MemberDash is a cutting-edge membership plugin designed by the creators of LearnDash, tailored for seamless integration with LearnDash and expansion of memberships. Launched on Jul 25, 2023, it stands out in the plugins realm with basic features showcased in tutorial videos.
Looking beyond MemberDash, innovative options arise: LearnPress, Kajabi, LifterLMS, Tutor LMS, Moodle, Sensei, Gumroad, Thinkific – each offering unique approaches to online content creation and management.
MemberPress
Unleashing the power of WordPress, MemberPress is a nifty plugin that turns your site into a fully-featured membership platform. It’s not just any membership tool, it’s also your knight in shining armor if you’re into selling courses online!
MemberPress Best Features
- No cryptic <> or {} required! MemberPress does the heavy coding so you can focus on creating killer content and online courses.
- With its course progress tracking, you can turn into the Sherlock of student activity, keeping an eye on active learners!
- Automatic access granting and revoking based on purchases or subscriptions means you control the velvet rope to your content.
- Equip your site with cool features like a chatbot, quiz generation, and even as impressive as predictive analysis (crystal ball not included).
- Its integrated sales feature not only reminds you of a charming salesperson, but helps build subscriptions effectively.
| Awesome Feature | Why It Rocks |
|---|---|
| Payment Processing | Works with PayPal and other trusted gateways, ensuring your money-making machine runs smoothly. |
| Flexible Integration | Plays nice with a variety of WordPress plugins, including LearnDash and BBPress, expanding its party of useful features. |
| Customer Support | Get help when you need it because even superheroes need sidekicks. |
MemberPress Downsides
- It’s a WordPress exclusive plugin, so if your site ain’t on WordPress, you’re going to have a bad time.
- While it integrates with many platforms, underrepresented plugins might feel a bit left out.
MemberPress Pricing
MemberPress prides itself on transparent pricing with a bundle of necessary features neatly packaged within. It’s definitely less expensive than a cup of artisanal coffee, and it packs a much nicer jolt!
MemberPress Use Cases
Educators
With MemberPress, educators can easily manage online courses and keep track of each student’s progress. It’s like having a digital classroom where you’re both the teacher and the principal!
Small Business Owners
For the business-minded wizards, MemberPress takes care of subscriptions, digital product distribution, and payment processing. With its cost-effectiveness, it’s like having a small army of helpers without the wage bill!
Content Creators
Bloggers, YouTubers, Podcasters, unite! With MemberPress, creating and managing membership subscriptions for your loyal fan base is a cake-walk. And you know what they say, the cake is not a lie!
LearnDash
An award-winning, WordPress-based Learning Management System, LearnDash is trusted by leading brands like Bitesize Bio and Reliablesoft. Offering professional course creation features, this adaptable tool is compatible with any WordPress theme/page builder.
LearnDash Top Features
- Engaging certificates, quizzes, assignments for students.
- Customizable course builder, quizzes, drip content, lesson timers, prerequisites.
- Administrative features including user profiles, email notifications, group management, reporting, assignment management.
- Mobile compatibility ensuring learning on the go.
- Integration with WooCommerce, EDD, Stripe, SamCart, Course Grid, Zapier and others.
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Learning types | Asynchronous, blended, virtual classroom, mobile, online |
| Security features | Anti-spam, anti-virus, IP blocker, password protection |
| Customization options | Mobile learning support, personalized views |
LearnDash Limitations
- Improvements needed in URL structure for SEO.
- Limited flexibility with product customization.
- No free version or trial.
LearnDash Pricing
LearnDash offers three pricing models. The Basic option, at $199 for a 1 site license. The Plus package is priced at $229 for 10 site licenses. And, the Pro package costs $369 for 25 site licenses.
LearnDash Use Cases
Use case 1: Online Professional Training
For organizations keen on delivering professional online training, LearnDash’s robust course creation features offer the perfect solution.
Use case 2: Public/Private Agencies
LearnDash is a flexible solution for public and private agencies to create and manage courses for their specific needs.
Use case 3: E-learning Platforms
With a range of learning types, LearnDash is a cost-effective choice for eLearning platforms aiming to deliver various learning methods to their users.
LearnPress
An intuitive Learning Management System (LMS) created by ThimPress, LearnPress is designed to create and offer online courses seamlessly. Catering to various users around the globe, it is abundant with high-grade functionalities.
LearnPress – Top Features
- Intuitive Interface: Offers a user-friendly environment, making course construction and management easier.
- Diverse Quiz Types: Includes true/false, multichoice, blanks, etc., amplifying the learning experience.
- Multiple Payment Options: Users have several payment processing options, including PayPal, WooCommerce, Stripe and 2Checkout.
- Mobile App Integration: For enhanced accessibility, LearnPress can be integrated with mobile apps.
- Language Support: Offers support for 14 different languages, catering to a global user-base.
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Create Courses | Has an integrated course builder to create courses with unlimited lessons and quizzes. |
| Certificate Distribution | Enables users to design and distribute completion certificates. |
| Report Generation | Closely monitor student registrations, site stats and revenue through the report feature. |
LearnPress Limitations
- Plugin Add-Ons: Requires additional plugins for enhanced functionality, which could amount to extra costs.
- Documentation Support: Users may find the documentation support limited and potentially confusing.
- Advertisements: The free version may feature ads, which might disrupt the user experience.
LearnPress Pricing
LearnPress offers a free version with robust functionalities. For superior features, you can choose between LearnPress Theme Bundle (ranging from $49 – $69) and LearnPress PRO Bundle, available at a discounted price of $249.99.
LearnPress Use Cases
Use case 1 – Entrepreneurs
Entrepreneurs can leverage LearnPress to build and sell online courses, thus creating a residual income stream.
Use case 2 – Educational Institutions
Educational institutions can utilize LearnPress to expand their reach and offer courses to students across the globe.
Use case 3 – Tutors
Tutors can use LearnPress to create and manage courses, broaden their student base and nurture their students’ progress efficiently.
Kajabi
Rooted in the heart of the hustle, Kajabi is an all-in-one content marketing system that enables digital entrepreneurs to sell, market, and deliver their product content with ease. Established in 2010 in Irvine, California, it has empowered over 40,000 entrepreneurs worldwide, serviced 60 million students, and grossed over $2 billion in sales.
Kajabi Top Features
- Single, Centralized Platform: Offers a unified solution for all your marketing, sales, and digital course needs.
- Customizable Themes: Tailor the look and feel to your liking, complete with video hosting, integrations and a landing page builder.
- Course Creator: Create online courses, membership sites, training portals with relative ease.
- Integrated Payments: Seamlessly linked with Stripe for all your electronic payment needs.
- Robust Marketing Tools: Generate custom forms, landing pages, track performance via email analytics and even integrate with applications like MailChimp, Infusionsoft, and Google Analytics.
| Key Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Email Automations | Send targeted and personalised emails automatically. |
| Websites and Landing Pages | Create visually stunning websites to engage customers. |
| Customer Relationship Management (CRM) | Keep track of customer data and interactions in one place. |
Kajabi Limitations
- Limited LMS: Doesn’t fully facilitate active engagement with students, lacks certain LMS features.
- No activity tracker: It may not allow detailed tracking and recording of training activities compared to traditional LMS.
Kajabi Pricing
Kajabi avails three different pricing structures to its users, with features varying across each tier. They also offer a limited-time ‘Build Mode’ plan for users to explore the Kajabi backend without a full commitment
Kajabi Use Cases
Use case 1
For entrepreneurs venturing into the digital space, Kajabi serves as an excellent tool for creating and promoting online courses, membership sites, and podcasts.
Use case 2
Firms seeking an all-in-one platform for marketing, sales, and product delivery would find Kajabi ideal.
Use case 3
Whether it’s for a solo project or small-scale business, Kajabi’s user-friendly interface simplifies course creation, customer engagement and online sales.
LifterLMS: The Luminary of Learning
Illuminate your educational journey with LifterLMS, a brilliant WordPress Learning Management System (LMS) plugin. With over 10,000 active installs and a resounding chorus of 296 five-star reviews, LifterLMS takes flight in the realm of eLearning, reaching the highest echelons of success in 131 countries.
Best Features of LifterLMS
- Multi-media course creation
- Customized social learning opportunities
- Drag & Drop course builder for ease of use
- Conversion-optimized online learning website for maximum student engagement
- Automated eLearning for seamless course execution
| Feature | Benefit |
| Community Integration & Social Learning | Amplifies course reviews for social proof and enhances student engagement via community forums. |
| Expansion via Add-Ons | Allows for greater versatility in growth and extends access to advanced features. |
| Excellent Customer Support | Provides forums for detailed documentation, training webinars, setup wizards, and community engagement. |
LifterLMS Limitations
- Successful use requires familiarity with WordPress.
- Advanced features, though plentiful, require purchase.
- Lack of built-in eCommerce setup; necessitates integration with PayPal, Stripe etc.
LifterLMS Pricing
LifterLMS Core plugin is free to use, with premium features available via paid add-ons for advanced customization and functionality.
LifterLMS Use Cases
Use case 1 – Businesses
LifterLMS provides businesses with a robust platform to conduct employee training, complementing their growth and productivity strategies.
Use case 2 – Educational Institutions
Schools can leverage the LifterLMS platform to create engaging courses, tracking student progress efficiently.
Use case 3 – Individual Instructors
Freelance instructors and tutors can maximize their reach and efficiency, creating and managing courses with ease.
Tutor LMS
A robust plugin leveraging WordPress’ capabilities, Tutor LMS offers comprehensive tools for eLearning platform creation, course management, and monetization.
Tutor LMS Top Features
- Extensive course creation tools, including unlimited quizzes, custom question types and assignments.
- Supports mobile learning for learning on the go.
- Calendar for hawkeye assignment scheduling, deadlines tracking.
- 27 supported languages for enhanced accessibility and reach.
- Interactive Q/A sections for active user engagement.
| Grading | Adaptable grading scales for customized evaluation. |
| Reviews | Celebrated by users and experts alike for ease of use, WooCommerce and Elementor integration, and detailed reports. |
Tutor LMS Disadvantages
- Limited integration capability, potentially limiting your site’s extensibility.
- Possible misrepresentation of features, fostering unrealistic expectations.
- Issues with WooCommerce integration can disrupt your e-commerce.
Tutor LMS Pricing
Available in a free version and Pro plans priced from $149 – $299 per annum, or $399 – $999 for lifetime access. Pro version unlocks advanced features, enables multiple instructors and offers a front-end course builder.
Tutor LMS Use Cases
Use case 1: Digital Language School
With support for 27 languages, Tutor LMS is ideal for digital language schools seeking to expand their global reach.
Use case 2: E-commerce Edtech Startups
Tutor LMS allows startups to swiftly create their eLearning platform and integrate with popular payment options for easy monetization.
Use case 3: Corporate Training
Corporate training departments can leverage Tutor LMS’s mobile learning and scheduling features to efficiently organize and conduct in-house eLearning courses.
Teachable
Founded in 2013, Teachable revolutionizes the realm of e-learning with its no-code platform, enabling educators, entrepreneurs, and creators to easily build online businesses through courses, coaching, and digital products.
Teachable’s Best Features
- Comprehensive Course Builder: Create unlimited courses with a user-friendly interface.
- Coaching Management: Facilitates business with easy scheduling, payment processing, and tracking of milestones.
- Customizability: Promotes brand expression with customizable course pages and API integration.
- Monetization: Automated tax filings, fraud monitoring, and optimization for e-commerce.
- User Engagement: Exciting quizzes, community integration, certificates, notifications to keep students invested.
| Support | Get access to weekly coaching sessions, business training courses, and a vibrant creator community. |
| Integrations | Connect with top tools like Intercom, MailChimp, Zendesk via Zapier. |
| Content Types | The liberty to sell a variety of digital content including PDFs, audio clips, and more. |
Teachable Downside
- Pricing transparency has been criticized in reviews.
- Possible transaction fees based on the chosen pricing plan.
Teachable Pricing
Teachable starts free with the option for upgrades for additional resources. The Basic plan is priced at $59/month, the Pro at $159/month, and the Business tier comes at $665/month.
Teachable Use Cases
The Educators’ Avenue
Teachers and trainers can leverage Teachable to create engaging, asynchronous, or blended online courses that accommodate students worldwide.
The Creators’ Platform
Artists, photographers, tech-obsessed and more can design and sell digital products to a vast audience, bolstering their earning potential.
The Entrepreneurs’ Launchpad
Start-ups and entrepreneurs can build intuitive courses and coaching programs, spreading their expertise and cultivating a loyal customer base.
Moodle
If you are hunting for a robust, secure, and intergrated learning platform, consider Moodle. A leading software, backed by 80+ global partners, and with a staggering 213 million+ active users as of June 2020. Designed under a social constructionist pedagogy, Moodle personifies the learner-centric approach.
Moodle Best Features
- Customizable and Integrated: Fully integrated with collaborative tools like forums, wikis, chats and blogs with a potential for customization depending on the teaching or training methodology.
- Scalable: Perfectly aligns with usage for businesses, educational institutions, nonprofits, government, and communities.
- Data Security and User Privacy: A firm commitment to data security with features that align with global privacy standards.
- Accessible and Inclusive: WCAG 2.1 aligned design ensures learning and teaching is affordable and accessible to all.
| Feature | Benefit |
|---|---|
| Open source | No licensing fee, continuous improvement, and richer features |
| Multi-lingual Support | Supports 120+ languages for inclusive learning |
| Seamless Integration | API, BigBlueButton, Dropbox, G Suite, Google Calendar, Office 365, OneDrive, Paypal, Zapier, Zoom, and more |
Moodle Limitations
While Moodle is complete on its own, some potential disadvantages include the need for technical expertise for customization and the requirement for external plugins for advanced features.
Moodle Pricing
With Moodle, enjoy a cost-efficient software with no licensing fees. As Open Source software, it offers a free and flexible platform for your learning needs.
Moodle Use Cases
Use Case 1: Educational Institutions
Moodle serves as a perfect tool for educational institutions to provide blended learning or 100{66f7997927a862c9f57ec7dffc6a2fe6d405caee7001dff533b976d48fe118b1} online courses. It is being used by the likes of London School of Economics and State University of New York.
Use Case 2: Businesses
Organizations like Shell and Microsoft benefit from Moodle’s scalable, secure, and customizable nature. It provides a robust platform for training and upskilling their workforce.
Use Case 3: Nonprofits and Government
For Nonprofits and Governments, Moodle offers an affordable, feature-rich, and inclusive platform to drive their learning initiatives.
Sensei
Developed by the eminent creators of WooCommerce, Jetpack; Automattic presents Sensei LMS – a robust platform designed to serve entrepreneurs, academicians, coaches, and marketers with immersive online course creation.
Sensei Top Features
- Seamless integration with WooCommerce enabling monetization through subscriptions, memberships, and payments.
- Ease of customization due to its open-source nature.
- Distraction-free learning mode, drag-and-drop course creation, trackable student progress and detailed analytics.
- Creation of downloadable course completion certificates.
- Support for automatic or manual grading system, audience metrics, and two-factor authentication.
| Special Features | Description |
|---|---|
| Effective Quiz Creation | Helps in interactive learning through videos and flashcards; called the ultimate tool for course creation. |
| Vimeo, VideoPress, YouTube Embeds | Familiar UI to WordPress CMS, providing robust security and interactive learning options. |
| Single-Click Solutions | Allows easy import/export of courses; choice of themes and host for WordPress sites. |
Sensei Limitations
- No active support; users have to refer to documents on WooCommerce’s website for assistance.
- WoooCommerce Paid Courses plugin required for selling courses, that costs $129/year.
Sensei Pricing
You need to shell out $129/year for the WooCommerce Paid Courses plugin to sell courses using Sensei.
Sensei Use Cases
Use case 1: Entrepreneurs
This platform provides entrepreneurs with a powerful tool to create, manage, and monetize online courses.
Use case 2: Academicians
A versatile and user-friendly solution for academicians, to create engaging and immersive courses for their students.
Use case 3: Marketers
Sensei offers marketers a unique platform, to create tutorial videos and courses for their customers, ensuring better product usability and customer satisfaction.
