LearnDash vs Masterstudy LMS: What You Need to Know?

If you are a teacher, expert, online creator or coach, and want to create & sell online courses but are confused which LMS plugin you should choose for your wordpress site b/w Masterstudy LMS vs LearnDash.

Don’t worry!, Reading this comparison will help you to find out!

Here I have compared their,

• Features
• UI (user interface) & Ease of use
• Course builder
• Add-ons and integrations
• Support & Documentation
• Pricing & Lifetime Plans (if available)

Let’s compare.

Masterstudy LMS vs Learndash: Side by Side Comparison 2024

Features	Masterstudy	Learndash
Course Builder	✅ Front end + Back end	✅ Back end
Personalized Dashboard	– Teachers – Students	– Teachers – Students
Multi Instructor	✅	✅
Add-ons & Integrations	✅	✅
Udemy Importer	✅	❌
Certificate Builder	✅	✅
Drip Content	✅	✅
Zoom Integration	✅	✅
Live Streaming	– Youtube integration – Zoom	– Zoom
Prerequisites	✅	✅
Mobile App	✅	❌
Form Builder	✅	❌
Gradebook & Points system	✅	✅
Notifications	✅	✅
Discussion Panel (Live chat)	✅	❌
Email Manager	✅	❌
Multi Language	✅	✅
Multi Payment Modules	✅	✅
Documentation	– Articles – Videos	– Articles
Pricing	-1 site: $69 -25 sites: $138 -100 sites: $207	-1 site: $199. -10 sites: $399 -50 sites: $799
Visit	Get Masterstudy	Get LearnDash

Overview – Learndash vs Masterstudy LMS

LearnDash Review

Learndash is a cloud based LMS plugin for wordpress which can turn your website into an e-leaning platform with advanced features such as Course building, quizzes and certification, students enrollment, accepting payments and much more.

With drag and drop course builder, adding courses is really easy and time saving. Users can add any kind of content weather it’s text, pdf, video or a download file.

It also comes with lot of advanced add-ons and 3rd party plugins integrations to give the flexibility for adding more functions.

Masterstudy LMS Review

Masterstudy LMS plugin is a complete solution to turn your wordpress site into a online teaching portal with advanced features.

Developed by stylemixthemes, this learning management plugin has all the functionalities from creating to selling your online course content.

Recently Masterstudy LMS 3.0 launched with better course builder ui and other enhancements.

Using Masterstudy front course builder, you can create courses, lessons, quiz, contests, assignments and even live classes.

It also offers a flutter mobile app version for android and IOS. And whatever changes you will on website, automatically sync to the app.

What is the difference between MasterStudy theme and plugin?

The MasterStudy theme and plugin are both designed to help create and manage online courses, but they function differently.

MasterStudy WordPress theme is a complete website design that includes a set of templates, layouts, and features specifically optimized for creating an e-learning platform. It provides a visual interface through which you can customize the look and feel of your site, including colors, fonts, logos, and other branding elements.

On the other hand, plugin provides additional functionality to your e-learning platform by adding features such as course management tools, student progress tracking, quizzes and assessments, and payment processing integrations.

Features Comparison – Masterstudy Lms vs Learndash

LearnDash Features	Masterstudy Features
Drag and drop based back end course builder	Front-end course builder with a drag and drop features
Create course lessons, quizzes, certificates & assignments	Create courses, advance quiz, lessons, assignments
Personalized dashboard for teachers and students	Different personalized dashboard for instructors and students
Quiz builder – create quizzes like true/false, multiple choice, fill in blanks and more.	User management – review students performance and manage their activities
All build courses are mobile responsive to give unified experience to students.	Assign Co-instructors for courses (add multiple teachers)
Course Cloning- duplicate course settings with 1 click and customize lessons.	Point based system to motivate students
Dynamic Content Delivery: drip course feed & easy digital downloads	Drip content – unlock lessons with students progress
Create custom badges and certificates	Certificate builder – give custom certificates to your students
Advance analytic reports to track course progress, selling and students performance	Built in discussion for directly chat with students, and announcements
Automated Notification alerts	Email notification alerts
Awards & Grading point system	Multi payment model- choose any type one-time subscription, pricing plans, memberships and course bundle
Focus Mode, Learning Paths and Video Progression features help students to stay focused.	Multi payment gateways – supports paypal, stripe, wire transfer and offline direct payments
Web based notifications but no built-in email manager	Email builder with pre built email templates
Create course in multiple languages	Support multi language and auto translation
Multi instructor support	Integrate with google classroom & youtube for live classes, zoom for webinars
Support multiple payment methods	Android and IOS app available
Supports images, videos, audio, SWF files, HTML5, SCORM, xAPI, and more	Upload any type of content- text, video, pdf or any other type.
Support all popular page builders	Works with all popular page builders – Elementor, Wpbakery, Divi, and even Gutenberg
Many 3rd party premium plugin integrations and add-ons available	Built in affiliate dashboard for students to earn while learning
Tutorial documentations available	Tons of premium add-ons available
Enable ecommerce with WooCommerce support.	Detailed documentation and video tutorials available for easily set up different things using masterstudy plugin

Differences:

After analyzing both LMS Plugins features, I have found overall the functionality is same like course creation, quizzes, students management, drip content feed etc. But there are many differences in features.

Like Masterstudy has all addons built-in and no need to download plugin separately. All you have to enable or disable them. While in LearnDash you have to install and activate the plugin for add-ons. This can make website heavy and slow in loading from hosting server.

And in some cases, I found out masterstudy has upper hand over tutor such as Discussion panel to live chat with students and sending personalized messages. This feature is very important for students to ask directly with teacher. But in Learndash you need to install Buddypress plugin for this.

Masterstudy has back-end + front end both type course builders while in Learndash only back-end course builder come built-in, although it support front-end builder but to enable that users need to buy front course builder add-on separately starting from $80.

In masterstudy there’s an add-on that integrate with youtube which lets you schedule and do live classes straight from masterstudy.

This feature for conduct live classes alone so much powerful. Still not available in Learndash.

Masterstudy also offers a built in affiliate panel with the same dashboard for students to refer the course to other students and earn some income while learning. This feature also not available in Learndash.

Winner: Masterstudy

Also Check – Learndash vs Tutor LMS vs Learnpress comparison

User Interface & Ease of use Comparison – LearnDash vs MasterStudy

LearnDash	Masterstudy UI
Learndash has most easy user interface, all options available under 1 place. Also has focus mode for undivided attention	Easy to use back end and front end panel
In setup section, users can design site layout in 1 click, choosing from prebuilt design templates.	Users can customize main colors, course page layout & design.
For both students and teacher, there is different dashboard but has unified easy to use ui	Simplified dashboard either it’s for teacher or students.
To create course, add lessons, quizzes, assignments it has different dedicated sections,	As a Teacher or Instructor, it just take 4 step process to upload the new course
Students get automatic notifications on various actions such as course completion, tests etc.	All the important features are available on left side menu, 1 click away.
Overall, Learndash UI offers a easy to understand and easy to use.	Masterstudy Ui gives a good user experience and combined easy to use dashboard in all device screens.
	App user interface is also good and always sync with website dashboard. For example students can continue watch left lesson from website in app.

Differences:

After comparing these LMS tools U.i and dashboard, I can say overall both are user-friendly, provide good user experience, dashboard filled rich features and easy to understand.

But in masterstudy, there are few things that can be much better like, front side Menu tab.

In default, menu tab collapsed and when click to expand it cover a portion of dashboard screen. But this is on front side.

With Learndash 3.0 updates, there are new things added to Ui such as Focus mode for students undivided attention from learning.

Here’s how it’s focus mode look like on desktop and mobile,

Winner: Learndash, It has overall better functions to make it’s Ui most suitable for students.

Course Builder – Masterstudy Lms vs Learndash

Masterstudy LMS Course Builder

For course uploading and editing, Masterstudy offer front end and back end drop course builder.

And with recent 3.0 Update, they made their course builder even better.

Front end course builder offer better and easy visual experience for uploading course lessons and details without needed to enter in wordpress back end.

All you have to enter asked details one by one like course title, category, files etc. This lets you create courses without any coding or technical knowledge.

And all the changes you will do using front end builder or back end, automatically applied to app. That’s the best part I like most.

Plus with various layouts you can create different course pages.

LearnDash Course Builder

Learndash only comes with drag & drop backend course builder. Although it support front-end course building but it need an additional plugin installed called “Frontend Course Creation by Wismlabs” pricing $80/year.

Yes, for front-end course builder you need to pay $80 every year.

Winner: Masterstudty LMS as it comes wit back as well as front end course creator without needed to pay extra.

Add Ons & Integrations – Masterstudy Lms vs Learndash

LearnDash Add-ons	Masterstudy Add-ons
Certificate Builder– Gutenberg based drag and drop certificate builder	Statistics and payouts– Built analytics reports and payment structures as you need
Propanel- Track and manage Student’s assignments, enrollments and performance.	Udemy Importer– Imported already created courses directly from udemy
Achievements– Give students awards, badges, and points based on their performance.	Prerequisites– Unlock course’s next lesson on completion previous lessons.
Notifications– Send announcements, update and alerts on students certain actions.	Online Testing– Conduct online test and exams
Course grid– Create good looking course design, layouts and insert them in any page.	Trial courses– Give student trail demo of courses
Integrity– Keep protect your courses from spam, hacks and unauthorized copy.	Content Dripping– Denied course access until start date or course process (schedule)
Group Plus– Sell and offer multiple course with a bundle offer.	Co-instructors– Add multip[le teachers to a course
Restricts Content Pro– 3rd party plugin integration	Point System– Boost motivation of students by giving points and awards
Notes– This add-on lets your students take note while learning from courses and export them in offline.	Assignments– Built in assignment writing section
Visual Customizer- Premium Addon for pre designed templates library.	Gradebook– Track students performance with a gradebook
Front-End Course Creation- It’s a front side visual course builder	Live Streaming– Do live classes with Youtube without leaving the platform
Gradebook– Monitor your students performance	Group Courses– Let you sell courses to a group or team
Enrollments– Manage and control students enrollment data	Email Manager– create good looking emails with pre designed templates
There are still many 3rd party plugins comes with free and premium integration.	Course Bundles– Sell courses in bundle
	Google Classrooms– Import as well as conduct live classes
	Zoom Conference– Integrate with zoom for conferences, live classes, and webinars
	SCORM– Pre built e-learn courses templates
	Certificates– Create course certificates from pre-designed templates
	Forms Editor– A user friendly form editor for courses
	File Upload Manager– Upload and manage any kind of file

While in Masterstudy all these add-ons come pre-built without any plugin install needed, but in learndash you need to install 3rd party plugin for enabling the add-on.

Winner: Without any doubt, Masterstudy LMS

Support & Documentation – Masterstudy Lms vs Learndash

Learndash	Masterstudy
Email Support	Email support
Chat Support	Chat Support
Documentation articles (text based) for platform tutorials	Documentation article based tutorials for learning about platform & how to use different features
	Masterstudy also offer video tutorials for documentation

Difference:

Both platforms offer good support via chat and email and has documentation section for tutorials and learning about different features activity.

But while LearnDash has only text based tutorials, Masterstudy also offer video based tutorials along with articles.

And video are far better compared to text information when it comes to tutorials. Because it show step by step process and save lots of time.

Winner: Masterstudy documentation is better here

Pricing & Lifetime Deal Plans– Learndash vs Masterstudy Lms

LearnDash Pricing – is there any lifetime plan?

First of all Learndash don’t offer any lifetime plans, that’s really heart broking.

And for official pricing it has annual plans starting from $199/year for 1 site. And to use various Add-ons you need to buy them separately on annual subscription.

For example, Propanel cost $49/year for 1 site, same pricing for Group Plus, Gradebook & Notes Add-on.

LearnDash Annual Plans:

Plan	Annual
1 Site	$199/year
10 Sites	$399/year
Unlimited	$799/year

Is LearnDash Free?

Learndash don’t offer any free plans or free version.

MasterStudy LMS Pricing – is there any lifetime plan?

Yes, Masterstudy Lms lifetime deal available and compared to its annual plans, Masterstudy lifetime deal much more affordable.

For example,

On official site, only 1 website lifetime plan cost $149. while annual plan cost is $59/year.

And it also offers just 14 days money back period.

Masterstudy LMS Lifetime Deal:

	$149	$399	$799
Site license	1 sites	5 sites	Unlimited
Lifetime Updates	✅	✅	✅
All Add-ons	✅	✅	✅

Every lifetime deal comes with 14 days money-back guarantee, if somehow you are not happy just return within 14 days and your money will be backed 100% without asking any questions.

Is there any Masterstudy Lms free plan:

Masterstudy also offer free plugin with very limited basic features and there’s also free teaching theme available with every plugin license.

Difference:

Masterstudy lms lifetime plan pricing much more affordable and offer better money back period compared to Learndash.

Winner: Master study

What are the key differences between LearnDash and Masterstudy LMS?

LearnDash focuses on ease of use, offering a powerful yet intuitive learning experience. Master study LMS, on the other hand, boasts advanced features for customization and monetization. LearnDash is ideal for beginners, whereas Masterstudy LMS caters to users looking for extensive control over their platform.

Final Conclusion: Masterstudy LMS vs Learndash

In every comparison factor, Masterstudy wins. The major difference I found out in both tools is their user interface, Add-ons & 3rd party plugin integrations, front course builder and pricing.

Plus, don’t forget masterstudy also offer app version along along with plugin.

Along with these Masterstudy lifetime deal pricing much more affordable.

So If you want to Start a LMS website with unlimited courses for online teaching, Masterstudy lms is one of best wordpress lms plugins compared to Learndash.

So, that’s all about LearnDash vs Masterstudy Lms comparison. Hope you got all the information and it’s your time to use this tool and tell me what you liked most about it in comments.

FAQ: Most Asked Questions

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