What Is Learndash Used For [11 Things You Should Know]

The internet is a brilliant platform for people to teach, allowing you to host or receive lessons from all over the globe, covering subjects that simply weren’t as available as before.

Not everybody is able to go to university or take courses in niche subjects, but the internet allows you to find a tutor in almost any field. 

However, in order to manage these digital learning environments, teachers use a Learning Management System (LMS), and one of the most popular ones out there is LearnDash.

In short, LearnDash is an LMS plugin that helps teachers organize and deliver and sell online courses. However, LMS is a plugin available only for WordPress LMS plugin, so teachers will need to have WordPress in order to use it.

After that, they’ll have a system packed with features that allows them to run multiple courses and lessons, as well as host quizzes and more.

In our handy guide below, we’ve got 11 things you should know about LearnDash, covering its key features and the biggest questions people have when signing up, and then you will know what is learndash used for, so Read on!

What Is LearnDash? [11 Things You Should Know] 

1. Do You Need WordPress To Use LearnDash?

We’re starting off with an incredibly important question, and one that we’ve already touched on in the intro. If you want to use LearnDash, then you will need WordPress installed to operate it.

LearnDash is a WordPress LMS plugin, which means it’s merely an extension software, rather than a host program itself. Naturally, WordPress is the host.

Thankfully, it’s well worth getting WordPress! For one, it’s the biggest Content Management System on the internet.

Known as a CMS, these are pieces of software that allow users to create courses and manage digital content so that they can index things, publish things, and so on.

The features of WordPress are already great on their own, but a plugin like LearnDash allows it to do even more, opening it up for online teaching.

Even better, WordPress is entirely free to sign up for. Given that LearnDash does have fees, it’s a great benefit not having to pay doubly in paying for WordPress too.

2. Can Only Developers Use LearnDash?

WordPress and LearnDash might require some technical know-how in order to get the most out of them, but you don’t need to be a developer to use them! 

This is because LearnDash has been specially designed to be welcome and accessible to anyone, with its setup process being totally straightforward. Even if you don’t have a lot of expertise with technology, you’ll be able to get LearnDash working.

Thankfully, ti install LearnDash, it offers a great package for technological novices that will help shortcut them to using the LMS. All you have to do is subscribe to LearnDash Cloud, one of its pricing plans.

If you pick this one, then you get a fully-hosted WordPress site with LearnDash already installed, and plenty of great starter templates to set you off. 

On the other hand, if you are technologically experienced, then you’ll be able to get plenty out of LearnDash too.

This is because it offers more flexibility than any other LMS platform, and developers will be able to make quick use of all the best tools.

3. Does LearnDash Create And Run Your Website?

With that being said, LearnDash is not going to create your own site and run it for you. Unfortunately, LearnDash doesn’t have this capability, but that doesn’t mean it won’t in the future.

This could be a very useful service for those who have little experience in setting up and running websites, and it’s something LearnDash will hopefully expand into in the future. 

However, those without experience in creating and running websites have a few options.

For one, they can hire a developer to help get you started, and you can find experienced developers all over the internet – especially in LearnDash’s own Facebook help group.

You may not want to spend the extra money it takes to hire a developer, especially since you’re already paying for LearnDash, but think about it as an investment.

If your online course looks really appealing thanks to a developer, running smoothly and with sleek template work, then you’re likely to get more customers. With more customers, hiring a developer will have paid for itself!

Alternatively, you could use the LearnDash Cloud that we covered earlier, which will help you set up the site.

4. Should I Use A WordPress.com Site For LearnDash?

WordPress.org and WordPress.com are very different entities, with the latter being a way to buy hosted websites. However, you shouldn’t use wordpress.com for LearnDash, because the system simply won’t run as smoothly.

You should self-host your own web development, therefore, with wordpress.org, then install WordPress on the domain and get using LearnDash. 

5. Will LearnDash Keep My Data?

Nobody wants to lose their data and digital content, and this is especially the case when you’ve got a dense course completion system full of lessons and quizzes that you’re making money from – and students all over the world are accessing. As a result, you’ll be wondering whether LearnDash stores your data. 

The answer is yes, but it can be stored in different ways. If you’re using the LearnDash Cloud, then all the data is actually with Nexcess, a sister company of LearnDash.

This is a secure spot for your content, and it’ll even be automatically backed up every 24 hours so that there’s very little chance of you losing anything.

On the other hand, the regular LearnDash Plugin will store your data on the servers of your hosting provider.

6. Will LearnDash Work With My WordPress Theme?

Themes are a large part of WordPress, offering you loads of different and stylish designs for you to apply to your site and make it more visually appealing.

For this reason, you’ll want to know whether LearnDash will work with the theme you’ve already got – and undoubtedly spent a long time picking!

Thankfully, LearnDash has been made to work with the majority of modern WordPress themes, so it’s likely that you’ll get to keep your chosen theme and still enjoy all the benefits of LearnDash.

However, this may not always be the case. For one, you might have done some custom coding on your site, and that stops LearnDash from working properly for whatever reason.

On the other hand, you might be using an outdated and old WordPress theme, and LearnDash simply hasn’t been designed to work with older content.

The internet is ever-moving, so it’s best, in this case, to simply adopt a modern WordPress theme instead, which will work with LearnDash.

7. How Many Sites Work For One LearnDash License? 

When you sign up for a LearnDash license, you’ll understandably want to make the most of your money. As a result, you might be wondering whether you can use multiple sites on your single LearnDash license.

The answer all depends on which license you get. Depending on how much you pay, you’ll be able to use more sites with your license. They come in 3 tiers.

With the lowest, you can only use 1 website, with the next one you can use 10 websites, and then the best tier offers you unlimited websites! 

This is a good range and it allows customers to get the license that’s going to be best for them.

Once again, people might hesitate to buy the more expensive tier and get the ability to have LearnDash with unlimited websites, but it’s an investment. After all, if you have unlimited learning sites, that could generate a far greater amount of income, so the tier is worth it!

On the other hand, those who get LearnDash Cloud will get a single license. 

8. LearnDash Plugin VS LearnDash Cloud: What’s The Difference?

We’ve been mentioning LearnDash Cloud quite a bit so far, so you’ll probably be wondering just how it differs from the regular LearnDash plugin.

As a result, we’re going to explain what each of them offers, and who each of them is going to work best for.

The LearnDash Plugin is best for people who already have a WordPress website because it allows them to make the transition necessary into making it an LMS.

This makes it a great pick for lots of people who have suddenly decided to adapt.

On top of that, it’s a great choice for training organizations that suddenly want to train their staff in new ways, because the plugin will provide their pre-existing website with an LMS through which they can organize and provide lessons. 

On the other hand, LearnDash Cloud is the best choice for people who don’t already have a WordPress site created, because it will help you set up a new website and get started with your LMS.

You don’t need to worry about additional hosting, you just need to let LearnDash Cloud set you up and then get you running to a point where you can continue it.

9. What Are LearnDash’s Fees?

This is a really key question that all potential customers will want to know. As you can imagine, the pricing solutions are different across the two different services that we’ve just talked about: LearnDash Plugin and LearnDash Cloud. 

If you’re getting LearnDash Plugin, then