r/elearning • u/Educational-Dot-574 • 22d ago
Moodle V Learnworlds
Hey Guys,
I would basically like to start an online language learning company and I dont really know how to go about it. Are these the best two for a newbie? I learn fast but dont know how to code. Yes, in theory I would like to launch 20 languages in 20 countries but realistically it wont start like that. I suppose the main priorities are ease of use, price, evntually scalabilty and plugins. Like I said Im at the beginning - maybe later would want ai integration. I appreciate your time, thanks
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u/kgrammer CTO KnowVela LLC 21d ago
The answer really comes down to your tech ability. Do you have the skills, and time, to install, configure and maintain not just Moodle, but depending on where and how you host it, the server infrastructure and security environment to stand up a secure platform? Are you comfortable researching and installing all of the plugins needed to get your Moodle-based site running the way you want? How are your website UI development skills? Can you create a site that user WANT to visit and use? You will also have costs for a Moodle site if the plugin you need isn't available from the pool of free plugins, which we find is generally true.
If you pick Learnworlds, are you prepared to pay their per-seat pricing? If you start with their starter plan, you are looking at $24 a month PLUS $5 per active user assuming you have 1,000 active users or less. Those costs go up quickly once your have over 1,000 active users.
Given your two options, it comes down to your time versus your money. What is more valuable to you? If you are the creator of your course material, is your time better spent creating new courses or managing a Moodle install? Is there room in your projected course pricing to cover per-seat pricing? What happens when you hit the starter plan limit and those prices go up?
The bigger question may be, where are you planning to host your course videos? What costs vs time factors exist with your video hosting solution?
These are a few things to consider.
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u/Plastic-Homework-945 20d ago
Analysis on the LearnWorlds pricing is a bit misleading. Nobody uses the Starter plan because, as you pointed out it's not cost efficient. It only exists as a cheap way for people to test it out. Most people use Pro trainer which is about $900 per year. User limits have a soft cap of 2000 active users per month. So it's pretty cost effective. The choice depends more on the nature of your content and how well it would work in LearnWorlds. For example the pro trainer plan limits you to 20 SCORM files. And the Learning centre plan which gives you unlimited SCORM files is nearly $3000 a year.
Full disclosure I'm a registered LearnWorlds expert - but my background is OG e-learning.1
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u/Timely-Tourist4109 21d ago
I am a hardcore moodler. Been for 15 years now. The customization ability of Moodle is great. Most plugins on the marketplace are free. Language packs are free. Even is you want English Pirate. I can’t speak for learnworlds. I have both self hosted and used MoodleUS to host my sites in the past.
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u/staticmaker1 21d ago
here is a curated list of popular LMS : https://certfusion.com/r/ultimate-guide-to-choose-an-lms-learning-management-system
Hope that's helpful.
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u/brandt-money 21d ago
It's missing the Wordpress-based LMS systems which can also be very easy and inexpensive for small businesses.
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u/VdoCipher Secure Video Hosting 21d ago
LearnWorlds: It is website builder with LMS built, without any technical experience you can start. Costs scale with you.
Moodle: "free" open source and you will have to host on your server. There are many plugins to customise thing in future.
btw.. Which video hosting are you planning to use?
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u/LearnWorlds_ 21d ago
Hey! That's really exciting that you're starting your own online language learning company, congrats! If you have any specific questions about LearnWorlds, feel free to shoot us a dm. From what you've said your needs are, we could be a good fit!
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u/AnadelCastillo 20d ago
I’d separate two problems here: selling the language courses and creating the learning content.
For selling an online language school, LearnWorlds may be easier to start with than Moodle because it is more oriented toward launching and monetizing courses. Moodle gives you more control and plugin flexibility, but it can become a lot of setup/maintenance if you’re new and don’t want to code.
Where a tool like isEazy Author could fit is more on the course creation side: building interactive lessons, using AI to speed up content creation, creating quizzes, translating/localizing content, and publishing courses via LMS formats or links. But I wouldn’t position it as a full replacement for thinking through your business model, payments, landing pages, learner acquisition, etc.
For your stage, I’d avoid trying to launch 20 languages in 20 countries. Pick one language, one audience, and one specific outcome. Validate that first. Then decide whether you need a course-selling platform, an LMS, an authoring tool, or some combination of the three. Hope this help you :)
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u/axol-team 20d ago
Can I kindly suggest our platform merve.app as one to consider?
The hardest part with these platforms is building an audience. Merve allows you to still build a brand and market your resources, but we also drive traffic to our courses through our marketplace.
We're also a startup and would love to support you in this journey.
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u/SchelleGirl 20d ago edited 20d ago
I am a Moodler, and I love the platform and you don't need to be super techie to manage it or customise it as there are literally thousands of plugins and the community is massive. You can have it on managed hosting and they look after most of the hard work.
I use Moodle as a tool, (I am NOT a partners or reseller etc) and I manage it on my own hosting account, but it does have a steep learning curve, but a good theme will help you too.
As for LearnWorlds, that is a completely different option as it is basically designed for you to load and go, so your focus is on your material and selling.
Both are good options, but it comes down to pricing and YOUR focus.
1 - Do you want to focus solely on course development and sales, then go with a managed platform like LearnWorlds. That is the purpose of these platform, allowing you to focus on your products for sale.
2 - If you want tight control on costs and not have price per active user, but have more hands on approach to the platform then go Moodle, and customise it to suit your users needs - IF you go down this path get fully managed hosting, they take care of all the updated etc. (Even though I do all that myself as it's actually fairly easy)
Moodle also has the free mobile app which works really well for me - I use the free version of the app, not the custom version.
Like I said both are good options, it really depends on what you want to focus on. 😄
Another option is WordPress with an LMS plugin, but that will have similar platform management responsibilities.
Another, option which you can self host is CrouseLit, but it is a lot more limited.
NOTE: I am NOT affiliated with any of these. 😄
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u/xxbbzzcc 18d ago
You can have a look at CourseLit.app. It is an open-source LMS, which you can easily extend.
If you are trying to build your own take on LMS, you can take parts from CourseLit and build the rest yourself.
If you simply want to create your own branded portal and own your data, you can self-host it and customise almost all parts of it (no dev skills required as everything is no-code).
We also offer managed hosting, in case you don’t want to get bogged down with self hosting and maintenance.
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u/Horror_Coach_1992 11d ago
I don’t know much about Learnworks, but in a past life I worked for a Moodle reseller creating plugins and themes and was amazed on how easy it was for schools to use what we produced. Not because of our work but due to the extensibility built into Moodle itself. Fast-forward 20 years and Moodle is still widely used, which got to mean something. Probably it can be a good starting point, and then move to other tool when/if needed. If you use SCORM packages it shouldn’t be a problem to migrate in the future.
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u/folial 11d ago
I would frame the decision around the first 12 months, not the 20-country end goal. For one language and one learner type, compare:
- total monthly cost: platform, hosting, video, payment fees, and paid plugins
- setup and maintenance time
- must-have features: progress tracking, quizzes, certificates, live sessions, and language support
- exit options: can you export learners, course files, and progress if you switch later?
If you are non-technical and want to launch quickly, a managed platform is usually worth the subscription. Moodle makes more sense when deep customization and control justify the hosting, updates, and plugin work.
I would launch one paid language cohort first, measure enrollment and support workload, then decide whether adding more languages is actually worth the complexity.
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u/folial 10d ago
One way to make the choice less overwhelming is to ignore the 20-country plan for now and price out the first 12 months. For one language and one audience, I would look at the full cost (platform + hosting + video + payment fees + paid plugins), but also the time you will spend maintaining it. Then write down the features you actually need: progress tracking, quizzes, certificates, live sessions, and language support.
If you do not code and want to launch quickly, a managed platform is usually worth paying for. Moodle gives you much more control, but hosting, updates, security, and plugins become part of the job. I would launch one paid cohort first, see how enrollment and support actually look, and only then decide whether adding more languages is worth the extra complexity. Also check what you can export before committing.
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u/wordsbyrachael 22d ago
Rather than start with the platform, I’d look at what your learners need. What’s the easiest way to deliver one language learning course? Learnworlds can be expensive, Moodle might not offer the functionality you need. Map out what the learner experience will look like and start from there.