Teachable does not have a community feature available on its platform. To use a community with Teachable, you must use a third-party application.
Teachable supports a native integration with Circle.so, or you can use a different community platform and allow your students to join by providing a link.
Key Takeaways:
- Teachable has no community feature on its platform
- Add a community to Teachable by using the native Circle.so integration
- Provide a join link to a different community platform on your Teachable pages
Does Teachable Have a Community Feature?
Teachable does not have a community feature on its platform.
The only feature that is remotely community-based is the lecture commenting feature where students and course creators can leave comments and respond to them. Beyond this, there are no other features that foster community interactions.
Instead, Teachable has given its users the ability to integrate its platform with Circle.so – a full community-building platform.
Circle.so provides you with tools such as live private and group chat, live streaming and events, course-building, custom branding, and more. Plans cost from $99/month after a 14-day free trial.
Bear in mind that this is on top of your usual Teachable subscription cost, so things can get pricey rather quickly when you add the two together.
How to Integrate Circle.so with Teachable
To get started you need:
- A Teachable Basic account or higher
- A Circle.so account
Step 1: Log into your Circle.so account. Remain logged in and keep the page open while you open a new tab in the same browser.
Step 2: In the new browser tab, log into your Teachable school. Head to “Settings” and then “App Hub.” Scroll to where you see Circle.so listed and click on it.
Step 3: Head back to your Circle.so tab, click your username in the top-left corner, and select “Settings” from the dropdown that appears.
Step 4: From the settings menu, click “Single sign-on” and scroll down until you see “OAuth Provider.” Underneath, you will see the callback URL.
Copy the URL and select “Teachable” from the dropdown box below it. Now, head back to Teachable.
Step 5: Paste the callback URL in the space provided. The system will spend a few moments making the connection. When it’s done, the client ID, API secret key, and Teachable school URL will automatically display.
Copy the client ID and go back to your Circle.so tab.
Step 6: Just underneath where you copied the callback URL, you will see four blank fields. Add a provided name. This can be “Teachable” or the name of your school. In the Client ID field, paste the ID you copied from Teachable.
Follow the same process for the secret key and the Teachable URL. Copy the codes from Teachable and paste them into the relevant fields in Circle.so.
When done, click “Save changes” in Circle.so. The integration is complete!
Other Ways to Add a Community to Your Teachable Products
The downside of using Circle.so with Teachable is that you have to pay for both a Teachable subscription (the integrations feature is not available on the free plan), and a Circle.so subscription. Teachable costs from $59/month, while Circle.so costs from $99/month, which may end up unaffordable for some.
Another option is to create a community using a free or lower-cost tool. Facebook is a common go-to platform because it provides you with everything you need to build a thriving community for free.
Discord and Slack are other platforms that offer plenty of community-building features, mostly for free. You could even use WhatsApp if you only have basic chat requirements.
All you have to do is provide a way for your students to connect with your community on your Teachable products or site pages.
This is typically achieved by adding the join link for whichever platform you have chosen to use or simply by providing clear instructions on what to do.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I Add a Community to Teachable?
You can add a community to Teachable. This can be achieved by integrating Teachable with the community-building app Circle.so. You can also use a different community platform like Facebook and provide the link to join on your Teachable pages.
How Do I Create a Community for My Teachable Courses?
To create a community for your Teachable courses, you must use a third-party community-building platform such as Circle.so or Facebook. There is no community feature available directly on Teachable.
