LDX Design - WordPress LMS Reviews & Tutorials

Are you looking to build an online course community with WordPress?

If so, there’s no better combination than LearnDash & BuddyBoss. Using these two products, you can create and sell online courses, create groups and discussions, and provide an entire social network for your students, all without leaving your website.

I’ve built dozens of LearnDash sites, and consulted with over 100 online course creators, and BuddyBoss is hands down the best tool for creating a community-based online learning platform. I’ll show you exactly what you get with this killer combination through screenshots, short videos, and tons of links to discover if LearnDash + BuddyBoss is the winning combination for your next project.

The Best WordPress LMS Themes for Every Platform

By Dave Warfel

On April 8, 2024

In Themes

So you’ve chosen to build your Learning Management System (LMS) on WordPress. Congratulations!

You may have even picked an LMS plugin to go with, which is more than half the battle.

Now it’s time to figure out which WordPress LMS theme to pair with your plugin.

7 Free WordPress LMS Plugins to Build Your Online Learning Platform

By Dave Warfel

On December 12, 2023

In Plugins

Updated for 2024

If you’re asking yourself, “How do I create a free LMS website with WordPress?,” you’ve come to the right place. We’ve researched & tested out all 10 of the free WordPress LMS plugins on the market, including feature lists, free vs. pro comparisons, design, integrations, and more. Currently, I think 7 are worth considering, and the remaining 3 have more work to do.

It’s worth nothing, all of the free WordPress LMS plugins on this page are very limited in features. If you’re serious about building an online learning site, you should definitely consider paying for a WordPress LMS plugin. With the free versions of these plugins, you’ll likely hit roadblocks as you start to build out your courses.

Example LearnDash course grid carousel on mobile

Create a Carousel for LearnDash Course Grid & Lesson List

By Dave Warfel

On April 2, 2025

In Tutorials

I was recently asked by a customer of our Design Upgrade Pro for LearnDash plugin if there was a way to improve the view of the course grid output on mobile. She wasn’t pleased with how everything just stacked on top of each other on smaller screens.

Enter the LearnDash course grid carousel 🎉! With a little CSS, we can create a beautiful, scrolling carousel in LearnDash.

LearnDash 4.15 Design Features & Design Upgrade Plugin Compatibility

By Dave Warfel

On May 9, 2024

In News, Plugins

Update, June 21, 2024: We released version 2.22 of Design Upgrade Pro, and version 2.22.1 3 days later. Version 2.22.1 fixes the issues with LearnDash 4.15’s new styles. If you’re using LearnDash 4.15 or higher, please update our plugin to 2.22.1 and all of your design issues should be fixed.

Design Upgrade Pro’s styles will now override all of LearnDash’s Customizer styles.

Hi LearnDash Friends,

If you’re reading this, you’ve heard about LearnDash 4.15 and the new “LearnDash Styles” design options they added to the Customizer. You found out about them at the same time I did.

If you didn’t know, I’m the owner of the popular Design Upgrade for LearnDash plugin (~20,000 active users). I’ve heard from some customers via email, and I’m being told there are many more asking questions in the LearnDash Facebook Group (unfortunately, I’m unable to respond in the group).

NOTE: I am a member of the Unofficial LearnDash Group here. Consider joining that if you’d like to ask questions about the plugin and these new LearnDash options. Tag me to be sure I see your questions.

BuddyBoss vs. BuddyPress: What’s the Difference?

By Dave Warfel

On May 1, 2024

In Plugins

If you’re looking to build a social networking site for WordPress, you’ve probably heard of both BuddyBoss & BuddyPress.

In this article, I’ll explore the similarities & differences between BuddyBoss vs. BuddyPress, and tell you which one you should use for your next project.

13 LearnDash Alternatives: LMS Plugins & Platforms with Similar Features

By Dave Warfel

On May 1, 2024

In Plugins

LearnDash is the most popular LMS platform for WordPress, by far. And one of the more popular LMS options in general.

However, others are gaining in popularity. This article will explore LearnDash alternatives in the WordPress space, as well as hosted/SaaS LMS platforms outside of WordPress.

Since LearnDash is a WordPress LMS plugin, we’ll first look at the other LMS plugins you can use with WordPress. If you’re already using WordPress and/or committed to the platform, you’ll want to choose a LearnDash alternative WordPress plugin.

There are some free WordPress LMS plugins, but none of them offer the features that LearnDash provides. You’ll want to go with a premium solution.

However, if you’re open to non-WordPress LMS solutions, jump down to the section on other SaaS/hosted LMS platforms.

How to Downgrade/Rollback Your LearnDash Version

By Dave Warfel

On April 18, 2024

In Tutorials

Did you just update to a new version of LearnDash and it caused some issues with your site? Or perhaps you just don’t like some of the changes that were made in the latest LearnDash release.

This article will explain the steps you can take to downgrade or rollback to a previous version of LearnDash.

BuddyBoss Price Breakdown: Platform + Theme + App + Hosting

By Dave Warfel

On April 17, 2024

In LearnDash Setup

Are you interested in building a community site with BuddyBoss, but find yourself asking, “How much does a BuddyBoss site really cost?” Well, you’re in the right place.

I’ve been working with LearnDash & BuddyBoss since 2018, and I can tell you, there’s more to the BuddyBoss price than just what you see on the sticker.

There’s also several different ways you can build a BuddyBoss site, and each one comes with a different price tag.

Let’s take a look at all of BuddyBoss’ products, how much they cost, and what other costs you need to factor into your budget. We’ll look at a base cost, or what you’d need to get started with only a handful of members, as well as an “established site” cost, once you’ve built a solid, profitable membership.

What is LearnDash Focus Mode & How to Use It

By Dave Warfel

On April 16, 2024

In LearnDash Setup

If you’re new to LearnDash, you might have heard of “Focus Mode.” This article will explain LearnDash Focus Mode in detail, provide screenshots and videos for how to set it up, and discuss the many different ways you can customize it.

10 BuddyBoss Alternatives to Build a Community Platform in 2024

By Dave Warfel

On April 16, 2024

In Plugins

When it comes to building community sites with WordPress, BuddyBoss has long been regarded as a go-to plugin, powering large online communities and membership sites with ease.

While BuddyBoss stands out for its comprehensive feature set and seamless integration with popular WordPress LMS plugins (LearnDash, Tutor LMS, LifterLMS), there are a handful of viable BuddyBoss alternatives I’ll cover in this piece.

I’ll explore free alternatives, discuss the differences between WordPress & SaaS solutions, look at a few mobile app alternatives to the BuddyBoss App, and provide pricing for each alternative solution to the BuddyBoss Platform & Theme.

BuddyBoss is a great option… but it’s not the only option. Let’s dive into the BuddyBoss alternatives you can use with and without WordPress, to build the ultimate online community platform.

How to Create Dynamic Links to BuddyBoss Profile Pages

By Dave Warfel

On April 13, 2024

In Tutorials

BuddyBoss creates several pages dynamically & automatically for each and every member of your site. When you use BuddyBoss’ main header menu, and the default vertical & horizontal tab navigation on profile pages, these links are automatically created for you, and they direct the member to their own custom profile pages.

But what if you want to insert a link to a user profile page somewhere else on your site? Or add a button via a page builder that links to a specific profile page, saved discussions, etc.?