- Graphy is an all-inclusive online platform that lets you create, market, and sell digital courses globally through the completely white-labeled websites and mobile apps that come with the package.
- Thinkific is one of the top platforms designed for launching courses with minimum technical skills.
- Teachable is one of the most budget-friendly LMS solutions available out there, serving as an avenue for online educators to build and sell courses of their own.
Looking for LearnDash alternatives, a popular WordPress LMS plugin? We’ve got you covered. This article highlights the best free and paid LearnDash rivals and competitors, including WordPress plugins and independent platforms.
LearnDash is a popular WordPress LMS plugin for creating and managing online courses.
It has several features, such as course development tools, lesson administration, quizzes, assignments, and certificates. However, some users may find LearnDash to be overly complicated or costly.
Here are some of the most popular LearnDash alternatives and competitors:
LearnDash Alternatives: In-depth Review
1. Graphy
Graphy is an all-inclusive online platform that lets you create, market, and sell digital courses globally through the completely white-labeled websites and mobile apps that come with the package.
It offers unlimited learners, live session recordings, course notifications, built-in email integration, in-app community interaction, and more.
While LearnDash may be easy to pick up on, it trails behind regarding these aspects. Graphy covers everything that doesn’t come with a LearnDash subscription, making it an even more preferable choice – an LMS solution that is hard to beat.
Who is it for?
Graphy is a platform equally beneficial to new and old players in the educator economy.
It provides an array of features to launch your courses as a beginner and advanced marketing tools to get your sales numbers up and make it to the top. Trusted by the best in the business, it is one platform you can rely on for years.
Course Creation
Be it images, video, audio, PDFs, quizzes, or SCORM files, Graphy supports it all! You can upload any type of content one by one or in bulk through their multimedia course builder and make your course content rich.
The built-in Zoom feature also lets you conduct live classes, and if you have an active Zoom license, you can integrate it with the platform.
Whether you want to launch self-paced or instructor-led courses or schedule your content as per dates and specific time intervals, you have complete control of it.
Pros
- Unlimited users and courses
- Round-the-clock customer support
- Conduct live classes through the in-built Zoom feature.
- Content features include PDFs, Videos, and Audio files.
- Effective payment gateways
Cons
- For a beginner, it might be a little difficult to navigate
2. Thinkific
Thinkific is one of the top platforms for launching courses with minimum technical skills.
While you work on your course content and sales, Thinkific aids you with everything you need to launch it, like website hosting, security, and updates. Using this platform, anyone can quickly launch and deliver content on their branded website.
Who is it for?
Thinkific is a cloud-based platform best suited for those who prefer not to do the heavy lifting and want to get their courses launched quickly.
The platform offers options for coding and programming but has certain limitations. Hence, it would be a perfect fit for small businesses and entrepreneurs focusing on online course creation and promotion.
Course Creation
While creating your course, you must add existing resources to the course content. Thinkific also supports a handful of file types like MP3 & WAV audio, MP4 videos hosted on Wistia, PDF, and iFrame links.
Like Graphy, you can also upload multiple files using their Bulk Importer feature, making the process less tedious and more efficient.
Pros
- Courses can be very quickly created
- You can add prerequisites to the course content
- Highly customizable features like styles, colors, typography, etc
- They have tons of marketing tools like coupons.
- Tons of marketing tools like coupons
Cons
- They have very limited tools and functionalities.
- Lack of built-in community features
3. Teachable
Teachable is one of the most budget-friendly LMS solutions available, serving as an avenue for online educators to build and sell their own courses.
The customization options are less than LearnDash in number, but they rank higher considering the pricing factor.
Teachable also has an edge regarding student engagement and interaction, ease of navigation, selling & marketing tools, and customer support.
Who is it for?
Teachable caters to the needs of a similar set of audiences like Thinkific – solo entrepreneurs and small companies that wish to build a passive income source by selling courses without going into the nitty-gritty of it.
It is a common choice for educators more inclined to create video-driven course content. It is most sought after by those who want to get Thinkific-like offerings at a much lower price point.
Course Creation
After uploading your course content, you can organize it into sections and lectures. Teachable follows the standard course creation process, supporting common file types like MP4, MOV, AVI video, PNG or JPG images, MP3 audio, and PDF.
SCORM packages are not supported by this platform, and the quiz builder also offers relatively fewer options.
Pros
- User-friendly interface
- Register your custom domain.
- It has a built-in payment processor.
- Teachable offers a good range of marketing & sales tools.
Cons
- The website is not completely white-labeled.
- While Thinkific offers 3 themes, Teachable provides only 1.
4. Kajabi
Kajabi is a web-based software platform that goes beyond creating and delivering courses. It reigns supreme when it comes to emphasizing more on email and marketing campaign-related efforts.
With its built-in email management, sales funnel builder, and marketing automation, Kajabi has a high market standing as an all-in-one course platform that doesn’t require third-party tools.
Who is it for?
Kajabi is ideal for educators who prefer to operate various digital products from a single dashboard.
It is best suited for training centers and institutes selling simple products and those who do not want to worry about using multiple solutions for one tool.
Course Creation
While it supports all major audio, video, and image file types, you can also upload PDFs, PPTs, DOCs, and TXTs as part of your course content.
It facilitates dragging and dropping of content but managing the builder comes with quite a learning curve. The uploading of your content and designing of structure is done through Product Blueprint, which also comes with sample structures and editable preset templates.
It comes with a quiz builder of its own but does not support advanced features like question banks.
Pros
- Kajabi is marketing-focused.
- There is flexibility in pricing.
- There is versatility in site design.
- You can grow your audience.
- The analytics dashboard is a bonus.
Cons
- There isn’t any central media library.
- Need to borrow help from a pro coder.
5. Podia
Podia is a relatively new name but noteworthy for cloud-based platforms that take care of all the hosting and other technical areas for you while letting you create and sell your content in the form of courses.
You can use the Podia subdomain or integrate a custom domain to build a stunning website for yourself with even zero prior experience in designing.
Who is it for?
Podia is best suited for entrepreneurs or individuals wishing to sell a chunk of digital products, courses, or memberships online in one unified platform.
However, the platform has certain limitations as a fully functional Learning Management System.
It is considered an excellent alternative to LearnDash. Still, if you want to scale your education business, you might want to consider the rest of the alternatives in the list since it’s a more creator-centric platform.
Course Creation
Podia supports all the necessary file types – audio, images, video, PDFs, except for SCORM packages. The interface is very minimalistic and self-explanatory.
You can easily upload your pre-designed content, edit course information, create & rearrange sections, and create simple quizzes as part of your course.
Pros
- Podia doesn’t charge any extra costs.
- It supports the bundling of courses.
- Podia plans have been priced affordably.
- You can launch your affiliate platform.
- It gives you the storage and bandwidth to host your own video.
Cons
- Email personalization features are minimal.
- There are no built-in certification features.
- You cannot conduct a test run in the form of a free plan.
6. iSpring Market
iSpring Market is another fantastic alternative that can help digital trainers create and sell courses in the blink of an eye. You can simply upload the resources and build your online store in minutes.
The platform and the features available are pretty much easy to grasp, both for the instructors and the learners. It is a fully functional LMS service that lets you assign user roles to moderate the sales processes and track learner performance.
Who is it for?
This platform best serves training centers, education businesses, and coaches who want to sell their courses quickly since the process is as easy as just uploading existing content to your site, and the platform takes care of the hosting and heavy loading.
It is also a solid bet for training institutes that wish to provide professional certification programs, as the admin can view and manage all learner data and issue certificates accordingly.
Course Creation
The course creation process in iSpring Market is a cakewalk. With unlimited storage and bandwidth, you wouldn’t require a 3rd party hosting provider. It supports SCORM packages, MP4 & FLV videos, MP3 audio files, and others like PPT, PDFs, and DOCs.
Whatever the content, you can just upload and organize them into folders, and you’re good to go! The completion settings of each learning path can also be adjusted for each chapter.
Pros
- Requires little technical knowledge.
- Get started without purchasing subscriptions to other hosting platforms.
- User roles can be customized as per different access levels.
- Certificates are unique to each course.
- Features like leaderboards and badges are available.
Cons
- Knowledge articles aren’t organized
Quick Links
- How to Create a Website
- WebsitePolicies Review
- How To Create Amazon-Sponsored Product Campaigns
- Best Coding Blogs and Websites
Conclusion: LearnDash Alternatives 2023
The table below shows a quick comparison of the platforms we have reviewed:
| Platform/ Categories | LearnDash | Graphy | Thinkific | Teachable | Kajabi | Podia | iSpring Market |
| Unlimited courses | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| Unlimited Storage | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Free Plan for Trails | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
| Video Hosting | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| SCORM Content Support | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Zero Transaction Fee | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Live Chat Support | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Free Migration | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | No |
| Starting Prices | $199/ year | $54/ month | $39/ month | $29/ month | $119/ month | $33/ month | $77/ month |
All the platforms listed here are known and trusted industry-wide. You must determine your business goals and requirements for the most suitable one.
While LearnDash is a great option if you want to build an eye-appealing website for selling courses, it makes sense only if you have used WordPress before or are tech-savvy.
Regardless of whether you’re technically inclined, Graphy, however, is a great one-point solution for all your online education business needs.
Being feature-rich and affordable simultaneously, Graphy caters to the largest section of the entire educator economy and is thus the clear winner that tops the list of LearnDash alternatives.
Teachable and Thinkific are similar in many ways, but if you wish to take care of the basic course setup and leave the rest to automated software at reasonable prices, Teachable is the right choice.
If you prefer more flexibility in customization options, you can consider purchasing Thinkific’s paid plans.
Podia can be a great choice for those who want to set a minimal course structure and cover the basics, provided you’re not focused on marketing it as much.
If you’re into Digital Marketing and selling digital products instead of full-fledged courses, you can try Kajabi! You can never go wrong with the wide range of options to improve your marketing strategy.
If you want to launch your courses quickly and conveniently, iSpring Market is the go-to platform.
However, if you’re looking to build super-engaging communities and dive deeper into performance and sales reports, it’s best to go for the abovementioned options.
After all, the best platform for you will all come down to the kind of course content you wish to deliver and the way you envision your knowledge-based business to flourish.
