LMS · head to head
Claroline vs CYPHER Learning
Claroline
LMS
Open source French-language learning platform, now developed as Claroline Connect
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
CYPHER Learning
LMS
One learning platform codebase serving schools, universities and businesses with built-in AI course generation
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Claroline has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Claroline two products share the name and the abandoned original, last released in December 2021, dominates search results, so institutions regularly install unmaintained software believing it is current.; CYPHER Learning one codebase serves schools and companies, so roadmap priorities are split and neither sector receives a product designed exclusively around its workflows.
- They diverge on capability: Claroline covers Workspaces, CYPHER Learning covers AI course builder.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Claroline and CYPHER Learning actually diverge.
| Attribute | Claroline | CYPHER Learning |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | On request |
| Pricing model | Open source, no licence fee | quote |
| Free tier | Yes | No |
| Platforms | Web, Linux | Web, iOS, Android |
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 Claroline
- Workspaces
- Resource model
- Learning paths
- Quizzes and evaluation
- Competency framework
- Planning and events
- Self-hosting
- SaaS option
Only in CYPHER Learning
- AI course builder
- Competency based assessment
- Automation rules
- Gamification
- Ecommerce
- Multi-tenant portals
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Claroline
- A French or Belgian training organisation that needs a francophone platform where the interface and support are French-first rather than translated.not CYPHER Learning
- A public body required to keep learner data on European infrastructure under an open licence it can audit.not CYPHER Learning
- A training provider assembling learning paths from a shared library of reusable resources across many client workspaces rather than duplicating courses.not CYPHER Learning
- An institution already running the abandoned Claroline 13 line that needs to plan a migration onto the maintained Connect codebase before its dependencies become unsupportable.not CYPHER Learning
CYPHER Learning
- A school group that wants one platform across its schools without district scale procurementnot Claroline
- A company that needs competency frameworks and skills mastery reporting rather than course completion countsnot Claroline
- Training providers selling courses to the public who need commerce and delivery in the same systemnot Claroline
- Organisations wanting first draft course generation to reduce the authoring backlognot Claroline
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Claroline
- Two products share the name and the abandoned original, last released in December 2021, dominates search results, so institutions regularly install unmaintained software believing it is current.
- The community is small compared with Moodle, so plugin choice, third-party integrations and the pool of people who can administer it in production are all thin.
- Documentation and community discussion are French-first and English coverage is partial and inconsistent, which raises the effort for any non-francophone team.
- The commercial hosting is offered by a small operator rather than a large partner network, so an institution depending on paid support has concentrated supplier risk.
- The workspace and resource model is different enough from a conventional course-based LMS that staff moving from Moodle or Canvas have to relearn how content is organised, and migrations do not map cleanly.
CYPHER Learning
- One codebase serves schools and companies, so roadmap priorities are split and neither sector receives a product designed exclusively around its workflows.
- The three former brands, NEO, MATRIX and INDIE, still appear in older documentation, comparison sites and community answers, which makes independent research harder than it should be.
- The integration library is smaller than that of mainstream academic platforms, so student information system and enterprise system connections more often need custom work.
- AI generated course content produces a usable first draft and not a finished course, and institutions that treat it as finished ship material that subject specialists then have to rewrite anyway.
- Large institutions with heavy compliance, accessibility audit and enterprise integration requirements generally find the ecosystem thinner than the incumbents, which raises the internal effort to reach the same standard.
Pricing, plan by plan
Claroline
Free- Claroline ConnectFree
- GPL licence, no fee
- Full source on GitHub
- You provide Symfony and PHP hosting and operations
- Hosted distribution$undefined/year
- Managed hosting, maintenance and updates
- Support from the commercial operator
- Quoted by user count
CYPHER Learning
On request- CYPHER Learning$undefined/year
- Quoted by learner count and sector
- Annual contracts
- AI authoring capability included in higher tiers
Which should you pick?
Choose Claroline if
- You need workspaces.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Linux.
- You also want resource model.
Choose CYPHER Learning if
- You need ai course builder.
- You work on Web, iOS, Android.
- You also want competency based assessment.
Questions people ask
- Is Claroline or CYPHER Learning better?
- Neither clearly leads. Claroline starts at Free and CYPHER Learning at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Claroline or CYPHER Learning?
- Claroline has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Claroline and On request for CYPHER Learning.
- Does Claroline or CYPHER Learning run on more platforms?
- Claroline runs on Web, Linux. CYPHER Learning runs on Web, iOS, Android.
- Can I use Claroline for free?
- Yes. Claroline has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. CYPHER Learning starts at On request.
- What is Claroline best used for?
- Claroline is most often used for a french or belgian training organisation that needs a francophone platform where the interface and support are french-first rather than translated., a public body required to keep learner data on european infrastructure under an open licence it can audit., a training provider assembling learning paths from a shared library of reusable resources across many client workspaces rather than duplicating courses., an institution already running the abandoned claroline 13 line that needs to plan a migration onto the maintained connect codebase before its dependencies become unsupportable.. Of those, a french or belgian training organisation that needs a francophone platform where the interface and support are french-first rather than translated. and a public body required to keep learner data on european infrastructure under an open licence it can audit. are not what CYPHER Learning is typically brought in for.
- What can Claroline do that CYPHER Learning cannot?
- Claroline covers Workspaces, Resource model, Learning paths, Quizzes and evaluation. CYPHER Learning covers AI course builder, Competency based assessment, Automation rules, Gamification.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Claroline: Which Claroline should I install?
Claroline Connect, the Symfony and React codebase currently on version 15. The original PHP Claroline stopped at 13.1.3 in December 2021 and should not be deployed.
CYPHER Learning: Is this the same product as NEO or MATRIX?
Yes. NEO for schools, MATRIX for business and INDIE for course creators were consolidated into one CYPHER Learning platform, so older reviews under those names describe the same lineage.
Claroline: Is it still maintained?
Yes. Point releases in the 15.0 line continued into 2026 with active commits on GitHub.
CYPHER Learning: Does the AI actually build a course?
It produces a structured draft with content and assessments from your prompt and source material. It reduces authoring time and does not remove the need for subject expert review.
Claroline: Is it free?
The software is GPL and free. Hosted distribution with maintenance and support is a paid service from the commercial operator.
CYPHER Learning: Is it suitable for a whole district?
It suits individual schools and school groups better than very large districts, where student information system integration depth and third party ecosystem usually decide the outcome.
Claroline: Does it work in English?
The interface has English, but documentation and community support are French-first, so a non-francophone team will hit gaps.
Claroline: How big is the ecosystem compared to Moodle?
Much smaller. If you need a wide plugin market or an easy administrator hiring pool, Moodle is the safer open source choice.
Related pages
More on CYPHER Learning
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