Softwr

LMS · head to head

Chamilo vs NewsBlur

Chamilo logo

Chamilo

LMS

Open source learning management system with no licence fee and a Latin American and francophone user base

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
NewsBlur logo

NewsBlur

News

A personal news reader bringing people together

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • 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.; NewsBlur the free account is limited to 64 sites
  • They diverge on capability: Chamilo covers Course and learning paths, NewsBlur covers Intelligence training.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Chamilo and NewsBlur actually diverge.

Attributes where Chamilo and NewsBlur differ
AttributeChamiloNewsBlur
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feefreemium
PlatformsWeb, Self-hosted, LinuxWeb, Ios, Android
CategoryLMSNews
FoundedUnknown2010

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Chamilo

  • Course and learning paths
  • Assessments
  • Gradebook and certificates
  • Attendance tracking
  • Sessions and multi-tenancy
  • Wide interface translation
  • Plugins
  • Low hosting requirements

Only in NewsBlur

  • Intelligence training
  • Story sharing
  • Original site view
  • Text view
  • Blurblogs
  • Pocket
  • Instapaper
  • Evernote

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 NewsBlur
  • A ministry or NGO delivering vocational training over poor connectivity, where a lightweight PHP application on cheap hosting beats a heavyweight platformnot NewsBlur
  • A francophone institution in West Africa or Belgium where French interface and documentation quality decides adoption more than feature countnot NewsBlur
  • An organisation that requires the LMS to run entirely on its own infrastructure with no data leaving the countrynot NewsBlur

NewsBlur

  • Reading RSS feeds with training that filters by author, tag or titlenot Chamilo
  • Archiving full article content from followed sitesnot Chamilo
  • Following a large number of feeds with fast refreshnot 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.

NewsBlur

  • The free account is limited to 64 sites
  • Search and text view extraction require Premium at $36 per year
  • Premium is capped at 1,024 sites and Premium Archive at 4,096 sites
  • Full content archiving and the Daily Briefing require Premium Archive at $99 per year
  • The fastest 5 to 15 minute feed refresh and regex training require Premium Pro at $29 per month
  • Site following is capped at 10,000 even on the top tier

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

NewsBlur

Free
  • Free TierFree
    • Follow up to 64 sites
    • Real-time RSS updates
    • Train stories by author, tag, title
  • Premium$36/year
    • Follow up to 1024 sites
    • 5x more frequent updates
    • River of News, search, saved stories with tags
  • Premium Archive$99/year
    • Follow up to 4096 sites
    • Web feeds from any website
    • Story clustering, daily briefing, full archive and search
  • Premium Pro$29/month
    • All Archive features plus up to 10000 sites
    • Feeds fetched every 5 to 15 minutes
    • Regex training, priority support

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.
Chamilo review

Choose NewsBlur if

  • You need intelligence training.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want story sharing.
NewsBlur review

Questions people ask

Is Chamilo or NewsBlur better?
Neither clearly leads. Chamilo starts at Free and NewsBlur at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Chamilo or NewsBlur?
Chamilo starts at Free and NewsBlur at Free.
Does Chamilo or NewsBlur run on more platforms?
Chamilo runs on Web, Self-hosted, Linux. NewsBlur runs on Web, Ios, Android.
Can I use Chamilo for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
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 NewsBlur is typically brought in for.
What can Chamilo do that NewsBlur cannot?
Chamilo covers Course and learning paths, Assessments, Gradebook and certificates, Attendance tracking. NewsBlur covers Intelligence training, Story sharing, Original site view, Text view.

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.

NewsBlur: Is NewsBlur free?

NewsBlur offers a free tier allowing users to follow up to 64 RSS feeds with real-time updates, story training, and public sharing.

Source
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.

NewsBlur: What does Premium plan include?

Premium plan costs 36 dollars per year and includes following up to 1024 sites with 5x more frequent updates, River of News feature, search functionality, and saved stories with tags.

Source
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.

NewsBlur: Is there a free trial?

Every new NewsBlur account starts with a free 30-day premium trial. No credit card is required to start.

Source
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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