Education · checked 2026-10-19

Can I vibecode LearnWorlds?

KINDA· weekend project

A course shop for one instructor is a short list: lessons with video, a paywall, quizzes, progress and a certificate PDF, and an agent can build that on Next.js with Stripe Checkout and a video host in a weekend. The cost sits around the edges: streaming video reliably (use a video service instead of your own server), email deliverability, VAT on digital goods, refunds and support. Subscriptions and installments, SCORM, live sessions, white-label academies and the mobile app are beyond a one-prompt build.

$29/moprice

$348you'd save a year

weekendbuild time

—people replaced it

Before you start

What you need on hand.

DifficultyAdvanced · Real infrastructure or OAuth work.

TimeA weekend; Stripe webhooks, video hosting and email setup take most of a day

Claude Code, Codex or CursorAny of them can run the prompt.
Node.js 22better-sqlite3 compiles a native module, so build tools must be installed.
A Stripe accountUse test mode and the Stripe CLI to forward webhooks to localhost while building.
A video host accountStreaming from your own server buffers badly for learners far from it; Bunny Stream or Mux handle that.
SMTP and a domainMagic-link emails need SPF and DKIM records or they land in spam.

Before you buildLearnWorlds has no free plan, only a 30-day trial. If you have not sold a course yet, a free tier of another platform lets you test demand before you build or pay.

1. Install one agent: Claude Code, Codex, Cursor.
2. Make an empty folder and open it in the agent.
3. Paste the prompt below, press enter, and answer its questions as it builds.

The prompt

Build me a course shop for one instructor to replace LearnWorlds. Requirements:

- Node.js 22 + TypeScript: Next.js (App Router) with `better-sqlite3` in ./data/school.db and Tailwind CSS.
`npm run dev` serves http://localhost:3000; `npm run start` serves the production build.
- Content: courses made of sections and lessons. A lesson is a video (Bunny Stream embed by video id, set with
BUNNY_LIBRARY_ID in .env), Markdown text, or a downloadable PDF stored in ./data/files/. The admin page at /admin
(one password in .env, signed cookie) edits courses, reorders lessons by drag and drop and marks lessons as free
previews.
- Quizzes: single and multiple choice with a pass mark per course; store each attempt and score.
- Learners: sign-up by email with a magic link (`nodemailer` SMTP from .env), a "My courses" page with progress per
lesson (resume where you stopped), and a certificate PDF (`pdfkit`) with a verifiable ID once all lessons are
done and the quizzes passed.
- Selling: Stripe Checkout (`stripe`, STRIPE_SECRET_KEY and STRIPE_WEBHOOK_SECRET in .env) for one-time purchases
and coupons; the webhook grants access and sends a receipt email. Refund in Stripe removes access. Test mode first.
- Admin: a learner list with progress and purchases, CSV export of both, and a button to grant or revoke access.
- Pages: a sales page per course from Markdown with price and a Buy button; a catalogue page; a basic sitemap.xml.
- Single instructor. No telemetry. Network only for Stripe, the video host and SMTP.
- Out of scope: subscriptions and instalments, SCORM, live sessions, a community, affiliates, white-label multi-school,
a mobile app, VAT and tax calculation (use Stripe Tax later).
- README: setting up the Stripe webhook locally with the Stripe CLI, uploading videos to Bunny Stream, and a warning
that selling to the EU needs VAT handling this app doesn't do.

Opens your agent with the prompt filled in, you press enter. Or copy it and paste it into an empty folder.

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Then keep going

Next prompts, same folder.

The first prompt builds the core. Run these one at a time in the same folder to grow it into your own LearnWorlds.

Extend the course shop in this folder. Requirements:

- Per lesson, an optional "unlocks N days after purchase" value edited in the admin.
- Learners see locked lessons with the unlock date; the server refuses locked lessons even by direct URL.
- A daily job emails learners when a new lesson unlocks, with a link.
- Tests for the unlock date maths across time zones and daylight saving.
- Update the README.

Add recurring payments to the course shop in this folder. Requirements:

- Per course, choose one-time, monthly subscription or N instalments (2 to 12), created as Stripe Prices.
- Access follows the subscription status from webhooks (invoice.paid, customer.subscription.deleted, invoice.payment_failed); a failed payment gives 7 days of grace before access stops.
- The learner page shows the plan and a link to the Stripe customer portal for cancelling.
- Update the README with the webhook events to enable.

Add lesson comments to the course shop in this folder. Requirements:

- A comment thread under each lesson for enrolled learners, one level of replies, newest first.
- The instructor's replies are marked, and the instructor gets a daily digest email of new questions.
- Escape all comment text, rate limit to 10 comments an hour per learner, and let the admin hide or delete comments.
- Update the README.

What you lose

Subscriptions, memberships, installments and bundles
Hosted video with interactive overlays, AI subtitles and translation
SCORM and LTI packages, and live sessions through Zoom, Meet, Teams or Webex
The built-in community, affiliate program and funnel pages
Full white-label, client groups and the branded mobile app

Why people still pay

Instructors want to sell courses, not run a video platform. LearnWorlds bundles hosting, a branded site, checkout, certificates, community and email, so a first course can go live in a day without anyone looking after the plumbing.

Moatinfrastructure scale integrations execution polish

Do the math

LearnWorlds or your own copy?

Over

Your usage

Count my time12h ×$/h

LearnWorlds, 1 yr$348

Your own copy, 1 yr$195running + build session

You keep$153pays for itself in 2 months

Estimate · A small VPS runs about $5 a month and video storage and delivery scale with your hours of video. Stripe takes its usual card fee on each sale. The build is token usage on your agent plan.

Leaving LearnWorlds

Take your data, then cancel.

1 · Take your data out of LearnWorlds

1Users: open Users, then All users, hover Export users report and choose XLS or CSV; filter by course first if you need a subset.
2Sales: export sales records, products, instructor revenues and cancelled orders from the Reports Center, Sales, as CSV or XLS.
3Assessments: export questions as PDF, CSV or XLS and learner responses as CSV or XLS from the assessment.
4Entire courses can't be exported as one file, and PDFs and eBooks you uploaded can't be downloaded back, so keep your own originals of videos and documents.

2 · Cancel LearnWorlds

1Go to My account, then Account & Billing, then Subscriptions, and click Cancel subscription.
2Follow the pop-up steps; the cancellation is scheduled for the end of the current billing cycle and you can reactivate before then.
3Cancelling doesn't stop your learners' own recurring subscriptions: unenroll them or cancel in Stripe.
4The help article leaves refunds to the Terms: a subscription bought by mistake can be cancelled for a refund within 30 days of its start, or within 15 days of an auto-renewal; otherwise renewals aren't refunded. Trial accounts need no cancellation and are deleted when the trial ends.

The terms promise a 30-day download window only when LearnWorlds closes your account, and say it has no obligation to keep your content after a subscription ends, so export before cancelling.
User progress is in the Reports Center on Pro Trainer and higher, and through the API on Learning Center and higher.
Activity logs export only the last 1,000 events.
You sell through your own Stripe or PayPal account, so payment history and learners' recurring subscriptions stay with you after you leave.

Checked 2026-10-19 against LearnWorlds's docs: 1, 2, 3, 4

The escape hatch

Don't feel like building it? These are already free.

Frappe LMSOpen sourceAGPL-3.0 learning system with a course, chapter and lesson structure and batches that run live Zoom classes.★ 3.3k · active Oct 2026 · docker to self-host
WebVisit ↗MoodleOpen sourceGPL-3.0 learning platform used by universities, schools and companies; broad but heavy to run and to learn.★ 7.5k · active Oct 2026 · self-host, real ops
WebVisit ↗Open edXOpen sourceAGPL-3.0 platform behind many large course sites, with an LMS and an authoring Studio; built for scale rather than a quick start.★ 8.2k · active Oct 2026 · self-host, real ops
WebVisit ↗

All 4 free alternatives to LearnWorlds ›

The numbers

LearnWorlds pricing

Plan	Monthly	Annual, per month	What you get
Starter	$29	$24	1,000 active learners a month, 1 admin, 300 AI credits; courses on your own domain, AI course builder and quizzes, Stripe or PayPal checkout, live 1:1 and group sessions, 24/5 email support.
Pro Trainer	$99	$79	2,000 active learners, 5 admins, 500 AI credits, no enrollment fees; subscriptions, memberships and payment plans, unlimited courses and learning paths, certificates, up to 20 SCORM uploads, 50+ integrations.
Learning Center	$299	$249	2,000 active learners, 25 admins, 1,000 AI credits; full white-label, up to 10 client groups, automations, scheduled course reports, 2 hours of setup help.
Corporate	custom	—	Custom learners, admins and client groups; 99.95% uptime, daily backups, optional SLA and data processing agreements, a success manager and 24/7 phone support.

Free tier: No free plan; trials are one per product, even if you never finish setup.
Billing: Monthly or annual (annual is 20% cheaper); change or cancel before the next renewal. You sell through your own Stripe or PayPal account, so processor fees and tax handling are yours.
Hidden costs: Starter takes $5 on every paid enrollment, so Pro Trainer's extra $70 a month on monthly billing pays off from about 14 sales a month. Installments and subscriptions start on Pro Trainer. A branded mobile app, extra emails and extra AI credits are paid add-ons.
Source: www.learnworlds.com

Also on the list

Teachable$39/mo · Creator commerceKINDA

Thinkific$54/mo · Creator commerceKINDA

Kajabi$179/mo · Creator commerceKINDA

Questions

LearnWorlds, briefly

Not answered here? Tell us and we'll add it.

Ask a question ›

No free plan: a one-time 30-day trial with the core features.

Kinda. The core is a weekend build with the prompt on this page, but real gaps remain: Subscriptions, memberships, installments and bundles, Hosted video with interactive overlays, AI subtitles and translation.

About $29 a month on the Starter plan, $348 a year (checked 2026-10-19).

Subscriptions, memberships, installments and bundles; Hosted video with interactive overlays, AI subtitles and translation; SCORM and LTI packages, and live sessions through Zoom, Meet, Teams or Webex; The built-in community, affiliate program and funnel pages; Full white-label, client groups and the branded mobile app. If any of those matter to you, keep paying.