# Alternatives to LearnDash

LearnDash is a WordPress plugin, first launched in 2013, that turns a WordPress site into a course-selling learning management system with quizzes, certificates, memberships, and reporting. It is sold as an annually renewing licence (no permanent free tier) and is now operated under the Liquid Web/Nexcess corporate umbrella, with the former learndash.com marketing site redirecting to liquidweb.com and documentation hosted at docs.nexcess.com.

LearnDash ranks #8 of 8 in Learning management systems, with an Alt Score of 44. It is licensed under Proprietary (GPLv2+ per vendor terms), sold by subscription from $259/year and available on Web, iOS and Android. 8 of 12 checklist rows are verified against a public source.

Source: https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/learndash/
Category: Learning management systems

## Where LearnDash stands out

- **Sell courses / e-commerce** — 4 of 8 apps with a verified answer have this

## Overview

- **Who it's for**: Course creators, educators, businesses, and training teams who want to build, sell, and manage online courses on a WordPress site they own and control, from solo creators up to institutions and enterprise L&D teams.
- **What you get**: A drag-and-drop course/quiz builder, built-in certificates and membership/subscription sales via the bundled MemberDash module, Stripe/PayPal/WooCommerce payment integrations, and (on Pro/Elite tiers) reporting, groups/cohorts, and multi-instructor management; SCORM/xAPI import, gamification badges, and a native mobile app are available only through separate add-ons.
- **How it works**: You install LearnDash as a plugin on your own WordPress hosting and purchase an annual licence (Essentials/Pro/Elite); LearnDash Cloud is also offered as an alternative hosted option for people who don't want to self-host WordPress.

## Profile

- **License**: Proprietary (GPLv2+ per vendor terms) (verified 2026-08-03)
- **Pricing model**: Subscription (verified 2026-08-03)
- **Starts at**: $259/year (verified 2026-08-03)
- **Platforms**: Web, iOS, Android

## Ranked alternatives

| # | App | Alt Score | Licence | Platforms |
|---|-----|-----------|---------|-----------|
| 1 | [Moodle](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/moodle.md) | 93 | GPL-3.0-or-later | Web, iOS, Android |
| 2 | [Open edX](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/open-edx.md) | 89 | AGPL-3.0 | Web, iOS, Android |
| 3 | [TalentLMS](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/talentlms.md) | 85 | Proprietary | Web, iOS, Android |
| 4 | [Absorb LMS](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/absorb-lms.md) | 81 | Proprietary | Web, iOS, Android |
| 5 | [Docebo](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/docebo.md) | 78 | Proprietary | Web, iOS, Android |
| 6 | [Blackboard Learn](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/blackboard-learn.md) | 74 | Proprietary | Web, iOS, Android |
| 7 | [Canvas LMS](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/canvas-lms.md) | 70 | AGPL-3.0 | Web, iOS, Android |

Alt Score = Verified coverage (90%) + Visibility (10%). See https://altcatalog.com/how-alt-score-works/

## Feature comparison

Legend: Yes / No / Partial / ? (not verified).

| Learning management systems checklist | LearnDash | Moodle | Open edX | TalentLMS | Absorb LMS | Docebo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Subscription | OSS + paid hosting | OSS + paid hosting | Freemium | ? | Subscription |
| Starts at | $259/year | Free | Free | $119/mo | ? | ? |
| License | Proprietary (GPLv2+ per vendor terms) | GPL-3.0-or-later | AGPL-3.0 | Proprietary | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| Platforms | Web, iOS, Android | Web, iOS, Android | Web, iOS, Android | Web, iOS, Android | Web, iOS, Android | Web, iOS, Android |
| Self-hostable | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
| Open source | Partial | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
| SCORM support | ? | Yes | Partial | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| xAPI support | ? | Yes | Partial | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Quizzes and assessments | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Certificates | ? | Partial | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Live virtual classroom | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile app | Partial | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Offline learning | Partial | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Gamification | ? | Partial | Yes | Yes | Partial | Partial |
| Sell courses / e-commerce | Yes | Yes | Partial | Yes | Yes | Partial |
| SSO (SAML/OIDC) | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |

## Sources

Sources for LearnDash. Each alternative is sourced on its own page.

- **License**: Proprietary (GPLv2+ per vendor terms) — <https://www.liquidweb.com/policies/learndash-terms-and-conditions/> (verified 2026-08-03)
- **Pricing model**: Subscription — <https://www.liquidweb.com/software/learndash/#pricing> (verified 2026-08-03)
- **Starts at**: $259/year — <https://www.liquidweb.com/software/learndash/#pricing> (verified 2026-08-03)
- **Platforms**: Web, iOS, Android — <https://www.liquidweb.com/software/learndash/app/> (verified 2026-08-03)
- **Self-hostable**: Yes — <https://www.liquidweb.com/software/learndash/#pricing> (verified 2026-08-03)
- **Open source**: Partial — <https://www.liquidweb.com/policies/learndash-terms-and-conditions/> (verified 2026-08-03)
- **Quizzes and assessments**: Yes — <https://www.liquidweb.com/software/learndash/#pricing> (verified 2026-08-03)
- **Live virtual classroom**: No — <https://www.liquidweb.com/software/learndash/#pricing> (verified 2026-08-03)
- **Mobile app**: Partial — <https://www.liquidweb.com/software/learndash/app/> (verified 2026-08-03)
- **Offline learning**: Partial — <https://www.liquidweb.com/software/learndash/app/> (verified 2026-08-03)
- **Sell courses / e-commerce**: Yes — <https://www.liquidweb.com/software/learndash/#pricing> (verified 2026-08-03)
- **SSO (SAML/OIDC)**: No — <https://www.liquidweb.com/software/learndash/#pricing> (verified 2026-08-03)

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Ranked by verified data, never by who paid. https://altcatalog.com/trust/