LMS · head to head
Absorb LMS vs Chamilo
Chamilo
LMS
Open source learning management system with no licence fee and a Latin American and francophone user base
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Chamilo has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Absorb LMS pricing not transparently listed on website; Chamilo version 3.0 has been in beta since 2024 while production deployments stay on the 1.11 branch, so anyone planning a multi-year deployment is choosing between an ageing stable line and an unfinished rewrite.
- They diverge on capability: Absorb LMS covers Course management, Chamilo covers Course and learning paths.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Absorb LMS and Chamilo actually diverge.
| Attribute | Absorb LMS | Chamilo |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | On request | Free |
| Pricing model | subscription | Open source, no licence fee |
| Free tier | No | Yes |
| Platforms | Web, Cloud-based | Web, Self-hosted, Linux |
| Founded | 2003 | Unknown |
Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (LMS).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Absorb LMS
- Course management
- AI-powered learning
- Compliance tracking
- Mobile learning
- E-commerce
- Reporting
- Gamification
- Social learning
Only in Chamilo
- Course and learning paths
- Assessments
- Gradebook and certificates
- Attendance tracking
- Sessions and multi-tenancy
- Wide interface translation
- Plugins
- Low hosting requirements
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Absorb LMS
- Employee onboarding and professional developmentnot Chamilo
- Compliance training with automated updatesnot Chamilo
- Customer education and product trainingnot Chamilo
- Partner enablement and sales trainingnot Chamilo
Chamilo
- A Latin American university that needs an LMS with no per-student licence fee and Spanish-language support from people in a compatible time zonenot Absorb LMS
- A ministry or NGO delivering vocational training over poor connectivity, where a lightweight PHP application on cheap hosting beats a heavyweight platformnot Absorb LMS
- A francophone institution in West Africa or Belgium where French interface and documentation quality decides adoption more than feature countnot Absorb LMS
- An organisation that requires the LMS to run entirely on its own infrastructure with no data leaving the countrynot Absorb LMS
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Absorb LMS
- Pricing not transparently listed on website
- Requires implementation and setup time
Chamilo
- Version 3.0 has been in beta since 2024 while production deployments stay on the 1.11 branch, so anyone planning a multi-year deployment is choosing between an ageing stable line and an unfinished rewrite.
- Governance moved to BeezNest Belgium, a commercial company that also sells Chamilo hosting and services, which concentrates roadmap decisions in a vendor with a direct commercial interest in the support market.
- The English-language community and documentation are noticeably thinner than the Spanish and French, so an anglophone institution will find fewer answers, fewer contributors and fewer consultants than the project size implies.
- No licence fee is not no cost: hosting, upgrades, security patching, backups and integration work all fall on the institution or a paid partner, and that ongoing labour usually exceeds what a small institution would have paid for a hosted commercial LMS.
- The third-party plugin ecosystem is small compared with Moodle, so integrations with proctoring, publisher content and student information systems often have to be commissioned rather than installed.
Pricing, plan by plan
Absorb LMS
On request- Core$undefined/month
- Course management
- Reporting
- Mobile app
- Professional$undefined/month
- All Core
- E-commerce
- Custom branding
- Enterprise$undefined/month
- All Professional
- AI features
- SSO
Chamilo
Free- Self-hostedFree
- GNU GPL licence, no per-learner fee
- Full source code
- Community support in Spanish, French and English
- Hosting and support from partners$undefined/year
- Managed hosting, upgrades and support sold by BeezNest and other official providers
- Priced per deployment, quoted
Which should you pick?
Choose Absorb LMS if
- You need course management.
- You work on Web, Cloud-based.
- You also want ai-powered learning.
Choose Chamilo if
- You need course and learning paths.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Self-hosted, Linux.
- You also want assessments.
Questions people ask
- Is Absorb LMS or Chamilo better?
- Neither clearly leads. Absorb LMS starts at On request and Chamilo at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Absorb LMS or Chamilo?
- Chamilo has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Absorb LMS and Free for Chamilo.
- Does Absorb LMS or Chamilo run on more platforms?
- Absorb LMS runs on Web, Cloud-based. Chamilo runs on Web, Self-hosted, Linux.
- Can I use Chamilo for free?
- Yes. Chamilo has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Absorb LMS starts at On request.
- What is Absorb LMS best used for?
- Absorb LMS is most often used for employee onboarding and professional development, compliance training with automated updates, customer education and product training, partner enablement and sales training. Of those, employee onboarding and professional development and compliance training with automated updates are not what Chamilo is typically brought in for.
- What can Absorb LMS do that Chamilo cannot?
- Absorb LMS covers Course management, AI-powered learning, Compliance tracking, Mobile learning. Chamilo covers Course and learning paths, Assessments, Gradebook and certificates, Attendance tracking.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Absorb LMS: How is Absorb LMS pricing calculated?
Pricing is based on the number of learners, with eight tiers: 1-50, 51-150, 151-250, 251-500, 501-1,000, 1,001-5,000, 5,001-25,000, and 25,000+. Exact pricing requires completing their inquiry form.
SourceChamilo: Who owns and maintains Chamilo now?
The project has been governed by BeezNest Belgium since January 2026. The code remains under the GNU GPL, but roadmap stewardship sits with a commercial company that also sells Chamilo services.
Absorb LMS: Is a free trial available?
Yes. Absorb LMS offers a free trial option, though trial duration and feature restrictions are not specified on the main pages reviewed.
SourceChamilo: Is Chamilo 3 ready for production?
No. The 3.0 line has been in beta since 2024 and production installations remain on the 1.11 branch. Plan on 1.11 and treat the 3.0 migration as a future project.
Absorb LMS: What payment methods and currencies does Absorb LMS support?
Absorb LMS supports 70 payment gateways and multiple currencies, allowing flexible payment and international transactions.
SourceChamilo: Is there a licence fee?
No. Chamilo is GPL software with no per-learner charge. Costs are hosting, support and whatever integration work you commission.
Absorb LMS: Can I integrate Absorb LMS with other systems?
Yes. Absorb LMS integrates with 40+ systems, allowing connections to existing business tools and workflows.
SourceChamilo: Where is it strongest?
Spanish-speaking Latin America, Spain, francophone West Africa and Belgium. Support and documentation quality in Spanish and French exceed the English.
Absorb LMS: What courses are included with Absorb LMS?
Absorb LMS includes access to 20,000+ pre-built courses and 12,000+ job skills in its platform, plus AI-powered tools for creating additional content.
SourceRelated pages
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