Is Moodle the right option?

I feel if you are recommending or choosing Moodle as an LMS, you can’t recommend it the same for all situations. Generally I find that many folks hear about Moodle and think it’s the best option because it is free and it’s been around. But there are lots of other options that may serve you better. It all depends on your needs and situation. There are many choices for your LMS and for your content development as well.

Some questions to ask yourself:

1. Is it easy to implement/understand/create content with?

2. Does it integrate well into my existing website, if you already have one?

3. Does it look good, or do many good themes exist?

4. Are there many plugins available to add functionality?

5. Does it allow for reporting/tracking users to the level I need?

6. Is it scalable?

7. Can I find good and affordable hosting? (Many Web Hosts offer Moodle one click installs but don’t support it, and Moodle only hosts sometimes charge way more than other platforms would cost you. Some hosts charge for a certain number of users, even though Moodle itself doesn’t limit you.)

7. How much does all this cost? You should include the cost of the website software, the host, the elearning development tool you go with (Articulate, Captivate, Lectora), the developer fees for set up and maintenance if you need to hire outside help.