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CYPHER Learning vs Canvas LMS comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 19, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Canvas LMS
Ranking in Learning Management Systems (LMS)
7th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
11
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
CYPHER Learning
Ranking in Learning Management Systems (LMS)
3rd
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
55
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of December 2025, in the Learning Management Systems (LMS) category, the mindshare of Canvas LMS is 3.5%, down from 4.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of CYPHER Learning is 2.0%, down from 4.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Learning Management Systems (LMS) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
CYPHER Learning2.0%
Canvas LMS3.5%
Other94.5%
Learning Management Systems (LMS)
 

Featured Reviews

Lance Levin - PeerSpot reviewer
Learning Magic Solutions | Managing Director at CTI
Comprehensive learning system transforms education with innovative features
The integration capability of Canvas LMS with other educational tools is probably the best for integration. They have thousands of apps that are already integrated with Canvas LMS. It uses a very simple API LTI method where you just have to input a number and then it's integrated. When assessing the analytics features and reporting features of Canvas LMS, they have comprehensive capabilities. They have reporting, attendance registers, and the back-end SIS system. The reporting is very easy and analytics is excellent. Regarding its mobile compatibility feature, Canvas LMS is probably the easiest to use. It's user-friendly and operates with simple copy and paste functionality. It operates similarly to Word, with no difficulty at all. It's extremely user-friendly. When speaking about scalability and flexibility, Canvas LMS is very scalable. Everything's on the AWS cloud, so content is not a problem offline. It's scalable because the largest universities in the world use it.
reviewer2620521 - PeerSpot reviewer
Manager of Learning & Development at a healthcare company with 51-200 employees
A game-changer solution that meets our needs and has top-notch customer service
The AI feature needs some fine-tuning or tweaking. They use Microsoft Copilot. I have had courses on and used the AI feature. I find myself having to correct a lot of mistakes that it has made. It is about 75% to 80 % correct when I put things through the AI feature. I have to go for a fine toothcomb. A lot of things are repeated. A lot of videos or pictures are repeated through several pages, and it takes me time to go through them. The AI feature of Articulate 360 is better because I am able to create courses quickly, and their AI feature is almost 100% accurate every single time. The AI feature would be my main criticism. I do not use its AI feature anymore because I find myself having to correct a lot of the things that it puts out. One thing that I wish was different was that it showed the full title in the catalog when I create something outside, such as in Articulate 360, and bring it in. When you go into the catalog title, it does not show you the whole title. If it is a long title, it will just have three dots. I wish it would just show the entire title, even if it goes into the next line so that people can see the whole title. Currently, they have to click on it to see the whole title. It does not give you enough characters to see the title. People look at the catalog and all these great courses. It says something like, "Dental University, How to ..." You do not know what the rest is unless you click on it. It should allow more characters for the actual title in the catalog so that we do not have to click on the title because most people do not. Most people just peruse through it. If it catches their eyes, they click on it, but if they do not know what the title is, they are not going to click on it to find out. Additionally, their course creation capabilities are static compared to alternative solutions like Articulate 360. You can only create very static learning courses. That may be fine for some industries where they want you to read and acknowledge that you took it. You can link to videos on YouTube, Vimeo, etc. However, when the video ends, there are advertisements. There is an application for that for sure. In fact, I was able to use that for this leadership video series that I put on TED Talk through YouTube, but they are still getting clicks and advertisements. The leadership training that we create through Articulate 360 is much nicer looking. We can put the text files, different flashcards, lists, etc. It is a better experience for the learner. This is why for course creation, I do not use much within CYPHER Learning. There is a night and day difference in the courses created in CYPHER Learning versus Articulate 360. CYPHER Learning is not even close. There is a better learning experience for the user in Articulate 360 than it is in CYPHER Learning. A user looking at the courses only in CYPHER Learning would not know any difference, but if you show them Articulate 360, they will find it great. You can put high-resolution pictures and videos. It is just a better experience for the learner.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"I used a lot of other systems in my IT career and Canvas LMS truly has everything that I would look for in an enterprise system."
"The solution is easy to access."
"It's easy to follow. It flows well, and it's easy to use."
"The product's flexibility is exceptional."
"We have been using Canvas LMS, and overall, it has served our needs well for managing courses and general settings."
"The assessment tools in Canvas significantly contribute to educational outcomes by allowing instructors to create and manage assessments effectively."
"Canvas LMS is the best solution because they have enabled scalability and cutting-edge technology transfer through Thomas Bravo, a multi-billion dollar company and will soon have the financial backing and support of KKR at close to $5 Billion."
"They have a more extensive support base in terms of infrastructure."
"It's very easy to monitor and check student progress. I can go in and, with a couple of clicks, see any participant and where they are in the process."
"When I do a survey, CYPHER Learning is helpful because then I can more quickly peruse students' responses. I don't have to go through question by question. Grading-wise, it has certainly helped, when giving a survey, to streamline my grading for that assignment."
"The reports are also something that's very helpful from an administrative perspective."
"I really like the fact that it's cloud-based. That means you don't have to look for updates. They happen automatically, which is great. It's also an easy, plug-and-play type of application. It is quite user-friendly and modern."
"It has been a complete game-changer for our company to have our learning platform with CYPHER Learning."
"The most valuable feature is competency tracking. All apprentices follow particular programs where they have to demonstrate competencies, skills, knowledge, and behavior standards. The ability to track and measure their progress against the norm is functional."
"One of the things that we are really excited about is being able to tie the state or national standards as competencies. Then, when students complete a course, they are awarded certain competencies or standards that we have aligned with the course. This shows schools evidence that students are meeting standards. Right now, we are not tying any of our courses with how schools are testing and assessing students. However, our company goals are to provide access to STEM for all students and help schools engage with communities to develop the STEM talent and workforce, which then impacts a community's economic development."
"Overall, I would rate CYPHER Learning a ten out of ten."
 

Cons

"It would be nice to be able to do more real-time comprehensive reporting with Canvas LMS."
"Integrating more AI capabilities for the product could enhance its functionality, particularly in automating repetitive tasks and personalizing learning experiences."
"The product could be integrated with a talent management system."
"It would be good to be able to do teleconferencing within the LMS."
"There are a couple of areas that could be improved. Firstly, the discussion feature is not very interactive and can be slow to respond, making it less intuitive at the moment. This is an aspect that needs substantial improvement. Another point to consider is related to the cost of the LMS system. It's perceived as relatively expensive, which has led to discussions about transitioning away from Canvas, potentially to a more cost-effective alternative. This cost-related aspect is a significant factor to consider when implementing such a system."
"The learning curve is not steep, but it is intermediate."
"The high-tech interactivity with other software, like ArcGIS or RSA Archer, can be better. It is not as easily compatible with them. You can put apps in it that the students can then access, but the routing of apps through the Canvas system slows down functionality on the other types of products."
"The solution could be upgraded and improved."
"I would also like CYPHER Learning to constantly give training days for all the institutions that work with them. We recently had face-to-face training, but this could be done more frequently."
"CYPHER Learning should definitely offer live video conferencing integration."
"Perhaps there could be advances in artificial intelligence with more precise and immediate automated reports so that teachers have reports at hand. That would make things easier and would speed up processes."
"Screen sorting can be improved by providing more filtering options."
"There are some tools that facilitate dialogue but not many that help produce continuous interaction. There is room for improvement in the area of interaction. I'd like to see more ways for the student to communicate with their classmates."
"Perhaps there is room for improvement in the gamification part. I have used it but it has not been very clear to me. It may be my responsibility for not asking about it in the training sessions, but the way you use it is not so clear."
"One of the things that I would like to see improvement on is detecting duplicate users by identifying them by their names and not only by their email addresses. Many people change their email addresses but we don't know that they have. This can result in unnecessary duplication of user accounts."
"Most of our wish list for CYPHER Learning has already been addressed. One that we are still asking them for is to include competencies from different industries, since they have industry partners. These would be the competencies that these industries need so that we can make sure that we are developing our students toward those competencies or skill sets."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Canvas LMS is an affordable solution."
"Canvas LMS is low-priced compared to other vendors."
"The pricing of Canvas is satisfactory for my university. We have negotiated a good price, especially considering that we are a large university with twenty-six campuses across the country. Canvas offers a favorable pricing model for academic institutions, and the cost is reasonable. However, in continuous education, the challenge lies not in the price itself but in the business model. The requirement to pay for the entire year when our students may only use the license for a shorter duration creates challenges. The inability to adjust the licensing based on actual usage is a significant drawback for us, making the effective cost higher compared to other platforms like Hyper Learning"
"The platform can be expensive for smaller organizations with fewer students."
"It is cheap for us. We started with CYPHER Learning, and then when our contract was finished, we needed to undergo a bidding process. We had to look at other LMSs as well and compare it with them. Its price convinced us to stay with CYPHER Learning. The cost is low, but the quality is excellent. The lower price compared to other LMSs makes it perfect for us."
"The pricing is good. It's scalable, meaning you can start off at a cost level that is easy for a startup and then build on it from there."
"When I first started, I wanted the enterprise package. We had to build up our student base to get up to the number of students that we needed to be in that enterprise package. Then, we had a 100% return on investment within the first year of using the program."
"It has helped us save from 90% to 100% of our costs. The most valuable thing that we have earned in the last three years is time, e.g., my personal time versus my work time. There is more harmony."
"CYPHER Learning is more cost-efficient for us compared to others."
"CYPHER Learning is a bit more expensive than our previous solution."
"CYPHER Learning's price is slightly higher than other solutions."
"I'm an instructional designer, and from a build or a designer standpoint, it would be nice to have a more user-friendly resource folder to access artifacts to pull into course modules. The second feature that I would love is that while editing any page inside CYPHER Learning, there should be more functionality to design it well."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
University
21%
Educational Organization
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Non Profit
8%
Educational Organization
20%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise6
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business30
Midsize Enterprise9
Large Enterprise5
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Canvas LMS?
We have been using Canvas LMS, and overall, it has served our needs well for managing courses and general settings.
What needs improvement with Canvas LMS?
There are some disadvantages with Canvas LMS and always improvements to be made. That comes with technology. As technology improves, the product will improve. Regarding features that Canvas LMS cou...
What advice do you have for others considering Canvas LMS?
Canvas LMS is the best solution because they have enabled scaleability and cutting edge technology transfer through Thomas Bravo, a multi-billion dollar company and will soon have the financial the...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for NEO LMS?
The pricing for CYPHER Learning is on par with other solutions. I've been a single user of the system for a while and priced out several other options, and it's probably standard pricing if not may...
What needs improvement with NEO LMS?
One of the areas that I believe CYPHER Learning could improve on is having a saving function as you type in, much as some Google products. That would really help in my classroom because we do a lot...
What advice do you have for others considering NEO LMS?
I absolutely recommend CYPHER Learning to other users. My students really connect with it because it doesn’t resemble anything else available. The ease of use, the autonomy it provides my students,...
 

Also Known As

No data available
MATRIX LMS, NEO LMS
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Pragmatic Group, MRWED Training and Assessment, RedHill Education
Millions of users across business, academia, and entrepreneurs - worldwide.
Find out what your peers are saying about CYPHER Learning vs. Canvas LMS and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
879,259 professionals have used our research since 2012.