LearnDash

LearnDash pays 25% on a sale, which sounds ordinary until you look at what it's 25% of. Plans run from around $199 a year to $799, so a single conversion is worth $50 to $200.

What you're promoting

LearnDash is the LMS plugin that turns WordPress into a course platform. It's the one universities, enterprises and serious course businesses pick when they want to own their content rather than rent space on Teachable or Kajabi. It's now part of StellarWP, Liquid Web's WordPress product group.

The buyer already has a WordPress site and has decided against hosted platforms. That's a narrow but valuable audience.

The commission maths

Twenty-five percent of a $199 starter licence is about $50. Twenty-five percent of the $799 tier is close to $200. The spread is wide enough that the plan your reader picks matters more than how many readers you send.

The cookie runs 60 days, which is generous and suits this category, because choosing an LMS is a research project rather than an impulse buy. Payouts go monthly through Impact once you clear $50.

Who converts

Course creators who already run WordPress, membership site builders, and developers scoping client projects. Comparison content against LifterLMS, TutorLMS and hosted platforms converts best, because that's the decision your reader is actually stuck on.

People searching for free LMS plugins won't convert, and neither will an audience of students. As with every course-platform program, you want the person building the course, not taking it.

LearnDash vs LifterLMS for affiliates

Same headline rate, but LearnDash pays more per conversion and gives you twice the attribution window. LifterLMS has a free core, which makes it easier to recommend to a hesitant reader but harder to monetise. For affiliate income, LearnDash is the stronger of the two.

Getting approved

Applications go through Impact under the StellarWP brand, which also covers The Events Calendar, Kadence and Restrict Content Pro. One approval gets you the whole portfolio, so it's worth applying even if LearnDash is the only product you plan to write about.

Verdict

A good program in a niche with genuinely high intent. The 60-day cookie and the $50 threshold make it forgiving, and the StellarWP portfolio behind one approval is a real bonus. Write comparison content aimed at people already committed to WordPress and this converts steadily.