Scroll down if you came looking for the time-cost calculator (it's at the bottom)

Q: What does it really cost to run an online digital business?

Running a digital business requires six essential functions: hosting, product delivery, payments, offers, landing pages, and email.

Whether you use Kajabi, WordPress, Thinkific, Teachable, Podia, or a blend of tools, you must pay for and manage all six.

Most entrepreneurs dramatically underestimate the total cost because fragmented tools create hidden financial and time expenses.

I know I did when I started my journey back in 2011. Back then, the live webinar was the coolest tool on the block, and I attended and purchased more than I'd like to admit. What I discovered was that no one was telling me the full picture of what I needed to run a digital business—which was my goal. I wanted to be an attorney and be home with my infant son. Now I know these are the essential tools anyone running a digital business needs.

Q: What are the six functions every online business needs?

Every digital business needs:

1. Hosting
2. Product delivery (courses, memberships, community, coaching)
3. Payments (checkout + cart)
4. Offers (order bumps, upsells, pricing, access)
5. Landing pages + navigation
6. Email + contacts (2,500+ subscribers)

These functions are mandatory, no matter which platform or tool stack you choose.

You may change what you sell (and you likely will), so how much you use each of these may fluctuate. But if you're operating a digital business in any way—these are the tools and functionality you'll need.

Q: Why is fragmentation the biggest hidden cost in online business?

Fragmentation forces you to pay for multiple tools that rarely integrate smoothly. The cost isn’t just the software fees—it’s the time lost managing the tools, fixing issues, duplicating work, correcting errors, updating plugins, and maintaining consistency.

Fragmented systems create:

• more tech problems
• more legal exposure
• more VA (or equivalent, could very well be you - I know it was me!) oversight
• more customer support issues
• more operational chaos

These hidden time costs almost always exceed the software spending.

I didn't start my digital business to create more chaos. I did it to leverage what I contain as a person into a digital format—one that would let me blend all parts of who I am and what matters to me.

I spent four years (2011–2015) living in digital duct tape chaos. So I know firsthand what fragmentation really costs.

Q: How much does the average pieced-together online business cost per month?

For a business with:

• one website
• 1-5 digital products (the container could be an online course, newsletter, podcast, etc.)
• one community (a space for person-to-person connections)
• 2,500 email contacts
• basic automations

the average monthly expenses are:

• Hosting: $30–40/mo
• Product delivery: $75–120/mo
• Checkout/cart: $50–159/mo
• Offers: $30–147/mo
• Landing pages + funnels: $30–147/mo
• Email (2,500 contacts): $45–79/mo

Total monthly range: $260–700+

Total annual range: $3,000–8,400+

This does not include time costs.

Q: Why do time costs matter more than software costs?

Time is the most expensive part of running your business—even if you hire a VA.

I chose to run a very lean team. I don't enjoy managing people, and with the technology available to me, I've kept my team incredibly small. If you want to see a great video series from a dear friend, PBK Bizlebox member, and fellow lean-team business owner:

• How to Build an Online Business You Don't Need to ESCAPE from!
• STOP Believing These 6 Pieces of Bad Business Advice!
• Pricing Strategies That Will Simplify Your Online Business (this isn't directly about lean team but it is directly on-point with simplifying to amplify and staying with the lean-mindset that I am all about.)

Most founders spend hours each week managing tools:

• troubleshooting integrations
• updating plugins
• redesigning pages
• fixing broken checkout links
• trying to remember where something is stored
• dealing with tool limitations
• managing VAs who can't see the whole system

When you convert those hours into dollars, the cost becomes significant—often thousands per year.

Q: What does the Time + Cost Calculator show me?

The calculator reveals:

• your monthly cost of tools
• your annual cost of tools
• your annual cost of time
• your true annual cost
• optional comparison to a consolidated system like Kajabi
• your potential annual savings

It’s a clean, attorney-designed way to see your actual financial and operational footprint.

I want you to see your numbers and make the best decision for you. I never want slick marketing to push you into the situations I found myself in during the digital duct tape years (2011–2015). The best way to decide is to run the numbers.

Q: Why did you create this calculator?

Because most entrepreneurs make business decisions with incomplete information. “Tool costs” are easy to estimate. “Time costs” are invisible—until you quantify them.

This calculator shows founders the real infrastructure cost of their current setup and gives them the data they need to choose a simpler, more stable, legally sound foundation.

This isn’t new advice.

I’ve been saying the same thing for nearly a decade.

Here is the original post where I documented canceling all my tools the month I bought Kajabi:

Bought Kajabi and Canceled All This

Q: Why does consolidation save money?

A consolidated platform, like Kajabi, reduces:

• the number of tools
• the number of integrations
• the number of break points
• the number of legal exposure points
• the number of hours spent troubleshooting

Even when a consolidated tool, like Kajabi, has a higher monthly subscription fee, the total annual cost (tools + time) is nearly always lower. That's why I've always used this calculator—it started as a shared Evernote file back in 2016. Now it's a slick calculator, thanks to evolving tech.

Q: What happens when you compare a fragmented system to a consolidated one?

The calculator generates:

• your consolidated annual cost
• your tool-based savings
• your time-based savings
• your total annual savings
• your percentage savings

It also gives you a clean, visual side-by-side comparison.

Q: Where does Kajabi fit into this conversation?

Kajabi handles all this and so much more:

• hosting
• product delivery
• payments
• offers
• landing pages
• email

on one consolidated platform.

This reduces legal risk, operational friction, tool management, and time wasted across multiple systems.

If you want the strongest, legally sound, foundational Kajabi setup bonus I’ve ever offered, you can use my affiliate link:

See what I have to say about Kajabi specifically

Q: Why should I trust this analysis?

Because I’ve been teaching digital infrastructure, legal compliance, and online business setup since 2015 as both:

• an attorney
• and a real parent running a real business

This isn’t theory.

It’s lived experience, legal expertise, and long-term data.

And the original article from years ago confirms I’ve been saying the same thing since the beginning:

Bought Kajabi and Canceled All This

Q: How can I calculate my own cost right now?

Scroll below and use the free calculator.

Enter:

• your monthly tool costs: you can use this page to help you estimate if you don’t have hard costs yet
• your weekly hours: estimate high, low, and everything in between
• your hourly rate: use yours, a VA’s, play with it high and low

then compare it with a consolidated option

You'll see your true cost immediately. Then you can make the best decision for you. I've done my best to strip out slick marketing and persuasion—that's not who I am, never has been, never will be. I'm someone who fell for others' slick marketing and persuasive techniques.

I'm an attorney, mother, wife, and world traveler who wants you to make the ideal decision for yourself. I've made mine, and I'll share it in case it helps you achieve what you want in the way that works best for you.