Softwr

LMS · head to head

Coursera vs Sakai

Coursera logo

Coursera

LMS

Learn from top universities and companies worldwide

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Sakai logo

Sakai

LMS

Open source learning management system governed by the Apereo Foundation

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Coursera free audit does not include certificate upon completion; Sakai the zero licence fee is misleading: running Sakai needs Java operations, database administration and upgrade testing capacity, and universities that costed only the hardware have ended up paying a hosting partner anyway.
  • They diverge on capability: Coursera covers Video lectures, Sakai covers Course sites.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Coursera and Sakai actually diverge.

Attributes where Coursera and Sakai differ
AttributeCourseraSakai
Pricing modelUnknownOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb, Linux, iOS, Android
Founded2012Unknown

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

  • Video lectures
  • Quizzes
  • Peer assessments
  • Certificates
  • Mobile learning
  • Offline access
  • Specializations
  • Degrees

Only in Sakai

  • Course sites
  • Tests and Quizzes
  • Gradebook
  • Lessons
  • Assignments
  • Forums and messaging
  • LTI support
  • Self-hosting

What people use each for

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

Coursera

  • Skill developmentnot Sakai
  • Career advancementnot Sakai
  • Professional certificatesnot Sakai
  • Degree programsnot Sakai

Sakai

  • A university whose data protection policy or national regulation requires student coursework to stay on institution-controlled infrastructure inside a specific jurisdiction.not Coursera
  • An institution that has been repriced twice by a commercial LMS vendor after ownership changes and wants a platform with no owner to sell it.not Coursera
  • A university with an existing Java and Tomcat operations team, where the marginal cost of running one more Java application is genuinely low.not Coursera
  • A consortium of institutions sharing one deployment and one set of local integrations rather than each paying separate per-student licences.not Coursera

Where each one falls short

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

Coursera

  • Free audit does not include certificate upon completion
  • Limited offline access to course materials
  • Paid specializations require monthly subscription rather than one-time purchase

Sakai

  • The zero licence fee is misleading: running Sakai needs Java operations, database administration and upgrade testing capacity, and universities that costed only the hardware have ended up paying a hosting partner anyway.
  • The third-party teaching tool ecosystem builds and tests for Canvas first, so Sakai adopters do their own LTI integration work and occasionally wait for a vendor to certify against a platform it does not prioritise.
  • Because governance is a foundation of member institutions rather than a company, a feature only gets built if some institution funds an engineer to build it, so roadmap commitments are weaker than a vendor contract provides.
  • The interface, while improved through the version 20 to 25 cycle, still reads as older than Canvas or Brightspace, and academic staff who have used a commercial LMS elsewhere notice it immediately.
  • Adoption is concentrated in specific regions and sectors, so the pool of people who have run Sakai in production is small, making it harder to hire an administrator than for Moodle or Canvas.

Pricing, plan by plan

Coursera

Free
  • Free AuditFree
  • Coursera Plus$59/month
  • Professional Certificates$39/month

Sakai

Free
  • SakaiFree
    • Educational Community Licence, no licence fee
    • Full source on GitHub
    • Community support through Apereo lists and Jira
  • Commercial hosting and support$undefined/year
    • Provided by Apereo affiliates such as Longsight
    • Hosting, upgrades, backups and support
    • Quoted per institution, commonly by student headcount

Which should you pick?

Choose Coursera if

  • You need video lectures.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want quizzes.
Coursera review

Choose Sakai if

  • You need course sites.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Linux, iOS, Android.
  • You also want tests and quizzes.
Sakai review

Questions people ask

Is Coursera or Sakai better?
Neither clearly leads. Coursera starts at Free and Sakai at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Coursera or Sakai?
Coursera starts at Free and Sakai at Free.
Does Coursera or Sakai run on more platforms?
Coursera runs on Web, iOS, Android. Sakai runs on Web, Linux, iOS, Android.
Can I use Coursera for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Coursera best used for?
Coursera is most often used for skill development, career advancement, professional certificates, degree programs. Of those, skill development and career advancement are not what Sakai is typically brought in for.
What can Coursera do that Sakai cannot?
Coursera covers Video lectures, Quizzes, Peer assessments, Certificates. Sakai covers Course sites, Tests and Quizzes, Gradebook, Lessons.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Coursera: Can I audit courses for free?

Yes. Most Coursera courses can be audited for free, allowing access to videos and assignments without a certificate.

Source
Sakai: Is Sakai still actively developed?

Yes. Version 25.0 shipped in 2025, 25.1 followed in November 2025, and further maintenance releases in the 25 line are planned, with commits continuing through 2026.

Coursera: What is Coursera Plus?

Coursera Plus is a subscription for $59/month or $399/year providing unlimited access to over 7,000 courses and specializations with certificates.

Source
Sakai: Who owns Sakai?

No company does. Governance sits with the Apereo Foundation, a membership organisation of institutions, and the code is under the Educational Community Licence.

Coursera: Do enterprises get custom integrations?

Yes. Enterprise plans include SSO, APIs, AI-assisted Course Builder, and 30+ LMS integrations with dedicated customer success managers.

Source
Sakai: What does it actually cost to run?

The software is free. The cost is Java hosting and staff, or a commercial hosting agreement with an Apereo affiliate such as Longsight, typically quoted by student headcount.

Coursera: What is the cost of a degree program?

Coursera offers accredited degree programs starting at $50,000 and above, with costs varying by program and institution.

Source
Sakai: How does it compare to Moodle?

Moodle has a far larger plugin ecosystem and installed base; Sakai has a cleaner assessment and gradebook model and is more common in research-intensive universities. Moodle is easier to hire for.

Sakai: Can we migrate off it later?

Yes, but course content export fidelity through Common Cartridge is imperfect, so budget for manual rebuilding of assessments as you would leaving any LMS.

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