7 Best Free LMS Plugins for WordPress (Tested & Ranked for 2026)

Want to launch a course with a free WordPress LMS plugin?

Most LMS plugins say they’re free. But what happens when you build a real course and try to sell it?

To check this, our team built a real course with these free plugins. We found that some offer unlimited courses but no certificates. Others lack payment options or force us to pay for key features.

In our test, we found that Academy LMS is the best free WordPress LMS with payments, quizzes, certificates, multiple instructors, an AI course builder, and more.

But it’s not the only choice for you.

In these blog we will share our experience installing and testing seven best free WordPress LMS plugins and help you to choose the right one for your business.

TLDR: 7 Best Free LMS Plugins at a Glance

Short on time? Here’s how the seven free plugins compare. Every rating is from WordPress.org, checked on a live install, not a feature page.

How We Tested These Free LMS Plugins

Our Senior WordPress developers and quality assurance team run a real test on best seven free wordpress lms in one clean WordPress site.

Then we judged each plugin on six things. We call it our LMS Sixers:

Every verdict below is what we found, the good and the bad.

What Is a WordPress LMS Plugin, and How Is It Different from a SaaS?

A WordPress LMS (Learning Management System) plugin turns your site into an online school. You build courses and quizzes, enroll students, track their progress, and collect payments, all from your own site.

A SaaS like Teachable or Kajabi does the same, but it rents you the software: a monthly fee, and they own your data. A free plugin keeps your courses, students, and income on a site you own.

New to this? Read our guide on what a learning management system is.

1. Academy LMS — The Most You Can Do for Free

Academy LMS is the best WordPress LMS plugin for most course creators. It packs a full course platform, quizzes, certificates, payments, and an AI course generator into a free plugin. Its Pro plans are more affordable than almost every rival.

Academy is built like real software, not a slow plugin. Its admin is React-powered and runs on the REST API, so it feels like an app: fast screens and no full-page reloads. 

Version 4.0 rebuilt almost every screen and pushed it well beyond its rivals, and a deep add-on library replaces the extra tools other plugins make you buy.

What’s really free

Academy’s free version is not a demo. You get:

Setup is fast

We installed Academy on a clean site and let the setup wizard lead. It sorted pages, roles, and payments in a few steps, and our first course was live the same day. We never opened the docs.

Easy to build with

Building a course happens on one screen in three steps: add the details, drag the lessons into order, set the rules. 47 Gutenberg blocks and Site Editor templates style the course pages.

The student experience

The Learn page is calm and focused. Notes, Q&A, and progress slide in from the side, so students never lose their place. They can enlarge the text, use text-to-speech read-aloud, switch to dark mode for night study, and it holds up on a phone.

Value as you grow

Pro grows with you, it does not replace the free plugin. It adds what bigger teams need: SCORM, content drip, live Zoom and Google Meet classes, assignments, a grade book, gamification, white-label, a server-side Course Active Timer students can’t reset, and a full school module with exams, attendance, and fees.

Honest limitation

SCORM, content drip, and live classes are Pro-only. If you run corporate training that needs SCORM from day one, budget for the upgrade.

Built to trust

Academy follows WordPress VIP coding standards, the bar used for enterprise WordPress sites, and ships updates almost every week. 

Course creators rate it 4.9 out of 5 on WordPress.org, the highest score of any plugin in this guide.

Pricing

Academy is free on WordPress.org. Pro is yearly only, each plan with a 14-day money-back guarantee:

At $99 to start, it is the lowest entry price in this guide.

2. Masteriyo — The Strongest Free Tier After AcademyLMS

Masteriyo is the best free WordPress LMS for a solo creator who wants a fast, modern builder. After Academy, it has the most generous free tier in this guide.

With free AI course creation, SCORM import, and content drip. It runs on a React builder, so putting a course together feels quick.

What’s really free

Setup and ease

The drag-and-drop builder is clean, and we had a sample course built in about half an hour without the docs.

The student experience

Students get a frontend dashboard with their courses, progress, Q&A, and lesson previews before they enroll.

Getting paid

A built-in order system with cart and checkout handles sales on its own, so you do not need WooCommerce to take money.

Value as you grow

Pro adds multi-instructor with revenue sharing, cohorts, assignments, a gradebook, prerequisites, live Zoom and Google Meet classes, coupons, bundles, memberships, and white-label.

Where Academy edges it

The marketplace is the gap. Multi-instructor and revenue sharing are Pro, so a solo course runs free, but a multi-teacher marketplace needs a paid plan. Pro also renews at full price, not the first-year rate.

See the full breakdown of Academy LMS vs Masteriyo comparison.

Built to trust

Masteriyo is rated 4.8 out of 5 on WordPress.org from 183 reviews, with 6,000+ active installs.

Pricing

Masteriyo is free on WordPress.org. Pro is yearly, with a 14-day money-back guarantee:

Note: Plans renew at full price ($199, $299, $799), so year two costs more than year one.

3. MasterStudy LMS — The Best Free Plugin for Quiz-Heavy Courses

MasterStudy LMS is the best free WordPress LMS for courses that live on testing and assessment. Its free quiz builder covers eight question types, more than any other free plugin here, and it is one of only three in this guide that can sell a course for free.

What’s really free

Setup and ease

Because the free plugin already covers build, quiz, certify, and sell, you are not pushed into Premium just to launch.

The admin is functional rather than flashy, and it leans more traditional WordPress than the app-style builders in Academy or Masteriyo.

The student experience

Students move through lessons and quizzes and can ask the teacher questions in built-in Q&A. 

The eight quiz types make the assessment side feel genuinely complete, which is where MasterStudy is strongest for learners.

Getting paid

Centralized monetization settings handle pricing, and withdrawal options pay instructors out. You can take money on the free plugin, though you supply the gateway setup yourself.

Value as you grow

Premium is where the modern pieces arrive: co-instructors, sequential drip content, the AI Lab course generator, live Zoom classes, assignments, a gradebook, and gamification. 

MasterStudy also sells a large library of paid add-ons and themes, so the paid side is upsell-heavy.

Where Academy edges it

Three things most course sites want — AI, multiple instructors, and drip content — are all Premium in MasterStudy. Academy includes all three free, its admin feels more modern, and its paid plans start at $99 against MasterStudy’s $149.

See the full breakdown of AcademyLMS vs MasterStudy comparison.

Built to trust

MasterStudy is rated 4.5 out of 5 on WordPress.org from 486 reviews, with 10,000+ active installs.

Pricing

MasterStudy has a free Starter plan. Paid plans are yearly, with a 14-day money-back guarantee:

Entry starts at $149, higher than Academy’s $99.

Best for / Skip it if

Best for: creators who teach through quizzes and assessments and want the deepest free testing tools. 

Skip it if: you need free AI, a multi-instructor marketplace, or drip content from day one — those are Premium here.

4. Tutor LMS — The Most Popular Free Course Builder

Tutor LMS is the most popular free WordPress LMS, installed on over 100,000 sites. Its free version is a polished course builder with a strong quiz tool, but the features that monetize a course — certificates, multiple instructors, drip, and AI — are all Pro.

What’s really free

Setup and ease

Tutor is the smoothest free builder to hand to a non-technical instructor, because the frontend builder keeps them out of the WordPress dashboard. 

That ease is a big reason it reached 100,000+ sites.

The student experience

Students get a clean course player with lesson discussions and Q&A. 

It is a familiar, well-supported experience, which matters when you lean on free support.

Getting paid

On the free plugin you sell through WooCommerce. Tutor’s own native eCommerce and advanced monetization sit in Pro.

Value as you grow

Pro unlocks what most course sites eventually need: certificates, a multi-instructor system, content drip, AI Studio, live Zoom and Google Meet classes, assignments, and a gradebook.

Where Academy edges it

This is the clearest gap in the guide. Tutor puts certificates, multiple instructors, drip, and AI all behind Pro, and Pro starts at $199 a year. 

Academy gives all four free and starts at $99. You can launch a free course on Tutor, but you cannot certify it or run a marketplace without paying.

See the Academy LMS vs Tutor LMS comparison.

Built to trust

Tutor LMS is rated 4.4 out of 5 on WordPress.org from 589 reviews, with 100,000+ active installs, the largest base in this guide.

Pricing

Tutor LMS is free on WordPress.org. Pro is yearly or lifetime, with a 30-day money-back guarantee:

Entry is $199, the highest starting price in this guide.

Best for / Skip it if

Best for: creators who want the most popular, best-supported free builder and are happy selling simple courses through WooCommerce. 

Skip it if: you need certificates, multiple instructors, drip, or AI without paying — all Pro, and Pro is the priciest here.

5. LearnPress — A Free Core You Extend With Add-ons

LearnPress is a free WordPress LMS built on a lean core and a large add-on library. The core is genuinely free and can sell courses through built-in PayPal, but the features that complete a course site — certificates, content drip, and multiple instructors — are paid add-ons you buy one at a time.

What’s really free

Setup and ease

The core installs light and fast, which is part of why it runs on 70,000+ sites. The practical catch: because features live in separate add-ons, a complete site means installing, activating, and configuring each one, so your setup time grows with how finished you want the site to be.

The student experience

Students get a standard course player, and the free bbPress and BuddyPress add-ons bolt on forums and member profiles, a community layer most free plugins lock behind Pro. Reviews and wishlists give the catalog a storefront feel at no cost.

Getting paid

Free selling runs on built-in PayPal only. The moment you want card payments through Stripe or a WooCommerce checkout, those are premium add-ons, so “free to sell” really means “free to sell through PayPal.”

Value as you grow

Paid add-ons fill in the serious features: certificates, content drip, co-instructors, memberships and subscriptions, exams, a gradebook, and assignments. You buy them one at a time or in a bundle, which suits people who want to pay only for what they use.

Where Academy edges it

LearnPress asks you to assemble and pay for the essentials add-on by add-on. Academy builds certificates, AI, multiple instructors, and native Stripe and PayPal into the free plugin, so a complete, sellable course site works on day one, at a flat yearly price instead of a stack of add-on licenses.

Built to trust

LearnPress is rated 4.3 out of 5 on WordPress.org from 597 reviews, with 70,000+ active installs. It is a mature, widely used plugin.

Pricing

The LearnPress core is free. Paid extensions, from ThimPress, are one-time licenses for 1 site:

The first 12 months of updates are included; renewal is optional at roughly 70%. (Figures from a third-party review; confirm at ThimPress checkout.)

Best for / Skip it if

Best for: builders who want a free, lightweight core and prefer paying once for only the add-ons they need. 

Skip it if: you want certificates, card payments, and multiple instructors working out of the box without assembling and buying add-ons.

See the full breakdown in our Academy LMS vs LearnPress comparison.

6. LifterLMS — The Most Complete Free Core

LifterLMS has the most feature-complete free core in this guide: unlimited courses, memberships, certificates, achievement badges, and content drip, all free. 

The one real catch is payments, the free core takes manual payments only, so automated Stripe and PayPal checkout need a paid bundle.

What’s really free

Setup and ease

LifterLMS ships a setup wizard and a free “Academy” of courses that teach the plugin, which softens a core that is more configuration-heavy than the app-style builders. You will spend time in settings, but the onboarding is the best documented here.

The student experience

The student side is polished: a clean dashboard, progress tracking, and gamified badges and certificates that genuinely push completion. For engagement, the free core beats some paid tiers elsewhere.

Getting paid

This is the catch. The free core records payments manually, so you can enroll paying students but you handle the transaction yourself. Automated Stripe and PayPal checkout arrive with the Earth bundle and up, so taking card payments online starts at $199 a year.

Value as you grow

Paid bundles add the ecommerce gateways (Stripe, PayPal, WooCommerce), cart abandonment recovery, advanced quizzes, course cohorts, email marketing and CRM integrations, and a theme. Tiers scale from one site to unlimited.

Where Academy edges it

LifterLMS gives you a superb free LMS but asks you to pay before you can take an automated payment. Academy includes native Stripe and PayPal in the free plugin, plus AI and a multi-instructor marketplace, so you can sell a course for free on day one, and its entry plan is $99 against LifterLMS’s $199.

Built to trust

LifterLMS is rated 4.8 out of 5 on WordPress.org from 393 reviews, among the highest in this guide, with 10,000+ active installs. Smaller than Tutor or LearnPress, but very well regarded for quality.

Pricing

The LifterLMS core is free. Paid bundles are yearly, with a 30-day money-back guarantee (renewals at full price):

A lifetime Infinity license exists; its price is not listed publicly.

Best for / Skip it if

Best for: membership and subscription sites that want a rich, gamified free core and will pay for a bundle once they are ready to take card payments. 

Skip it if: you need automated Stripe or PayPal checkout from day one without paying, or you want the lowest entry price.

See the full breakdown in our Academy LMS vs LifterLMS comparison.

7. Sensei LMS — Clean Block-Native Teaching, but Free Can’t Sell

Sensei LMS is a free WordPress LMS from Automattic, the company behind WooCommerce. Its free version is a clean, Block Editor course builder with free PDF certificates, but you cannot sell a course on it, selling requires Sensei Pro.

What’s really free

Setup and ease

Because courses are built in the native Block Editor, anyone comfortable with WordPress is instantly at home, there is no proprietary builder to learn. 

That tight integration is Sensei’s signature and the smoothest fit for a block-first, full-site-editing workflow.

The student experience

Learning Mode gives students a clean, focused player, and video embeds plus progress reports make it a capable teaching tool.

For delivering content, the free version is genuinely pleasant to use.

Getting paid

Here is the hard limit: you cannot sell a course on the free version. Course selling runs through the WooCommerce integration, which is Sensei Pro only, along with subscriptions, memberships, and payments. Free Sensei teaches; it does not take money.

Value as you grow

Sensei Pro adds selling (WooCommerce, subscriptions, memberships, affiliates), interactive blocks (flashcards, image hotspots, task lists), scheduled content drip, co-teachers, advanced quizzes with timers, groups and cohorts, and AI that generates quiz questions and course outlines.

Where Academy edges it

The gap is monetization. Academy’s free plugin sells courses with native Stripe and PayPal, adds AI and a multi-instructor marketplace, and still costs less at Pro. Sensei keeps selling, AI, interactivity, and drip behind a $179 plan, so its free version cannot run a course business on its own.

Built to trust

Sensei is made by Automattic, the company behind WooCommerce, which is genuine pedigree. On WordPress.org it is rated 3.5 out of 5, though from just 40 reviews, with 9,000+ active installs, the smallest base in this guide.

Pricing

Sensei LMS is free on WordPress.org. Paid is a single plan, with a 14-day money-back guarantee:

No lifetime plan.

Best for / Skip it if

Best for: creators already in the Automattic and WooCommerce world who want clean, block-native course building and will pay for Pro to sell. 

Skip it if: you need to sell a course, use AI, or add interactive content for free, Sensei gates all three behind Pro.

See the full breakdown in our Academy LMS vs Sensei LMS comparison.

Which WordPress LMS Does the Most for Free?

Across the five free features that actually decide a course business, Academy LMS is the only WordPress LMS that gives you all of them. 

Native payments, an AI course builder, certificates, a multi-instructor marketplace, and a reusable question bank, all free in AcademyLMS free plan.

How to Choose a Free WordPress LMS

A plugin is only free if it lets you finish the job: build, sell, and certify a course.

Here is what we checked on every plugin. Use the same five.

Run any plugin through these five. The ones that only look free show themselves fast.

Match the best LMS for your business

Different goals, different winners. Here is the best pick for each.

New to this? See our guides on online coaching, schools and education, and SCORM on WordPress.

The Verdict

We installed all seven. Built the same course on each. Ran a real sale.

One thing was clear: most free LMS plugins are free to build, not free to earn. Tutor, LearnPress, LifterLMS, and Sensei all make you pay before you can sell, certify, or add a second instructor.

Three let you sell for free: Academy LMS, Masteriyo, and MasterStudy. Masteriyo has the most generous solo free tier. MasterStudy has the deepest free quizzes. Both are strong picks.

But only Academy LMS lets you build, sell, and certify a course, with multiple instructors, for free. And it does it in a modern builder you can launch today.

So if we started a course site tomorrow on zero budget, we would start here.