Best Community Platforms · pricing · Updated June 2026
Discourse pricing (2026)
Discourse starts at $0/mo (Free), across 4 plans. Best for Developer communities and open-source projects needing a public, SEO-indexed forum. Every figure links to Discourse's own page and the date we captured it.
At a glance
- Entry price: $0/mo (Free)
- Free tier: Yes
- Compliance: HIPAA — · SOC 2 Yes · GDPR Yes
- Best for: Developer communities and open-source projects needing a public, SEO-indexed forum; SaaS companies building product support and feedback hubs; Organizations that want self-hosted, open-source community infrastructure; Educational institutions and non-profits (significant discounts available)
Discourse plans & pricing
| Plan | Monthly | Annual | Billing | Notes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | — | flat | Hosted community exploration tier. No credit card required. | discourse.org |
| Pro | $100 | — | flat | Unlimited members & chat, unlimited categories/tags, custom groups, email support, custom themes, API/webhook access, 15+ plugins, 5 staff seats. 85% off for education (with docs), 50% off for non-profits. | discourse.org |
| Business | $500 | — | flat | Everything in Pro plus advanced analytics, automation, events, gamification, SSO (OpenID & OAuth2), 20+ additional plugins, 15 staff seats, priority support, migration services. | discourse.org |
| Enterprise | Quote-only | — | custom | Quote-only. Everything in Business plus expert design/development, 99.9% uptime SLA, GDPR & CCPA compliant hosting, 50+ plugins, unlimited staff seats. | discourse.org |
Last verified 2026-06-14. https://www.discourse.org/pricing (official pricing page, accessed 2026-06-14). No annual billing discount stated on page. GDPR & CCPA compliant hosting on Enterprise. No annual discount advertised. Cross-checked against getapp.com.
Capabilities
Integrations: GitHub, Discord, Google SSO, Facebook SSO, Apple SSO, LinkedIn SSO, Microsoft SSO, Amazon SSO, Zendesk, Patreon, OAuth2, OpenID Connect, LTI 1.3.
Key features: 100% open-source codebase (self-host for free); SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001:2013 certified (managed hosting); Real-time chat channels alongside long-form discussion forums; AI-powered topic summarization and translations (49 languages); Trust/reputation system where members earn moderation rights; Full data ownership with export capability and no vendor lock-in; SSO/SAML enterprise authentication; Comprehensive plugin and theme ecosystem (50+ plugins on Enterprise); SEO-optimized public forums; Email integration (reply-by-email, mailing list mode).
Plan limits: Free: 2 staff seats, 500k monthly page views, 5GB storage, 10 categories max; Pro: 5 staff seats, 500k monthly page views, 20GB storage, unlimited categories; Business: 15 staff seats, 500k monthly page views, 100GB storage; Enterprise: unlimited staff seats, 1M+ monthly page views, 200GB+ storage; Education discount: 85% off (with documentation); Non-profit discount: 50% off.
Frequently asked questions
How much does Discourse cost?
Discourse starts at $0/mo (Free); it has 4 published plans. Verified 2026-06-14.
What are cheaper alternatives to Discourse?
Cheaper community platforms than Discourse (entry $0/mo) include Skool at $9/mo, Heartbeat at $49/mo, Mighty Networks at $79/mo. Verified 2026-06-14.
Does Discourse support HIPAA?
Discourse HIPAA support: —. SOC 2: Yes. GDPR: Yes.
Does Discourse have a free plan?
Discourse free tier: Yes.
Discourse vs alternatives
Compare all community platforms → · Discourse alternatives → · Open data · MCP
Cheaper community platforms alternatives
- Circle from $89/mo
- Kajabi from $89/mo
- Mighty Networks from $79/mo
- Heartbeat from $49/mo
- Skool from $9/mo