LMS · head to head
Chamilo vs CYPHER Learning
Chamilo
LMS
Open source learning management system with no licence fee and a Latin American and francophone user base
- 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 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.; 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: Chamilo covers Course and learning paths, 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 Chamilo and CYPHER Learning actually diverge.
| Attribute | Chamilo | CYPHER Learning |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | On request |
| Pricing model | Open source, no licence fee | quote |
| Free tier | Yes | No |
| Platforms | Web, Self-hosted, 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 Chamilo
- Course and learning paths
- Assessments
- Gradebook and certificates
- Attendance tracking
- Sessions and multi-tenancy
- Wide interface translation
- Plugins
- Low hosting requirements
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.
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 CYPHER Learning
- A ministry or NGO delivering vocational training over poor connectivity, where a lightweight PHP application on cheap hosting beats a heavyweight platformnot CYPHER Learning
- A francophone institution in West Africa or Belgium where French interface and documentation quality decides adoption more than feature countnot CYPHER Learning
- An organisation that requires the LMS to run entirely on its own infrastructure with no data leaving the countrynot CYPHER Learning
CYPHER Learning
- A school group that wants one platform across its schools without district scale procurementnot Chamilo
- A company that needs competency frameworks and skills mastery reporting rather than course completion countsnot Chamilo
- Training providers selling courses to the public who need commerce and delivery in the same systemnot Chamilo
- Organisations wanting first draft course generation to reduce the authoring backlognot 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.
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
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$undefined/year
- Managed hosting, upgrades and support sold by BeezNest and other official providers
- Priced per deployment, quoted
CYPHER Learning
On request- CYPHER Learning$undefined/year
- Quoted by learner count and sector
- Annual contracts
- AI authoring capability included in higher tiers
Which should you pick?
Choose 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 CYPHER Learning if
- You need ai course builder.
- You work on Web, iOS, Android.
- You also want competency based assessment.
Questions people ask
- Is Chamilo or CYPHER Learning better?
- Neither clearly leads. Chamilo 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, Chamilo or CYPHER Learning?
- Chamilo has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Chamilo and On request for CYPHER Learning.
- Does Chamilo or CYPHER Learning run on more platforms?
- Chamilo runs on Web, Self-hosted, Linux. CYPHER Learning runs on Web, iOS, Android.
- Can I use Chamilo for free?
- Yes. Chamilo has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. CYPHER Learning 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 CYPHER Learning is typically brought in for.
- What can Chamilo do that CYPHER Learning cannot?
- Chamilo covers Course and learning paths, Assessments, Gradebook and certificates, Attendance tracking. CYPHER Learning covers AI course builder, Competency based assessment, Automation rules, Gamification.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Related pages
More on CYPHER Learning
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