Client Portal & LMS Options

To deliver curriculum packages, professional development courses, and a full client portal experience through the Integrus website, we need a Learning Management System (LMS) plugin. Below are the top three options with pricing, features, and recommendations.

The portal would live behind the My Account icon already in the site header. Clients log in, access their purchased courses and curriculum, track progress, earn certificates of completion, and download resources – all from within the Integrus website.

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Option 1: LearnDash – $199/year (Recommended)

Best for selling to schools, districts, and universities as institutions.

Why LearnDash

LearnDash is the industry leader for WordPress-based LMS platforms, and its Group Management feature is the key differentiator for Integrus. Here is how it maps to our sales model:

• A school district purchases a K-12 Ethical AI Curriculum package through WooCommerce
• We create a Group for that district inside LearnDash
• The district assigns a coordinator as Group Leader who can enroll teachers, track their progress, and pull reports
• Teachers work through PD modules at their own pace, take assessments, and earn certificates of completion (which they can submit to their districts for PD credit hours)
• Dr. Willoughby and the district coordinator both have access to real-time progress dashboards

Key Features

• Course Builder: Drag-and-drop with lessons, topics, quizzes, and assignments
• Group Management: Sell group licenses, assign Group Leaders, bulk enroll – ideal for B2B institutional sales
• Drip Content: Release curriculum modules on a schedule or based on prerequisites
• Certificates: Built-in certificate builder for PD completion certificates
• Advanced Quizzes: 8 question types, question banks, randomization, timed assessments
• ProPanel: Real-time reporting dashboard showing student progress across all courses
• Focus Mode: Distraction-free learning interface for students
• WooCommerce Integration: Built-in – sell individual courses or group packages as WooCommerce products
• Downloadable Resources: Attach lesson plans, teacher guides, handouts to any lesson

Pricing

• $199/year (1 site) – includes all features, WooCommerce integration, and ProPanel
• No lifetime option – annual renewal required

Considerations

• Most feature-rich option with the largest ecosystem of third-party add-ons
• Certificate builder is functional but may need custom CSS for branded certificates
• Slight learning curve for the admin interface, but well-documented

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Option 2: Sensei Pro – $149/year (Best Value)

Best WooCommerce integration. Made by Automattic (the company behind WordPress and WooCommerce).

Why Sensei

Sensei is built by the same company that makes WordPress and WooCommerce, which means zero compatibility risk and the tightest possible integration with our existing stack. The course builder works directly inside the WordPress block editor – no separate interface to learn.

Key Features

• Gutenberg-Native Course Builder: Build courses directly in the WordPress editor – same interface used for pages and posts
• Learning Mode: Clean, distraction-free frontend for students
• Student Groups: Basic group enrollment for institutional sales
• Certificates of Completion: Included in Pro tier
• Drip Content: Scheduled content release (Pro)
• Quizzes: Multiple choice, true/false, gap fill, multi-line, file upload
• Native WooCommerce Integration: Seamless – sell courses as WooCommerce products with subscriptions, memberships, and bundles
• Interactive Blocks: Flashcards, image hotspots, task lists (Pro)
• Progress Tracking: Student and instructor dashboards

Pricing

• Free tier: Basic course creation, lessons, quizzes, basic WooCommerce integration
• Sensei Pro: $149/year (1 site) – adds certificates, drip content, interactive blocks, enhanced WooCommerce integration

Considerations

• Lowest cost Pro option at $149/year
• Most future-proof – will always be compatible with WordPress core updates
• Group management is more basic than LearnDash (no Group Leader role with self-service enrollment)
• Certificate builder requires some HTML/CSS comfort for branded customization
• Reporting is adequate but less detailed than LearnDash ProPanel

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Option 3: Tutor LMS Pro – $199/year (Best Looking)

Best student-facing design and certificate builder. Strongest visual experience out of the box.

Why Tutor LMS

If the visual experience matters most – both for marketing the portal to prospective clients and for the day-to-day experience of educators using it – Tutor LMS has the most polished frontend of any WordPress LMS. The drag-and-drop certificate builder is particularly relevant for PD, since educators often need to submit professional-looking completion certificates to their school districts.

Key Features

• Frontend Course Builder: Intuitive drag-and-drop builder – no backend needed
• Best Student Dashboard: Modern, clean design showing enrolled courses, progress, certificates
• Drag-and-Drop Certificate Builder: Visually design branded certificates without code (Pro)
• 10+ Quiz Question Types: Including matching, ordering, image answering (Pro)
• Drip Content: Multiple scheduling options (Pro)
• Assignments: With instructor review workflow
• Gradebook: Full grade management
• WooCommerce Integration: Built-in, supports subscriptions (Pro)
• Email Notifications: Automated course enrollment, completion, and reminder emails

Pricing

• Free tier: Basic course creation, lessons, quizzes, basic WooCommerce integration
• Pro: $199/year (1 site) – adds certificates, drip content, advanced quizzes, assignments, reports
• Lifetime deals occasionally available (~$499)

Considerations

• Best-looking UI/UX of all options – least customization needed to look professional
• Certificate builder is the best of the three for producing branded, professional PD certificates
• No built-in group management for B2B institutional sales (would need custom work or a workaround)
• Reporting is good but less detailed than LearnDash ProPanel
• Newer product with a smaller ecosystem than LearnDash

Option 4: MemberPress Pro + Courses – $399/year (Best for Subscription Model)

Best if the business model is institutional memberships rather than individual course sales.

Why MemberPress

MemberPress takes a fundamentally different approach. Instead of selling individual courses, you sell membership tiers. A district purchases a “District Membership” and gets access to all PD courses and curriculum for the year. The Corporate Accounts add-on is the key feature – a district admin purchases a corporate membership and manages sub-accounts for individual teachers, controlling who has access and tracking their usage.

If Tom’s model leans toward annual institutional subscriptions rather than per-course purchases, MemberPress may be the strongest architectural fit.

Key Features

• Corporate Accounts: District admin purchases group membership, manages teacher sub-accounts, tracks usage
• Courses Add-on: Visual course builder built on Gutenberg block editor, progress tracking, drip content
• Membership Tiers: Create different access levels (e.g., “K-12 Basic,” “K-12 Premium,” “Higher Ed”)
• Content Restriction: Most mature paywall/content protection in the WordPress ecosystem
• Payment Processing: Built-in Stripe and PayPal integration with subscription billing
• Certificates: Available via integration or add-on
• WooCommerce Plus Add-on: Syncs memberships with WooCommerce products – sell physical curriculum packages via WooCommerce and digital access via MemberPress on the same site

Pricing

• Basic: $179.50/year – memberships and content restriction (no Courses add-on)
• Plus: $299.50/year – adds Courses add-on
• Pro: $399.50/year – adds Corporate Accounts, WooCommerce Plus, and all add-ons
• Pro tier required for the institutional sales workflow

Considerations

• Most mature membership plugin in the WordPress ecosystem
• LMS/course features are more basic than LearnDash – sufficient for structured PD content but less robust for complex assessments
• Subscription billing is built-in and excellent – no extra plugins needed for recurring institutional payments
• Different mental model: membership-first vs course-first

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Option 5: LifterLMS Infinity Bundle – $999 One-Time (Best Long-Term Value)

The only option with a true lifetime/one-time payment. No recurring annual fees.

Why LifterLMS

LifterLMS is a mature, full-featured WordPress LMS that has been in the market for years. The standout for Integrus is the Infinity Bundle at $999 one-time – that includes every add-on they make now and in the future, with no recurring cost. Over three years, that is significantly cheaper than any annual subscription option. It includes a Groups extension for institutional enrollment, certificates, achievements, and full WooCommerce integration.

Key Features

• Groups Extension: Institutional/bulk enrollment for schools and districts
• Course Builder: Sections, lessons, multimedia content
• Drip Content: Time-based, prerequisite-based, and enrollment-based scheduling
• Certificates and Achievements: Built into the free core, with customization via add-ons
• Quizzes: Multiple question types with grade tracking
• Membership Levels: Access plans for different tiers
• Built-in Payments: Stripe and PayPal included – can skip WooCommerce entirely or use both
• WooCommerce Integration: Available as an add-on (included in Infinity Bundle)
• Social Learning: Discussion areas, student profiles

Pricing

• Free core: Basic course creation on WordPress.org
• Individual add-ons: $120-$360/year each (gets expensive fast)
• Earth Bundle: ~$360/year – all e-commerce add-ons
• Universe Bundle: ~$749/year – everything
• Infinity Bundle: $999 one-time – all current and future add-ons, lifetime updates

Considerations

• One-time payment eliminates ongoing LMS subscription costs entirely
• UI/UX is more utilitarian than Tutor LMS or LearnDash Focus Mode – may need CSS work to match the Integrus brand
• Groups feature is solid but less polished than LearnDash’s Group Leader workflow
• Good documentation and active community

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Option 6: MasterStudy LMS Pro – ~$199/year (Best for SCORM Compliance)

Only option with SCORM support – critical if institutional clients require LMS interoperability.

Why MasterStudy

SCORM compliance is the differentiator here. SCORM (Sharable Content Object Reference Model) is an industry standard for e-learning content packaging. Some universities and larger school districts require SCORM-compliant content so it can be imported into their existing institutional LMS (Canvas, Blackboard, Moodle, etc.). If Integrus needs to deliver curriculum that institutions can load into their own systems, MasterStudy is the only WordPress LMS that supports this natively.

Key Features

• SCORM Support: Import and deliver SCORM-compliant content packages – unique among WordPress LMS plugins
• Group Courses: Bulk enrollment with admin purchasing seats and assigning them to members
• Course Builder: Drag-and-drop with lessons, quizzes, and assignments
• Certificates: Built-in certificate builder
• Drip Content: Scheduled content release
• Live Lessons: Zoom and Google Meet integration for live PD sessions
• Gamification: Points and badges for engagement
• WooCommerce Integration: Native integration for selling courses
• Mobile App: Dedicated mobile app for students

Pricing

• Free version: Basic features on WordPress.org
• Pro: ~$199/year for a single site
• Lifetime deals occasionally available

Considerations

• SCORM compliance is a unique selling point no other WordPress LMS offers
• Zoom/Google Meet integration is valuable for live PD workshop delivery
• Mobile app is a nice touch for educators accessing content on the go
• Smaller community and ecosystem compared to LearnDash
• Admin interface is less polished than LearnDash or Tutor LMS

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Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	LearnDash	Sensei Pro	Tutor LMS	MemberPress	LifterLMS	MasterStudy
Annual Cost	$199	$149	$199	$399	$999 once	~$199
WooCommerce	Built-in	Native	Built-in	Add-on	Add-on	Built-in
Group/Institutional	Excellent	Basic	Limited	Excellent	Good	Good
Certificates	Yes	Yes	Best builder	Via add-on	Yes	Yes
Quiz Engine	Best	Good	Very Good	Basic	Good	Good
Drip Content	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Reporting	Best	Adequate	Good	Basic	Good	Good
SCORM Support	No	No	No	No	No	Yes
Live Lessons	No	No	No	No	No	Zoom/Meet
Subscription Billing	Via Woo	Via Woo	Via Woo	Built-in	Built-in	Via Woo
Student Portal UX	Good	Clean	Best	Functional	Functional	Good
Mobile App	No	No	No	No	No	Yes
Long-term Viability	Strong	Strongest	Strong	Strong	Strong	Good

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Nate’s Recommendation

LearnDash at $199/year is the strongest fit for Integrus. The Group Management feature maps directly to how Tom will sell:

1. District purchases a curriculum/PD package via the Shop
2. We create a Group for that district in LearnDash
3. District coordinator gets Group Leader access to enroll teachers and track progress
4. Teachers complete modules, earn certificates, download resources
5. Tom sees everything via the ProPanel reporting dashboard

At $199/year against $5,000+ engagement packages, this is a no-brainer investment. It transforms the site from a brochure into a platform – and that is a massive differentiator when marketing to institutional buyers.

If we want to start with a lower-cost option and scale up later, Sensei Pro at $149/year is the safest bet given its Automattic backing and native WooCommerce integration.

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Tom – take a look at the links above, poke around the demos, and let Nate know which direction you want to go. We can have the portal built out within the same engagement.