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Which Community Platform Should You Actually Use?

You know that feeling when you’re trying to pick a community platform and everyone’s telling you something different?

One person swears by Circle. Another says Kajabi does it all. Someone in a Facebook group told you Heartbeat is the future. Your business coach uses Skool. And your friend who runs a membership? She’s like, just use a WhatsApp group, it’s free.

And you’re sitting there thinking, I just want to build a community. Why does this feel like I’m trying to decode the Matrix?

Here’s what nobody tells you: the platform you choose matters way more than people want to admit.

Because a bad platform choice doesn’t just make your life harder as the founder. It makes your members’ experience worse. It kills engagement. It quietly sabotages retention. And it can turn something that should feel supportive and clear into something that feels chaotic and draining.

I see this pattern all the time. Someone finally decides they need a community for their business. They’re excited. They’ve got momentum. They know their people need a space to connect and get support.

So they start researching platforms. And immediately, they’re overwhelmed.

Because every platform says they’re the best. Every review is conflicting. Every guru has a different opinion. And nobody’s actually explaining what makes one platform better than another for your specific situation.

So what happens? One of two things.

Either they freeze. They spend weeks researching, comparing features, reading reviews, and never actually make a decision. The idea just stays an idea because they’re too scared to pick the wrong thing.

Or they pick something fast without really thinking it through. They go with what’s free. Or what they’ve heard of. Or what their friend uses. And six months later, they realize it’s not working. Their members are confused. Engagement is low. The whole thing feels harder than it should.

I don’t want that to happen to you.

So today, we’re breaking down the most popular community platforms. We’re talking about what they’re actually good for, where they fall short, and how to know which one makes sense for your business.

And yes, I’m going to tell you why I think Circle is the right choice for most serious community builders. But I’m also going to be honest about the others. Because the worst thing you can do is choose a platform that’s wrong for what you’re trying to build.

The Platforms You Shouldn’t Use for Real Communities

Let’s start with the ones I see people using that honestly shouldn’t be used for real communities.

WhatsApp and Telegram

Look, I get it. They’re free. Everyone already uses them. They feel familiar. You can set up a group in two minutes.

But here’s the truth: WhatsApp and Telegram are messaging apps, not community platforms.

They’re great for quick coordination. A small group chat with five people who already know each other. A tight mastermind. But if you’re trying to build a real community with structure, programming, onboarding, and retention? They’re a disaster.

Here’s why:

No organization. Everything lives in one endless thread. Someone asks a question on Monday. By Wednesday, it’s buried under 200 messages. Good luck finding that conversation again.

Relentless notifications. People either keep them on and get overwhelmed by constant pinging, or they mute the group and miss everything.

No onboarding. New members just get thrown into the middle of whatever’s happening. No welcome. No guidance. No context.

Zero control. No branding. No structure. No way to guide people intentionally.

WhatsApp and Telegram work for small, scrappy groups where everyone already knows each other. But if you’re trying to build something that lasts and feels professional? You’ll outgrow them in about two weeks.

Slack and Discord

These are better than WhatsApp, but they have their own problems.

Slack and Discord were both built for teams, not communities. Slack is for workplace collaboration. Discord is for gamers. And while people have tried to adapt them for community use, they’re not designed for it.

Here’s what happens: channels multiply like rabbits. Suddenly you have 47 channels and nobody knows where to post anything.

Conversations move so fast that if you’re not online in real time, you’ve missed everything. I’ve been in Slack and Discord communities where I log in, see 200 unread messages across 15 channels, and immediately close the app because it’s too overwhelming.

When people feel overwhelmed, they disengage. They stop showing up. They mute notifications. And eventually, they stop being active members.

Slack is slightly better for structure, but it’s expensive once you scale. And the free version has message limits, so older conversations just disappear. Imagine building a library of valuable content and then losing it because you hit Slack’s free tier cap.

Neither Slack nor Discord are built for retention, onboarding, or thoughtful member journeys. They’re built for speed and volume.

The “Sort Of” Community Platforms

Now let’s talk about platforms that were built for communities—sort of.

Patreon

Patreon is great for creators who want to monetize their audience with membership tiers. If you’re a podcaster, YouTuber, or artist offering exclusive content to supporters, Patreon works.

But it’s not really a community platform. It’s a payment and membership platform with a community feature tacked on.

The community side of Patreon is pretty basic. You can post updates. You can share exclusive content. People can comment. But there’s no real structure. No spaces. No sophisticated member journeys. No advanced programming or event features.

Patreon works best for creators with a fan-based model. But if you’re building a business around community and retention, it’s not the right tool.

Kajabi

Kajabi markets itself as the all-in-one platform. Courses, email marketing, websites, sales funnels, payments—everything.

And for course creators who want everything in one place, Kajabi can be appealing.

But here’s the problem: Kajabi’s community features are weak.

They added community as an afterthought because they realized people wanted it. But it’s not where their focus is. Kajabi is a course platform first. The community side feels bolted on. It’s clunky. It’s not intuitive. It doesn’t have the depth of features that actual community platforms have.

If your business is 90% courses and 10% community, Kajabi might work. But if community is central to what you’re building, Kajabi is going to feel like you’re trying to build a house with the wrong tools.

I’ve had people come to me specifically because they started on Kajabi and the community experience was so frustrating that they wanted to migrate.

Kajabi works if you’re all-in on courses and funnels and you need a basic community space on the side. But if community is your core offer, look elsewhere.

The Newer Players

Heartbeat

Heartbeat is newer and honestly, it’s beautiful. The design is clean, modern, and feels premium.

It’s also really focused on real-time engagement. Chat-based threads. Live conversations. If your community thrives on quick back-and-forth, Heartbeat can work.

But Heartbeat is still relatively new, which means it’s still building out features. And because it’s so focused on real-time chat, it can feel chaotic if your members aren’t online at the same time.

Heartbeat works well for tight-knit, highly engaged communities where people are showing up daily. But if your members need structure, asynchronous engagement, or a more guided experience, it might not be robust enough yet.

Skool

Skool has been blowing up lately. It’s designed specifically for course creators and community builders who want gamification built in. Members earn points. They level up. They unlock things.

And for some audiences, that works. If your members love competition and progress tracking, Skool can be really engaging.

But the gamification can feel forced if your audience isn’t into that vibe. Not everyone wants to earn points and compete. Some people just want a calm, supportive space to learn and connect.

Skool also has a very specific aesthetic and structure. If that doesn’t align with your brand, you’re going to feel constrained.

Skool works if you’re all-in on the gamified model and your audience loves that energy. But it’s not for everyone.

Why I Choose Circle (And Why You Should Too)

Now let’s talk about Circle.

Yes, I’m biased. I’m a Circle Certified Partner. I run my own community on Circle Plus. I help people build their Circle communities every single day.

But I’m going to tell you exactly why I think Circle is the best choice for most serious community builders.

Circle was built specifically for community. Not teams. Not gamers. Not social media. Community.

Here’s what makes Circle different:

Structure that works. Circle uses Spaces, which are like organized sections of your community. You can have a space for general conversation, resources, courses, events. It keeps everything organized without being overwhelming.

Members can follow the spaces they care about and mute the ones they don’t. So they’re not drowning in notifications about stuff that’s not relevant to them.

Clean member experience. When someone joins, they’re not dumped into chaos. You can create a clear onboarding flow. You can guide them to the right spaces. You can make it easy for them to know where to go and what to do.

Built for retention. Circle has features like member profiles, direct messaging, events, live streams, and a full course platform. Everything you need to keep people engaged and coming back.

Scales with you. Whether you have 10 members or 10,000, Circle works. And if you upgrade to Circle Plus, you can launch your own fully branded app in the App Store and Google Play.

That’s what I did with coCreator Society. My members have an app on their phones with my branding. My colors. My logo. It’s not Circle’s app. It’s mine.

Evolving into all-in-one. Circle has added email and a website builder. These features are relatively new, but Circle is investing in becoming a true all-in-one platform.

They’re not trying to be Kajabi, where community is an afterthought. They’re building from the foundation of community first, and then adding the other tools you need to support that.

That difference matters. Because when you’re using a platform where community is the core, everything else is designed to support that.

Making Your Decision

The platform you choose isn’t just a technical decision. It’s a strategic one.

If you’re just starting out and testing whether there’s demand for community around your work, you might start somewhere simple. But if you’re serious about building a real community, if you’re charging for access, if you want retention and long-term growth, you need a platform that’s built for it.

For most serious community builders, that’s Circle.

And if you want to see what a properly built Circle community actually feels like, come join the coCreator Society at cocreatorsociety.com.

If you’re thinking about building a community and want help choosing the right platform or building it properly, I work with founders and teams to build Circle communities that actually retain people. You can find me at rachelbusinesscoach.com.

Choosing the right platform is one of the most important decisions you’ll make. Don’t rush it. Don’t just go with what’s free or what everyone else is using.

Think about the experience you want to create. Think about retention. Think about long-term growth.

And then choose accordingly.

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Want to Learn More?

Join coCreator Society:
cocreatorsociety.com

Get started with Circle today: https://try.circle.so/rachel