7 Best LearnWorlds Alternatives Worth Considering

LearnWorlds is a solid course platform with SCORM compliance, interactive videos, and a branded mobile app builder. But it's not perfect for everyone. The $5 per-sale transaction fee on the Starter plan gets expensive fast, there's no free plan, and the pricing jumps significantly as you scale.

If you're selling courses at $50 each and making 50 sales per month, you're paying an extra $250/month in transaction fees on top of your $29 subscription. That math doesn't work for many creators.

I've tested the major alternatives and broken down what actually matters: pricing, transaction fees, course features, and who each platform works best for. Whether you need a free option to start, an all-in-one business platform, or just a straightforward course builder, this guide will help you find the right fit.

Quick LearnWorlds Pricing Recap

Before we dive into alternatives, here's what you're comparing against:

The standout LearnWorlds features are SCORM compliance, interactive video with in-video actions, and the ability to build your own branded mobile app. If you need those specific features, alternatives get tricky. But if you just need to create and sell courses effectively, you have better options.

The Starter plan's limitations make it less attractive than it appears. You can't offer free courses (meaning no lead magnets or trial content), you're capped at 1,000 active learners per month, and you only get one admin account. The transaction fee is the real killer - if you're making just 14 sales per month at $50 each, you're paying $70 in fees. At that point, upgrading to Pro Trainer saves you money.

1. Thinkific - Best Free Option to Start

Thinkific is the most direct LearnWorlds competitor and offers something LearnWorlds doesn't: a genuinely usable free plan with no transaction fees.

Pricing:

The platform lets you test with real students before paying anything. Unlike LearnWorlds' Starter plan, Thinkific charges zero transaction fees on all plans. The course builder is drag-and-drop simple, and they've added AI-generated quizzes and a mobile app feature for higher plans.

What makes Thinkific special: The platform recently added email marketing capabilities directly into the system, which means you can manage student communications without paying for a separate email service. The Basic plan gives you unlimited courses and unlimited students - there's no cap on enrollment, which is huge for creators planning to scale.

The course creation experience is genuinely user-friendly. You can build courses with video, audio, text, PDFs, presentations, and downloadable files. The platform handles quizzes, assignments, certificates, and drip scheduling. For community building, even the Basic plan includes a community space where students can interact.

The catch: You need the Start plan ($99/month) to get memberships and payment plans. The free and Basic plans are limited for serious course businesses. Also, Thinkific doesn't have SCORM support on standard plans - you need Thinkific Plus (enterprise pricing) for that. The platform also lacks some of the advanced marketing features you'll find in all-in-one solutions like Kajabi.

Another consideration is customization depth. While Thinkific offers site themes and basic customization options, you can't remove their branding until you upgrade to the Grow plan. If you need advanced design control or want to inject custom code, you're looking at the higher tiers.

Best for: First-time course creators who want to launch without upfront costs and grow into paid plans. Also great for educators who primarily need course delivery and basic community features without complex marketing automation.

2. Kajabi - Best All-in-One Platform

Kajabi is the premium option. It's more expensive than LearnWorlds but includes email marketing, sales funnels, and website building that LearnWorlds lacks natively.

Pricing (current as of early 2026):

Zero transaction fees on all plans when using Kajabi Payments (their native payment processor). Built-in email marketing, landing pages, and automation. You're replacing LearnWorlds plus your email service plus your funnel builder with one tool.

What sets Kajabi apart: This is a true business operating system, not just a course platform. You get sophisticated marketing automation that rivals standalone tools like ActiveCampaign or ConvertKit. The funnel builder (called Pipelines) includes pre-built templates for product launches, webinar funnels, and sales sequences.

Kajabi recently overhauled their entire platform with significant improvements. The new coaching product lets you schedule and manage one-on-one sessions. They added cohort courses for live, group-based learning experiences. The video transcription and translation features are now included on Growth and Pro plans, making your content accessible to international audiences.

The platform includes a podcasting feature, allowing you to host and distribute podcasts directly from Kajabi. You can create newsletters, digital downloads, and full membership sites all within the same dashboard. The checkout editor is highly customizable, letting you optimize for conversions with upsells, order bumps, and payment plans.

The catch: The Kickstarter and Basic plans have tight limits on products and contacts. Hit 250 email subscribers on Kickstarter and you're upgrading immediately. The contact limits can be a real constraint - the Growth plan's 25,000 contact limit sounds generous until you factor in list growth over time.

There's also a learning curve to master everything. Kajabi is powerful but complex. New users often feel overwhelmed by the feature set. If you're just starting out and only need basic course delivery, you're paying for capabilities you won't use for months or years.

One important pricing update: if you choose to use Stripe or PayPal instead of Kajabi Payments in regions where Kajabi Payments is available, you'll pay an additional transaction fee (5% on Kickstarter, 2% on Basic, 1% on Growth). This incentivizes using their native payment system, which offers slightly lower processing fees.

Best for: Coaches and course creators who want one dashboard for everything and have the budget to pay for premium. Ideal for businesses making at least $5,000+ monthly revenue who can justify the investment. Also perfect for creators who want to replace multiple tools (course platform + email marketing + website + CRM) with a single solution.

3. Teachable - Best for Simple Course Sales

Teachable focuses specifically on course creation and sales. Less feature bloat, more straightforward selling.

Pricing (updated for 2026):

Teachable handles sales tax automatically with their BackOffice feature, which is a huge pain point for international sellers. They have a mobile app for students, course completion certificates, and solid assessment tools.

What makes Teachable strong: The platform is genuinely beginner-friendly. You can build your first course in under an hour using their intuitive editor. Drag in video lessons, add quizzes, set up drip schedules, and you're live. The student experience is clean and mobile-responsive.

Teachable recently updated their plans to be more creator-friendly. The biggest change is that bundles, memberships, and community spaces no longer count toward your published product limit. This means you can offer unlimited memberships and bundles on any plan, opening up recurring revenue opportunities.

The platform includes built-in email marketing starting with the Builder plan. You can send broadcasts, create automated sequences, and segment your audience based on course enrollment and completion. The affiliate program feature on higher plans lets you recruit others to promote your courses for commission.

Sales features are robust: coupons, order bumps (upsells at checkout), payment plans, and subscription billing. The checkout process is optimized for conversions with one-click purchasing and multiple payment gateway options.

The catch: Transaction fees eat into profits on lower plans. The 7.5% fee on Starter is steep - 100 sales at $50 each costs you $375/month in fees on top of your subscription. You really need the Builder plan to make the economics work.

Also, no built-in blog or advanced website builder. Teachable gives you sales pages for each course and a basic homepage, but if you want a full content marketing site, you'll need WordPress or another platform alongside Teachable. The design customization options are limited compared to platforms like Thinkific or Kajabi - you're working within Teachable's templates.

Another limitation: the platform doesn't include sophisticated marketing automation. While you get basic email marketing, you don't get advanced funnel builders or automation workflows like Kajabi offers. Many Teachable users integrate with ConvertKit or Mailchimp for more powerful email marketing.

Best for: Course creators who just want to sell courses without building a whole ecosystem around it. Perfect for subject matter experts who want simplicity over sophistication. Also great for creators who already have their own website and just need the course delivery infrastructure.

4. Podia - Best Budget-Friendly All-in-One

Podia started as a digital product platform and evolved into a website builder with courses attached. It's the simplest option on this list.

Pricing (updated for 2026):

Note: Podia retired their permanent free plan in late 2024 but offers a 30-day free trial with full feature access.

Podia includes email marketing, blogging, webinar hosting, digital downloads, and community features. You can sell unlimited courses, coaching sessions, and digital products on both plans.

What makes Podia different: The all-in-one approach without the complexity. Unlike Kajabi which tries to be everything, Podia focuses on simplicity. The interface is clean and uncluttered. You're not overwhelmed by options.

Both plans include unlimited everything - unlimited courses, unlimited digital products, unlimited coaching products, unlimited webinars, unlimited customers, and unlimited file storage. No caps on emails sent, pages created, or bandwidth used. This predictability is valuable for budgeting.

Podia Email (their built-in email marketing tool) is included free for up to 100 subscribers on both plans. Beyond that, pricing is list-size based, starting at $7/month for 500 subscribers. This is significantly cheaper than standalone email tools like ConvertKit or Mailchimp at similar list sizes.

The platform includes webinar hosting with YouTube Live or Zoom integration, allowing you to run live training sessions without additional tools. The community feature lets you build membership sites with discussion forums, though it's more basic than dedicated community platforms like Circle or Mighty Networks.

You get a full website builder with blogging capabilities, landing pages, and a "link in bio" style page for social media. The checkout process includes payment plans, subscriptions, coupons, and waitlists.

The catch: Course features are basic compared to LearnWorlds. No SCORM support, limited quiz options (basic quizzes only, no advanced question types), and the course player is functional but not fancy. You can't add interactive elements to videos like LearnWorlds offers.

The 5% transaction fee on the Mover plan gets expensive as you scale. If you're making $10,000/month in sales, that's $500 in transaction fees - at which point, the Shaker plan pays for itself.

The platform lacks advanced features that larger businesses need: no API access on basic plans (important for custom integrations), limited automation compared to Kajabi, and no sophisticated reporting or analytics. You get basic sales reports, but not the detailed student engagement metrics you'd find elsewhere.

Best for: Solo creators who want a simple, affordable platform for selling multiple product types. Perfect for coaches who want to sell courses, one-on-one coaching, digital downloads, and memberships from a single platform without complexity. Also great for creators on a budget who need email marketing included.

5. LearnDash - Best WordPress Plugin Option

If you already have a WordPress site with traffic, LearnDash lets you add courses without rebuilding elsewhere.

Pricing:

LearnDash integrates into your existing WordPress site with a course builder that feels like the Gutenberg editor. You can build lessons, modules, drip content, manage enrollments, and run assessments. The plugin approach means unlimited courses and unlimited students with no per-seat pricing.

What makes LearnDash powerful: Complete control over your platform. You own the WordPress installation, the course content, and the student data. No platform can shut you down or change their pricing unexpectedly. For creators who value independence and data ownership, this matters.

LearnDash includes sophisticated gamification features - points, badges, and certificates that you can award based on course completion or quiz scores. This drives engagement and completion rates. The course builder supports complex course structures with prerequisites, drip-fed lessons, and multiple learning paths.

The plugin integrates seamlessly with WordPress membership plugins (like MemberPress or Restrict Content Pro), WooCommerce for e-commerce, and page builders like Elementor or Beaver Builder for custom design. This means you can build exactly the user experience you want.

LearnDash supports multiple instructors, allowing you to build a course marketplace where different instructors can create and manage their own courses. The quiz engine is one of the most sophisticated in any LMS, with question banks, randomized questions, timer controls, and detailed result tracking.

For businesses needing certifications, LearnDash generates custom PDF certificates automatically upon course completion. These can include unique certificate numbers for verification purposes.

The catch: WordPress plugins can be clunky. You'll likely need child themes and custom coding to get the look you want. LearnDash doesn't include hosting - you're paying separately for that (typically $10-50/month depending on your needs). And troubleshooting plugin conflicts is a real thing when you're running LearnDash alongside other WordPress plugins.

The technical barrier is real. You need to understand WordPress basics: themes, plugins, hosting, and site maintenance. Updates sometimes break things. Security is your responsibility. For non-technical creators, this overhead can be frustrating.

Payment processing requires separate plugins or integrations. Popular options include WooCommerce (for one-time purchases), MemberPress (for subscriptions), or payment gateway plugins for Stripe and PayPal. This adds complexity and potential integration issues.

Email marketing isn't included - you'll need to integrate with your email service provider separately. Compared to all-in-one platforms, LearnDash feels like you're assembling multiple pieces rather than getting a complete solution out of the box.

Best for: WordPress users who want to keep courses on their existing site and don't mind technical setup. Ideal for bloggers or content creators who already have WordPress traffic and want to monetize with courses. Also great for agencies building course sites for clients who want a custom solution rather than a templated platform.

6. Mighty Networks - Best for Community-First Courses

Mighty Networks approaches courses differently. Instead of course-first with community bolted on, it's community-first with courses as a feature.

Pricing:

You get activity feeds, chat, member directories, and customizable community spaces. Courses can include drip content, live cohorts, and various formats. There's a native mobile app for iOS and Android that's included with your plan.

What makes Mighty Networks unique: The community experience is genuinely social. It feels more like a private social network than a traditional course platform. Members can post updates, comment, share photos and videos, and have threaded discussions. This creates engagement that pure course platforms struggle to match.

The "Spaces" feature lets you create sub-communities within your main community. You might have a free space for all members, a paid space for course students, and an exclusive VIP space for your highest-tier members. Each space can have its own courses, events, and content.

The platform includes event hosting for live online or in-person events. You can charge for events separately or include them in membership tiers. The calendar integration keeps members engaged with upcoming activities.

Mighty Networks shines for cohort-based courses where students progress through material together. The social pressure and peer support increase completion rates significantly compared to self-paced courses where students study alone.

The mobile app is native and branded to your community (on higher plans), giving members a dedicated app experience rather than just a mobile-responsive website. This increases engagement as your community lives on members' home screens.

The catch: Course creation tools are more basic than dedicated course platforms. You're not getting the sophisticated quiz engines, complex course structures, or advanced video features you'd find in LearnWorlds or Thinkific. The focus is on community engagement, not course sophistication.

If you're selling individual courses rather than building an ongoing membership community, Mighty Networks is overkill. The pricing makes sense for subscription-based memberships where people pay monthly or annually for ongoing access. For one-time course sales, traditional course platforms are more straightforward.

The learning curve can be steep. The platform does a lot, and figuring out how to structure your community, courses, and spaces takes time. New users often feel overwhelmed by the options.

Customization is limited compared to WordPress or even platforms like Kajabi. You're working within Mighty Networks' structure and design constraints. For brands that want full design control, this can feel restrictive.

Best for: Creators whose value proposition is community and connection, with courses as supporting content. Perfect for coaching programs where peer interaction and group support are essential to outcomes. Also great for membership businesses where ongoing engagement matters more than course consumption. Think fitness coaches, business masterminds, and creative communities where the network itself is the product.

7. TalentLMS - Best for Corporate Training

If you're doing employee training or customer education rather than selling to consumers, TalentLMS is purpose-built for that.

Pricing:

SCORM compliance, gamification, analytics dashboards, and content libraries. Manager portals for tracking team progress. Integrations with HR systems like BambooHR and Workday.

What makes TalentLMS enterprise-ready: The focus is on organizational learning, not consumer education. You get detailed reporting on employee progress, completion rates, and assessment scores. Managers can track their team's training status and identify who needs additional support.

The platform supports multiple branches or departments, allowing you to create separate learning portals for different parts of your organization. Each branch can have its own branding, courses, and administrators while you maintain central control.

SCORM and xAPI (Tin Can API) compliance mean you can import courses from external providers or authoring tools like Articulate Storyline or Adobe Captivate. This interoperability is essential for organizations with existing training content.

The gamification features include points, badges, leaderboards, and levels that make compliance training more engaging. You can award points for course completion, quiz performance, and participation.

TalentLMS integrates with video conferencing tools (Zoom, GoToMeeting) for live training sessions, and with SSO (Single Sign-On) providers for enterprise authentication. The API allows custom integrations with your HR systems, CRM, or other internal tools.

The platform includes an e-commerce engine if you want to sell training to external customers (like B2B training for your clients), but the focus is clearly on internal employee development.

The catch: TalentLMS isn't designed for consumer course sales. The user experience is functional but not beautiful. You won't win design awards with a TalentLMS portal. The focus is on efficiency and features, not aesthetics.

The pricing model based on active users makes sense for stable employee training, but can get expensive if you're training a large, fluctuating audience. Some competitors offer unlimited user pricing that might be more cost-effective.

Marketing features are minimal. You're not getting sales pages, checkout optimization, email marketing, or conversion tools. This is a training delivery platform, not a marketing platform.

Best for: Businesses training employees or customers internally, not selling courses to consumers. Perfect for HR departments running onboarding programs, compliance training, and professional development. Also great for SaaS companies offering customer training and certification programs. If you're building a consumer course business, look elsewhere.

Additional LearnWorlds Alternatives Worth Considering

Beyond the main seven, several other platforms deserve mention depending on your specific needs:

Systeme.io - Best for Complete Beginners

Systeme.io offers an generous free plan (unlimited email subscribers, 3 sales funnels, basic courses) that's actually usable for small businesses. The paid plans start at just $27/month and include email marketing, sales funnels, and course hosting. The interface is simpler than even Podia, making it perfect for absolute beginners. The downside is limited design flexibility and fewer advanced features than established platforms.

Udemy - Best for Maximum Course Exposure

If you want to reach the largest possible audience without building your own following, Udemy's marketplace puts your courses in front of millions of students. No upfront costs or monthly fees - Udemy takes a percentage of sales (50% for organic Udemy traffic, 25% when you bring your own students via coupons). The catch is you don't own the student relationships, have limited control over pricing, and compete in a crowded marketplace where discount culture dominates.

Skillshare - Best for Creative Professionals

Skillshare works differently - you're paid based on minutes watched rather than course sales. Great for building a portfolio and getting discovered, but income is unpredictable. Best suited for creatives (designers, photographers, illustrators) who want exposure and recurring income without handling sales directly.

Teachery - Best Minimalist Option

Teachery ($49/month flat fee) is ultra-simple: host unlimited courses, no transaction fees, unlimited students. The course creator is basic but functional. There's no marketing features, email tools, or community - it's pure course hosting. Perfect for creators who have their marketing stack elsewhere and just need reliable course delivery.

How to Choose the Right LearnWorlds Alternative

With so many options, how do you actually decide? Here's a practical framework based on your situation:

If you're just starting (under 50 students):

Go with Thinkific's free plan or Podia's 30-day trial to test your course idea without financial commitment. Once you validate demand, upgrade based on what you need most: stay with Thinkific if course features matter, move to Podia if you want simplicity.

If you're making $0-2,000/month in course sales:

Teachable's Builder plan ($89/month) or Podia's Mover plan ($39/month) offer the best value. Teachable wins if you want course-specific features. Podia wins if you need email marketing included and sell multiple product types.

If you're making $2,000-10,000/month:

Kajabi's Basic plan ($179/month) starts making sense if you need marketing automation and are replacing multiple tools. Otherwise, stick with Thinkific's Start or Grow plan ($99-199/month) for solid course features at better pricing.

If you're making $10,000+/month:

Kajabi Growth or Pro gives you enterprise-level capabilities to scale further. The investment is justified by revenue. Alternatively, LearnWorlds Learning Center if you specifically need SCORM compliance and interactive video features.

If you already have a WordPress site:

LearnDash integrates seamlessly without requiring a separate platform. You keep your existing traffic and SEO rather than splitting visitors between sites.

If community is your core value:

Mighty Networks is purpose-built for this. Don't try to force a course platform to do community well - use the right tool for the job.

If you're doing B2B training:

TalentLMS or investigate enterprise LMS options like Docebo or Absorb LMS designed specifically for organizational learning.

Key Features to Compare When Evaluating Alternatives

Don't just compare prices - look at these critical feature categories:

Course Creation & Delivery

Can you handle video, audio, text, and downloadable resources? Are there quizzes, assessments, and certificates? Does the platform support drip scheduling and prerequisites? How sophisticated is the course structure - can you create complex multi-module courses with different learning paths?

Student Experience

Is there a mobile app or mobile-responsive design? Can students track their progress? Is the interface intuitive or clunky? Do students get notifications about new content or upcoming live sessions?

Payment & Pricing Options

Beyond transaction fees, can you offer payment plans, subscriptions, one-time purchases, and free trials? Does the platform handle sales tax? Can you set up coupons and promotions easily?

Marketing Capabilities

Is email marketing included or do you need to integrate? Are there landing pages and sales pages? Can you create affiliates programs? Is there a blog for content marketing?

Scalability & Limits

Are there caps on students, courses, or email subscribers? What happens when you exceed limits - are there overage fees or forced upgrades? Can the platform handle your growth without major limitations?

Support & Resources

What level of customer support comes with each plan? Are there knowledge bases, video tutorials, and community forums? Can you get on a call with support when you're stuck?

Transaction Fees: The Hidden Cost That Kills Profit

Transaction fees deserve special attention because they're often overlooked in initial pricing comparisons. Here's the math:

If you're on Podia's Mover plan (5% transaction fee) and make $5,000 in sales, you pay $250 in transaction fees monthly. Over a year, that's $3,000 - enough to justify upgrading to their Shaker plan which eliminates the fees.

Teachable's Starter plan charges 7.5% per transaction. Make $10,000 in sales and you're paying $750 in fees that month. The Builder plan at $89/month with 0% fees pays for itself instantly.

LearnWorlds Starter charges $5 per enrollment regardless of course price. Sell a $10 course and lose 50% to fees. Sell a $500 course and the $5 fee is negligible. This structure favors high-ticket courses over volume sales.

The lesson: calculate your actual cost based on projected sales, not just the monthly subscription price. A more expensive plan with no transaction fees is often cheaper than a low-cost plan with percentage-based fees.

Common Mistakes When Switching Platforms

I've seen countless creators make these errors when leaving LearnWorlds (or any platform):

Mistake 1: Not exporting student data before canceling. Most platforms give you limited time to download student email addresses, purchase history, and progress data after you cancel. Do this BEFORE canceling, not after.

Mistake 2: Forgetting about active students mid-course. If you have students currently enrolled, switching platforms mid-course creates a terrible experience. Either wait until they complete, or communicate the transition clearly and help them get set up on the new platform.

Mistake 3: Not testing the new platform thoroughly. Don't just build one module - build your entire course structure, run through the student experience, test the checkout process, and verify all integrations work before going live.

Mistake 4: Ignoring URL migration. Your course URLs will change when you switch platforms. Set up redirects from old URLs to new ones so existing links (in emails, social media, your website) don't break.

Mistake 5: Switching for the wrong reasons. Grass-is-greener syndrome is real. Don't switch just because you're frustrated with one feature or saw a competitor's slick marketing. Make sure the new platform actually solves your real problems.

The Bottom Line: Which Alternative Should You Choose?

Here's the quick decision framework:

LearnWorlds remains strong for specific use cases: SCORM compliance for corporate training, interactive video features for engaging content, and branded mobile apps for premium positioning. But for most course creators, the alternatives above offer better value, simpler pricing, or both.

Start with the free trials - Thinkific, Kajabi, Teachable, and Podia all offer them. Build out a test course and see which interface feels right before committing your monthly budget. The best platform is the one you'll actually use consistently, not the one with the longest feature list.

Pay attention to where you're spending your time. If you're constantly fighting your platform or working around limitations, that's a signal to switch. The right platform should feel invisible - it should let you focus on creating great courses and serving students, not wrestling with technology.

Your platform choice isn't permanent. Most creators switch platforms at least once as their business evolves. What works when you're starting out might not work at scale. What works for digital courses might not work when you add coaching or community. Give yourself permission to reassess every 6-12 months and make changes when needed.

Ready to explore alternatives? Start with LearnWorlds' free trial to see what you're comparing against, then test 2-3 alternatives that match your needs. The time you invest in choosing the right platform pays dividends in reduced friction and faster growth.