# Discourse vs Circle: which do AI models recommend for community, October 2026

GTM AI Recommendation Index, October 2026 Edition, Community platforms. Zero of fourteen models named Discourse first on the direct prompt; four named Circle. Page: https://gtm-ai-index.com/customer/community-platforms/discourse-vs-circle/

| | First-choice share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels | Models naming it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Discourse | 18% | #2 of 11 | 6% | 49 | 13 of 14 |
| Circle | 11% | #4 of 11 | 13% | 53 | 14 of 14 |

## The direct prompt, model by model

- Mistral Small: circle first (first choices: Circle) (alternatives: Bettermode, Discourse)
- Qwen 3.7 Flash: circle first (first choices: Circle) (alternatives: Discourse, HubSpot Community)
- Kimi K2: circle first (first choices: Bettermode, Circle) (alternatives: Discourse, Gainsight Customer Communities, Higher Logic Vanilla)
- GLM 4.7 FlashX: circle first (first choices: Bettermode, Circle) (alternatives: Gainsight Customer Communities)
- Gemini 3.5 Flash: neither first, one named (first choices: Bettermode) (alternatives: Circle, Discourse, Gainsight Customer Communities, Higher Logic Vanilla)
- Perplexity Sonar: neither first, one named (first choices: Bettermode) (alternatives: Circle, Discourse, Gainsight Customer Communities)
- Grok 4.1 Fast: neither first, one named (first choices: Higher Logic Vanilla) (alternatives: Bettermode, Circle, Discourse, Gainsight Customer Communities)
- DeepSeek V4 Flash: neither first, one named (first choices: Bettermode) (alternatives: Circle, Higher Logic Vanilla)
- MiniMax M2.5: neither first, one named (first choices: Bettermode, Higher Logic Vanilla) (alternatives: Circle, Discourse)
- GPT-6 Luna: neither first, one named (first choices: Higher Logic Vanilla) (alternatives: Bettermode, Discourse)
- Muse Glimmer 30B: neither first, one named (first choices: Bettermode, Higher Logic Vanilla) (alternatives: Circle, Discourse)
- Claude Haiku 4.5: neither named (first choices: Bettermode) (alternatives: Gainsight Customer Communities, Higher Logic Vanilla, Influitive, Zendesk Community)
- GPT-5.4 mini: neither named (first choices: Higher Logic Vanilla) (alternatives: Khoros Communities)
- Llama 4 Maverick: neither named (first choices: Bettermode)

## What the models said about Discourse

- "Highly extensible, lower cost ... but requires more technical resources" (DeepSeek V4 Flash, scale prompt, soft negative)
- "Discourse (open source, requires technical maintenance)" (Qwen 3.7 Flash, scale prompt, soft negative)
- "Self-hosted option is free but requires DevOps expertise" (DeepSeek V4 Flash, direct prompt, soft negative)
- "Discourse (especially if self-hosted) and Bettermode (depending on the plan) are highly recommended for budget-conscious organizations" (Mistral Small, budget prompt, first choice)
- "the best choice is usually Discourse... If your budget is very tight, the best value answer is Discourse" (Perplexity Sonar, budget prompt, first choice)
- "If you need a truly free, owned community today, self-hosted Discourse is the most mature open-source option." (Muse Glimmer 30B, budget prompt, first choice)

## What the models said about Circle

- "“Platforms to Avoid (Unsuitable for most large enterprises): Circle, Mighty Networks, Bettermode (formerly Tribe)”" (Muse Glimmer 30B, negative prompt, hard negative)
- "Circle and Mighty Networks are explicitly listed as unsuitable for most large enterprises" (Mistral Small, negative prompt, hard negative)
- "Avoid pricier ones like Circle ($89/mo)" (Grok 4.1 Fast, budget prompt, hard negative)
- "Highly regarded for its user-friendly interface, strong engagement features, and seamless integration of memberships, courses, and community spaces." (Mistral Small, comparative prompt, first choice)
- "Circle - a comprehensive online community platform that offers a range of features, including community, events, courses, and mobile apps." (Llama 4 Maverick, paraphrase prompt, first choice)
- "1. Circle - Best All-Rounder ... Most mid-market B2B companies find that Circle or Bettermode provide the best balance" (GLM 4.7 FlashX, direct prompt, first choice)

Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category. Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category. Published under CC BY 4.0; the output is the models' output, and nothing here is a recommendation by the index.