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CYPHER Learning vs Totara Learn comparison

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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

CYPHER Learning
Ranking in Learning Management Systems (LMS)
1st
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
55
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Totara Learn
Ranking in Learning Management Systems (LMS)
18th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Learning Management Systems (LMS) category, the mindshare of CYPHER Learning is 1.2%, down from 3.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Totara Learn is 1.0%, down from 1.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Learning Management Systems (LMS) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
CYPHER Learning1.2%
Totara Learn1.0%
Other97.8%
Learning Management Systems (LMS)
 

Featured Reviews

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.
SK
Developer, Tech Lead at iT corner
Plug-and-play LMS and allows for separate instances for different organizations or departments
The look and feel is not good. Totara Learn needs to improve its look and feel and make it easier to use and more user-friendly. The interface is okay, but sometimes it's messy. Totara needs to improve the UI part as well and make it easier to use for the admin side. AI capabilities are in beta phase. I think they have implemented some AI features in the model, but right now, I'm not aware of what AI features have been implemented. So, Totara also needs to implement some AI things in the model, like suggesting courses according to users' needs or interests.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The entire system is incredibly valuable, but one of the reasons we chose CYPHER Learning was the social interaction features, such as forums, student groups, and messaging."
"I can use a template to replicate class content so that I can use the same content in the three sections where I teach. That way, I don't have to continuously edit my classes. It's very useful."
"The customization is very good because it allows us to completely brand the product so that it is our brand."
"The ease of use, the autonomy it provides my students, and the flexibility it offers teachers to create their own ecosystem within CYPHER Learning—all of this aligns with the curriculum in a unique way."
"On the back end, the most important feature is the built-in reporting, which makes it possible to track all of the user activities: what kind of courses the learners enroll in, how they are progressing, and when they complete a course. We have full insight, and we can analyze the captured data..."
"There are several valuable features. One is the competency mapping. This helps us, as faculty members and developers of learning materials, track and monitor which competencies our students have acquired, based on the outcomes that we wanted them to have at the end of a particular module or term."
"The transition to a self-paced platform has been fantastic and has given us better results with our learners than the live sessions we were previously running, while allowing us to leverage and scale our business effectively and driving critical growth."
"The first point is the ease of use. It is a very easy platform to use, especially for students and families, with a very friendly layout. It also has a series of support systems, including communication with parents, students, the ability to invoice for online courses, and other qualities that make the system very versatile and facilitate a teacher's work."
"The multi-tenancy features of Totara Learn are the most useful for training efficiency."
"The tool's deployment is not complex."
 

Cons

"We can see who has accessed the portal, but it is not very intuitive. There is an issue with MATRIX user reporting. It is not that useful a lot of the time because we see conflicting dates in the activity and login. I have tried to work with their engineers, and asked, "Well, what's the real deal here," and there is no clarity around it."
"What we've been asking them for recently is that, while we really appreciate the shopping cart, it doesn't have a recurring payment charge. A lot of our participants, instead of paying the full fee, spread it out over several months and that feature is not there yet."
"The mobile app has quite a lot of bugs and it has many fewer integration 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."
"The system should help us more in the area of evaluation. I don't think CYPHER Learning has exploited this topic enough. I can upload rubrics for evaluation, but there are no additional information sources or other instruments for student evaluation."
"Due to the complexity of our business, we would welcome more options for access rights management."
"The search function needs to be improved; it isn't currently working correctly and has no value to us at this point, but it should be of great value. To my knowledge, CYPHER Learning is presently working on this issue."
"The vendor could improve on the chat system. Right now, the student only has access to messaging. Maybe it would be good to have a mini chat or the ability to do video calls with teachers if they have any questions about an assignment."
"Totara Learn needs to improve the look and feel, and make it easier to use, more user-friendly."
"The challenge was understanding the entire solution, particularly its capabilities for managing training within a distributed organization. As part of a group of companies, some with training hubs and others working differently, the need for different tenants arose. This helps organize the training offerings centrally, addressing the challenge of a multi-tenant solution, which wasn't fully grasped initially."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Understanding your active users, compared to total users, in terms of the plan you choose, is something to be aware of."
"I did not negotiate the pricing, but from what I gathered, it was a significant purchase for us at West Music. We recognize its value and potential for growth, making it worthwhile."
"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."
"CYPHER Learning is a bit more expensive than our previous solution."
"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."
"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."
"Even though it's priced high, the return on investment is going to be phenomenal. It does what you want it to do."
"The system is not cheap but it's affordable. The pricing is fair... The cherry on top was that we received all the functionality with the simplest plan, the one with the minimal number of users. It couldn't be any better."
"It's not expensive. It's user-based."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
17%
Outsourcing Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
14%
Healthcare Company
11%
Construction Company
11%
Computer Software Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business31
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise6
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for NEO LMS?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing was easier, as we received our quote on time, and the pricing was not much of a hindrance, with setup costs based on our investment.
What needs improvement with NEO LMS?
One challenge I have experienced with CYPHER Learning is the availability of the internet, which is necessary for accessing the platform and content, especially during online training or video prog...
What advice do you have for others considering NEO LMS?
CYPHER Learning's governance and security are secure, as I have used it without any adverse effects or issues regarding data handling. The output of CYPHER Learning is clear, and since it is an AI-...
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Also Known As

MATRIX LMS, NEO LMS
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Millions of users across business, academia, and entrepreneurs - worldwide.
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about CYPHER Learning vs. Totara Learn and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
914,805 professionals have used our research since 2012.