Best Learning Management Systems

A learning management system (LMS) is a powerful tool that can help organizations of all sizes manage and deliver their training programs effectively. If you plan to teach classes or offer training within your educational institution or business, choosing one of the best learning management systems can really streamline the process.

Read on to learn about our top LMS choices for your specific needs.

Best Learning Management Systems Reviews

• Best for Higher Education: Blackboard
• Best for Wide Range of Features: Canvas
• Best for User-Friendliness: Moodle
• Best for Large Corporations: Litmos
• Best Free Software: Google Classroom
• Best for Employee Training Content: Kallidus Learn
• Best Technical Support: SkyPrep

Highlights

• Cost: Custom quotes only
• Main features: Accessibility feedback, progress tracking, design with higher education in mind

Why we chose it: Blackboard’s accessibility features, progress tracking capabilities and course customization options make it a great choice for the needs of higher education institutions.

Blackboard is a modern, intuitive LMS that aims to deliver a simple but powerful teaching and learning experience. Its simply designed interface acts as a "home" to every aspect of an organization's learning process, and it can be accessed from devices such as computers, tablets and smartphones. Known for its robust set of features and wide adoption in higher education, Blackboard has been in use for over 20 years and integrates well with many other education-related systems, such as student information networks and e-book platforms.

This LMS can be used for learning and teaching activities such as sharing course materials, submitting assignments, taking quizzes and collaborating with classmates. It also uses the Blackboard Ally plug-in to provide clear, actionable accessibility feedback to keep your online courses compliant with accessibility standards.

Though Blackboard does have the capacity for some third-party app integrations, this is not where it shines. The features it offers are largely built into the LMS itself, which successfully simplifies the system, but doesn’t allow for the integration and streamlining of other systems as well as some other LMSs.

Institutions can use Blackboard’s free trial to determine whether the LMS is a good fit. Pricing for the full version of Blackboard isn’t available, as their quotes are customized to the client’s particular situation.

Blackboard is specifically designed for use in higher education, continuing education and government and corporate environments. The specific features Blackboard offers help higher education institutions manage students and staff, deliver a wide range of online courses, and track progress and performance. Blackboard’s customer support is widely regarded online as excellent.

Highlights

• Cost: $299 per user per month
• Main features: In-depth analytics, ease of use, powerful integrations

Why we chose it: Canvas offers the widest variety of tools and customization options for creating and delivering course materials and has many features that support student learning and engagement.

Canvas’s Analytics feature tracks both individual students’ progress as well as overall class performance and represents data visually via interactive pie charts and graphs. Unlike other LMSs, Canvas goes beyond test scores and tracks student activity, including whether students accessed certain course materials, attended web conferencing meetings, viewed and replied to teacher announcements, viewed and edited collaborative documents and more.

Using Canvas Design Tools, instructors can access a vast array of course customization functions, allowing them to easily use templates to build modules, add course content, create quizzes and assignments, and set up announcements to post at a certain time. Canvas Commons, the LMS’s digital library, enables users to find, import and share digital resources with ease and integrates with the course-building features to make resources available to students.

Canvas also provides seamless integration of third-party apps, including G Suite, Microsoft Teams, Adobe, plagiarism detection software and more. Zoom and other video conferencing apps for distance learning are also easily incorporated with Canvas.

Though Canvas comes with many great features, at a cost of $299 per user per year, the price can build rapidly, making it slightly more expensive than comparable products on the market. Furthermore, Canvas can fall victim to some technical issues. In particular, users report that it can become slow, especially during peak traffic times. Finally, its great breadth of features and capabilities also increases the learning curve for students and educators, making it slightly less user-friendly than other LMSs like Moodle.

This versatile LMS is a great choice for any grade level due to its wide feature set and third-party integration capabilities.

Highlights

• Cost: Starts at $0 with additional costs such as service providers and web hosting
• Main features: Open-source, customizable, Moodle plug-ins available

Why we chose it: Moodle is an open-source platform known for being user-friendly and easy to integrate with plug-ins.

Moodle is an open-source platform, which means the source code is openly available for use or modification by developers. Like much open-source software, Moodle is free to use and is maintained and improved by a global community of users. This means the LMS itself is very affordable and constantly subject to improvement.

When Moodle’s open-source format is taken advantage of and developed and maintained well, it can be highly effective and user-friendly. However, keep in mind that poor development and technical issues can lead to less efficiency. For this reason, we recommend hiring a Moodle Certified Partner or Service Provider to develop Moodle for your institution.

Moodle Service Providers are Moodle-certified development organizations partnered with Moodle that can help set up and maintain your Moodle platform and all its plug-ins. This can avoid snafus and streamline the user experience for all involved. These Moodle Service Providers help you use Moodle’s hundreds of custom plug-ins, spruce up your platform to match institution branding, navigate web hosting and generally improve effectiveness and ease of use. You can find and get a quote from Moodle Service Providers in your area on Moodle’s website.

One downside of Moodle is that while it is free to use, it can easily incur additional costs. Institutions will need to take on the expense of domain hosting and potentially outsourcing web developers. However, despite these costs, Moodle is still affordable and can be a great user-friendly LMS.

Because its open-source nature allows for plenty of customization, Moodle is also a great platform to incorporate game-like activities into your learning environment, and the LMS offers a list of plugins that add gamification features to courses on the platform and can be customized to suit your needs.

Moodle supports a range of features such as discussion forums, resource sharing, assignments and grades. It even has features in its custom text editor specifically for dealing with different media types, such as drag-and-drop for media embedding and an accessibility checker to ensure all users have equal access to information and functionality.

Highlights

• Cost: Custom quotes only
• Main features: User-friendly, easy progress tracking

Why we chose it: Litmos is a top choice for large corporations since it offers the ability to tailor courses to meet the specific needs of your business.

For large corporations, Litmos is a simple and sturdy LMS option. Litmos is compatible with any content compliant with the Shareable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM), a set of technical standards that e-learning software products have to meet. This makes it a versatile and reliable choice for standard-compliant corporations of all sizes.

Its simple design makes the platform easy to navigate and implement on a large scale at their organization. Litmos’s course builder and simple onboarding process helps ensure that employees can get up and running quickly. With several industry awards, including Best Microlearning LMS Software For Corporate Training and Best Advance in Leadership Development, and clients like Coca-Cola and Mercedes, Litmos is the trusted LMS of many major businesses.

Though Litmos has some limitations, such as its less customizable interface, it receives positive reviews for its effectiveness and automation in course creation and its powerful collaboration and reporting capabilities. Litmos offers features to help create a simple onboarding process for new employees and has compliance integration built-in, making it great for larger corporations.

Highlights

• Cost: Free base model, upgrades available
• Main features: Integrated with Google Workspace, easy to use, affordable

Why we chose it: Google Classroom is a widely known LMS that is easy to use, well-integrated with Google Workspace products and free for qualifying institutions.

Google Classroom’s selling point is its simple and integrated approach. The LMS integrates all Google products, including institution favorites like Drive, Calendar, Docs and Meet, making it easy to keep online classes, assignments, assessments, quizzes and grading all in one spot.

Generally regarded as easy to set up and use, instructors and students find Google Classroom intuitive and simple. Many students and teachers are already familiar with Google Workspace, making the transition smoother.

There are minor bugs and technical issues with Google Classroom, including some clunkiness in the Google Meet integration. However, these issues are often easily fixed.

Google Classroom is an effective system at an affordable price. The base model is free for qualifying educational institutions, while more advanced tiers, including tiers for businesses, implement pricing models based on monthly license payments and user numbers.

Highlights

• Cost: Custom quotes only
• Main features: eCommerce integration, off-the-shelf courses available

Why we chose it: Kallidus Learn is an all-in-one platform that supports organizations in managing their training costs and compliance.

Kallidus Learn offers a range of features to support employee training, including onboarding and offboarding, creating and delivering e-learning courses, informal and social learning support, performance management and compliance training.

The LMS delivers targeted job training based on your company’s needs and off-the-shelf professional development courses. Kallidus Learn also offers integration with Shopify, allowing organizations to sell courses they create online as part of their services.

Kallidus Learn can involve a steep learning curve, particularly in understanding how the interface works. However, once the software is understood, it is highly effective and easy to use. According to some users, the system can be prone to some bugs and crashes when faced with higher-capacity tasks or high traffic volumes, but it is generally a well-designed and effective LMS.

Highlights

• Cost: Starts at $4,188
• Main features: Good customer service, intuitive interface

Why we chose it: SkyPrep has extensive online documentation, a comprehensive help section and user-friendly technical support.

SkyPrep is a great option for institutions that may be new to implementing an LMS. Their website lists multiple avenues for users to contact SkyPrep for support, including the option to send a ticket or email. SkyPrep also has robust security measures to protect training and employee data.

SkyPrep has a simple interface with clear language and a minimalist look, lending itself to usability and easy setup. The analytic reporting and design features are simpler than other LMSs, and gamification elements that are popular in other LMSs are missing from SkyPrep. However, if your company would benefit from a simple and straightforward approach, the LMS is still very effective and has few reported technical issues.

Overall, SkyPrep is a reliable LMS with excellent technical support options available to its users.

Other learning management systems we considered

We examined several different LMS platforms when making our top picks. Here are some others we considered that didn’t make the cut.

LearnDash

LearnDash is a popular LMS built on WordPress. It’s easy to use, flexible and compatible with WordPress plugins and themes. Some of the key features of LearnDash include the ability to create and sell courses, manage users, download reports and deliver quizzes and award certificates.

While LearnDash is a good LMS, it is only compatible with WordPress, which all institutions may not use. It also requires WordPress development expertise to run and maintain.

Docebo

Some of the key features of the Docebo LMS include support for multiple organizations within the system, secure multi-factor authentication methods and the ability to customize branding and templates for each organization. There are many suite integration options as well, including Shopify, Zendesk, Slack, Zoom and more.

Unfortunately, Docebo claims that it works best with companies that train and onboard 300+ customers, employees and partners monthly and isn’t intended for academic institution use. Thus, it may not be suitable for many businesses, especially small businesses.

EdApp

EdApp is an easy-to-use e-learning app with built-in courses and course creation capabilities primarily designed for corporate environments. The app has powerful gamification elements, making corporate e-learning more engaging. Customizable branding can reflect your company’s colors, brands and values. EdApp also has some integrations other LMSs don’t have, like Canva.

While EdApp has a good LMS product, it is a smaller company founded in 2015 with very little online customer feedback.

Learning Management Systems Guide

LMSs are a great tool for managing education in an academic or corporate setting but are sometimes difficult to master. Here are some of the basics of LMSs, how they work and how they support various learning activities.

What is a learning management system (LMS)?

An LMS is a software application or web-based technology used to plan, implement and assess a specific learning process. It is typically used to support a range of learning activities, including traditional classroom lectures, online courses and self-paced learning programs. An LMS can be used in various settings, including K–12 schools, higher education institutions and corporate training programs.

An LMS allows an instructor to create and deliver course content, track student progress and communicate with students. It also enables students to access course materials, complete assignments and track their progress.

Some common features of an LMS include course management, student tracking, communication and assessment tools, as well as mobile support and integrations with third-party apps such as video conferencing software and language learning software.

How does a learning management system work?

Students and instructors must create accounts and log into the system to use an LMS. There are typically four main user roles in an LMS:

• Administrator: An administrator account typically has the highest level of access and permissions. They manage and maintain the platform and can assign and manage other user roles.

• Instructor: An instructor role is meant for those responsible for delivering course content, managing and grading student assignments, and providing student support and guidance. Although they teach the course, they have less control over the platform than an administrator.

• Content creator: Responsibilities for users with a content creator role may include researching and creating text-based content, creating media-based content such as images and videos and designing interactive elements such as quizzes and assessments. They may also be responsible for tailoring the content to specific audiences and incorporating ideas from customers.

• Student: Any person taking a course on an LMS platform will be given a student account, which allows them to access the content.

In addition to facilitating distance learning, an LMS can also streamline the process of training employees and reduce the manual work associated with rolling out training initiatives.

Some LMSs also have an admin interface where a training manager can perform back-office tasks, such as creating and delivering courses, adding learners, analyzing reports and automating notifications.

Normally, using an LMS involves creating and organizing course materials, delivering those materials to students, tracking student progress and engagement and facilitating communication between instructors and students.

What are the benefits and challenges of using an LMS?

An LMS provides a centralized platform for managing and delivering course materials and activities, making it easier for instructors and students to access and track their progress.

Its collaborative tools facilitate improved communication between students and teachers. An LMS can support various learning activities and styles and can be accessed from any device with an internet connection, offering flexibility for both instructors and students.

However, there are challenges to using an LMS. LMSs can be expensive, especially if you choose a subscription-based model or require many custom features. They might also be prone to technical issues, such as downtime or slow performance, which can frustrate instructors and students.

Some users may resist using an LMS due to a lack of familiarity with the technology or a preference for more traditional learning methods. LMSs also store a lot of sensitive data, such as student records and grades, which can be vulnerable to security breaches.

How to choose a learning management system software

Below we’ll outline some key features of an LMS, including pricing, compatibility, security and support.

Different pricing options

LMSs can be purchased or subscribed to on a variety of pricing plans. Some LMSs offer a one-time purchase option, where users pay a single fee to access the LMS and its features.

Other LMSs offer subscription-based pricing, where users pay a recurring fee (typically monthly or annually) to access the LMS. Subscription-based pricing may also include options for different levels of service or support, such as basic, premium or enterprise-level plans.

Easy integrations

Many LMSs offer the ability to integrate easily with other tools or systems. For example, an LMS may integrate with a student information system, a customer relationship management system, or a human resources system. This can be useful for streamlining processes and reducing the need to enter data into multiple systems manually.

Data migration

Data migration refers to transferring data from one system to another. When switching to a new LMS, it may be necessary to migrate data from an old system. This can include transferring course materials, student records and other data. Some LMSs offer tools or assistance to help with data migration, while others may require the user to transfer the data manually.

Multi-platform compatibility

Multiplatform compatibility refers to the ability of an LMS to work on multiple types of devices or operating systems. The wider the number of platforms the LMS can work on, the easier it is for students and instructors to access the LMS and its features from different devices, including desktop computers, laptops, tablets and smartphones. This can be useful for supporting a range of learning styles and preferences and for providing flexibility in terms of how and where course materials can be accessed.

Learning tools and features

Comprehensive LMS content includes various tools and features to support all sorts of learning activities. This may include tools to manage the course, track student attendance and communicate with them and evaluate their work. They should also include mobile learning options.

Security compliance

Security compliance in any LMS is critical to ensuring that sensitive data is protected and the system meets relevant security standards. This can include secure login protocols, encrypted data storage and regular security updates. Ensuring that an LMS complies with relevant security standards is vital for protecting the confidentiality and privacy of student data.

Advanced reporting

Advanced reporting refers to the ability of an LMS to generate detailed, customizable reports on student progress and activity. This can include reports on grades, course completion rates, student engagement and other metrics. Advanced reporting can be helpful for instructors to track student progress and identify areas where students may be struggling. It can also be useful for educational administrators to track overall course performance and make data-driven decisions about course design and delivery.

Reliable technical support

Reliable technical support is critical. It ensures that users can get help when needed and continue to use the LMS effectively. This can include support through phone, email, chat or online resources. Some LMSs offer separate levels of support, such as basic, premium or enterprise-level plans, with varying levels of response times and support coverage.

LMS users often need help with data integration and course setup; ensuring an LMS has reliable customer service and technical support can help you navigate these challenges. Having responsive customer support can also help improve the overall user experience of the LMS and ensure that users can get the most out of the system.

How We Chose the Best Learning Management Systems

The best LMS strikes a balance between user experience, flexibility, integration and cost. We considered several factors in our LMS comparison, including:

• Range of features: We looked at what features each LMS offers, how customizable they are and what integrations are included.

• Cost: We looked into the cost of each LMS when possible and considered whether the price is worth it for what the LMS has to offer.

• Customer experience and satisfaction: We read through reviews and customer feedback to see what consumers think of each product.

• Ease of use: We considered whether the LMSs are user-friendly, accessible and easy to set up.

We also used online resources, reviews and recommendations to decide on each category's best LMS. We always try to include accurate and up-to-date information, but we can't claim this information is complete. As always, we recommend you do your own research as well.

Summary of Money’s Best Learning Management Systems

• Best for Higher Education: Blackboard
• Best for Wide Range of Features: Canvas
• Best for User-Friendliness: Moodle
• Best for Large Corporations: Litmos
• Best Free Software: Google Classroom
• Best for Employee Training Content: Kallidus Learn
• Best Technical Support: SkyPrep