Start a community
Free or paid community: which should you launch first?
Use the promise, member motivation, and cost of delivery to choose a model you can sustain.
The short version
- Free works when reach and participation create value; paid works when the environment delivers a defined result or privileged access.
- Charging can improve commitment, but it also raises the standard for onboarding and ongoing delivery.
- Validate the behavior before adding a complicated price structure.
Start free when participation is the first problem to solve
A free community can be the right first move when you are learning who gathers, what they discuss, and whether members help each other without constant prompting.
- The community supports a broader business, audience, church, product, or cause.
- More of the right members makes the experience more useful for everyone.
- You are still validating the recurring behavior and do not yet have a paid promise.
Start paid when the promise is already specific
A paid community needs a reason to remain valuable after the welcome period. Good reasons include access to expert judgment, a reliable working rhythm, facilitated peer support, original resources, or a result that members actively pursue.
- You can explain what a member should accomplish or receive each month.
- The group must stay intentionally small, curated, or actively facilitated.
- Delivery creates real ongoing costs in time, expertise, events, or support.
Avoid a vague middle
A low price does not rescue an unclear offer. It can create the expectations of a paid product without producing enough revenue to deliver one well.
If you are uncertain, run a short founding period with a clear end date. Observe the value members use, then decide whether the permanent model should be free, paid, or a free community with a paid program inside it.
Course sales and membership in Lockers
Selling is available after the Locker owner connects a Stripe account and completes payment setup.
Each Locker has its own Free or Pro plan. A free-to-join Locker can sell individual courses: the Lockers platform fee is 5% on Free and 1% on Pro. Paid membership requires Pro, includes every course, and has a 1% platform fee on each membership payment. Courses cannot be sold separately in a paid-membership Locker.
Payment processing costs extra. We calculate the platform fee after discounts and before tax. When a payment is refunded, we return the proportional platform fee; payment-provider fees follow the provider’s rules.
The course sales, paid memberships, and fees guide explains payment setup, event tickets, and the rules for existing buyers. Your Locker's member, course, file, and video allowances still apply.
Build the smallest useful version of your community.
Start with a feed, classroom, calendar, messages, and member list. No card required.
Start a community