LearnDash & WordPress – The Best eLearning Solution Right Now
Why LearnDash is still our pick for WordPress eLearning in 2026, what's changed since 2020, and when a hosted platform or custom build fits better.
The best eLearning solution on WordPress right now is still LearnDash. It’s the plugin we reach for most often at Code23 when a client wants to add courses to an existing WordPress site, or build a training platform from scratch.
That wasn’t always going to stay true. We’ve moved code23.com off WordPress this year, and we no longer recommend WordPress for a new marketplace. Many single-provider course sites avoid marketplace mechanics such as seller onboarding and split payments; multi-instructor or reseller models may still need them. LearnDash handles the single-provider case well, and WordPress gives you a normal website around it rather than a bolted-on course app.
It isn’t free. LearnDash is a licensed plugin, now run by Liquid Web, with no per-student fees. Against Moodle, Teachable, Thinkific and Google Classroom, here’s why it’s still where we point most clients.
Why we think LearnDash and WordPress are a better alternative to Moodle, Google Classroom, Teachable, Thinkific and many other Learning Management Systems (LMS)
LearnDash is a licensed WordPress LMS plugin, now run by Liquid Web. It can be a strong choice for adding courses to an existing WordPress site or building a single-provider course site.
Feature-rich
LearnDash is much more than a simple plugin. It’s more like a platform. It features multi-tier courses and the ability to drip-feed content to students. You can sell courses and issue certificates directly from the platform. It also provides advanced quizzes, a way to manage assignments, timed lessons and the option to expire course access after a set number of days.
Ownership
Hosted platforms like Thinkific and Teachable have become very popular and are suitable for some individual educators, as they are easy to use. Hosted plans can constrain design, data access, integrations or migration, but the limits vary by product and plan; compare them against your requirements. And, there is a monthly or annual cost for using them. So these hosted eLearning platforms are not always a cheaper option.
Scaleability
Liquid Web reports more than 100,000 active installs. That shows broad adoption, but actual capacity depends on your hosting, database design, caching, plugins and concurrency. Compare or load-test it against your reporting, compliance, reseller and usage requirements rather than assuming a fixed ceiling.
"The results of Code23’s hard work, professional approach, and ability to work together with us to create our vision, has resulted in an end product that we couldn’t be happier with. They have provided us with a fully rounded service, including plenty of support, advice, and guidance for the future too. We are all very excited to welcome our customers back to our wonderful new e-learning platform."
Flexibility
WordPress itself is open-source, and LearnDash plugs into it as a licensed product with documented hooks and filters. External developers can build custom plugins and extend it into bespoke online learning solutions, so you're not limited to out-of-the-box functionality. LearnDash has a wide range of third-party add-ons already available.
Support
There's a large community of WordPress and PHP developers answering questions in online forums and offering their services. WordPress has a large developer ecosystem, but LearnDash experience, availability, quality and handover still need checking when you change supplier.
Intuitive
LearnDash uses the WordPress administration model, so existing WordPress users may find parts familiar. Test the authoring and learner journeys with the people who will use them, especially where accessibility, reporting or complex enrolment matters. For anyone already familiar with WordPress, LearnDash feels like a natural extension of the platform, not a bolt-on plugin.
Continuously improved
LearnDash works in combination with WordPress, and its own team focuses on the LMS rather than the CMS. Liquid Web, LearnDash's parent since 2021, folded the wider StellarWP brand into Liquid Web in April 2026 and says it's continuing to invest in the product (see the round-ups from WisdmLabs and MemberPress), but it's worth checking learndash.com for the latest before you commit.
Easy to Update Content
The main criticisms we hear about some other learning platforms are that they can be difficult to update or inflexible, particularly for people who aren't web developers.
So, if you are looking to offer online courses, whether you have an existing website or not, we recommend WordPress and LearnDash. We will help you migrate content from your existing platform.
Frequently asked questions
Is LearnDash still the best LMS for WordPress in 2026?
LearnDash is a strong WordPress LMS option, but whether it is the best fit depends on hosting, reporting, accessibility, integrations, support and commercial requirements. LearnDash covers course building, quizzes, certificates and drip content out of the box, and WordPress gives you a normal website around it rather than a locked-down course app. It suits solo educators through to training providers. If your model needs enterprise-grade reporting, multiple instructors trading revenue, or compliance tracking beyond what a plugin offers, a custom build is worth comparing.
What’s the difference between LearnDash and Teachable or Thinkific?
Teachable and Thinkific are hosted platforms: you sign up, pay a monthly or annual fee, and on some plans also pay a percentage per sale, with less control over design and data than a self-hosted site. LearnDash is a plugin you run on your own WordPress site, giving you more control over hosting, design and student data, and letting you build the rest of your website around it. Compare plugin, hosting, maintenance and payment costs with hosted plans rather than assuming it costs less over time.
How much does LearnDash cost?
LearnDash is sold as an annual subscription with no per-student fees, priced by feature tier rather than the size of your course catalogue. Check learndash.com for current pricing before you commit, since plans and features change. We’ll help you work out which tier actually fits what you’re building before you buy.
Can LearnDash handle a growing training business, or will I outgrow it?
LearnDash includes multi-instructor courses, group licences, membership tiers and detailed reporting on the higher plans, and Liquid Web reports more than 100,000 active installs, which shows broad adoption. Actual capacity still depends on your hosting, database design, caching, plugins and concurrency, so compare or load-test it against your reporting, compliance, reseller and usage requirements rather than assuming a fixed ceiling. We’ll help you work out whether it fits.
Sources
- https://www.liquidweb.com/software/learndash/
- https://wisdmlabs.com/blog/learndash-news-after-the-stellarwp-wind-down-a-calm-fact-first-briefing-on-what-changed-and-what-did-not/
- https://memberpress.com/blog/what-happened-to-learndash-stellarwp-collapse/
Next step
If you’re weighing up an online course platform, start with what you’re actually building: a single course, a training business with multiple instructors, or something closer to an LMS for a whole organisation. That decision matters more than which plugin you pick.
We’ve built on WordPress for over 20 years, including LearnDash builds for training providers and membership sites, and delivered 350+ projects since 2005. Whatever you’re teaching, we’ll help you work out the most sensible way to build it.
Plan the next release
Build the next version around the result it needs to produce.
We’ll define the scope, design the journeys and build the systems behind them with one senior UK team.
