Funnel Freedom VS The 9-5 Freedom Hacker Challenge: Which Should You Start With?

⚡Quick Summary:

💸The 9-5 Freedom Hacker Challenge 

A $5 beginner-friendly training that teaches you how affiliate marketing works and walks you through setting up your affiliate business set up step by step.

⚙️Funnel Freedom 

A $97/month software that gives you a ready-to-launch affiliate business setup, including your funnel, lead magnet, emails, and affiliate offers, with your info auto-filled. You just have to plug and play. 

🧠The Difference: 

The Challenge is the training. It gives you an overview of how the business model works and how Funnel Freedom fits into it. Funnel Freedom is the recommended software to build your affiliate business.

They’re designed to work together: the Challenge shows you what to do, and Funnel Freedom helps you do it faster. You’ll still need to input some details (like your name, domain, and affiliate links), but afterwards, Funnel Freedom automates the rest of the setup for you.

💡Which One Is Best for You?

🟢Start with the $5 Challenge if you want to learn how affiliate marketing works and understand how funnel freedom fits into the business model before committing to a monthly tool. It’s a great first step if you’re still exploring and want to understand the strategy behind the set up.

🔵Start with Funnel Freedom if you already understand what the tool does, are comfortable with the monthly cost, and want to skip the tech overwhelm and launch your business faster.

✨Want both?

I recommend starting with the Challenge since it gives you the full picture of how everything connects and walks you through the setup after. Then, when you’re ready and feel like this is the right path for you, you can plug into Funnel Freedom.

📚Try the Freedom Hacker Challenge ($5)

⚙️Launch Funnel Freedom Setup ($97/month)

If you’ve seen the 9-5 Freedom Hacker Challenge and Funnel Freedom, you might be wondering what the difference is between the two and whether you need both. They're designed to work together, but they serve different purposes.

The 9-5 Freedom Hacker Challenge is a $5 mini affiliate marketing course. When you get to the business setup, it recommends using Funnel Freedom,  a tool that builds your entire business automatically after you plug in some personal info.

Funnel Freedom is the $97/month software mentioned in the Challenge. It’s optional, but it saves a lot of time and tech stress by setting everything up for you.

In this post, I’ll break down what each one includes, how they work together, and how to know which one makes the most sense for you right now.

Overview of Each

Before we dive into how they work together, here's a quick breakdown of what each one is and what it's best for.

🧩What is the Freedom Hacker Challenge?

• A $5 beginner-friendly training.

• Teaches you the basics of affiliate marketing.

• Gives you a full overview of how the online business model works and how the software fits into it.

• Covers mindset, step-by-step set up and how to get traffic (aka, how to get customers online).

✅ Good for: Learning how this all works without spending a lot. It's the best place to start if you're curious but not fully ready to invest in a software yet.

🧰What is Funnel Freedom?

• A $97/month all-in-one software.

• Lets you automate and launch your affiliate business faster.

• If you're promoting the Freedom Hacker Challenge, there's a special setting inside the software called "Funnel Freedom" and it has the funnel, emails and everything you need prebuilt.

• You just personalize a few things, and your business is ready to launch.

• Comes with training and weekly support calls to help you along the way.

✅ Good for: Skipping the tech headaches, launching fast and focusing only on getting traffic (the software does the heavy lifting).

9-5 Freedom Hacker Challenge and Funnel Freedom Key Differences

Which One Should You Choose?

🟢Go with the Freedom Hacker Challenge if:

• You want to understand what affiliate marketing is and how Funnel Freedom fits into the big picture.

• You’d rather start with the most affordable path and learn the “why” behind the business model.

• You want to test things out before committing to the $97/month software (because let’s be honest, this is a chunk of money when you’re just starting out.)

• You’re still figuring out if affiliate marketing is right for you.

🔵Go with Funnel Freedom if:

• You already know what affiliate marketing is and just want to launch.

• You’re okay spending $97/month to skip the tech setup and save time.

• You’ve taken the Challenge and now want the done-for-you system.

• You feel overwhelmed by tech but are ready to start your affiliate business ASAP.

Can You Use the 9-5 Freedom Hacker Challenge and Funnel Freedom Together?

Yes! They actually work BEST when used together.

Funnel Freedom is an all-in-one software that helps you build a business from scratch, but it also includes a prebuilt setup specifically for the Freedom Hacker Challenge.

Inside Funnel Freedom, there’s a dedicated setup (literally labeled “Funnel Freedom”) designed to match everything taught in the Challenge.

It comes with a ready-to-go funnel, email sequence, lead magnet, and affiliate programs, all built to help you launch faster by modeling a proven 7-figure business.

Instead of spending months building things from scratch, you’re using a shortcut that compresses years of trial and error into about an hour of setup.

Of course, you’ll still need to drive traffic to your business, but that’s all you’ll need to focus on, since the tech and setup are already handled.

I personally took the Challenge first before investing in the software. It helped me understand what I was paying for and made the $97/month feel more worth it.

Overall, it’s a powerful tool, especially when paired with a course like the Freedom Hacker Challenge that actually teaches you the bigger picture.

FAQ

Do I need Funnel Freedom to do the Freedom Hacker Challenge?

No. You can do the Freedom Hacker Challenge without Funnel Freedom. There’s a cheaper alternative called Systeme.io, but setup takes longer and requires more manual work. You can read my full Systeme.io review here.

Can I use Funnel Freedom for other affiliate programs besides the Freedom Hacker Challenge?

Yes. You can use Funnel Freedom for any affiliate program. What makes it so appealing for the Freedom Hacker Challenge is the fully built, high-quality business that’s ready to launch with minimal effort.

Is Funnel Freedom worth $97/month for a beginner?

It depends on your budget and goals. If you can afford it and want to launch your online business fast without getting stuck on the tech side, it can be an amazing tool. Just remember, the software won’t do the marketing for you. If you’re not driving traffic to your business, you won’t make sales no matter how much you pay for it. If $97/month sounds like a lot, it might be better to start smaller so you’re not stressing about the cost before you’ve made your first commission.

Do I have to promote Jonathan Montoya's offers if I use Funnel Freedom?

Nope! You can promote any offer. Jonathan’s offers, like the Freedom Hacker Challenge, just work especially well because they’re designed to fit the pre-made setup and help you launch fast.

Final Verdict: Should You Start With Funnel Freedom or The 9-5 Freedom Hacker Challenge?

There’s no one-size-fits-all answer here, it really depends on where you are in your journey.

If you’re just getting started, the Freedom Hacker Challenge is a smart place to begin. It’s affordable, beginner-friendly, and gives you a clear overview of what this business model is, how it works, and whether it’s right for you before committing to any software.

But if you’re already sold on the idea and ready to go all-in, Funnel Freedom can help you skip months (or even years) of trial and error by giving you everything prebuilt and ready to launch.

Either way, both options are designed to work together — so it’s less about which one is “better,” and more about which one makes the most sense for you right now.

Whichever path feels right for you — I’ve linked both below to make it easy:

📚Try the Freedom Hacker Challenge ($5)

⚙️Launch Funnel Freedom Setup ($97/month)

Still not sure? Don't worry, I've written honest reviews on both to help you choose with confidence. Check them out here:

→ 9-5 Freedom Hacker Challenge Review

→ Funnel Freedom Review