Tool profile
Heartbeat: cost, fit and limits
Heartbeat is a community platform made by Heartbeat Chat, Inc. that combines channels, courses, events and Stripe-based payments, with a Pulse AI assistant that can build courses, offers, pages and workflows. It is aimed at coaches, course sellers and membership businesses that want a low entry price and branded web and mobile apps.
What to know first
Heartbeat is a low-cost, creator-focused option with three tiers that scale on member caps, fees and support speed. Build costs $49 a month for 350 members, Grow $149 for 5,000 and Scale $849 for unlimited. Pulse AI is listed from the entry plan, but the page gives no usage limits. Free migration and a no-card trial lower the cost of testing it.
Heartbeat at a glance
| Maker | Heartbeat Chat, Inc., United States |
|---|---|
| Free plan | Free trial only |
| Entry price | $49 per month (Build) |
| API access | No |
| Category | Best AI Community Platform Software in 2026, rank 5 of 11 |
| Website | heartbeat.chat |
Who Heartbeat is best for
New coaches testing a paid community
Build starts at $49 a month, or $40 billed yearly, with a 14-day trial that needs no credit card and free migration from other platforms.
Course sellers with cohorts
Courses can run cohort or self-paced with progress tracking and quizzes, and events add live video, RSVPs, recordings and recurring series in the same app.
Creators who want an AI builder
Pulse AI builds courses, offers, pages, channels and workflows inside the community, which saves setup time for a host without a designer.
Brands wanting a white-label app
Scale adds a branded mobile app, advanced analytics and a dedicated onboarding expert, with 200 hours of native video and 50 landing pages, quoted through a sales call.
Heartbeat plans and pricing
| Plan | Price | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Build | $49 per month, or $40 billed annually | Up to 350 members, 5 workflows, 1 landing page, 5% transaction fee, Heartbeat branding shown, native video as a $19 add-on and support within 2 business days. |
| Grow | $149 per month, or $124 billed annually | Up to 5,000 members, unlimited workflows, 15 landing pages, 50 hours of video, branding removable, a 2.5% fee and support within 1 business day. |
| Scale | $849 per month, or $766 billed annually | Unlimited members, 50 landing pages, 200 hours of video, a 1.25% fee, white-label mobile app, advanced analytics and same-day support. |
Checked November 2026.
What Heartbeat does
- Pulse AI
- An assistant that builds courses, offers, pages, channels and workflows inside the community. The pricing page lists it from Build but states no usage limits for any plan.
- Channels and messaging
- Threaded channels, direct messaging and member profiles are the daily-use layer. Admins and moderators count toward the member limit, which matters on Build's 350-member cap.
- Courses and events
- Lessons support cohort or self-paced delivery with progress tracking and quizzes. Events include live video, RSVPs, recordings and recurring series, and video hosting is metered by hours.
- Payments
- Subscriptions, one-time and tiered pricing, coupons and built-in checkout run through Stripe. Heartbeat's own fee falls by tier, and Stripe's processing fee is charged on top.
- Automation workflows
- Build allows 5 automation workflows and Grow and Scale are unlimited, which suits onboarding sequences and re-engagement without a separate tool. That removes a separate automation subscription for most small communities.
How Heartbeat handles your data
Heartbeat's privacy policy names Heartbeat Chat, Inc. and says the company is headquartered in the United States. It lists Google Analytics, Mixpanel and Fullstory for site traffic, says Google Calendar data is not shared with third parties, and says deleted accounts may remain in backups. The policy is dated January 1, 2021, does not address AI or model training, and names no certification beyond claiming COPPA-aligned practices and GDPR-based policies. For Pulse AI data handling, the vendor's policy was not checked for this.
Where Heartbeat falls short in practice
- . Build stops at 350 members and counts admins and moderators in that total, so a growing community reaches the Grow plan quickly and pays $149 a month.
- . The page says a community is deactivated if not upgraded after the 14-day trial, and trial limits may apply, and communities inactive for 30 days are deleted automatically.
- . No SSO, audit log or security certification appeared, and Scale is quoted through a sales call, so security-reviewed buyers have little to verify. The privacy policy is dated January 1, 2021.
Works with
Alternatives to Heartbeat
Heartbeat: common questions
How many members does Heartbeat's cheapest plan allow?
Build allows 350 members at $49 a month, or $40 a month billed annually, and admins and moderators count toward that limit. Grow raises the cap to 5,000 at $149 and Scale removes it at $849 a month, quoted through a sales call.
What transaction fee does Heartbeat charge?
Heartbeat charges 5% on Build, 2.5% on Grow and 1.25% on Scale, on top of Stripe's processing fee. A community selling $2,000 a month through Build would pay $100 in Heartbeat fees plus Stripe charges, so the fee often decides which tier pays off.
What does Pulse AI do in Heartbeat?
The homepage says Pulse AI can build courses, offers, pages, channels and workflows inside the community. The pricing page lists it on the Build plan as well. No usage limit, model name or data policy for Pulse AI appeared on the pages we opened.
Does Heartbeat offer a free trial?
Yes, 14 days with no credit card required. If you do not upgrade by the end, the community is deactivated, and communities inactive for 30 days are deleted. Migration from other platforms is described as free on every plan, with step-by-step guides for moving from Circle, Skool and Kajabi.
Does Heartbeat have a branded mobile app?
A white-label mobile app is listed as a Scale-plan extra, which is quoted through a sales call. The homepage mentions a branded web and mobile app for the community. The FAQ says Scale members get an iOS and Android app, and the Branded App page says Heartbeat handles design, development and app store delivery.