LifterLMS Review (2026)Free Core, Bundles Renew at $398 and Up

Pricing (2026)

✓ Pricing re-verified 10 Oct 2026

The LifterLMS core plugin for WordPress is free and open source, with unlimited courses, memberships, students and teachers. Paid bundles are annual subscriptions, shown at an introductory 50% off the first year with the code FIRSTYEAR50, and the page states that all renewals are at full price. Earth is $199 for the first year, normally $398: 1 active site, support for 1 user, the Stripe, PayPal and WooCommerce e-commerce add-ons, cart abandonment recovery and name-your-price.

Universe, marked most popular, is $299 for the first year, normally $598: 5 active sites, support for 2 users, the Sky Pilot theme, 4 e-commerce add-ons, email marketing and CRM add-ons (including Mailchimp and Kit), form integrations (Gravity Forms, Ninja Forms, Formidable Forms, WPForms) and a weekly mastermind with a private Facebook group. Infinity is $799 for the first year, normally $1,598: unlimited sites, support for 3 users and 15 advanced add-ons such as advanced quizzes and videos, assignments, groups, private areas, a private site and social learning.

A lifetime Infinity licence is offered on a separate page. A 30-day demo site with every add-on costs $1, and purchases carry a 30-day, 100% money-back guarantee with no setup fees. Licences renew automatically; you can cancel the renewal at any time. Plans change — always verify the live price on their site.

Category context: Growth & Revenue. Across the 83 tools in this category that we researched with a public US-dollar price, the median entry price is about $30 a month (lowest paid plan as listed, per seat where the vendor prices per seat). Compare pricing conditions in the Software Cost Atlas →

What the pricing page doesn’t say

The catch

LifterLMS is a WordPress plugin, so hosting, updates, backups and theme compatibility are yours to manage. Earth covers one site and one support user. We have not used LifterLMS ourselves.

What LifterLMS does

WordPress plugin for building and selling online courses and memberships, with a free open-source core and paid add-ons for payments, email marketing, quizzes and groups.

The plugin is free; the payment add-ons are what you buy

The free core plugin runs a complete course site: courses, memberships, quizzes and students without limits. What it lacks is a way to take money, because the Stripe, PayPal and WooCommerce add-ons sit in the paid bundles. So for most course sellers the realistic starting point is Earth: $199 in the first year and $398 a year after that, for one site. Universe at $598 a year from year two makes sense if you need email or CRM integrations, form plugins or more than one site.

Infinity at $1,598 a year from year two is for course businesses that need assignments, groups, private areas or social learning, or run many sites. Budget on the renewal price, not the first-year price: the page says renewals are always at full price.

How to actually use LifterLMS

Install the free core plugin on a WordPress site and build one course before buying anything. If you need checkout, decide between Earth and Universe by the integrations you use (email, CRM, forms) and the number of sites. The $1 demo site with every add-on for 30 days is the cheapest way to test the advanced add-ons before paying for Infinity. Note the renewal date: the first year is half price and the renewal is charged at full price automatically.

Distilled from LifterLMS's own pricing page and its FAQ, read on 2026-10-10 in a headless browser (bundle prices, normal prices, site and support limits, the add-on comparison table, renewal and refund terms). LifterLMS is an Awin partner of ours. We have not used LifterLMS ourselves.

LifterLMS vs LearnWorlds, side by side

Each column shows the vendor’s own published entry price, read on the date shown. Entry prices can cover different services or units, so check what each one buys. We do not average them into a score.

LifterLMS →

What it costs

Core plugin free; Earth $199 first year (renews $398/yr); Universe $299 ($598); Infinity $799 ($1,598)

Price read on

10 Oct 2026

The catch

Checkout add-ons need a paid bundle, and renewals cost double the first year.

Best for

course creators and training businesses already on WordPress who want to own their course site and pay a yearly licence instead of a monthly platform fee

LearnWorlds →

What it costs

Starter $29/mo (or $24 annually) but with a $5 fee per paid enrollment; Pro Trainer $99/mo, no enrollment fee

Price read on

30 Sep 2026

The catch

The detail most people miss is Starter's $5-per-paid-enrollment fee — at any real sales volume it quietly makes Starter more expensive than the flat Pro Trainer plan, so the "cheap" tier often isn't.

Best for

course creators and training businesses that want a branded school with interactive video, assessments, certificates and a built-in checkout

Both names above are affiliate links: we may earn a commission if you sign up, at no extra cost to you. Neither changes what this table says.

The natural comparison is LearnWorlds — LearnWorlds is in our dossiers too and is a hosted course platform with a built-in checkout and monthly pricing. LifterLMS runs inside your own WordPress site: the core is free and you pay a yearly licence for payment and advanced add-ons, but hosting and maintenance are yours..

Visit LifterLMS →

Frequently asked questions

How much does LifterLMS cost?

Read on 10 October 2026: the core plugin is free; Earth $199 for the first year then $398 a year, Universe $299 then $598, Infinity $799 then $1,598.

Can I sell courses with the free LifterLMS plugin?

The free core runs courses and memberships, but the Stripe, PayPal and WooCommerce payment add-ons are part of the paid bundles.

Does LifterLMS renew at the discounted price?

No. The pricing page says the 50% discount applies to the first year and all renewals are at full price.

Is this a hands-on review of LifterLMS?

This is a researched assessment, not a hands-on test — where we've used a tool ourselves, we say so explicitly. We name what each tool is good and bad at, and we earn a commission only if you sign up, at no cost to you.

Others in this category

Reviewed growth & revenue tools that share ground with LifterLMS — comparable in what they do, not drop-in swaps:

LearnWorldsKartraCircleMarketerHireActiveCampaignall 113 reviews →