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Beehiiv vs LearnDash

Beehiiv logo

Beehiiv

News

The all-in-one platform for newsletter creators

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
LearnDash logo

LearnDash

LMS

WordPress plugin that turns a site you already own into a course platform with no revenue share

From
$199/year
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Beehiiv has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Beehiiv platform lacks native SMS support; requires third-party integrations via API or webhooks; LearnDash the flat licence excludes everything around it. Hosting, backups, security patching, video hosting and email deliverability are now your cost and your responsibility, and they are not small once traffic grows.
  • They diverge on capability: Beehiiv covers Newsletter creation, LearnDash covers Course builder.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Beehiiv and LearnDash actually diverge.

Attributes where Beehiiv and LearnDash differ
AttributeBeehiivLearnDash
Starting priceFree$199/year
Pricing modelfreemiumPer site per year
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebWeb, WordPress
CategoryNewsLMS
Founded2021Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Beehiiv

  • Newsletter creation
  • Email automation
  • Subscriber management
  • Monetization tools
  • Analytics dashboard
  • Referral program
  • A/B testing
  • Spam checking

Only in LearnDash

  • Course builder
  • Quiz engine
  • Certificates
  • Groups and group leaders
  • Commerce integration
  • Ownership of data

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Beehiiv

  • Email newsletter publishingnot LearnDash
  • Content monetizationnot LearnDash
  • Audience buildingnot LearnDash

LearnDash

  • A creator whose course revenue has grown to the point where a percentage based platform costs more than a developer wouldnot Beehiiv
  • Organisations that already run WordPress and want courses on their own domain and brandnot Beehiiv
  • Training businesses that need learner data in a database they control rather than in a vendor accountnot Beehiiv
  • Agencies building course sites for multiple clients under one unlimited site licencenot Beehiiv

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Beehiiv

  • Platform lacks native SMS support; requires third-party integrations via API or webhooks
  • Free Launch plan offers only read-only AI capabilities

LearnDash

  • The flat licence excludes everything around it. Hosting, backups, security patching, video hosting and email deliverability are now your cost and your responsibility, and they are not small once traffic grows.
  • WordPress plugin conflicts are a live risk. A core or theme update can break checkout or course progression at a moment you did not choose, and there is no vendor operations team standing behind uptime.
  • Performance under load needs deliberate hosting work. Shared hosting handles a small course and fails visibly during a launch, and fixing that is a hosting migration rather than a setting.
  • Selling requires assembling several plugins for payments, memberships and email, so the true stack is four or five vendors with independent update cycles rather than one product.
  • Support covers the plugin, not your site. When the fault sits in the interaction between your theme, your host and another plugin, resolving it is your problem and often a contractor invoice.

Pricing, plan by plan

Beehiiv

Free
  • LaunchFree
    • Up to 2,500 subscribers
    • Newsletters, website, podcast
    • Unlimited email sends
  • Scale$43/month
    • Up to 100,000 subscribers
    • Ad Network
    • 0% take rate on paid subscriptions
  • Max$96/month
    • Up to 100,000 subscribers
    • Remove branding, sponsorship storefront
    • Audio newsletters, RSS-to-send
  • Enterprise$null/mo
    • 100K+ subscribers
    • Dedicated account manager
    • Custom publication limits

LearnDash

$199/year
  • LearnDash LMS, 1 site$199/year
    • Single site licence
    • All course, quiz and certificate features
    • No share taken of course revenue
  • LearnDash LMS Plus, 10 sites$399/year
    • Up to ten sites
    • Same feature set
    • Suits agencies and multi brand operators
  • LearnDash LMS Pro, unlimited sites$799/year
    • Unlimited sites
    • Same feature set
    • Priced for agencies building for clients

Which should you pick?

Choose Beehiiv if

  • You need newsletter creation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want email automation.
Beehiiv review

Choose LearnDash if

  • You need course builder.
  • You work on Web, WordPress.
  • You also want quiz engine.
LearnDash review

Questions people ask

Is Beehiiv or LearnDash better?
Neither clearly leads. Beehiiv starts at Free and LearnDash at $199/year, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Beehiiv or LearnDash?
Beehiiv has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Beehiiv and $199/year for LearnDash.
Does Beehiiv or LearnDash run on more platforms?
Beehiiv runs on Web. LearnDash runs on Web, WordPress.
Can I use Beehiiv for free?
Yes. Beehiiv has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. LearnDash starts at $199/year.
What is Beehiiv best used for?
Beehiiv is most often used for email newsletter publishing, content monetization, audience building. Of those, email newsletter publishing and content monetization are not what LearnDash is typically brought in for.
What can Beehiiv do that LearnDash cannot?
Beehiiv covers Newsletter creation, Email automation, Subscriber management, Monetization tools. LearnDash covers Course builder, Quiz engine, Certificates, Groups and group leaders.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Beehiiv: How much does beehiiv cost?

Launch is free for up to 2,500 subscribers. Scale plan is $43/month for up to 100,000 subscribers. Max plan is $96/month. Enterprise has custom pricing for 100,000+ subscribers.

Source
LearnDash: Does LearnDash take a percentage of my course sales?

No. It is a flat annual licence per site and you keep all revenue. That is the main financial argument against percentage based hosted platforms once sales volume is meaningful.

Beehiiv: What does beehiiv's free Launch plan include?

Free Launch plan supports up to 2,500 subscribers and includes newsletters, website builder, podcast hosting, campaign analytics, unlimited email sends, custom domains, and API access.

Source
LearnDash: What is the real total cost?

The licence plus hosting capable of handling your traffic, plus video hosting, plus an email service, plus whatever developer time keeps the stack working. Budget for the stack, not the plugin.

Beehiiv: What commission does beehiiv take from subscription revenue?

beehiiv takes 0% of paid subscription revenue you collect. Only Stripe's processing fees (2.9% + $0.30 per transaction) apply.

Source
LearnDash: Should I use LearnDash Cloud instead?

If you want the plugin without administering WordPress, yes. You give up some of the cost advantage and some control in exchange for not being responsible for the server.

Beehiiv: What's the difference between beehiiv's Scale and Max plans?

Both support up to 100,000 subscribers. Scale ($43/month) includes Ad Network and 3 team seats. Max ($96/month) adds branding removal, sponsorship storefront, audio newsletters, up to 10 publications, and unlimited team seats.

Source
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