Most “free LMS plugins for WordPress” articles leave out the most important thing: what’s actually free.
Some plugins are “free” but lock payment processing behind a paid plan. Some give you unlimited courses but no quizzes. Some hand you a beautiful setup wizard — and then put the most useful features behind a $199/year paywall.
We’ve installed and tested 6 of the most popular free LMS plugins for WordPress on fresh sites. Here’s what each one actually gives you for free — and where the paywalls kick in.
Quick Answer: Academy LMS is the best free LMS for WordPress in 2026. It’s the only free plugin that includes unlimited courses, unlimited students, built-in Stripe and PayPal, quiz functionality, completion certificates, and SCORM support — all without a credit card.
Quick Comparison: Free LMS Plugins for WordPress
| Plugin | Unlimited Courses? | Free Payments? | Free Quizzes? | Free Certs? | SCORM? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Academy LMS | ✅ Yes | ✅ Stripe + PayPal | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes (free) |
| Masteriyo | ✅ Yes | ✅ Stripe + PayPal | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
| TutorLMS | ✅ Yes | ❌ Pro only | ✅ 10+ types | ❌ Pro only | ❌ No |
| LearnPress | ✅ Yes | ⚠️ PayPal only | ✅ Basic | ❌ Add-on | ❌ No |
| LifterLMS | ✅ Yes | ❌ Add-on ($99+) | ✅ Yes | ❌ Add-on | ❌ No |
| Sensei LMS | ✅ Yes | ❌ Pro only | ✅ Yes | ❌ Pro only | ❌ No |
1. Academy LMS — Best Free LMS for WordPress
Best for: Course creators who want a genuinely full-featured free LMS
Free tier: Unlimited courses, unlimited students, payments, quizzes, certificates, SCORM
Paid from: $149/year
Academy LMS is the best free LMS for WordPress because it doesn’t treat the free version as a trial — it treats it as a product.
Every other plugin on this list cuts something meaningful from the free tier. Academy LMS includes all of the following at zero cost:
- Unlimited courses and lessons — no artificial caps
- Unlimited enrolled students — not capped at 5 or 25 like some competitors
- Stripe and PayPal payment processing — sell courses immediately without WooCommerce
- Full quiz builder — multiple question types, time limits, passing scores, retakes, auto-graded results
- Completion certificates — awarded automatically when a student finishes a course
- SCORM support — import courses built in Articulate Storyline, Adobe Captivate, or any SCORM-authoring tool
- Student progress tracking — dashboard showing each student’s progress through every course
- Gutenberg block integration — build course pages with the native WordPress block editor
That last point — SCORM in the free tier — is unique. No other free WordPress LMS includes SCORM support without a paid upgrade. For corporate trainers and instructional designers, this makes Academy LMS the clear choice.
What’s Not Free in Academy LMS
- Advanced reporting dashboard (detailed analytics across all courses)
- Drip content (schedule lesson release by date or enrollment)
- Assignment submission and grading
- Multi-instructor management
- Course bundles and subscriptions
- Priority email support
For most solo course creators and small businesses, the free tier covers everything needed to launch, sell, and run a professional online course business.
Page Speed
Academy LMS course pages loaded in 0.8 seconds on average in our testing — the fastest of any plugin we tested. Fast page speed improves both student experience and Google Core Web Vitals scores (which directly affect search rankings).
Bottom line: If you want the best free LMS for WordPress, start with Academy LMS. Download free from WordPress.org.
2. Masteriyo — Best Runner-Up Free LMS
Best for: First-time course creators who want a clean, modern free LMS
Free tier: Unlimited courses, unlimited students, Stripe + PayPal, certificates
Paid from: $99/year
Masteriyo has the second most generous free tier of any WordPress LMS plugin. Its React-powered course builder is one of the fastest and most intuitive interfaces we tested — ideal for non-technical instructors who want to build a course without learning WordPress’s admin backend.
What’s Free in Masteriyo
- Unlimited courses and lessons
- Unlimited students (no artificial cap)
- Stripe and PayPal payment processing
- Quiz builder with multiple question types
- Completion certificates
- Setup wizard that auto-creates required pages
- Student and instructor dashboards
Where Masteriyo Charges
- Drip content (Pro)
- Assignment submission (Pro)
- Multi-instructor marketplace (Pro)
- SCORM support — not available even in paid plans
- Advanced analytics (Pro)
Masteriyo’s biggest gap vs. Academy LMS: no SCORM support at any tier, and slightly slower course page rendering. But for creators who don’t need SCORM, Masteriyo is an excellent free choice with a slightly larger WordPress community and more third-party add-ons.
3. TutorLMS — Best Free Quiz Builder
Best for: Courses where assessment and quizzes are the core experience
Free tier: Unlimited courses, 10+ quiz question types, front-end builder
Paid from: $199/year
TutorLMS has the best free quiz builder of any WordPress LMS — 10+ question types in the free version, including image matching, hot-spot questions, and fill-in-the-blank. No other free LMS offers this quiz depth at zero cost. See our full TutorLMS review →
What’s Free in TutorLMS
- Unlimited courses and lessons
- 10+ quiz question types (best free quiz feature we tested)
- Front-end drag-and-drop course builder
- Student and instructor dashboards
- Video lesson support (YouTube, Vimeo, self-hosted)
Where TutorLMS Charges
- Payment processing — no free way to sell courses
- Certificate builder (Pro)
- Content drip (Pro)
- Advanced analytics (Pro)
- Email automation (Pro)
The critical gap: TutorLMS’s free version has no payment processing. You can build and publish courses for free, but you can’t charge for them without the $199/year Pro plan. For free course delivery (membership site, internal training), TutorLMS’s free tier is excellent. For course selling, look at Academy LMS or Masteriyo instead.
4. LearnPress — Best for Absolute Beginners on Zero Budget
Best for: Very simple course sites; zero budget
Free tier: Unlimited courses, PayPal payments
Paid from: Free / $299 full add-on bundle
LearnPress is one of the oldest WordPress LMS plugins, with 100,000+ active installs. It’s free, stable, and does the basics: create courses, add lessons and quizzes, enroll students, and accept PayPal payments.
What’s Free in LearnPress
- Unlimited courses and lessons
- PayPal payment integration
- Basic quiz builder
- Student progress tracking
- Front-end course display
Where LearnPress Charges
- Stripe payments ($30 add-on or $299 bundle)
- Completion certificates ($30 add-on)
- Drip content ($30 add-on)
- Advanced quizzes ($30–$49 per add-on)
The free tier is genuinely limited. Most features you’d consider essential (Stripe, certificates, drip content) require premium add-ons at $30–$49 each, or the full $299 bundle. If you’re starting with truly zero budget and only need PayPal checkout, LearnPress works. Once you’re ready to grow, you’ll want to migrate — Academy LMS or Masteriyo offer far more for similar or lower cost.
5. LifterLMS — Best Free Core for Coaching Programs
Best for: Coaches and trainers who want structured learning paths
Free tier: Unlimited courses, quizzes, but NO payment processing
Paid from: $149/year (for payment add-ons)
LifterLMS was built for structured learning paths and coaching programs. The free core is genuinely strong for course building — unlimited courses, sections, lessons, and quizzes. The setup wizard creates all required pages automatically.
The Critical Limitation
LifterLMS’s free version has no payment gateway. You can create courses for free, but to sell them, you need to purchase the Stripe add-on ($99+/year) or the PayPal add-on ($99+/year) separately. This makes the “free” tier misleading for most course sellers.
Best use case for free LifterLMS: Internal employee training, membership site content (if membership handles payments elsewhere), or free courses with no monetization. For course selling, Academy LMS or Masteriyo are far better free choices.
6. Sensei LMS — Best Free LMS for Gutenberg Power Users
Best for: WordPress power users who live in the block editor
Free tier: Unlimited courses, quizzes, but NO payment processing
Paid from: $179/year
Sensei LMS is built by Automattic — the company behind WordPress.com and WooCommerce. That gives it a credibility advantage: it’s maintained by the same team that maintains WordPress itself.
The entire course creation experience happens inside the Gutenberg block editor. No separate interface to learn. If you’re already comfortable creating posts and pages in WordPress, Sensei feels completely natural.
The Critical Limitation
Like TutorLMS and LifterLMS, Sensei’s free tier has no payment processing. To sell courses, you need Sensei Pro ($179/year) which adds WooCommerce integration. For free course delivery, corporate training, or internally-distributed content, this doesn’t matter. For course selling, it’s a significant gap.
How to Choose the Right Free WordPress LMS
→ You want the best free LMS overall (courses + payments + SCORM)?
Academy LMS. The only free plugin that includes all three.
→ You want free courses + payments but don’t need SCORM?
Masteriyo. Excellent free tier, unlimited students, modern UI.
→ You need the best free quiz builder?
TutorLMS. 10+ question types free — best quiz depth of any free WordPress LMS.
→ You’re on absolute zero budget and only need PayPal?
LearnPress. Basic, stable, and free with PayPal integration.
→ You’re building internal/free courses and don’t need payments?
LifterLMS or Sensei LMS. Both have strong free course-building tools without the payment concern.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a free LMS for WordPress?
Yes — several. Academy LMS, Masteriyo, TutorLMS, LearnPress, LifterLMS, and Sensei LMS all have free versions. Academy LMS and Masteriyo have the most complete free tiers, both including unlimited courses, unlimited students, and payment processing at no cost.
What is the best free LMS plugin for WordPress?
Academy LMS is the best free LMS plugin for WordPress in 2026. It’s the only free option that includes unlimited courses, unlimited students, built-in Stripe and PayPal payments, full quiz functionality, completion certificates, AND SCORM support — all without paying anything.
Can I sell courses with a free WordPress LMS plugin?
Yes, but only with certain plugins. Academy LMS and Masteriyo both include Stripe and PayPal in their free versions. LearnPress includes PayPal only. TutorLMS, LifterLMS, and Sensei LMS do not include any payment processing in their free tiers.
Does LearnDash have a free version?
No. LearnDash has no free version — it starts at $199/year. If you’re looking for a free alternative to LearnDash, Academy LMS is the closest match: it’s faster, includes SCORM in the free tier, and has a more modern student interface.
Which free WordPress LMS supports SCORM?
Academy LMS is the only free WordPress LMS with SCORM support. No other plugin on this list includes SCORM import and delivery at zero cost. This makes Academy LMS the go-to choice for corporate trainers and instructional designers who build content in tools like Articulate Storyline or Adobe Captivate.
The Bottom Line
If you want a free LMS for WordPress that you can actually build a real course business on — not just a trial or a heavily limited starter tier — Academy LMS is the clear winner.
It’s the only free WordPress LMS plugin that combines unlimited courses, unlimited students, built-in payment processing (Stripe + PayPal), a full quiz builder, completion certificates, and SCORM support — all without spending a cent.
Ready to launch? Download Academy LMS free from WordPress.org and have your first course live today. Comparing paid options too? See our full roundup of the best LMS plugins for WordPress (free and paid).
Looking for someone to build your WordPress LMS from scratch? See our WordPress LMS development services.
Last updated: September 2026. We review and update this comparison every quarter.