# Best Online Learning Platforms - Page 3 *By [Emma Stein](https://research.g2.com/insights/author/emma-stein)* Online Learning Platforms, or online course platforms, provide an architecture to create online courses and other educational products. Online Learning platforms are used by businesses, educators, or solopreneurs to create, author, and/or self-publish educational material. Some provide an existing marketplace on which to sell online courses or help businesses market their content. Online Learning Platforms provide tools to create customizable study materials and streamline tasks, freeing up educators to focus on providing engaging, high-quality lessons. Some platforms allow instructors to integrate adaptive learning technology into their courses, offering a consistent experience across products. Online Learning Platforms are often implemented as standalone platforms, marketplace online course platforms, or all-in-one platforms. Additionally, this platform might be sold as an integrated solution within a [learning management system (LMS)](https://www.g2.com/categories/learning-management-system-lms) to help users administer their overall eLearning program. To qualify as an Online Learning Platform, a product must: - Provide educational material to students anywhere and from any device - Offer tools for creating and/or uploading educational content - Provide workflows for effectively managing and tracking educational content and students progress - Track key metrics such as performance and study behavior - Offer support for a variety of multimedia such as Word docs, video, audio, PDFs, text, PPT, HTML, voice-over slide presentations, survey, quizzes, downloadable attachments, and more ## How Many Online Learning Platforms Products Does G2 Track? **Total Products under this Category:** 334 ## How Does G2 Rank Online Learning Platforms Products? **Why You Can Trust G2's Software Rankings:** - 30 Analysts and Data Experts - 13,900+ Authentic Reviews - 334+ Products - Unbiased Rankings G2's software rankings are built on verified user reviews, rigorous moderation, and a consistent research methodology maintained by a team of analysts and data experts. Each product is measured using the same transparent criteria, with no paid placement or vendor influence. While reviews reflect real user experiences, which can be subjective, they offer valuable insight into how software performs in the hands of professionals. Together, these inputs power the G2 Score, a standardized way to compare tools within every category. ## Which Online Learning Platforms Is Best for Your Use Case? - **Leader:** [Udemy Business](https://www.g2.com/products/udemy-business/reviews) - **Highest Performer:** [Kubicle](https://www.g2.com/products/kubicle/reviews) - **Easiest to Use:** [Udemy Business](https://www.g2.com/products/udemy-business/reviews) - **Top Trending:** [Mighty Networks](https://www.g2.com/products/mighty-networks/reviews) - **Best Free Software:** [D2L Brightspace](https://www.g2.com/products/d2l-brightspace/reviews) --- **Sponsored** ### 360Learning 360Learning is the AI-powered learning platform that combines LMS and LXP capabilities to drive onboarding, employee development, and customer training at scale. L&D teams—from solo practitioners to global enterprises—use 360Learning to turn internal expertise into collaborative, skills-based learning for employees, customers, and partners. 360Learning’s collaborative learning approach, combined with deep integrations with systems like SAP and Workday, empowers organizations to upskill at scale through expert-led communities of practice around key topics, roles, and more. Over 2,500 companies including Safran, Cognizant, Bally’s Corporation, Duolingo, and Smile Brands, trust 360Learning to power learning at work. Since 2013, the company has raised $240 million and built a global team across North America and Europe. 360Learning pioneered collaborative learning, launched the first AI certification for L&D, and founded the L&D Collective to connect learning leaders worldwide. [Visit website](https://www.g2.com/external_clickthroughs/record?secure%5Bad_program%5D=ppc&secure%5Bad_slot%5D=category_product_list&secure%5Bcategory_id%5D=1197&secure%5Bdisplayable_resource_id%5D=1197&secure%5Bdisplayable_resource_type%5D=Category&secure%5Bmedium%5D=sponsored&secure%5Bplacement_reason%5D=page_category&secure%5Bplacement_resource_ids%5D%5B%5D=1197&secure%5Bprioritized%5D=false&secure%5Bproduct_id%5D=57927&secure%5Bresource_id%5D=1197&secure%5Bresource_type%5D=Category&secure%5Bsource_type%5D=category_page&secure%5Bsource_url%5D=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.g2.com%2Fcategories%2Fonline-learning-platform&secure%5Btoken%5D=59afa63dc4a34398adb756497ce9071efc9f6d7369635a594b80ee5fb8cf5303&secure%5Burl%5D=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.360learning.com%2F%3Futm_medium%3Ddirectory%26utm_source%3Dg2%26utm_campaign%3DUS_UK_G2_PPC%26utm_content%3DG2_Clicks_PPC%26utm_term%3DG2_Clicks_PPC&secure%5Burl_type%5D=custom_url) --- ## What Are the Top-Rated Online Learning Platforms Products in 2026? ### 1. [Gurucan](https://www.g2.com/products/gurucan/reviews) A mobile first platform for creators who sell online courses, memberships, digital downloads, webinars & cohort based courses. With Gurucan White Label engine it is possible to launch branded (iOS & Android) apps in less than 30 days for a disruptive price without tech headaches. **Average Rating:** 4.5/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 156 **How Do G2 Users Rate Gurucan?** - **Ease of Use:** 8.8/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Gurucan?** - **Seller:** [Gurucan](https://www.g2.com/sellers/gurucan) - **HQ Location:** San Francisco, California - **Twitter:** @gurucan (3 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/gurucan/ (4 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Who Uses This:** Owner, Founder - **Top Industries:** E-Learning, Marketing and Advertising - **Company Size:** 97% Small-Business, 1% Enterprise #### What Are Gurucan's Pros and Cons? **Pros:** - Course Creation (1 reviews) - Course Variety (1 reviews) - Effective (1 reviews) - Online Education (1 reviews) ### 2. [Versant by Pearson](https://www.g2.com/products/versant-by-pearson/reviews) Versant by Pearson is an innovative, automated language assessment solution designed to meet the needs of forward-thinking businesses and HR professionals. As a leading tool in the language testing sphere, Versant offers precise, reliable evaluations of a candidate's language proficiency through advanced artificial intelligence and speech processing technologies. The assessments cover various skills, including speaking, listening, reading, and writing, ensuring a comprehensive analysis of language capabilities. Versant is not just about testing; it's about empowering organisations to make well-informed decisions in talent acquisition, development, and management. By providing quick, accurate results, Versant enables businesses to identify the best talent, streamline their recruitment process, and foster better communication within diverse teams. With its user-friendly interface and seamless integration capabilities, Versant stands out as a powerful ally for companies aiming to enhance their global workforce's language skills, ensuring they remain competitive in an increasingly interconnected market. **Average Rating:** 4.5/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 20 **How Do G2 Users Rate Versant by Pearson?** - **Ease of Use:** 9.1/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Versant by Pearson?** - **Seller:** [Pearson](https://www.g2.com/sellers/pearson) - **Year Founded:** 1988 - **HQ Location:** London, United Kingdom - **Twitter:** @pearsonlanguage (56,025 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/pearson/about/ (12,179 employees on LinkedIn®) - **Ownership:** NYSE: PSO **Who Uses This Product?** - **Top Industries:** Higher Education - **Company Size:** 55% Small-Business, 25% Mid-Market ### 3. [Lambda Suite](https://www.g2.com/products/lambda-suite/reviews) Company Overview Lambda Learning is the creator of the Lambda Suite, a powerful all-in-one platform designed specifically for online training businesses. Our mission is to help training providers streamline operations, boost learner engagement, and grow revenue with integrated tools for e-Commerce, Learning Management, and Analytics. Product Description Lambda Suite is a comprehensive solution that combines an e-Commerce platform, a robust Learning Management System (LMS), and powerful Analytics tools—all in one place. Designed to support the unique needs of digital training companies, Lambda Suite enables you to sell, deliver, and optimize online learning experiences with ease. Key Features Integrated e-Commerce for Online Training \* Sell both physical and digital learning content \* Offer custom pricing models and subscription plans \* Manage inventory, fulfillment, and transactions in one place \* Support international sales and multiple currencies Built-In Analytics and Reporting \* Use drag-and-drop tools to create custom reports \* Build interactive dashboards to track business and learner performance \* Monitor course completion, engagement, and ROI \* Make data-driven decisions with real-time insights Learning Management System (LMS) \* Design personalized learning paths based on user roles or behavior \* Deliver engaging, interactive course content \* Support multiple media formats and learning styles \* Enable self-paced, blended, or instructor-led training Exceptional Customer Support \* Get help from a results-driven support team \* Benefit from collaborative onboarding and training \* Resolve technical issues quickly with dedicated assistance \* Minimize downtime and maximize platform performance Value Proposition Lambda Suite empowers online training providers by delivering a scalable, end-to-end solution for managing the business of learning. With seamless integration between e-Commerce, LMS, and Analytics, our platform helps you focus on what matters most—creating exceptional learning experiences and growing your business. **Average Rating:** 4.3/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 91 **How Do G2 Users Rate Lambda Suite?** - **Ease of Use:** 8.3/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Progress Reports:** 9.0/10 (Category avg: 8.5/10) - **Course Completion:** 7.7/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Course Access:** 8.3/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Lambda Suite?** - **Seller:** [Lambda Solutions](https://www.g2.com/sellers/lambda-solutions-1171cb65-a311-4530-ad44-3fafcc592a0a) - **Year Founded:** 2002 - **HQ Location:** North Vancouver, CA - **Twitter:** @lambdasolutions (1,467 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/117064/ (26 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Top Industries:** Higher Education, Non-Profit Organization Management - **Company Size:** 40% Mid-Market, 34% Small-Business ### 4. [Uteach](https://www.g2.com/products/uteach/reviews) Uteach is a simple yet powerful learning management system designed for businesses and organizations that want to onboard, train, and upskill employees, build branded learning academies, and monetize internal or external training programs. Since 2020, Uteach has supported over 6,000 individuals and companies worldwide. Central banks and leading organizations in hospitality, education, finance, and other industries trust Uteach to manage and scale their training initiatives with confidence. With Uteach, businesses and individuals deliver modern learning experiences that are collaborative, personalized, social, and mobile-first. Here's how: \_Create fully white-labeled academies that match your organization’s brand. \_Deliver training in any format, including pre-recorded courses, live sessions, workshops, and coaching. \_Import employees, assign roles and courses, automate emails and reminders, and manage training access with ease. \_Integrate Uteach with your HR, CRM, marketing, automation, and analytics tools. A hands-on support team will guide you from setup to scaling. Contact our team to see how Uteach helps you deliver impactful learning experiences and grow your training programs with confidence. **Average Rating:** 4.2/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 29 **How Do G2 Users Rate Uteach?** - **Ease of Use:** 8.4/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Progress Reports:** 8.2/10 (Category avg: 8.5/10) - **Course Completion:** 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Course Access:** 7.6/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Uteach?** - **Seller:** [Shushan Shahbazyan](https://www.g2.com/sellers/shushan-shahbazyan) - **Year Founded:** 2020 - **HQ Location:** N/A - **Twitter:** @Uteach6 (254 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/42705890/ (24 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Top Industries:** Education Management - **Company Size:** 83% Small-Business, 14% Mid-Market #### What Are Uteach's Pros and Cons? **Pros:** - Ease of Use (11 reviews) - Intuitive (7 reviews) - Course Creation (5 reviews) - Quizzes (5 reviews) - Customer Support (3 reviews) **Cons:** - Subscription Issues (3 reviews) - Difficult Learning (1 reviews) - Inefficient Processes (1 reviews) - Limited Analytics (1 reviews) - Limited Course Options (1 reviews) ### 5. [FreshLearn](https://www.g2.com/products/freshlearn/reviews) The only platform you need to create, market, and sell online courses and coaching. We empower 15000+ creators and businesses to turn knowledge into courses, live workshops, and digital downloads. and start a successful online business in less than an hour! **Average Rating:** 4.5/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 108 **How Do G2 Users Rate FreshLearn?** - **Ease of Use:** 8.7/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Progress Reports:** 7.8/10 (Category avg: 8.5/10) - **Course Completion:** 7.8/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Course Access:** 8.2/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind FreshLearn?** - **Seller:** [FreshLMS](https://www.g2.com/sellers/freshlms-1f64dac5-3d5f-4a4f-9e45-11286e21d39d) - **Year Founded:** 2020 - **HQ Location:** Newark, Delaware - **Twitter:** @freshlms (10 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/freshlms/ (30 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Who Uses This:** CEO, Founder - **Top Industries:** Education Management, E-Learning - **Company Size:** 94% Small-Business, 5% Mid-Market #### What Are FreshLearn's Pros and Cons? **Pros:** - Course Creation (4 reviews) - Customer Support (3 reviews) - Ease of Use (3 reviews) - Setup Ease (3 reviews) - Guidance (2 reviews) **Cons:** - Poor Customer Support (2 reviews) - Difficulty (1 reviews) - Limited Analytics (1 reviews) ### 6. [Edsby](https://www.g2.com/products/edsby/reviews) The Edsby® digital learning platform for K-12 is built specifically for school districts, regional governments and independent schools. They love Edsby for its modern, pedagogically sound K-12 assessment & reporting, family engagement, personalized learning and analytics. Edsby transforms every organization that adopts it. Teachers and administrators live in it all day. Students and parents make extensive use of it for all aspects of school life, all within a single, familiar, social-style user experience. It integrates closely with existing systems and extends the breadth of what a learning organization can achieve. Edsby addresses several critical challenges faced by K-12 institutions. It modernizes assessment and reporting processes, allowing educators to track student progress effectively and provide timely feedback. The platform also improves family engagement by facilitating communication between schools and families, ensuring parents are informed and involved in their children's education. Additionally, Edsby streamlines communication channels, enhances student engagement through interactive features, and builds capacity for educators by providing tools that support professional development. Other challenges solved by Edsby include data-driven insights into student performance and engagement via robust analytics capabilities. This allows educators to make informed decisions based on real-time data, ultimately improving educational outcomes. The platform also helps improve privacy and security, ensuring that sensitive information is protected while maintaining compliance with relevant regulations. With its extensive integration capabilities, Edsby is built to work alongside existing systems, extending the functionality of K-12 organizations and enabling them to achieve more. Edsby is deployed by organizations around the world. It has been licensed for national use by the New Zealand Ministry of Education and the country of Georgia. With over 80 industry awards and distinctions, it stands out for its comprehensive set of features tailored specifically for K-12 learning environments. With Edsby, educational institutions can enhance their operational efficiency, foster stronger relationships among stakeholders, and ultimately create a more effective learning environment for students. **Average Rating:** 4.4/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 117 **How Do G2 Users Rate Edsby?** - **Ease of Use:** 8.6/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Progress Reports:** 8.0/10 (Category avg: 8.5/10) - **Course Completion:** 7.8/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Course Access:** 7.4/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Edsby?** - **Seller:** [Edsby](https://www.g2.com/sellers/edsby) - **Company Website:** https://www.edsby.com - **Year Founded:** 2010 - **HQ Location:** Andover, Massachusetts - **Twitter:** @edsby (4,060 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/edsby (41 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Who Uses This:** Teacher - **Top Industries:** Primary/Secondary Education, Education Management - **Company Size:** 54% Mid-Market, 34% Small-Business #### What Are Edsby's Pros and Cons? **Pros:** - Ease of Use (26 reviews) - Communication (21 reviews) - Communication Efficiency (18 reviews) - Features (16 reviews) - Parent Communication (15 reviews) **Cons:** - Limited Features (10 reviews) - Technical Issues (8 reviews) - Difficulty (7 reviews) - Limited Functionality (7 reviews) - Software Bugs (7 reviews) ### 7. [Tovuti LMS](https://www.g2.com/products/tovuti-lms/reviews) Tovuti is an AI-powered learning management system (LMS) that helps organizations create, deliver, track, and manage training programs across multiple audiences. Teams use Tovuti for employee onboarding, employee training, compliance training, customer education, partner enablement, certification programs, and extended enterprise learning. The platform brings course creation, learning delivery, learner tracking, reporting, administration, and support into one system, helping organizations centralize training and manage scalable learning programs more efficiently. Tovuti is built for growing organizations with expanding training needs, including mid-market businesses, distributed teams, public-sector groups, and organizations training both internal and external audiences. Common users include L&D teams, HR leaders, LMS administrators, compliance teams, customer education teams, and partner enablement teams. Tovuti supports organizations that are replacing a legacy LMS, centralizing training across departments, scaling programs for employees, customers, or partners, or managing compliance and certification requirements. One of Tovuti’s key capabilities is native AI course authoring, which helps users turn a topic, outline, or uploaded document into structured course content. Teams can generate learning outcomes, lessons, quizzes, flashcards, narration, final exams, and SCORM-ready course output. This helps reduce manual course production work and gives training teams a faster way to move from source material to learner-ready content while keeping content editable before publishing. Tovuti also includes LMS tools for building and managing learning programs across multiple use cases. Users can create learning paths, assign courses, manage users and permissions, customize the learner experience, issue certificates, track learner progress, and view reporting dashboards. The platform also supports mobile learning, branded portals, ecommerce tools, gamification, social learning features, SCORM/xAPI/cmi5 content, native integrations, API access, SSO, role-based access control, MFA, and accessibility-aligned learning experiences. For organizations that need additional operational support, Tovuti LMS-as-a-Service provides expert assistance with LMS administration, reporting, configuration, integrations, user workflows, launch support, and ongoing platform optimization. This service helps teams reduce the administrative burden of managing an LMS while maintaining visibility into learning activity, compliance progress, and program performance. Tovuti combines LMS software, native AI course creation, implementation support, customer success, and optional managed services for organizations that need scalable, multi-audience training with measurable outcomes. **Average Rating:** 4.6/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 290 **How Do G2 Users Rate Tovuti LMS?** - **Ease of Use:** 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Progress Reports:** 8.7/10 (Category avg: 8.5/10) - **Course Completion:** 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Course Access:** 9.0/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Tovuti LMS?** - **Seller:** [Tovuti Inc.](https://www.g2.com/sellers/tovuti-inc) - **Company Website:** https://www.tovutilms.com/ - **Year Founded:** 2017 - **HQ Location:** Eagle, Idaho - **Twitter:** @LearnTOVUTI (300 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/18192826/ (58 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Who Uses This:** Software Engineer, Software Developer - **Top Industries:** Information Technology and Services, Computer Software - **Company Size:** 45% Mid-Market, 32% Small-Business #### What Are Tovuti LMS's Pros and Cons? **Pros:** - Customer Support (14 reviews) - Ease of Use (11 reviews) - Helpful (11 reviews) - Responsive Support (10 reviews) - Customization (9 reviews) **Cons:** - Not Intuitive (9 reviews) - Navigation Difficulties (8 reviews) - Learning Curve (7 reviews) - Not User-Friendly (7 reviews) - Lack of Intuitiveness (6 reviews) ### 8. [Achieve](https://www.g2.com/products/macmillan-learning-achieve/reviews) Achieve is Macmillan’s next-generation online learning system: a fully mobile, accessible, and flexible learning system. Building on the best features of our legacy platforms, Achieve offers powerful assessment tools and content to support students of all levels of preparation in an intuitive and user-friendly system. These tools also easily integrate with your school’s LMS if needed for a seamless experience. **Average Rating:** 3.9/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 11 **How Do G2 Users Rate Achieve?** - **Ease of Use:** 7.9/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Progress Reports:** 8.8/10 (Category avg: 8.5/10) - **Course Completion:** 7.2/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Course Access:** 8.3/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Achieve?** - **Seller:** [Macmillan Learning](https://www.g2.com/sellers/macmillan-learning) - **HQ Location:** New York City, NY - **Twitter:** @MacmillanLearn (1,879 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/10374733/ (842 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Company Size:** 64% Mid-Market, 36% Enterprise #### What Are Achieve's Pros and Cons? **Pros:** - Educational Resources (1 reviews) - Effective (1 reviews) - Teacher Quality (1 reviews) **Cons:** - Difficult Learning (1 reviews) - Poor Customer Support (1 reviews) ### 9. [Zenler](https://www.g2.com/products/zenler/reviews) Zenler is an all-in-one online course platform designed to empower educators, trainers, and entrepreneurs to create, market, and sell online courses, memberships, and communities seamlessly. By integrating course creation, marketing tools, live sessions, and community engagement features into a single platform, Zenler eliminates the need for multiple subscriptions and simplifies the online teaching experience. Key Features and Functionality: - Course Creation: Develop and deliver online courses with diverse content formats, including video, audio, PDFs, and interactive lessons. Features like drip content, tiered pricing, and assignments enhance the learning experience. - Marketing Funnels: Build high-converting marketing funnels to generate leads and grow your email list, complete with customizable opt-in and thank-you pages. - Email Automation: Set up automated email sequences to nurture leads, engage students, and send course updates, all within the platform. - Live Classes and Webinars: Conduct live classes, interactive webinars, and live streams directly through Zenler's integrated Zoom feature, supporting up to 500 participants without additional costs. - Community Building: Create private or public communities to foster engagement, facilitate discussions, and enhance student interaction. - Website Builder: Utilize the drag-and-drop site builder to design and host your entire website, including blogs and sales pages, without any coding knowledge. - Quizzes and Surveys: Incorporate quizzes and surveys to assess student progress and gather feedback, with options for graded quizzes and timed assessments. - AI Integration: Leverage Zenler AI to generate course titles, descriptions, curricula, and page content, streamlining the content creation process. Primary Value and Solutions Provided: Zenler addresses the common challenges faced by online course creators by offering a comprehensive, user-friendly platform that consolidates essential tools for course creation, marketing, and delivery. This integration reduces the complexity and cost associated with managing multiple software solutions. By providing features like live sessions, community engagement, and marketing automation, Zenler enables users to focus on delivering quality education and growing their business, ultimately enhancing the learning experience for students and streamlining operations for educators. **Average Rating:** 4.8/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 83 **How Do G2 Users Rate Zenler?** - **Ease of Use:** 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Progress Reports:** 9.2/10 (Category avg: 8.5/10) - **Course Completion:** 9.7/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Course Access:** 8.1/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Zenler?** - **Seller:** [Zenler](https://www.g2.com/sellers/zenler) - **HQ Location:** London, gb - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/36121199 (34 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Top Industries:** E-Learning, Professional Training & Coaching - **Company Size:** 99% Small-Business, 1% Mid-Market #### What Are Zenler's Pros and Cons? **Pros:** - Collaboration (2 reviews) - Course Creation (2 reviews) - Customer Support (2 reviews) - Integrations (2 reviews) - Customization (1 reviews) **Cons:** - Learning Curve (2 reviews) - Difficult Setup (1 reviews) - Inefficient Processes (1 reviews) - Unclear Instructions (1 reviews) ### 10. [CourseFunnels](https://www.g2.com/products/coursefunnels/reviews) Course Funnels is an online course platform with integrated marketing that supports 17 languages. It has 100% modifiable page themes, optin and squeeze plate templates to grab more leads and user friendly set up. It has SEO friendly features that help in on page optimization, caching for fast delivery and AMP for high speed mobile performance. It has email automation that also lets you do email marketing. It is Integrated with Facebook Pixel, Google Pixel, Google analytics, Heat-maps or any other analytics system and has full GDPR support. **Average Rating:** 4.6/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 15 **How Do G2 Users Rate CourseFunnels?** - **Ease of Use:** 7.2/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Progress Reports:** 6.7/10 (Category avg: 8.5/10) - **Course Completion:** 8.3/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Course Access:** 7.5/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind CourseFunnels?** - **Seller:** [Teknikforce Ventures](https://www.g2.com/sellers/teknikforce-ventures) - **Year Founded:** 2018 - **HQ Location:** Sharjah, Sharjah - **Twitter:** @teknikforce (10,790 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/teknikforceventures/about (59 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Top Industries:** E-Learning - **Company Size:** 100% Small-Business ### 11. [LearnDash](https://www.g2.com/products/learndash/reviews) LearnDash is a light-weight, flexible LMS built on WordPress that is powering learning programs for Fortune 500 companies, major universities, best-selling authors, and ‘solo-preneurs’ worldwide. "Best of ELearning" nominee by ELearning Magazine. See our demo at https://demo.learndash.com **Average Rating:** 4.2/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 50 **How Do G2 Users Rate LearnDash?** - **Ease of Use:** 8.1/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Progress Reports:** 7.3/10 (Category avg: 8.5/10) - **Course Completion:** 7.3/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Course Access:** 7.3/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind LearnDash?** - **Seller:** [LearnDash](https://www.g2.com/sellers/learndash) - **Year Founded:** 2013 - **HQ Location:** Ann Arbor, MI - **Twitter:** @LearnDashLMS (4,413 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/3079823/ (5 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Top Industries:** E-Learning, Education Management - **Company Size:** 92% Small-Business, 6% Mid-Market ### 12. [Cerego](https://www.g2.com/products/cerego/reviews) Cerego’s adaptive learning platform uses cognitive science and AI to automate the creation of learning material, and accelerates everyone's ability to retain and apply knowledge. **Average Rating:** 4.4/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 34 **How Do G2 Users Rate Cerego?** - **Ease of Use:** 8.7/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Cerego?** - **Seller:** [Cerego](https://www.g2.com/sellers/cerego) - **HQ Location:** San Francisco, California - **Twitter:** @cerego (958 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/cerego/ (9 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Top Industries:** Higher Education - **Company Size:** 47% Mid-Market, 31% Small-Business ### 13. [edX](https://www.g2.com/products/edx/reviews) EdX offers interactive online classes and MOOCs from the world's best universities, colleges and organizations. **Average Rating:** 4.5/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 118 **How Do G2 Users Rate edX?** - **Ease of Use:** 8.8/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Course Access:** 10.0/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind edX?** - **Seller:** [2U](https://www.g2.com/sellers/2u) - **Year Founded:** 2008 - **HQ Location:** Arlington, Virginia, United States - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/2u (3,103 employees on LinkedIn®) - **Ownership:** NASDAQ:TWOU - **Total Revenue (USD mm):** $774 **Who Uses This Product?** - **Who Uses This:** Software Engineer - **Top Industries:** Higher Education, Computer Software - **Company Size:** 40% Mid-Market, 37% Small-Business #### What Are edX's Pros and Cons? **Pros:** - Comprehensive Courses (1 reviews) - Content Diversity (1 reviews) - Educational Resources (1 reviews) - Knowledge Enhancement (1 reviews) - Skill Development (1 reviews) **Cons:** - Limited Content (1 reviews) - Limited Course Options (1 reviews) - Limited Course Variety (1 reviews) - Limited Options (1 reviews) ### 14. [Zoho ShowTime](https://www.g2.com/products/zoho-showtime/reviews) Zoho ShowTime is a browser based web-conferencing and online training tool. You can connect to your audience remotely and have real-time interaction within a virtual classroom. Intuitive UI and an easy-to-use application. It is designed for Trainers, HRs, Sales and Marketing professionals. You can configure a payment gateway and host paid training. Zoho CRM integration to manage and convert your participants into customers. You can personalize session settings, have multiple presenters, engage with your audience in real-time, view session analytics and track trainer performance. It's a cloud-based application, so your training can be presented and accessed from anywhere, at any time. Features: --\>One ShowTime account for your entire organization. --\>Payment portal configuration to host paid training session --\>Zoho CRM integration to manage and convert participants into customers --\>Personalize your session with registration customization, campaign tracking and more --\>Audio and video broadcast. --\>Record your session and share the video --\>Co-trainers or co-presenters as moderators during the session --\>Screen sharing option to share an entire screen --\>Whiteboard to draw or illustrate concepts and workflows --\>Track your learners' attention level using Engagement meter. --\>Conduct assessments using Polls and Evaluation to test your attendees. --\>Audience engagement features like Open-mic, Chat, Q&A, etc. --\>Detailed analytics to measure audience engagement and session performance. --\>Admin console to manage your team and a dashboard to track team performance. --\>Profile page to brand your organization and showcase your training accomplishments. --\>Mobile apps available on iOS and Android **Average Rating:** 4.3/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 24 **How Do G2 Users Rate Zoho ShowTime?** - **Ease of Use:** 8.6/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Zoho ShowTime?** - **Seller:** [Zoho](https://www.g2.com/sellers/zoho-b00ca9d5-bca8-41b5-a8ad-275480841704) - **Year Founded:** 1996 - **HQ Location:** Austin, TX - **Twitter:** @Zoho (137,412 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/38373/ (30,531 employees on LinkedIn®) - **Phone:** +1 (888) 900-9646 **Who Uses This Product?** - **Company Size:** 58% Small-Business, 27% Mid-Market ### 15. [HarvardX](https://www.g2.com/products/harvardx/reviews) Harvard University is devoted to excellence in teaching, learning, and research, and to developing leaders in many disciplines who make a difference globally. **Average Rating:** 4.4/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 12 **How Do G2 Users Rate HarvardX?** - **Ease of Use:** 9.0/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind HarvardX?** - **Seller:** [Harvard University](https://www.g2.com/sellers/harvard-university) - **Year Founded:** 1636 - **HQ Location:** Cambridge, Massachusetts - **Twitter:** @Harvard (1,727,809 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/1646/ (34,427 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Company Size:** 42% Enterprise, 42% Small-Business ### 16. [Great Learning](https://www.g2.com/products/great-learning/reviews) Great Learning is a leading global ed-tech company for professional and higher education with million+ learners across 170+ countries. It offers industry-relevant programs in data, management, and technology domains. Its programs are developed in collaboration with top institutions like MIT Professional Education, The University of Texas at Austin, NUS Business School & more. At Great Learning, true success means providing an unparalleled learning experience that empowers and enables individuals to scale greater heights in the digital economy. At Great Learning, true success means providing an unparalleled learning experience that empowers and enables individuals to scale greater heights of success in the digital economy. **Average Rating:** 4.3/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 28 **How Do G2 Users Rate Great Learning?** - **Ease of Use:** 8.7/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Progress Reports:** 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.5/10) - **Course Completion:** 9.3/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Course Access:** 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Great Learning?** - **Seller:** [Great Learning](https://www.g2.com/sellers/great-learning) - **Year Founded:** 2013 - **HQ Location:** Bengaluru, Karnataka - **Twitter:** @Great_Learning (33,490 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/school/great-learning/ (3,647 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Company Size:** 70% Small-Business, 20% Mid-Market ### 17. [MindTap](https://www.g2.com/products/mindtap/reviews) MindTap is an online learning platform developed by Cengage that offers a comprehensive suite of tools designed to enhance the educational experience for both instructors and students. It integrates digital textbooks, interactive assignments, and a variety of multimedia resources to create a personalized and engaging learning environment. MindTap supports a wide range of disciplines and is adaptable to various teaching styles, making it a versatile solution for modern education. Key Features and Functionality: - Customizable Course Content: Instructors can tailor course materials by reordering chapters, adding notes, and embedding additional content to align with their teaching objectives. - Integrated eBook: Students have access to their textbooks online and offline, with features like highlighting, note-taking, and text-to-speech to accommodate different learning preferences. - Progress Tracking: The built-in Progress App provides detailed analytics on student engagement and performance, helping instructors identify areas where students may need additional support. - Seamless LMS Integration: MindTap integrates smoothly with existing Learning Management Systems (LMS) such as Canvas, Blackboard, and Brightspace, ensuring a cohesive user experience. - Interactive Assignments and Assessments: The platform includes quizzes, tests, and multimedia activities that promote critical thinking and application of knowledge. - 24/7 Support and Resources: Cengage offers continuous support and training materials to assist instructors and students throughout their courses. Primary Value and Solutions Provided: MindTap addresses the challenges of modern education by offering a flexible and interactive platform that enhances student engagement and learning outcomes. For instructors, it reduces the time spent on administrative tasks like grading and course preparation, allowing them to focus more on teaching. For students, MindTap provides a dynamic learning environment that supports various learning styles and needs, fostering confidence and academic success. By integrating seamlessly with existing LMS platforms and offering customizable content, MindTap empowers educators to deliver courses that are both effective and engaging. **Average Rating:** 2.9/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 33 **How Do G2 Users Rate MindTap?** - **Ease of Use:** 6.0/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Progress Reports:** 10.0/10 (Category avg: 8.5/10) - **Course Completion:** 10.0/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Course Access:** 8.3/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind MindTap?** - **Seller:** [Cengage Learning](https://www.g2.com/sellers/cengage-learning) - **HQ Location:** Boston, MA - **Twitter:** @CengageLearning (11,979 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/162954/ (4,395 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Top Industries:** Higher Education, E-Learning - **Company Size:** 41% Small-Business, 32% Mid-Market #### What Are MindTap's Pros and Cons? **Pros:** - Assessments (1 reviews) - Collaboration (1 reviews) - Customer Support (1 reviews) - Design Ease (1 reviews) - Quizzes (1 reviews) ### 18. [Kajabi](https://www.g2.com/products/kajabi-kajabi/reviews) Kajabi is an all-in-one platform that helps creators and entrepreneurs build successful online businesses by providing simple solutions to turn their passions, skills, and experiences into diverse revenue streams. With Kajabi, anyone can build enriching online courses, offer exclusive memberships, grow a thriving community, create free or subscription podcasts, develop personalized coaching experiences, and so much more. With Kajabi, they also have access to robust analytics, seamless sales and marketing tools, easy payment options, and unmatched customer service, education, and community. **Average Rating:** 4.1/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 91 **How Do G2 Users Rate Kajabi?** - **Ease of Use:** 8.3/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Progress Reports:** 8.2/10 (Category avg: 8.5/10) - **Course Completion:** 8.7/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Course Access:** 8.7/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Kajabi?** - **Seller:** [Kajabi](https://www.g2.com/sellers/kajabi) - **Year Founded:** 2010 - **HQ Location:** Irvine, California - **Twitter:** @Kajabi (12,934 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/1000586/ (394 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Top Industries:** Marketing and Advertising, Health, Wellness and Fitness - **Company Size:** 90% Small-Business, 4% Mid-Market #### What Are Kajabi's Pros and Cons? **Pros:** - Ease of Use (4 reviews) - Email Marketing (4 reviews) - Branding Customization (2 reviews) - Easy Integrations (2 reviews) - Features (2 reviews) **Cons:** - Poor Customer Support (4 reviews) - Expensive (3 reviews) - Lack of Customization (3 reviews) - Inefficient Processes (2 reviews) - Limited Customization (2 reviews) ### 19. [Mastera](https://www.g2.com/products/mastera/reviews) The ultimate all in one platform to run and scale your teaching, coaching and training business. We are on a mission to redefine the way online knowledge is experienced and distributed. **Average Rating:** 4.6/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 98 **How Do G2 Users Rate Mastera?** - **Ease of Use:** 8.8/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Mastera?** - **Seller:** [Mastera](https://www.g2.com/sellers/mastera) - **Year Founded:** 2020 - **HQ Location:** Austin, US - **Twitter:** @mastera_io (79 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/masteraofficial/ (2 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Who Uses This:** CEO, Founder - **Top Industries:** E-Learning, Health, Wellness and Fitness - **Company Size:** 91% Small-Business, 1% Enterprise ### 20. [McGraw-Hill Connect](https://www.g2.com/products/mcgraw-hill-connect/reviews) McGraw-Hill Education Connect is a robust toolkit of learning resources designed with the flexibility instructors need, to unlock the potential of a diverse student population. Connect provides opportunities for both formative and summative assessment. Our adaptive technology provides students with a safe place to make mistakes encouraging deliberate practice and enabling them to move one step closer to mastery. AUTO-GRADING Your valuable time and expertise should be devoted to teaching—not grading. Connect will automatically grade assignments and quizzes, providing you with easy-to-read reports so you know which students need more guidance. CONSOLIDATED RESOURCES Who has the time to sift through multiple files, folders and click through various websites? Not you. Everything you need to be an effective educator is at your fingertips; consolidate all your course materials with Connect. TAGGED LEARNING OBJECTIVES Focus on what’s important: learning outcomes. Within Connect, you can create assignments and run reports to quickly assess whether students are learning crucial course content. SMARTBOOK SmartBook is a digital version of your course textbook. It contains the same content within the textbook, but unlike a typical eBook, SmartBook actively tailors that content to your individual needs as a student. SmartBook can be accessed online through your laptop. And, many SmartBooks are available on tablet, too! **Average Rating:** 3.6/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 167 **How Do G2 Users Rate McGraw-Hill Connect?** - **Ease of Use:** 7.3/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Progress Reports:** 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.5/10) - **Course Completion:** 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Course Access:** 7.8/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind McGraw-Hill Connect?** - **Seller:** [McGraw-Hill Education](https://www.g2.com/sellers/mcgraw-hill-education) - **HQ Location:** New York, NY - **Twitter:** @MHEducation (58,534 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/2933/ (8,097 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Who Uses This:** Teacher, Associate Professor - **Top Industries:** Higher Education, Education Management - **Company Size:** 42% Enterprise, 36% Mid-Market ### 21. [Graphy](https://www.g2.com/products/graphy/reviews) Graphy is an all-in-one platform for creators, educators and business coaches to create, launch, market and sell online courses. Graphy provides you with a white-labeled course website and mobile app to help you establish your brand, and grow your knowledge business. With Graphy’s robust features, you can: 1. Build no-code websites & mobile apps 2. Create interactive courses in multiple languages 3. Host webinars/live classes 4. Offer memberships 5. Receive hassle-free payments **Average Rating:** 4.3/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 160 **How Do G2 Users Rate Graphy?** - **Ease of Use:** 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Progress Reports:** 7.9/10 (Category avg: 8.5/10) - **Course Completion:** 8.4/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Course Access:** 8.6/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Graphy?** - **Seller:** [Unacademy](https://www.g2.com/sellers/unacademy) - **Year Founded:** 2015 - **HQ Location:** Bengaluru, Karnataka, India - **Twitter:** @unacademy (142,485 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/unacademy/ (9,577 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Who Uses This:** Founder, Director - **Top Industries:** Education Management, E-Learning - **Company Size:** 94% Small-Business, 3% Mid-Market #### What Are Graphy's Pros and Cons? **Pros:** - Customer Support (1 reviews) **Cons:** - Poor Customer Support (1 reviews) ### 22. [WebAssign](https://www.g2.com/products/webassign/reviews) WebAssign is a digital solution designed by educators to enrich the teaching and learning experience. WebAssign provides extensive content, instant assessment, and superior support. **Average Rating:** 3.5/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 24 **How Do G2 Users Rate WebAssign?** - **Ease of Use:** 7.4/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind WebAssign?** - **Seller:** [Cengage Learning](https://www.g2.com/sellers/cengage-learning) - **HQ Location:** Boston, MA - **Twitter:** @CengageLearning (11,979 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/162954/ (4,395 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Top Industries:** Education Management, Higher Education - **Company Size:** 38% Enterprise, 38% Mid-Market ### 23. [Revel](https://www.g2.com/products/pearson-revel/reviews) Revel presents an affordable, seamless blend of author-created digital text, media, and assessment based on learning science. Revel keeps students engaged as they read, practice, and study in one continuous experience anytime, anywhere, on any device. **Average Rating:** 3.6/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 11 **How Do G2 Users Rate Revel?** - **Ease of Use:** 7.2/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Revel?** - **Seller:** [Pearson](https://www.g2.com/sellers/pearson) - **Year Founded:** 1988 - **HQ Location:** London, United Kingdom - **Twitter:** @pearsonlanguage (56,025 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/pearson/about/ (12,179 employees on LinkedIn®) - **Ownership:** NYSE: PSO **Who Uses This Product?** - **Top Industries:** Higher Education - **Company Size:** 50% Mid-Market, 33% Small-Business ### 24. [Codio](https://www.g2.com/products/codio/reviews) Codio is a cloud-based learning platform for education, workforce development, and professional training. It provides educators, trainers, and institutions with tools to create, deliver, and manage courses focused on technical subjects such as computer science, cybersecurity, software development, and data science. Codio enables users to develop, manage, and deploy immersive learning experiences that meet the needs of today’s learners by emphasizing job-specific training and practical skills development. It is utilized by a range of organizations, including higher education, bootcamps, MOOC platforms, and corporate training programs, to prepare learners for real-world technical challenges. **Average Rating:** 4.2/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 23 **How Do G2 Users Rate Codio?** - **Ease of Use:** 8.1/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Progress Reports:** 3.3/10 (Category avg: 8.5/10) - **Course Completion:** 1.7/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) - **Course Access:** 5.0/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Codio?** - **Seller:** [Codio](https://www.g2.com/sellers/codio) - **Year Founded:** 2014 - **HQ Location:** Cambridge, Massachusetts - **Twitter:** @CodioHQ (5,423 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/codio/ (33 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Top Industries:** Higher Education, Primary/Secondary Education - **Company Size:** 54% Small-Business, 33% Mid-Market ### 25. [Skillshare](https://www.g2.com/products/skillshare/reviews) Skillshare is a learning community for creators. Enroll in classes and complete projects that unlock your creativity. **Average Rating:** 3.3/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 40 **How Do G2 Users Rate Skillshare?** - **Ease of Use:** 7.3/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10) **Who Is the Company Behind Skillshare?** - **Seller:** [Skillshare](https://www.g2.com/sellers/skillshare) - **Year Founded:** 2010 - **HQ Location:** New York, NY - **Twitter:** @skillshare (93,466 Twitter followers) - **LinkedIn® Page:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/skillshare-com/ (554 employees on LinkedIn®) **Who Uses This Product?** - **Top Industries:** Graphic Design, Marketing and Advertising - **Company Size:** 79% Small-Business, 19% Mid-Market ## What Is Online Learning Platforms? [Education Software](https://www.g2.com/categories/education) ## What Software Categories Are Similar to Online Learning Platforms? - [Learning Management Systems](https://www.g2.com/categories/learning-management-system-lms) - [Course Authoring Software](https://www.g2.com/categories/course-authoring) - [Corporate Learning Management Systems](https://www.g2.com/categories/corporate-learning-management-systems) --- ## How Do You Choose the Right Online Learning Platforms? ### What You Should Know About Online Learning Platforms ### What is an Online Learning Platform? Online learning platforms, also referred to as eLearning platforms, are tools that allow users to create high-quality customized courses for people to take online. Using these tools, an instructor can build a course from scratch by adding elements like videos, presentation slides, documents, quizzes, and project assignments. The content of the course can vary widely, depending on the skills the instructor is trying to teach. Some online learning platforms have libraries with content that instructors can add to the course, or the instructor can use their content. The finished course can be published online, where students can find it and complete the lessons. ### What are the Common Features of an Online Learning Platform? **Course structuring:** Instructors can divide their online courses into smaller sections to better organize the course materials. Within each section, there might be a variety of elements like lectures, projects, and quizzes. Dividing up the course into smaller pieces makes it easier to keep students engaged and track their progress. **File attachments:** To create multimedia courses that are more engaging for students, online learning platforms typically allow instructors to upload a variety of file types into online courses. Depending on the platform, instructors can upload files like videos, documents, presentations, images, or courses previously created using [course authoring software](https://g2.com/categories/course-authoring). **Gamification:** Awarding badges and points for completing lessons or mastering assessments can be an effective way to motivate students and make the learning experience more fun. Leaderboards display which users completed the most lessons or achieved the highest quiz scores. Adding gamified elements to courses created through online learning platforms gives students a sense of accomplishment and lets them share their progress with others using social media. **Course marketplace:** For solopreneurs selling online courses, some platforms come with built-in marketplaces that allow them to sell their content to students. Management features enable instructors to write course descriptions, upload images, and publish samples of the course. **Discussion boards and peer communities:** Learning is a social endeavor, so online learning platforms often host discussion forums where users can ask questions of other students taking the same course or talk about the course content. Instructors can create cohorts of students taking the same course, allowing learners to engage with each other and give each other feedback and encouragement. **Mobile compatibility:** Building mobile compatibility into courses allows students to access course content anywhere, giving them more flexibility to complete courses and assessments. Some platforms’ applications allow users to download content to their iOS or Android devices so it can be accessed even without an internet connection. Some products may also have a dedicated mobile app component to supplement the web-based platform. **Reporting and analytics:** Course administrators can access data about how many students are taking a course, how students are interacting with the content, and how they are performing on assessments, among other metrics. Students can also get information about how they have performed on quizzes and their usage patterns on the platform. **Video hosting** : Video lessons can be uploaded to online learning platforms and serve as the main method of delivering online classes, providing a more engaging learning experience compared to reading static slides or web pages. Some tools provide multiple methods of uploading video lectures, including grabbing videos from the cloud. ### What are the Benefits of an Online Learning Platform? Online learning platforms enable course administrators to create and deliver customized course experiences, no matter the audience. From entrepreneurs to corporate trainers to educators, users have access to a wide range of features that allow courses to be built in a way that meets the needs of their students. **Customized learning experiences:** There are thousands of prebuilt courses available for purchase through [online course providers](https://g2.com/categories/online-course-providers) for developing skills in a variety of areas, from computer programming to business management to art history. Sometimes, there is no prebuilt course that works and a customized course must be created. For example, preexisting online courses don’t always meet the needs of a college professor who wants to teach a physics class using a specific curriculum, or a company that wants to create internal training about how to use administrative functions of their web application. With online learning platforms, instructors can build courses from the ground up that target the exact skills they have in mind and the needs of a specific group of students. **Education content made more accessible:** For instructors, online learning platforms offer a way to expand access to their course materials outside of a physical learning environment. This is important as online education continues to rise in popularity. Some of these tools allow instructors to upload presentation files from a lecture and display them as part of an online course. Students who missed a training session or are studying remotely can easily access videos and other course content. Courses can also be accessed by learners at their convenience, accommodating different schedules. Compatibility with mobile applications further extends the reach of courses built on online learning platforms. ### Who Uses an Online Learning Platform? **Educators:** Education industry professionals use online learning platforms to make the content they teach available online. Some platforms come with tools that enable instructors to upload files that teachers might already use in their lessons, such as videos, word documents, and presentation files. Educators can add customized homework assignments, projects, and quizzes to their online courses and grade students based on how well they demonstrate targeted skills. Publishing course material online also allows professors to make course content available to students outside of in-person sessions, allowing students to review material or catch up if they miss a class. **HR trainers:** Employee success departments use online learning platforms to create customized training experiences for employees and streamline the management of their onboarding content. New hire training materials can be crafted for the company’s overall training objectives as well as for new skills that specific employees need to build. Some lessons might be aimed at soft skills, like team management, while others could focus on hard skills, like how to program in Python. Publishing the training content online allows employees to complete training when it’s convenient for them. Customizing courses for specific roles maximizes the efficiency of training programs, so employees aren’t sitting through irrelevant lessons. **Technical trainers:** Businesses use online learning platforms to train customers or clients on their products. This is especially beneficial for software trainers, who are often tasked with educating customers on how to get the most value out of the company’s software. While there will always be a need for live trainings, the ability to publish a custom online tutorial for a product’s most commonly used features allows users of that product to get most of the information they need, potentially cutting down the necessity for in-person trainings. **Solopreneurs:** For an entrepreneur who is running their business without any other employees, online learning platforms provide a structure for creating online courses or webinars for in-demand skills and selling them online. Some tools provide marketplaces where course creators can list their courses for sale, or offer tiered models that mix free courses and paid courses to entice subscribers. Depending on how dedicated the solopreneur is to their online teaching business, publishing courses through online learning platforms could be a side hustle that generates passive income or a full-fledged small business that they run full time. ### What are the Alternatives to an Online Learning Platform? [Course authoring software](https://www.g2.com/categories/course-authoring) **:** Course authoring software is used to develop training courses and content that can be consumed in either a corporate or more traditional educational setting. These products may be appealing to companies looking to create internal training programs for onboarding and ongoing professional development, especially if they don’t need all the additional features that an online learning platform provides. [Learning management system](https://www.g2.com/categories/learning-management-system-lms) **:** Online learning platforms and learning management systems (LMS) are often seen as the same, but an online learning platform serves as a foundation for eLearning and will often be used in conjunction with other supporting software tools. Online learning platforms are occasionally sold as an integration within a larger LMS product too.  An LMS helps instructors deliver and manage online learning by creating a streamlined communication channel between instructors and students. These software applications manage all types of content, including video, courses, and documents, and allow students to access all course content from any device. Instructors can use an LMS to manage rubrics, student discussion boards, and course syllabi, and they provide key features for reporting, progress tracking, and assignments and assessments. ### Challenges with an Online Learning Platform **Effectively marketing a course:** Online learning has become an increasingly crowded and competitive business segment. Solopreneurs trying to create a course on an online learning platform are competing with thousands of courses already on the market on any imaginable topic. Users of online learning providers must consider how their marketing will set their course content apart from others that already exist. Then, they must determine how to best market their course, including what kinds of students it will target, what topics it will cover, how they will advertise it, and how they will write a course description that catches attention. Without thinking through how to make a course stand out through effective marketing, it is bound to get lost in the virtual ocean of educational content already available online. **Creating engaging courses:** Designing informative, interesting, and attention-grabbing courses is a challenging task. While the ability to create a customized course unlocks many potential benefits, it also requires creators to be thoughtful at the outset about how they want to build a course that will deliver on their key learning objectives. For corporate trainers writing a course about topics that employees may consider less than exciting, they must leverage their creativity to deliver the content engagingly. ### Which Companies Should Buy an Online Learning Platform? **Colleges and universities:** Any educational institution, but especially higher education, that needs to make course content accessible online should consider an online learning platform. These tools give educators tremendous flexibility in building comprehensive course content and making it available to students on their own schedule. Online learning platforms are particularly crucial for universities that offer online degree programs and nanodegree programs, notably in the areas of computer science, data science, and business. **Massive open online course (MOOC) providers:** MOOCs are courses available online to anyone with the proper hardware and internet connection, offering a more relaxed structure and either no or minimal cost to take. They are often seen as alternatives for individuals looking to learn for fun, as MOOCs typically do not confer a degree or certification upon completion if they’re free. MOOC providers need an online learning platform to build and host their content library. **Standard businesses:** Businesses looking to manage their onboarding and employee development programs better should consider an online learning platform. These tools can allow businesses to customize training content to fit their branding and unique needs, and group employees by cohort and department to organize specific trainings more easily. **Training and development businesses:** For businesses that sell training courses to companies that outsource professional development, online learning platforms are a useful tool to organize all their course content and make it accessible to companies even after the training sessions. These tools can also allow training and development businesses to scale up their training content and make them accessible to a wider clientele. ### How to Buy an Online Learning Platform #### Requirements Gathering (RFI/RFP) for an Online Learning Platform There are an incredible amount of online learning platforms available today, which can make the buying decision stressful. Before beginning vendor conversations, schools and companies looking to purchase an online learning platform should identify what their goals and objectives are, both currently and in the future. Selecting the wrong platform could lead to a large problem down the road. Buyers should determine what types of eLearning content they intend to deliver through an online learning platform, and how that training content supports their larger organizational goals. Compliance training may be better achieved through cheaper alternatives, for example. Companies that have a geographically scattered workforce will need to determine the mobile capabilities of each platform they consider purchasing. Additionally, companies with large workforces and large educational institutions will need to consider the pricing model for products; a flat fee will save more money as opposed to per-user priced platforms. Scalability and adaptability are both important factors to consider as well, which is why buyers need to know their current and future needs before making a final decision. An online learning platform should be able to grow as an organization grows, without leading to a lot of surprise costs and technical difficulties to accommodate. Online learning platforms should offer the right level of customization for users to build courses that meet their specific needs. #### Compare Online Learning Platform Products **Create a long list** Long lists are created by eliminating the options that do not provide critical functionality. For example, schools should seek out online learning platforms that are optimized for the education sector, rather than platforms that favor corporate eLearning. A typical long list should not include more than 10 products unless there are many options that are very similar. In this case, additional details like the geographical presence of the company or its reputation can be used to eliminate vendors. **Create a short list** Short lists are created by reviewing the RFI information received from vendors. Some vendors may decline to participate and respond to RFIs. These vendors are usually eliminated from the selection process. From there, this short list steers the buying decision closer to completion, leaving only a couple of vendors to choose between based on small, key factors that fulfill all the requirements and considerations a school or company has for implementing an online learning platform. **Conduct demos** Demos are a great opportunity for buyers to see how the online learning platform works. Only the shortlisted vendors are invited to demonstrate their solutions. Demos should be performed live, using the system, and not through slide decks and screenshots. All vendors should follow a predetermined scenario that simulates the business processes of the buyer. Buyers should request to see a walkthrough from the perspective of a course creator and a student to understand how the interface looks for both sides. Additionally, request to see a sample course created from start to finish to understand what tools can assist in developing eLearning content. #### Selection of Online Learning Platform **Choose a selection team** To choose a selection team, decision makers need to involve subject matter experts from all teams that will use the system. For schools, this will likely involve the principal or dean, as well as a select number of teachers who represent the larger faculty's needs. For businesses, this may involve the HR team, CFO, and other roles related to recruiting and employee management. **Negotiation** Negotiation happens between the buyer and the short list of vendors. In some cases, there are only two vendors that make it to this stage, which means that they offer similar products. At this point, the dealbreaker is the price of the product, which can vary based on the discounts offered by each vendor. Buyers should consider upfront costs, price per user costs, and any associated content hosting costs with the online learning platform. The final decision should be based on all the information gathered previously. ### Online Learning Platform Trends **Gamification:** Adding elements of gaming and competition to online learning platforms is a trending method for driving student engagement. There are several ways to incorporate gamified elements. Students can get points or badges for completing lessons, or for getting a certain score on an assessment. Those with top scores on assessments or with the most courses completed could be recognized on a leaderboard, injecting a healthy dose of competition into the mix. Some platforms may have unique digital prizes to hand out for completing certain objectives. A growing number of platforms are adding these gamified elements to their systems. **Collaborative learning:** Social media has changed the way people interact on the internet, and online learning platforms are increasingly using elements of those systems into their platforms. Discussion boards allow students to discuss topics covered in the course lessons and ask questions of their fellow users. Adding students to digital cohorts or groups is a way of creating an online community of learners as students learn more effectively when they do it collaboratively.