Learning software

Have you heard the old joke of the man going to pick up his car from the mechanic?

His friend asks him, “Is your car alright now?”

And he replies, “Yup! I was worried the repair shop might try to rip me off, but the mechanic said all I needed was $60 of headlight fluid!”

Just like with car repairs, you should know ahead of time how much learning management software (LMS) products are supposed to cost before purchasing them. We highly recommend people take the time to research different price points before committing to buying anything.

Unfortunately, there’s no one simple cost structure when it comes to LMS pricing. Besides the fact that there are several different pricing models, your specific requirements are also a big factor in how much you’ll pay. However, it’s important to know the various pricing models so that when you get quotes, you can compare apples to apples.

Here’s a breakdown of how most LMS providers charge for their software.

Pay-Per-Learner

This is the most common pricing model in which you pay a flat fee per learner (regardless of how much training they’re receiving). Additionally, there’s often a one-time setup fee.

Price Range: Around $5/user/month, but prices go down as you scale, to as little as $0.50/user/month for large companies with many learners.

LMS with this Pricing Model:

Pay-Per-Use

This can mean different things depending on the LMS provider, so you’ll want to make sure you understand whether they charge a fee-per-user-per module, fee-per-course-per-user (this is very common), a fee based on elements or materials delivered per course, or a fee based on number of class attendees.

Price Range: Depends on the specific model and your volume, but expect anywhere from $0.50-$10 per learner per course.

License Fee

This is either a one-time, upfront cost to access the software, or it is a fee to access the software for a specific period of time (monthly, annually, etc.). There may also be an annual support fee.

Price Range: Less than $500 to tens of thousands of dollars (e.g. $20, 000 annually).

Bonus: Other Pricing Models

Additional pricing models you may run into include Unlimited User Flat Fee (ex. Interactyx) and Pay-Per-Course (ex. CourseWebs). These could also be combined with one of the above models (i.e. Pay-Per-Course with an additional one-time license fee).