LMS · head to head
Chamilo vs LearnUpon
Chamilo
LMS
Open source learning management system with no licence fee and a Latin American and francophone user base
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
LearnUpon
LMS
Multi-portal learning management for training employees, customers and partners from one instance
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Chamilo has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: 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.; LearnUpon pricing counts registered users, so a partner or customer audience with many dormant accounts pays full price for people who log in once a year, and the finance case degrades as the population grows.
- They diverge on capability: Chamilo covers Course and learning paths, LearnUpon covers Multiple portals.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Chamilo and LearnUpon actually diverge.
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 Chamilo
- Course and learning paths
- Assessments
- Gradebook and certificates
- Attendance tracking
- Sessions and multi-tenancy
- Wide interface translation
- Plugins
- Low hosting requirements
Only in LearnUpon
- Multiple portals
- Central course library
- Compliance and recertification
- Learning paths
- Ecommerce
- SCORM and xAPI support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
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 LearnUpon
- A ministry or NGO delivering vocational training over poor connectivity, where a lightweight PHP application on cheap hosting beats a heavyweight platformnot LearnUpon
- A francophone institution in West Africa or Belgium where French interface and documentation quality decides adoption more than feature countnot LearnUpon
- An organisation that requires the LMS to run entirely on its own infrastructure with no data leaving the countrynot LearnUpon
LearnUpon
- A software company that must train staff, certify customers and enable resellers without three separate systemsnot Chamilo
- Compliance training where the auditor asks for a dated completion record per named employeenot Chamilo
- Selling certification courses to customers as a revenue line rather than a cost centrenot Chamilo
- Franchise or dealer networks needing separately branded portals under central content controlnot Chamilo
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
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.
LearnUpon
- Pricing counts registered users, so a partner or customer audience with many dormant accounts pays full price for people who log in once a year, and the finance case degrades as the population grows.
- The multi-portal design carries administration overhead that a single audience organisation pays for without benefit.
- Reporting is adequate for completion and compliance and thin for measuring whether training changed behaviour, so organisations needing that add a separate analytics layer.
- Content authoring is not included at the depth of a dedicated authoring tool, so most customers also licence something like an authoring suite and manage two vendors.
- Complex competency frameworks, multi year programme structures and academic style progression are not modelled well, which limits it in regulated professions with formal qualification pathways.
Pricing, plan by plan
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$undefined/year
- Managed hosting, upgrades and support sold by BeezNest and other official providers
- Priced per deployment, quoted
LearnUpon
On request- LearnUpon$undefined/year
- Quoted by registered user tier and number of portals
- Annual contracts
- Not comparable with per active user or per course competitors without modelling
Which should you pick?
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.
Choose LearnUpon if
- You need multiple portals.
- You work on Web, iOS, Android.
- You also want central course library.
Questions people ask
- Is Chamilo or LearnUpon better?
- Neither clearly leads. Chamilo starts at Free and LearnUpon at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Chamilo or LearnUpon?
- Chamilo has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Chamilo and On request for LearnUpon.
- Does Chamilo or LearnUpon run on more platforms?
- Chamilo runs on Web, Self-hosted, Linux. LearnUpon runs on Web, iOS, Android.
- Can I use Chamilo for free?
- Yes. Chamilo has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. LearnUpon starts at On request.
- What is Chamilo best used for?
- Chamilo is most often used for a latin american university that needs an lms with no per-student licence fee and spanish-language support from people in a compatible time zone, a ministry or ngo delivering vocational training over poor connectivity, where a lightweight php application on cheap hosting beats a heavyweight platform, a francophone institution in west africa or belgium where french interface and documentation quality decides adoption more than feature count, an organisation that requires the lms to run entirely on its own infrastructure with no data leaving the country. Of those, a latin american university that needs an lms with no per-student licence fee and spanish-language support from people in a compatible time zone and a ministry or ngo delivering vocational training over poor connectivity, where a lightweight php application on cheap hosting beats a heavyweight platform are not what LearnUpon is typically brought in for.
- What can Chamilo do that LearnUpon cannot?
- Chamilo covers Course and learning paths, Assessments, Gradebook and certificates, Attendance tracking. LearnUpon covers Multiple portals, Central course library, Compliance and recertification, Learning paths.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Chamilo: 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.
LearnUpon: How is LearnUpon priced?
By registered user tier and the number of portals, quoted rather than published. That unit is not comparable with per active user or per course pricing, so model your own population before comparing quotes.
Chamilo: 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.
LearnUpon: Can customers and employees be kept separate?
Yes, that is the main design point. Separate portals have their own branding, administrators and catalogues, while sharing courses from one library.
Chamilo: 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.
LearnUpon: Does it handle recurring compliance training?
Yes. Recertification cycles, automatic reassignment and per user dated completion records are built in and are a common reason for purchase.
Chamilo: 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.
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