# SamCart vs ThriveCart (2026) · Funnel Critic > Source: https://funnelcritic.com/compare/samcart-vs-thrivecart Head-to-head ## SamCart vs ThriveCart Choose ThriveCart if the entry-level plan must include an order bump. Choose SamCart if you will pay for Pro to get that bump, plus AI-built pages and courses. By [Marta Ovalle](/authors/marta-ovalle), reviewed by [Funnel Critic Editorial](/authors/funnel-desk-editorial). Published 19 October 2026\. We update this page every 90 days. **Disclosure:**We may earn a commission when you buy through links on this page. It never affects our rankings. ### Quick answer You are choosing between two checkouts. One question decides it: which plan includes an order bump, and which plan makes you upgrade before that bump is available. Pick ThriveCart if you want order bumps and one-click upsells on the entry-level plan and you are fine using a separate email tool; pick SamCart if you want AI-built pages and a course area on Core and you are willing to pay for Pro to unlock bumps, upsells and affiliates. ThriveCart sells that entry-level plan by the month, and it also sells a one-time lifetime license. SamCart charges for Core or Pro monthly, with a discount for annual billing. [Compare the plans](#cost). The table sets the entry-level tier next to the tier that includes affiliate management and dunning. ### Side by side The two tools you are choosing between, at a glance. | Tool | Free trial | Best for | | --------------------------------- | ---------- | --------------------------------------------- | | [SamCart](/reviews/samcart) | 7 days | Courses and AI pages, with bumps on Pro | | [ThriveCart](/reviews/thrivecart) | 30 days | One-time checkout license, affiliates on Pro+ | ### What you are really choosing between Both products take a card payment for a digital product. The difference is where the extra offer is included. ThriveCart calls the first plan Standard. The homepage includes one order bump, one-click upsells and downsells, and A/B split testing on that plan, plus ThrivePages and ThriveCart Academy Starter. That add-on sits on the checkout form, before the buyer pays. The one-click step is the offer that appears after payment, so the buyer does not enter the card again. A split test compares two versions of that checkout. Affiliate tools require Pro+. Affiliates and automated payouts are on Pro+, and so is subscription dunning. Extra bumps, custom branding, a custom domain, and Academy Growth are on Pro+ as well. Standard is the base plan, and Pro+ is where affiliates, dunning, and extra bumps are included. SamCart reserves those same offers for Pro. The [pricing page](https://www.samcart.com/pricing) lists Core, then a higher tier described as everything on Core plus more. That higher tier is Pro. The added features are one-click upsells, order bumps, A/B testing, Subscription Saver, and the Affiliate Center. The API and third-party processors are in that same Pro list. Core remains a hosted checkout. It is the wrong plan if the bump is the main thing you need. Core is the SamCart plan to choose when you are selling a course. Courses are included on Core, and so are the AI tools that build pages and products. CheckoutOS is the hosted checkout included with both SamCart plans. If you want courses and AI-generated pages, and you can add the bump later, stay on Core. If you need the bump immediately, compare Pro with ThriveCart Standard. ThriveCart Academy is training bundled with the license. Academy Starter is included with Standard, and the Growth bundle is included with Pro+. SamCart's course area is where your buyers log in, and Core includes it. ThriveCart runs the checkout page, the bump, and the offer after payment. Broadcasts stay in the email service you already pay for. Buyers who already own the lifetime option have written that affiliate management was not part of that purchase. It required an additional fee. The one-time license ends the monthly software fee. Those buyers still paid extra for the affiliate program. If affiliates are part of your launch, budget for Pro+. Public reviews that compare the two checkouts describe the checkout features as similar. People argue about the monthly bill, and about which tier includes affiliate management. Commenters still call SamCart's base price high, because the bump is reserved for the plan above it. #### Which scenario fits you If SamCart Pro is outside your budget and you need the bump now, choose ThriveCart Standard. That plan includes one bump, an upsell after payment, and two checkout versions. The homepage says the platform fee on sales is zero. If you are ready to pay for SamCart Pro because you want Subscription Saver and your own affiliate program, choose SamCart. Core already includes courses and AI page-building tools. If you want to avoid a recurring software fee, choose ThriveCart's lifetime license. It is still listed on the homepage next to the monthly plans. Affiliate management and dunning still require Pro+, even when someone already bought that one-time license and later wants an affiliate program. When you read a comparison published by either vendor, use that vendor's own price list. [ThriveCart's article about SamCart](https://thrivecart.com/compare/thrivecart-vs-samcart/) still claims that SamCart's price increases automatically when monthly revenue crosses set thresholds. SamCart's pricing page shows two flat tiers. [SamCart's article about ThriveCart](https://www.samcart.com/compare/samcart-vs-thrivecart) still describes a one-time Standard license, with features held behind a yearly Pro+ add-on. ThriveCart's own pages list the monthly Standard and Pro+ prices, and they still sell the lifetime license. ### Where each one wins and loses #### SamCart ##### What works * Checkout and the courses app are in the same account, and Core includes both. * SamPay does not add an extra SamCart fee on top of the card rate. That applies on Core and on Pro. * Pro bundles order bumps, one-click upsells, A/B tests, Subscription Saver and the affiliate center. * Core includes cart abandonment recovery, so you can follow up with shoppers who left without buying. You do not have to pay for Pro to send that follow-up. * In a 2025 comparison with ThriveCart, the poster said SamCart replied faster to support questions. ##### What to watch * Order bumps and one-click upsells are only on Pro. Core's checkout does not include them. * A buyer running more than one business said the subscription stops making sense past about $300 a month for each business. * Older Capterra reviews still describe email-only support with a long delay. * A Trustpilot review describes a renewal charge a year after a low-priced course purchase. * A buyer called the newer order-upgrade feature, with pro-rata billing, crazy expensive. #### ThriveCart ##### What works * ThriveCart's processor fees page says the company takes 0% of the sale. Stripe, PayPal, or a buy-now-pay-later service still charges its own rate. * Standard includes one order bump, one-click upsells and downsells, checkout A/B tests, ThrivePages and subscriptions. * The campaign page still offers a one-time Standard license. The 2026 pricing announcement kept that license and added monthly plans beside it. * The monthly plans include a 30-day trial. Standard also includes ThriveCart Academy Starter. * Forum threads include sellers who tried other platforms and came back to ThriveCart. ##### What to watch * Affiliate tools, subscription dunning, extra order bumps and a custom domain are Pro+ features. One lifetime buyer found that affiliate management required a yearly add-on. * In an alternatives thread, a reader said SamCart's support team answered much faster. * One buyer requested a refund during the guarantee period and said it had still not been paid. * On a Standard subscription, the processor fees page lists separate charges for subscription bumps, retention offers and Advanced Adaptive Pricing. * This product is checkout software. Buyers who also need email marketing and a membership site often compare it with Kartra and Systeme.io. ### What they cost SamCart's monthly plans, ThriveCart's monthly plans, and ThriveCart's lifetime license are the three pricing options. The first is SamCart, billed every month. Core is the cheaper SamCart plan. Pro is the plan that adds the bump. Annual billing discounts Core and Pro. SamCart advertises that discount on its pricing page, and the feature set is the same either way. The second is ThriveCart, also billed every month. The rates are on [ThriveCart's monthly pricing post](https://thrivecart.com/blog/new-monthly-pricing-model/). Standard is the cheaper monthly plan and Pro+ costs more. Each has a lower price on annual billing and a higher price month to month. Use the annual price if you expect to stay for a year. Use the month-to-month price if you might cancel. New monthly signups get 30 days free. SamCart advertises 7 days. The third is ThriveCart's lifetime license, still listed on [the homepage](https://thrivecart.com/) beside the monthly plans. It suits a buyer who wants to avoid a checkout subscription. Affiliates and dunning remain a Pro+ purchase, separate from that one-time license. Card processing is separate from the software price in all three cases. ThriveCart adds no platform fee of its own. The card processor still charges its fee. SamCart prints a SamPay rate for Core and for Pro. That page lists the SamPay rate as SamCart's processing fee, with no additional platform fee. Tax collection on the same page is 50 basis points on Core and 35 basis points on Pro. Third-party processors are on the Pro list, along with the API. | | SamCart | ThriveCart | | ------------------- | ------------------------- | --------------------------------- | | Lower tier | Core $79/mo | Standard $37/mo annual, or $47/mo | | Higher tier | Pro $199/mo | Pro+ $67/mo annual, or $87/mo | | Yearly billing | 25% off the monthly price | Annual rate is the lower figure | | Trial | 7 days | 30 days on monthly plans | | Platform fee | No platform fee on SamPay | 0% on sales | | Card rate | SamPay 2.9% + 30¢ | Processor bills separately | | Order bump | Pro | 1 on Standard, more on Pro+ | | Post-purchase offer | Pro | On Standard | | Checkout split test | Pro | On Standard | | Affiliates | Pro | Pro+ | | Failed rebilling | Subscription Saver on Pro | Dunning on Pro+ | | Courses | Course area on Core | Academy Starter on Standard | A full year of SamCart Pro equals twelve monthly Pro payments. ThriveCart's lifetime license is one payment for someone who wants to avoid that recurring bill. If SamCart Pro is outside the budget, Standard already includes the bump, the upsell after payment, and two checkout versions. I would choose ThriveCart if you mainly need a checkout. Standard already includes one bump, upsells and downsells after the purchase, and an A/B test on the checkout. ThriveCart's platform fee on sales is zero. I would choose SamCart if your budget covers Pro. That plan includes the bump, Subscription Saver, and the affiliate center. Core already includes courses and the AI page tools. Buying Core and then learning that the bump is on Pro is an expensive misreading of the price list. The deciding factor is SamCart's higher plan. If that monthly fee is out of reach, choose Standard. If you plan to pay for Pro so that courses, AI-built pages, and an affiliate program are in one account, choose SamCart. Our default pick ### ThriveCart ThriveCart is a good fit when you need order bumps and one-click upsells, with no ThriveCart fee on the sale. Use the monthly trial if you might need affiliates. Pay for the one-time Standard license only if you plan to keep using it, and only if you do not need Pro+ or you have already set money aside for it. 4 ### Frequently asked questions Which cart costs less once you need a bump and a follow-up offer? The smaller license that already includes both is ThriveCart Standard. SamCart prints both on Pro. Set those two tiers next to each other, rather than the two entry stickers. Does SamCart Core include an order bump? Core covers the checkout, the pages, and courses. The bump is printed with the Pro additions, beside upsells and split tests. Does ThriveCart still sell a lifetime license? Yes. It is listed beside the monthly plans. The monthly Standard and Pro+ rates are the ones in the table. The pay-once checkout is the alternative to those monthly plans. Which trial lasts longer? ThriveCart's monthly plans advertise a month. SamCart advertises a week. Does either add a fee on top of the card processor? ThriveCart's own cut on a sale is zero, and the processor still charges. SamCart publishes a SamPay rate and does not add a second platform percentage on that rate. A different processor is a Pro item. ### What we read about SamCart #### From SamCart * * Core and Pro plan prices #### Other sources 11 discussions and reviews read for this page. Quotes are excerpts; open a link to read the original in context. 1. \[r1\] [Thrivecart vs Samcart decisions ](https://www.reddit.com/r/martechstacks/comments/1f64i9g/thrivecart%5Fvs%5Fsamcart%5Fdecisions/) Reddit 2. \[r2\] [Thrivecart vs Samcart decisions ](https://www.reddit.com/r/martechstacks/comments/1f64i9g/thrivecart%5Fvs%5Fsamcart%5Fdecisions/) Reddit 3. \[r3\] [Thrivecart vs Samcart decisions ](https://www.reddit.com/r/martechstacks/comments/1f64i9g/thrivecart%5Fvs%5Fsamcart%5Fdecisions/) Reddit 4. \[r4\] [Thrivecart vs Samcart decisions ](https://www.reddit.com/r/martechstacks/comments/1f64i9g/thrivecart%5Fvs%5Fsamcart%5Fdecisions/) Reddit 5. \[r5\] [Order Upgrades (Thrivecart Alternative?) ](https://www.reddit.com/r/digital%5Fmarketing/comments/1ex2vmu/order%5Fupgrades%5Fthrivecart%5Falternative/) Reddit 6. \[r6\] [Is there better software than Thrivecart? ](https://www.reddit.com/r/marketing/comments/1umrsfh/is%5Fthere%5Fbetter%5Fsoftware%5Fthan%5Fthrivecart/) Reddit 7. \[r7\] [Samcart anyone? ](https://www.reddit.com/r/shopify/comments/nstyit/samcart%5Fanyone/) Reddit 8. \[r8\] [SamCart Trustpilot reviews ](https://www.trustpilot.com/review/samcart.com) Trustpilot 9. \[r9\] [Good Idea with slow customer support ](https://www.capterra.com/p/204117/SamCart/reviews/) Capterra 10. \[r10\] [Order Upgrades (Thrivecart Alternative?) ](https://www.reddit.com/r/digital%5Fmarketing/comments/1ex2vmu/order%5Fupgrades%5Fthrivecart%5Falternative/) Reddit 11. \[r11\] [SamCart vs ThriveCart on G2 ](https://www.g2.com/compare/samcart-vs-thrivecart) G2 ### What we read about ThriveCart #### From ThriveCart * * Automation fees on Standard #### Other sources 11 discussions and reviews read for this page. Quotes are excerpts; open a link to read the original in context. 1. \[r1\] [Thoughts on ThriveCart ](https://www.reddit.com/r/digital%5Fmarketing/comments/1l8jeoj/thoughts%5Fon%5Fthrivecart/) Reddit 2. \[r2\] [Thoughts on ThriveCart ](https://www.reddit.com/r/digital%5Fmarketing/comments/1l8jeoj/thoughts%5Fon%5Fthrivecart/) Reddit 3. \[r3\] [Thrivecart vs Samcart decisions ](https://www.reddit.com/r/martechstacks/comments/1f64i9g/thrivecart%5Fvs%5Fsamcart%5Fdecisions/) Reddit 4. \[r4\] [Thrivecart vs Samcart decisions ](https://www.reddit.com/r/martechstacks/comments/1f64i9g/thrivecart%5Fvs%5Fsamcart%5Fdecisions/) Reddit 5. \[r5\] [ThriveCart reviews on Capterra ](https://www.capterra.com/p/234835/ThriveCart/reviews/) Capterra 6. \[r6\] [ThriveCart reviews on Capterra, page 2 ](https://www.capterra.com/p/234835/ThriveCart/reviews/?page=2) Capterra 7. \[r7\] [Thoughts on ThriveCart ](https://www.reddit.com/r/digital%5Fmarketing/comments/1l8jeoj/thoughts%5Fon%5Fthrivecart/) Reddit 8. \[r8\] [Do any of you really use thrivecart? ](https://www.reddit.com/r/digital%5Fmarketing/comments/13n9fw0/do%5Fany%5Fof%5Fyou%5Freally%5Fuse%5Fthrivecart%5Fif%5Fso%5Fare%5Fyou/) Reddit 9. \[r9\] [Do any of you really use thrivecart? ](https://www.reddit.com/r/digital%5Fmarketing/comments/13n9fw0/do%5Fany%5Fof%5Fyou%5Freally%5Fuse%5Fthrivecart%5Fif%5Fso%5Fare%5Fyou/) Reddit 10. \[r10\] [ThriveCart alternatives ](https://www.reddit.com/r/martechstacks/comments/1au0juj/thrivecart%5Falternatives/) Reddit 11. \[r11\] [Kartra vs ThriveCart ](https://www.reddit.com/r/EcommerceWebsite/comments/1j5nemr/kartra%5Fvs%5Fthrivecartwhich%5Fone%5Fshould%5Fi%5Fgo%5Ffor/) Reddit Choose ThriveCart Standard if the base plan has to include the bump. Choose SamCart only if you plan to use Pro. [Compare the plans](#cost) before you start either trial. ### Related reading The cart-versus-suite versions of this choice are [ThriveCart vs Kartra](/compare/thrivecart-vs-kartra) and [Kartra vs SamCart](/compare/kartra-vs-samcart). For a funnel builder set against another suite, read [Systeme.io vs ClickFunnels](/compare/systeme-io-vs-clickfunnels) and [Kartra vs ClickFunnels](/compare/kartra-vs-clickfunnels). The [Kartra review](/reviews/kartra), the [ClickFunnels review](/reviews/clickfunnels), and the [Kartra pricing guide](/reviews/kartra/pricing) cover the suites people put next to a dedicated cart. The ranked shortlist covers [the best funnel and checkout tools](/best), and the [six-question picker](/best/which-funnel-tool-fits-you-a-6-question-picker) helps when the list is longer than two names. [The methodology page](/methodology) explains how we rank these tools. Every other pairing is on [the comparison hub](/compare). --- [Funnel Critic](/) Independent reviews and comparisons of funnel, page and checkout tools for startups running paid traffic. Ranked from real user reports and verified pricing. We may earn a commission when you buy through links on this page. It never affects our rankings. © 2026 Funnel Critic. Independent and reader-supported.