CourseLit vs Moodle
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted learning & courses options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
CourseLit
Open-source platform to build and sell online courses
VS
Moodle
World's most popular open-source learning platform
| Feature | CourseLit | Moodle |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Learning & Courses | Learning & Courses |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 2,048 MB |
| Deployment | docker, source | docker, bare-metal, kubernetes |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,208 | ★ 7,315 |
| First released | 2020 | 2002 |
| Replaces | Teachable, Podia | Canvas, Blackboard |
Why pick each one
Choose CourseLit if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (1.2k GitHub stars)
- Written in TypeScript
Choose Moodle if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Kubernetes-ready with Helm charts available
- Mature project with 7.3k GitHub stars
Frequently asked questions
Is CourseLit or Moodle better?
Neither is universally better. Moodle has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are CourseLit and Moodle free and open-source?
Yes. CourseLit is licensed under MIT and Moodle under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run CourseLit and Moodle with Docker?
CourseLit: yes. Moodle: yes.