Online courses are one of the highest-margin products a TikTok creator can sell. A single course priced at $97--$297 can generate more revenue than months of Creator Fund payouts, and TikTok's algorithm gives you free distribution to potential buyers every day. Creators across niches -- fitness, finance, photography, cooking, marketing -- have built six-figure course businesses using short-form video as their primary sales channel.
This guide walks through every step: picking your topic, choosing a platform, pricing strategically, building a sales funnel on TikTok, launching effectively, and collecting testimonials that drive future sales.
Choosing a Course Topic That Sells
The right course topic sits at the intersection of three things: what you know well, what your audience asks about, and what people will pay to learn. Not every popular TikTok topic translates into a paid course. Entertainment content rarely sells courses. Educational and skill-based content does.
Start with your most-asked questions. Scroll through your comments from the last 90 days and tally the recurring themes. If 200 people asked "How do you edit your videos like that?" you have a clear signal. If your DMs are full of "Can you teach me your workout routine?" that is another proven demand signal.
Validate demand before you build anything. Create three to five TikTok videos that teach a small piece of what the course would cover. Add a call to action: "I'm thinking about making a full course on this -- drop a comment if you'd want it." Track the engagement rate on those videos versus your average. If they perform 20--50% above your baseline, you have validated interest.
High-Converting Course Niches on TikTok
Some niches consistently outperform others for course sales. The common thread is that buyers expect a measurable outcome -- a new skill, higher income, or visible transformation.
| Niche | Example Course Topics | Typical Price Range |
|---|---|---|
| Social media growth | TikTok algorithm mastery, content calendars | $97--$297 |
| Freelancing/business | Starting an agency, landing clients | $197--$497 |
| Fitness/health | 12-week transformation, meal prep systems | $47--$197 |
| Creative skills | Video editing, photography, music production | $97--$297 |
| Personal finance | Budgeting, investing basics, debt payoff | $47--$197 |
| E-commerce | Dropshipping, TikTok Shop setup | $197--$497 |
Avoid topics that are too broad ("How to be successful") or too narrow ("How to edit one specific transition in CapCut"). The sweet spot is a specific outcome delivered through a structured, multi-lesson format. "Go from 0 to 10K followers in 30 days" is specific. "Learn about social media" is not.
Selecting the Right Course Platform
Your course platform handles hosting, payments, student access, and often email marketing. The wrong choice costs you money through high fees, limited features, or a clunky student experience that drives refund requests.
Platform Comparison
| Platform | Monthly Cost | Transaction Fee | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teachable | $39--$119/mo | 0--5% | Beginners, simple setup |
| Kajabi | $149--$399/mo | 0% | All-in-one business (course + email + site) |
| Thinkific | $0--$99/mo | 0% on paid plans | Budget-conscious creators |
| Gumroad | $0/mo | 10% | Simple digital products and mini-courses |
| Stan Store | $29/mo | 0% | Creators already using link-in-bio tools |
| Skool | $99/mo | 0% | Course + community hybrid |
For creators selling their first course, Gumroad or Stan Store offer the lowest barrier to entry. You pay nothing upfront and only lose a percentage when you make a sale. As your course revenue grows past $2,000--$3,000 per month, migrating to a flat-fee platform like Teachable or Kajabi saves money.
If community is central to your course (accountability groups, weekly calls, peer feedback), Skool combines course hosting with a built-in community forum. This hybrid model increases completion rates and reduces refund requests because students feel connected to a group.
Pricing Your Course for Maximum Revenue
Course pricing is more psychology than math. Underpricing signals low value and attracts uncommitted buyers who never complete the material. Overpricing without proof of results creates refund headaches.
The $97 price point is the sweet spot for a first course from a TikTok creator. It is low enough to be an impulse purchase for a motivated follower, yet high enough to signal real value. Creators with larger audiences (250K+ followers) or proven track records can charge $197--$497 for comprehensive programs.
Use tiered pricing to capture different buyer segments:
- Basic tier ($47--$97): Video lessons only, self-paced access.
- Standard tier ($147--$197): Video lessons plus downloadable templates, worksheets, or resource packs.
- Premium tier ($297--$497): Everything above plus group coaching calls, community access, or direct feedback.
Tiered pricing typically increases average order value by 30--50%. Most buyers choose the middle tier, which is exactly the one you should design to be your most profitable.
Offer a launch discount of 20--30% for the first 48--72 hours. This creates urgency and rewards your most engaged followers. After the launch window closes, hold the full price. Constant discounting trains your audience to wait for sales rather than buy immediately.
Factor in platform fees and taxes when setting prices. A $97 course on Gumroad nets you about $87.30 after the 10% fee. Set aside 25--30% for taxes on your creator income, leaving you roughly $61--$65 per sale. At 100 sales, that is $6,100--$6,500 in profit.
Building a TikTok Sales Funnel
TikTok does not sell your course for you automatically. You need a deliberate funnel that moves viewers from casual scrollers to paying students. The funnel has four stages: awareness, interest, desire, and action.
Stage 1: Awareness Through Free Content
Post educational TikToks that solve small problems related to your course topic. A creator selling a video editing course posts 60-second editing tutorials. A fitness creator shares single workout moves with form tips. Each video proves your expertise and attracts the right audience.
Post three to five times per week. Consistency keeps you in the algorithm. Each video should deliver a complete, useful tip -- not a teaser that frustrates viewers. Generous free content builds trust, and trust drives sales.
Stage 2: Interest Through Lead Magnets
Move interested followers off TikTok and onto your email list. Offer a free resource -- a checklist, template, mini-guide, or short video series -- in exchange for their email address. Place the link in your bio using a link-in-bio tool.
Email lists convert at 2--5% for course sales, compared to 0.1--0.5% for cold TikTok traffic. A list of 1,000 emails at a 3% conversion rate equals 30 course sales. At $97 each, that is $2,910 from a single launch email sequence.
Stage 3: Desire Through Social Proof
Testimonials, screenshots of student results, and before/after transformations build desire. Before your first launch, offer 5--10 beta testers free or discounted access in exchange for honest feedback and a video testimonial. These testimonials become your most powerful sales assets.
Post testimonial content on TikTok regularly. A 15-second video of a student saying "I went from 500 to 15K followers using this course" converts better than any sales pitch you could write.
Stage 4: Action Through a Clear Sales Page
Your sales page needs five elements: a headline stating the transformation, bullet points listing what students learn, social proof (testimonials, student count, results), pricing with tier options, and a prominent buy button. Keep the page simple. Long, hype-filled sales pages underperform clean, benefit-focused pages for TikTok audiences.
Link your sales page from your TikTok bio, pinned comments, and email sequences. During launch, mention it naturally in your videos: "The full system is in my course -- link in bio."
Course Creation and Production
You do not need expensive equipment to create a high-quality course. Students care about clear audio, organized content, and actionable lessons -- not cinematic production.
Record with your phone in a quiet room with good lighting. Use a $30--$50 lapel microphone for clean audio. Screen-record tutorials with free tools like OBS or Loom. Edit with CapCut, DaVinci Resolve, or iMovie.
Structure your course into modules and lessons. A typical course has 4--8 modules with 3--5 lessons each, totaling 2--6 hours of video content. Each lesson should be 5--15 minutes. Shorter lessons have higher completion rates.
| Course Length | Completion Rate (Avg) | Ideal For |
|---|---|---|
| Under 2 hours | 45--60% | Mini-courses, single skill |
| 2--4 hours | 30--45% | Standard courses |
| 4--8 hours | 15--30% | Comprehensive programs |
| 8+ hours | Under 15% | Certification-level programs |
Include downloadable resources with each module: worksheets, templates, checklists, or swipe files. These tangible extras increase perceived value and give students something to reference after watching the video.
Film your entire course in one to two focused weekends. Batch recording keeps your energy and delivery consistent. Edit and upload within the following week. Many creators delay launches for months chasing perfection. A good course shipped today earns more than a perfect course shipped never.
Launching Your Course on TikTok
A structured launch generates 50--70% of a course's first-month revenue in the first 72 hours. Plan your launch in three phases.
Pre-launch (2 weeks before): Tease the course in your regular content. Share behind-the-scenes clips of you recording. Post polls asking what topics should be covered. Build your email list aggressively during this period. A creator with 100K followers should aim for 1,000--3,000 email signups before launch day.
Launch day: Post a dedicated TikTok announcing the course. Go live to walk through the curriculum, answer questions, and share the link. Send your launch email sequence (3--4 emails over 48 hours). Offer an early-bird discount that expires in 48--72 hours.
Post-launch (ongoing): Continue posting educational content that relates to the course. Share student wins and testimonials. Run a "last chance" promotion at the 7-day mark. Then shift to evergreen selling -- mentioning the course naturally in relevant content 2--3 times per week.
Creators who follow this framework typically see 60--100 sales in the first week from an audience of 50K--100K followers, generating $5,800--$9,700 at a $97 price point.
Collecting and Using Testimonials
Testimonials are your most valuable marketing asset after the course exists. They do the selling for you by proving results to skeptical buyers.
Ask for testimonials at two moments: immediately after a student completes a key module (when excitement is high) and 30 days after completion (when results are measurable). Provide a simple template: "What was your situation before? What did you learn? What result did you achieve?"
Video testimonials outperform written ones by 3--5x in conversion rate. Ask students to record a 30--60 second selfie video. Offer an incentive -- a bonus lesson, a free coaching call, or a small discount on future products.
Display testimonials on your sales page, in your email sequences, and as TikTok content. A weekly "student spotlight" TikTok builds ongoing social proof while giving your students recognition.
Integrate course income with your broader creator strategy. Courses pair well with digital product sales, brand partnerships, and other income streams to build a resilient creator business. Use the TikTok Money Calculator to project how course revenue fits into your total earnings picture.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many followers do I need to sell a course on TikTok?
There is no minimum follower count to sell a course. Creators with as few as 5,000 engaged followers have generated $5,000+ in course sales during a single launch. Engagement rate matters more than follower count. A creator with 10,000 followers and a 10% engagement rate will outsell a creator with 100,000 followers and a 1% engagement rate. Focus on building an email list from your TikTok audience -- that is where conversions happen.
How long should my first course be?
Aim for 2--4 hours of total video content, split into 4--6 modules with 3--5 lessons each. This length hits the sweet spot between delivering enough value to justify the price and keeping completion rates above 30%. Shorter courses (under 2 hours) work well as lower-priced entry products at $27--$47. Avoid creating courses longer than 6 hours for your first launch -- the production burden increases dramatically and completion rates drop below 20%.
What if someone copies my course content?
Some level of content overlap is unavoidable -- many people teach similar topics. Your competitive advantage is your unique perspective, personality, and the relationship you have built with your TikTok audience. People buy courses from creators they trust, not from whoever has the most original information. Copyright protects your specific expression (your videos, your worksheets), and hosting on a gated platform prevents casual sharing.
Should I offer refunds?
Yes. A 14--30 day refund policy increases sales by 15--25% because it removes purchase risk. Typical refund rates for online courses are 5--10%. The additional sales from having a refund policy far outweigh the small percentage of refunds you will process. Most platforms handle refunds automatically.
Can I sell a course through TikTok Shop?
TikTok Shop is designed for physical and some digital products but is not optimized for full course delivery. The better approach is to use TikTok as your marketing channel and host the actual course on a dedicated platform like Teachable, Kajabi, or Gumroad. You can sell a course access code or link through TikTok Shop as a digital product, but delivering the course experience through a proper learning platform gives students a better experience and reduces refunds.
Related Resources
- Selling Digital Products on TikTok -- complement your course with templates, ebooks, and other digital products.
- Building Multiple Income Streams on TikTok -- see how courses fit into a diversified creator revenue strategy.
- How to Make Money on TikTok -- explore all available monetization methods and find the right combination for your niche.
- Financial Planning for TikTok Creators -- manage your course revenue with smart budgeting and tax planning.