacks an Android mobile app.
6. Memberful
Memberful, recently acquired by Patreon, functions as a website plugin enabling subscriptions for premium content access.
Pros:
- Enables monetization of existing websites.
- Operates independently despite Patreon ownership.
- Offers multiple subscription tiers and durations.
Cons:
- Potential future merge with Patreon may deter some users.
- Requires a personal website.
- Removal of Memberful branding incurs extra cost.
Memberful integrates with creator websites, including a WordPress plugin. It’s suitable for creators, publishers, and podcasters, providing paywalls for videos and live streams from YouTube. It supports discounts, payments via Discord and Discourse, and offers extensive customization options for branding and member experience.
Integration with WordPress, Stripe, and Mailchimp, along with detailed analytics, enhances control over pricing and memberships. However, setup complexity and limited community features might pose challenges.
7. Kajabi
Kajabi is an all-in-one platform for building online businesses. Users can create, sell, and promote courses, coaching services, membership sites, and podcasts.
Pros:
- Includes marketing and sales funnel tools for driving conversions.
- Features automations to send emails when subscribers don’t finish a course.
- Provides custom domain and full branding options for business alignment.
- Offers a built-in community platform for audience engagement.
Cons:
- No free plan and pricing is higher compared to other platforms.
- Features may feel overwhelming unless you have a large subscriber base.
- Not ideal for small businesses or freelancers due to the high cost.
8. Gumroad
Gumroad helps people sell digital and physical products easily, from music to ebooks and coaching sessions. You can set up an attractive online store to display your items.
Pros:
- Simple interface.
- Clean checkout pages.
- Detailed analytics for product and sales insights.
- Provides license keys for software.
- Allows creation of coupons and “pay what you want” offers.
- Offers challenges for sellers like audience-building.
- Includes pre-order feature.
Cons:
- High transaction fees for new sellers.
- Requires minimum $10 balance for payouts.
- Doesn’t have built-in email marketing.
- Free plan limits file uploads to 25MB, which can be restrictive.
9. Donation Buttons
Donation Buttons is a straightforward and cost-effective plugin. It lets you add subscription or donation buttons to your website using PayPal or Stripe.
Pros:
- Simple way to collect funds from your website.
- No platform fees, just standard payment processing fees.
- Best suited for websites with a large and engaged community.
Cons:
- Needs an existing fan base to be effective.
- Requires you to have your own website.
- Lacks additional features like analytics and reward distribution.
10. Thinkific
Thinkific is a tool for creating various types of courses and content. It can host coaching programs, downloads, and memberships, offering features like quizzes, articles, surveys, and webinars.
Pros:
- Flexible course creation with a learning management system (LMS).
- Supports different types of content and products, such as downloads and memberships.
- Option to start for free and a WordPress plugin available for integration.
Cons:
- Not primarily a community or membership platform.
- Lacks mobile apps for accessing content.