Shortlist · Stencil alternatives
At 200 members paying $12, DoAny Free and Stencil Free tie as cheapest: $129.60 a month, all of it Stripe’s card fees. Leave Stencil for test payments, a cheaper teammate, courses and community, or help finding customers.
Fee calculator
Your members and price: each platform’s cheapest plan with built-in payments, plus the fee on every charge, over a year.
At 200 members paying $12 a month, card fees included, DoAny Free and Stencil Free tie for the lowest cost: $1,555.20 each over 12 months, all of it Stripe’s card fees. The next lowest, Lovable Pro, costs $1,855.20.
Prices and fees checked September 25, 2026
Scroll sideways to see every column.
| What you pay | DoAny Free | Stencil Free | Kajabi Basic | Skool Pro | Base44 Builder | Lovable Pro |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entry plan | Free, $0 | Free, $0 | Basic, $179 a month | Pro, $99 a month | Builder, $50 a month | Pro, $25 a month |
| Fee on each charge | Stripe: 2.9% + 30¢ | Stripe: 2.9% + 30¢ | Kajabi Payments: 2.9% + 30¢ | Skool: 2.9% + 30¢ | Stripe: 2.9% + 30¢ | Stripe: 2.9% + 30¢ |
| Plan, 12 months | $0 | $0 | $2,148 | $1,188 | $600 | $300 |
| Fees on your $28,800 in sales | $1,555.20 | $1,555.20 | $1,555.20 | $1,555.20 | $1,555.20 | $1,555.20 |
| Plan and fees, 12 months | $1,555.20 | $1,555.20 | $3,703.20 | $2,743.20 | $2,155.20 | $1,855.20 |
Sources, checked September 25, 2026
The documented limits
Each one comes from Stencil’s own pages, and each rules it out for a specific kind of founder.
Its Lovable comparison says “Stencil only builds subscription software”. One-off guest sales work, with a $5 minimum, but a business built on one-off sales, like a shop, is outside its stated focus. Revenue splitting for marketplaces is “Considering” on its roadmap. Stencil guide · Roadmap
Instead: DoAny sells one-off products, bookings, tickets and credit packs as well as subscriptions.
Its payments guide says there are “no pretend payments, no test cards”. Rehearsing checkout means a real charge on your own card and a refund. Stencil payments guide
Instead: DoAny (Stripe test cards in the preview), Lovable (separate test and live environments) or Base44 (a Stripe test environment, on Builder).
Stencil opens a new Stripe account per app with no dashboard login. Buyers always see US dollars, and the account can’t be removed once a payment has settled. Stencil payments guide
Instead: DoAny opens a Stripe Express account for your business, with its own dashboard for refunds and disputes; Base44 connects a Stripe account you own.
Inviting a collaborator needs Team: your credit package plus a flat team fee, so the smallest Team subscription is $50 a month, against $25 for Pro. Plans and credits
Instead: DoAny Pro and Lovable Pro include unlimited team members at $25. Kajabi has no per-seat pricing, but Basic includes 2 admin users. Kajabi pricing
The pricing page lists “Dunning” on every plan. Stripe retries a failed renewal on its own schedule, but access closes at once with no grace period, and Stencil emails neither you nor the subscriber. Stencil pricing · Failed payments
Stencil’s pricing page lists “SEO & AEO” and referrals on every plan. Stencil pricing Its SEO guide documents server rendering and per-page titles you request by chat, and calls the rest “the handful of things worth doing yourself”. Its other growth tools are a prepaid ad wallet and visitor and campaign analytics with ad conversion tracking. SEO guide · Analytics
Instead: DoAny researches your market, then posts daily and follows up with prospects.
Stencil is young: its accelerator’s first cohort began June 8, 2026. Its “limited time” 5x credit bonus has no posted end date, so budget on the base credits. Stencil Accelerator · Stencil pricing
Side by side
Stencil is included as the baseline.
Swipe to compare every column.
| Tool | Price | Fee on your sales | Best for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stencil (baseline) | Free $0, 10 credits a day. Pro from $25/month. Team from $50/month. Payments on every plan. Stencil pricing | 0%, plus Stripe’s 2.9% + 30¢ per US card. $5 minimum sale. Stencil payments | Memberships for an audience you already have | No test mode; USD-only prices; subscription software only |
| DoAny | Free $0, no card, 5 credits a day, and Free takes real payments. Pro from $25/month. DoAny pricing | 0%. Stripe’s usual fees, charged to your own Stripe account. DoAny Terms | Non-technical founders who need the product and the customers | Checkout on the sites it builds has no coupons or free trials at the moment and is Stripe only; no visual editor; no visitor analytics; web only |
| Kajabi | Basic $179/month, or $143/month billed annually. 14-day free trial. Kajabi pricing | 0% revenue share. Kajabi Payments 2.9% + 30¢ on Basic (US); third-party processors add 2% on Basic. Kajabi payment rates | Courses, coaching and memberships with email and community | Highest entry price here; a course platform, not custom software |
| Skool | Hobby $9/month. Pro $99/month. Skool pricing | Hobby 10% + 30¢; Pro 2.9% + 30¢, processing included. Growth Boost takes 30% from members Skool finds. Skool fees | A paid community with courses, launched fast | Skool’s fixed format; Hobby’s 10% adds up quickly; Growth Boost’s 30% is on unless you switch it off |
| Base44 | Free (25 message credits). Builder $50/month, or $40/month billed annually. Base44 pricing | Base44 Payments with service fees, or your own Stripe at Stripe’s rates; both need Builder. Wix payments · Stripe setup | A custom app with a visual editor and built-in backend | Payments need Builder ($50); two kinds of credits to track |
| Lovable | Free $0. Pro $25/month for 100 credits. Lovable pricing | Stripe at standard rates, or Paddle as merchant of record at 5% + 50¢. Lovable payments docs | Code a developer can take over, with test and live payments | Built-in payments need Pro; Paddle costs more per sale |
Arithmetic on published prices
200 members paying $12 is $2,400 a month. Stripe card fees use its standard US rate of 2.9% + 30¢, or $0.648 per $12 charge. Prices checked September 25, 2026. Stripe pricing
Swipe to compare every column.
| Platform and plan | Plan price | Fees on $2,400 | Monthly total |
|---|---|---|---|
| DoAny Free (yourname.doany.site) | $0 | $129.60 (Stripe card fees) | $129.60 |
| Stencil Free | $0 | $129.60 (Stripe card fees) | $129.60 |
| Stencil Pro (your own domain) | $25 | $129.60 (Stripe card fees) | $154.60 |
| DoAny Pro (your own domain) | $25 | $129.60 (Stripe card fees) | $154.60 |
| Lovable Pro with Stripe | $25 | $129.60 (Stripe card fees) | $154.60 |
| Base44 Builder with Stripe | $50 | $129.60 (Stripe card fees) | $179.60 |
| Skool Pro | $99 | $129.60 (2.9% + 30¢, sales tax handled) | $228.60 |
| Lovable Pro with Paddle | $25 | $220.00 (5% + 50¢, sales tax handled) | $245.00 |
| Kajabi Basic | $179 (or $143 billed annually) | $129.60 (Kajabi Payments, 2.9% + 30¢, US) | $308.60 ($272.60 on annual billing) |
| Skool Hobby | $9 | $300.00 (10% + 30¢) | $309.00 |
Both free plans can sell: DoAny Free can go live and take real card payments, and Stencil’s pricing page lists payments on every plan. Stencil pricing Pro, at $25 on either, is for your own domain, and on DoAny for more than 30 credits a month. Lovable’s built-in payments need Pro and Base44’s need Builder. Lovable payments · Base44 Stripe setup
Stencil’s Team does buy more credits: its pricing page shows 200 a month (1,000 during its launch bonus); its plans guide says the smallest package is 100 credits and Team adds a flat fee on top. Stencil pricing · Plans and credits Lovable Pro includes unlimited users too.
Hosting at scale differs too. DoAny’s hosting is included and not metered: keeping the site online never uses credits, though AI features your customers use do. Stencil’s pricing page says products with “significant traffic, storage, email volume” may incur extra usage costs. Stencil pricing Lovable’s pricing FAQ says heavy traffic can draw on your credit balance. Lovable pricing FAQ
Five alternatives
Grouped by type: a company builder, two course and community platforms, two app builders.
Best for: a founder starting without an audience. DoAny researches your idea and market first, then builds a web app with accounts, a database, file storage and Stripe checkout, hosted with no separate server bill. After launch, Annie posts every day, follows up with prospects, runs your CRM and answers customers around the clock. DoAny homepage
Watch out for: no visual editor (you edit by chat), no visitor analytics dashboard, and web only with no native iOS or Android app. The checkout on the sites DoAny builds is Stripe only at the moment, with no coupons, free trials or merchant of record (sales tax is yours). When credits run out, work pauses and your site stays live, though AI features inside it pause too; there is no overage.
Price: Free is $0, no card: 5 credits a day, and it can go live and take real card payments with 0% of your sales (Stripe’s fees apply). Pro starts at $25/month for 100 monthly credits plus 5 a day, with your own domain and unlimited teammates; top-ups are $15 per 50 credits. DoAny pricing · Full comparison: DoAny vs Stencil
Moving from Stencil: hand Annie the code and database records you exported; DoAny imports them, so you don’t start over, and you can export your code and data anytime and sync your code to GitHub. Payments go to your own Stripe account and the preview takes Stripe test cards. DoAny payments docs
DoAny takes 0% of your sales; Stripe’s fees still apply. DoAny Terms The big calls, like turning on payments, paid video renders and new recurring jobs, wait for your approval on a card, and spending stops at the credits you bought. How selling works: sell online with DoAny
Best for: experts who sell courses, coaching and memberships and want email, landing pages, a website and a community in one subscription (Kajabi’s site). Kajabi says it takes no revenue share and has no per-seat pricing, though Basic includes 2 admin users. Kajabi plans
Watch out for: the highest entry price on this list, and a course platform rather than custom software. Kajabi Payments charges 2.9% + 30¢ per card sale on Basic for US businesses (2.7% + 30¢ on Pro), and using a third-party processor where Kajabi Payments is offered adds 2% on Basic.
Price: Basic is $179/month billed monthly, or $143/month billed annually ($1,716 a year), with 2,500 contacts; past that, Kajabi has you add capacity or move up a plan. 14-day free trial and a 30-day money-back guarantee. Kajabi pricing
Best for: audience-led memberships: a community with courses and live calls, with unlimited members on both plans (Skool’s site). Skool pricing Skool is the merchant of record, so it collects and pays sales tax and EU VAT for you.
Watch out for: Hobby’s 10% + 30¢ per transaction includes card processing, and it costs more than Pro once sales pass about $1,268 a month. Growth Boost is on by default and takes 30% of recurring payments from members Skool finds for you; switch it off in Settings → Discovery if you don’t want that. You work inside Skool’s format; you don’t build custom software.
Price: Hobby $9/month. Pro $99/month with 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction up to $899, and 3.9% + 30¢ above $900. Skool fees
Best for: founders who want an AI-built app with the backend, database, sign-in and analytics included, plus a visual editor and two-way GitHub sync for later (Base44’s site).
Watch out for: credits come in two kinds, message and integration, and payments need the Builder plan. You can connect your own Stripe account, which starts in a Stripe test environment and charges Stripe’s rates; Base44’s test checkout runs on your published app, not the editor preview. Base44 Stripe setup Or use Base44 Payments, powered by Wix, which needs a business and bank account in one of 12 countries, including the US, UK, Germany and Switzerland, and adds its service fees. Base44 Payments
Price: Free gives 25 message credits a month and up to 5 apps. Builder is $50/month, or $40/month billed annually, with 250 message and 10,000 integration credits. Base44 pricing
Best for: founders who expect to hand the code to a developer (Lovable’s site). Two-way GitHub sync, built-in payments with separate test and live environments, and a choice of Stripe or Paddle. Lovable GitHub sync
Watch out for: built-in payments need Pro or higher. Paddle acts as merchant of record and handles sales tax, but costs 5% + 50¢ a transaction (a flat 10% under $10); Stripe’s optional Managed Payments can also act as merchant of record for digital products, in fewer countries. Lovable payments Stencil’s own guide argues that owning generated code means owning its upkeep; weigh that if nobody on your side reads code. Stencil vs Lovable
Price: Free $0 with 5 build credits a day, up to 30 a month. Pro $25/month for 100 monthly credits, unlimited users and custom domains. Business $50/month. Lovable pricing
Decision rules
Swipe to compare every column.
| If you need | Pick | Because |
|---|---|---|
| Courses, coaching, an email list and a community in one place | Kajabi | 0% revenue share, and Basic bundles all four |
| The cheapest start for a paid community | Skool Hobby | $9 a month; move to Pro once sales pass about $1,268 |
| Sales tax handled for you | Skool (a paid community) or Lovable with Paddle (a custom app) | Both act as merchant of record: Skool Pro at 2.9% + 30¢, Paddle at 5% + 50¢ a sale |
| Code a developer will maintain | Lovable | Two-way GitHub sync and separate test and live payments |
| A visual editor on top of AI building | Base44 | Visual editor and backend on every plan; GitHub sync from Builder |
| The product and the customers, without learning marketing | DoAny | Research first, then daily posting, outreach, a CRM and round-the-clock answers |
| A teammate on a $25 budget | DoAny or Lovable | Both include unlimited team members on the $25 plan |
| A membership for an audience you have, with trials and coupons | Stay on Stencil | Trials of 1–90 days, coupons and self-serve plan changes |
Be fair to the incumbent
Switching has a cost. For some founders, Stencil is still the best-fitting tool on this page.
Trials of 1–90 days with emails before the first charge, coupons with caps and expiry dates, a monthly/annual toggle on one pricing page and subscriber self-serve plan changes are built in. Stencil features
Claude and OpenAI models come with the app, and Stencil pays for the model access. Scheduled jobs and up to 1,000 emails a day from your own domain are included. Stencil automation Its plans guide says your running app costs no credits. Plans and credits
Stencil’s Privacy Policy says it never trains on your data. DoAny doesn’t train on your data either; Stencil’s promise also binds its AI providers by contract. Stencil privacy
A human team sits behind the product, and the accelerator takes 10 builders a cohort with a $10K launch budget each and 0% equity. Accelerator
Switching from Stencil
What moves, what doesn’t, and how, whichever alternative you pick. For the step-by-step move to DoAny, with test cards and Go live, see DoAny vs Stencil. If you move to DoAny, it imports the code and database records you take from Stencil, so you don’t start over, and you can export your code and data from it anytime and sync the code to GitHub.
Swipe to compare every column.
| Item | Can you take it? | How |
|---|---|---|
| Source code | Yes | Two-way GitHub sync to a new private repository, on one fixed branch. Stencil GitHub sync |
| The whole database | Yes | Project settings → Build → Data exports it as a JSON archive, sent as a link; one export runs at a time. Data export |
| Selected rows | Yes | Copy CSV copies the rows you pick. Data export |
| Sign-in, payments and email plumbing | No | Its pricing FAQ says “Export everything”; its Lovable guide says “The platform machinery isn’t exportable”. On DoAny, sign-in, email and checkout are built in. Stencil pricing FAQ · Stencil guide |
| Paying subscribers | Not documented | No Stripe dashboard; Stencil documents no way to move subscriptions. Time each member’s switch to their renewal date and cancel “At period end” so nobody pays twice. Cancel and refund |
| The payment account | No | It can’t be removed once a payment has settled; severing it is a conversation with Stencil support. Removing the account |
| Your domain | Yes, if registered elsewhere | Change its DNS at your registrar. Bought through Stencil? Stencil holds its settings and documents no transfer-out, so ask support first. SEO guide · Domain guide |
Two cautions before cutover. Switching off Enable payments opens every paywalled page, so leave it on until the last paid period ends. Stencil payments guide Taking the app offline keeps its pages, data and drafts, so do it last. Taking an app offline
Common questions
For a founder who needs customers as well as the product: DoAny, which publishes this page, with market research, daily posting and outreach, 0% of sales (Stripe’s fees still apply), real payments from the Free plan up, and Pro at $25 for your own domain and teammates. For courses, coaching or a community: Kajabi or Skool. For code a developer will maintain: Lovable or Base44. If you sell a membership to an audience you already have and want trials and coupons built in, stay on Stencil.
Skool does: 10% + 30¢ a transaction on Hobby and 2.9% + 30¢ on Pro, card processing included. Its Growth Boost, on by default, also takes 30% of recurring payments from members Skool finds for you; you can switch it off in Settings → Discovery. Lovable’s Paddle option charges 5% + 50¢. Kajabi, DoAny and Stencil take no revenue share; card fees apply, and Kajabi Basic adds 2% if you use a third-party processor where Kajabi Payments is offered.
Not automatically. Stencil’s payment account has no Stripe dashboard and its docs describe no way to move subscriptions, so members sign up again on your new checkout. Time each member’s switch to their Stencil renewal date and cancel their Stencil plan “At period end” so nobody pays twice; the exit table above has the steps.
DoAny, Lovable and Base44. DoAny’s preview takes Stripe test cards (4242 4242 4242 4242 succeeds, 4000 0000 0000 0002 declines) before you give Stripe any details. Lovable keeps separate test and live payment environments. Base44’s Stripe setup (Builder plan and up) starts in a Stripe test environment, with test checkout on your published app. Stencil’s payments guide says there are “no pretend payments, no test cards”.
Yes, three. DoAny Free is $0 with no card: 5 credits a day, up to 30 a month, and it can go live and take real card payments with 0% of your sales (Stripe’s fees apply). Lovable Free is $0 with 5 build credits a day, but built-in payments need Pro at $25. Base44 Free gives 25 message credits a month; payments need Builder at $50 a month. Only DoAny’s free plan comes with built-in payments; Stencil’s own Free plan lists payments too.
Source record
We read each page below on September 25, 2026. DoAny facts come from our own product and public pages. We found no independent reviews of HelloStencil to weigh. Kajabi served two versions of its pricing page that day: one showed Basic at $143 a month billed annually ($1,716 a year), “14 days free” and “No per-seat pricing”; the other showed $179 billed monthly, the Kajabi Payments card rates by plan and 2 admin users on Basic. Both advertise a 20% annual saving, and $179 less 20% is $143.
No tool here can promise you customers or revenue. For every matchup we cover, see every DoAny comparison.
Put the evidence to work
DoAny’s Free plan is $0 with no card: 5 credits a day, research on your idea and market, and a first version live on its own yourname.doany.site address the same day. Test checkout with Stripe’s test cards before you give Stripe anything, then go live and take real payments on Free. Move to Pro at $25 a month when you need a custom domain, more credits or a teammate.