Top Learning Management Systems — June 2020

How much an LMS costs depends on a number of factors, including the actual platform you choose as well as how you want to be charged. In other words, do you want to be charged per learner per month or per usage per month? Or, do you want to just pay a one-time fee to access a course or software in its entirety and in perpetuity? 

While actual pricing varies by platform, here is an idea of what you can expect:

• Per Learner: In most cases, platforms will charge between $5-$15 per learner per month. This range accounts for what’s actually included for each learner. Most platforms also charge a setup or installation fee on top of the per learner per month rate.‍
• Per Usage: If you only want to be charged for what your employees are actually using, you can expect to pay wide ranges depending on how much pre packaged content you're using. Similar to the per learner pricing, where your price falls in that range will depend on what’s included.‍
• One-Time Licensing Fee: To purchase a license to install LMS software and use it in perpetuity, you could pay up to $50,000 or more. The licensing fee itself ranges from $500-$20,000 and then there is usually a hefty setup cost as well. Keep in mind that this option is really best suited for larger companies with a dedicated IT staff.
  

As you do your own research, you might see that there are also free options (which are typically the most basic and not very user-friendly) and free trials. Be sure to discuss pricing packages on your demo so you can get a clear sense for what an LMS will cost your company.

Learning management systems offer a variety of features depending on your needs and budget. You’ll see that some offer a full suite of them (and usually command a higher price as a result), while others are more niche. So once you figure out what kind of learning you want to provide your employees, you’ll be able to pick a vendor that meets your needs. 

Generally speaking, learning management systems offer some or all of the following:

• Employee Training: Access new hire onboarding materials and employee training courses on everything from business skills, to compliance, to workplace safety and more. If your industry requires certain certifications, you can administer the relevant tests to get your employees properly certified.‍
• Content Library: Many learning management systems have ready-made educational content that you can use for your company. Such content includes (but is not limited to) slides, videos and animations, PDFs, course modules, even gamification.  Many of these will be specific to a given set of roles, industries or levels in the company (for example, sales training or management training).
• Content Development: If you want a learning experience that’s tailored to your specific company, you can use templates to create your own materials. ‍
• Synchronous & Asynchronous Learning: You can decide if you want to provide learning opportunities at specific times (synchronous) or allow your employees to access on their own time (asynchronous). ‍
• Mobile-friendly: Depending on the LMS, your employees can get complete course/learning access from a mobile app, allowing them to learn anytime, anywhere.

Demos are a great opportunity for you to see how an LMS works and ask questions before you actually invest. To get the most out of your demo, make sure to ask the following questions:

General questions to ask on any demo:

• How will this solution fit into the rest of my tech stack and therefore what integrations do I need?
• How will others in the organization use this solution?
• What are the key features I want to ask about?
• What are the things that would make me nervous about investing in this sort of solution
  

Questions specific to learning management systems:

• Do you provide a library of content or will we have to create our own? ‍
• What type of content do you support and/or deliver?
• Is gamification built in, and if so, what kinds?
• Do you offer employee incentives/rewards for using the platform?

Using an LMS will most likely require a team of stakeholders from across the company. This includes executive management (for buy-in), IT (for tech integrations), HR/People Ops (for content), team leads (to encourage usage), etc. It goes without saying, then, that you’ll need to regularly communicate so everyone is on the same page in terms of what needs to get done, who needs to do it, and when it should be completed. You can get a general idea of all of this during your demos, so make sure to ask about all things implementation — and see if they offer on-site or virtual trainings.

Additionally, you need to focus on these key elements:

• Content: Figure out the type of content you need, who is going to run point, and how you will manage updates as needed.‍
• Rollout: Create a rollout strategy to introduce the platform to your employees and encourage usage. Make sure stakeholders especially are clued in so they can communicate the right messaging, incentives, etc. to their direct reports.‍
• Monitor Usage: Regularly check usage data to see how many employees are engaging with the content, whether courses have been completed fully, if there are any user-experience issues, etc. Depending on your findings, you may need to make adjustments to your content or rollout plans.