Self-Hosted Alternatives to Teachable
Why Replace Teachable?
Teachable charges $39–$199 per month plus transaction fees (5% on the basic plan). For course creators, those transaction fees compound fast — selling $10,000/month in courses costs $500 just in Teachable fees on the basic plan. Your course content, student data, and revenue all flow through Teachable’s platform. If they change pricing, shut down, or decide your content violates their terms, you lose access to everything.
Updated March 2026: Verified with latest Docker images and configurations.
Self-hosted alternatives let you own your course platform, keep 100% of revenue (minus payment processor fees), and customize the learning experience without restrictions.
Best Alternatives
Moodle — Best Overall Replacement
Moodle is the world’s most widely used LMS, powering universities, corporate training programs, and independent course creators. It supports quizzes, assignments, forums, SCORM packages, video integration, completion tracking, and certification. The plugin ecosystem has 2,000+ extensions covering everything from gamification to proctored exams.
The learning curve is steeper than Teachable’s drag-and-drop builder, but Moodle’s flexibility is unmatched. Themes can create a modern storefront experience, and plugins like WooCommerce integration or built-in payment gateways enable course sales.
[Read our full guide: How to Self-Host Moodle]
Canvas LMS — Best for Structured Education
Canvas is used by many universities and K-12 institutions. Its modern UI, SpeedGrader for assignment review, and Studio for video management make it strong for structured educational programs. Canvas is open-source but complex to self-host — the Docker deployment path is primarily for development, not production.
Note: Canvas’s self-hosted deployment is significantly more complex than Moodle’s. Consider it only if you need its specific features (SpeedGrader, modular course design, LTI integration).
ILIAS — Best for Corporate Training
ILIAS is an open-source LMS focused on corporate training and competency management. It supports learning paths, portfolios, assessment management, and SCORM/xAPI content. Strong multilingual support makes it suitable for global organizations.
Chamilo — Best Simple Alternative
Chamilo provides a simpler, more approachable interface than Moodle with quicker setup. It supports courses, learning paths, assessments, certificates, and social learning features. If Moodle feels like too much, Chamilo offers a lighter-weight LMS experience.
Migration Guide
Exporting from Teachable
- Course content: Download all uploaded videos, PDFs, and media files manually (Teachable has no bulk export)
- Student data: Export student list as CSV from Teachable admin (email, name, enrollment date)
- Quiz data: No direct export — screenshot or manually recreate quiz questions
- Revenue data: Export payment history from Teachable for your records
Importing to Moodle
- Create course categories matching your Teachable school structure
- Create individual courses with sections matching your Teachable course modules
- Upload video content to each section (or use external video hosting and embed)
- Recreate quizzes using Moodle’s quiz builder (supports import from Aiken or GIFT format)
- Set up enrollment methods — self-enrollment with payment or manual enrollment
- Import student emails and send enrollment invitations
Cost Comparison
| Teachable (Pro) | Self-Hosted (Moodle) | |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly cost | $119/month | $10–$20/month (VPS) |
| Annual cost | $1,428/year | $120–$240/year |
| Transaction fees | 0% (Pro) / 5% (Basic) | 0% (+ payment processor ~2.9%) |
| Revenue on $10K/month | $9,881 (Pro) / $9,500 (Basic) | $9,710 (after Stripe fees) |
| Student limit | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Course limit | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Custom domain | Yes | Yes |
| Video hosting | Included (Wistia) | Self-hosted or external |
| Certificates | Yes | Yes (with plugins) |
| Mobile app | Branded iOS/Android | Moodle mobile app (generic) |
What You Give Up
- Drag-and-drop course builder: Teachable’s editor is designed for non-technical course creators. Moodle requires more configuration but offers more flexibility.
- Built-in payment processing: Teachable handles payments, payouts, and tax forms. Self-hosted requires setting up Stripe or PayPal integration manually.
- Built-in video hosting: Teachable includes Wistia for video. Self-hosted requires your own video hosting (or embed YouTube/Vimeo).
- Affiliate program management: Teachable’s built-in affiliate system. Moodle needs third-party tools for affiliate tracking.
- Marketing features: Teachable includes landing page builders, email drips, and sales funnels. Moodle is an LMS, not a marketing platform — use separate tools for marketing.
- Branded mobile apps: Teachable offers white-label iOS/Android apps. Moodle’s mobile app is generic (though functional).
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I sell courses on a self-hosted platform like I do on Teachable?
Yes. Moodle supports paid enrollment through plugins — PayPal and Stripe payment gateway plugins are available. Students pay at enrollment and get immediate course access. For a more polished storefront experience, pair Moodle with WooCommerce (via the WooCommerce enrollment plugin) to create course sales pages with coupons, bundles, and subscriptions. You keep 100% of revenue minus payment processor fees (~2.9% for Stripe).
How do I handle video hosting without Teachable’s built-in video?
Self-host your videos with PeerTube or store them on your VPS and embed them in Moodle using the built-in media player. For lower maintenance, upload to YouTube as unlisted videos and embed them — free, unlimited storage, and adaptive streaming. If you need DRM protection to prevent downloading, PeerTube with restricted access or a service like Bunny Stream ($0.005/min viewed) works.
Can students get certificates like on Teachable?
Yes. Moodle has a built-in Custom Certificate module that generates PDF certificates on course completion. You can design certificate templates with dynamic fields (student name, course name, completion date, instructor signature). Certificates can be verified via a unique URL. Chamilo also includes certificate generation out of the box.
How much server resources does Moodle need?
For up to 100 concurrent students: 2 vCPU, 4 GB RAM, 50 GB storage ($20-30/month VPS). For 500+ concurrent students: 4 vCPU, 8 GB RAM, 100 GB storage ($40-60/month). Moodle is PHP-based with MariaDB — it’s well-optimized and has run at scale for 20+ years. Add a CDN for video content to reduce server bandwidth.
Can I create a Teachable-like landing page for my courses?
Moodle’s default look is institutional, not marketing-focused. For a polished course sales page, use a Moodle theme designed for commercial courses (like Starter or Starter+), or create a separate landing page with Ghost or WordPress that links to your Moodle enrollment pages. Many course creators keep the marketing site separate from the LMS.
How do I track student progress and completion rates?
Moodle has comprehensive analytics built in. Course completion tracking, activity reports, grade books, and learning analytics (via the Analytics API) show you exactly where students engage and where they drop off. The Completion Progress block gives students a visual progress bar. This matches and often exceeds Teachable’s analytics for understanding student behavior.
Can I offer cohort-based courses with deadlines?
Yes. Moodle supports cohorts (groups of students enrolled together), conditional access (unlock module 2 after completing module 1), and scheduled availability (content releases on specific dates). This replicates Teachable’s drip content feature. You can also set assignment deadlines, quiz windows, and send automated reminders via Moodle’s notification system.
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