how much should a 20 min elearning course cost to develop

How much does it cost to develop an eLearning course?

I’ve read other articles claiming it costs $10,000 and takes 90 to 240 hours on average to produce one hour of eLearning material. My online course development costs are much less than that.

How long should your eLearning experience be?

Since Elucidat found that the majority of respondents claimed the ideal eLearning experience should be between 10-15 minutes, the costs can really stack up. But what are you getting for your money?

How much does it cost to run a learning management system?

There are dozens of options available, but some of the most popular include LearnDash ($159-$329/year), LifterLMS ($99- $1000/year), and LearnPress LMS ($0- $249/year). Note that if you’re planning on running multiple courses with multiple points of contact, using a WordPress-based LMS may become cumbersome.

How much does 1 hour of learning cost in 2021?

In 2021, 1 hour of learning content can cost about $8,542 - $36,320 ($22,431 on average). In the table below, you can see how numbers evolve during the last couple of years. We observe a rapid increase in costs for 1-hour complete learning content during the 2017-2020 years.

How long is an online course?

Most complete online courses are at least an hour long. If you’re planning for your course to be 3 hours then you can take the 1 hour time estimate and multiple it out by 3 to give you your approximate costs. So I’ll stick with one hour of video course content for this case study.

What is online course development?

Online course development specifically includes the cost to create the course content. That's why in this article, I won't cover the costs to host and manage an online course or the costs for best online course platforms. Instead, I'll just cover the costs for developing the course itself.

How many people watch online courses every day?

A lot of online courses are set up like the image below: According to research, 78% of people watch online videos every week and 55% view online videos every day. Watching videos online is a popular way to consume course content.

What is the most popular format for online courses?

Video with audio is the most popular format for an online course. Most courses consist of videos with a menu to navigate the course. Sometimes there’s supplemental text or links to supplemental materials beneath the online video. A lot of online courses are set up like the image below:

How long does it take to create supplemental material?

For instance, if it takes you 5 hours to create your supplemental material the first time it may take close to that the next time. If you’re creating the supplemental material then realize that your time is valuable so it’s smart to have an estimate of how long it’ll take.

How long does it take to make a video script?

No matter which type of video you’re creating, you’ll start with the outline and script creation first. I estimate it will take 3 to 10 hours to script out 1 hour of video depending on the level of detail you’re including and your expertise of the subject matter.

How many words should I use for a 10 minute video?

It’s hard to gauge how much content you have per video. If you’ve got 10 minutes for the video, you need between 1,000 and 2,000 words. You can use that as a gauge for how much content you need.

What is an eLearning Cost Calculator?

The eNyota eLearning Cost Calculator is an eLearning pricing tool that will help you calculate the costs of an eLearning project. It is a quick and easy way to get a ballpark estimate of what your eLearning project may cost based on the man-hours, technology, and complexity of your eLearning course.

How to Interpret the eLearning Cost Calculator Results

We will get back to you: If you see this result, it means the type of course you are looking to create may need to further be understood by one of our representatives. Fill out the form and sit tight. We’ll get back to you in a flash!

What does e-learning mean?

E-Learning can mean a lot of different things and although there are some standard elements that e-learning contains, there has become a variety of design approaches and multimedia methods to present content and each of these can affect the cost of developing an e-learning course. Some of these methods are…

Why is content important in e-learning?

Firstly, more content means more scripting by an instructional designer. They will have to collate all the learning information required and put this into a coherent structure for an e-learning course , making something that engages the learner and makes the e-learning interactive.

Why is more content important in a course?

Firstly, more content means more scripting by an instructional designer. They will have to collate all the learning information required and put this into a coherent structure for an e-learning course, making something that engages the learner and makes the e-learning interactive. All this writing takes time and that time costs money.

What is an off the shelf course?

Off-the-shelf e-learning courses are those that are designed independently of a client and sold to a wide range of customers with little or no alteration. The e-learning course will be relatively generic in nature but will cover the key concepts of the learning topic in a way that provides in-depth content that everyone would benefit from understanding or being made aware of.

How many hours does it take to get to level 1?

By comparison, The Chapman Alliance found that it requires an average of 79 hours to produce one hour of "Level 1" e-learning content, with Level 1 defined as “Content pages, text, graphics, perhaps simple audio, perhaps simple video, test question.”. I believe that average Level 1 content, as Chapman describes it, ...

What is the sixth point of e-learning?

One final factor that may, for some, qualify as a sixth point, is the relationship between your content and your delivery platform. Traditionally, most e-learning experts have strongly advocated separation of content and platform to help make content as portable as possible.

How long is a basic course?

A basic course can be completed in 4 to 10 weeks, depending on the level of instructional design needed.

How long is an intermediate course?

An intermediate course can be completed in 10-16 weeks.

What is a complex course?

The complex course package is for the organization that has very clear training goals and needs a custom eLearning vendor to handle all parts of the development process. Featuring simulations, interactive games, and fully immersive experiences, the complex course is the best transformative educational experience the industry can provide.

Is eLearning a one off budget?

Most eLearning courses are part of an overall training plan, and therefore, it is important to understand that an eLearning course’s cost is not a one-off budget item. Yes, there will be an initial cost to publish the course, but you should also plan for ongoing costs such as employees’ hours, scheduled updates, routine maintenance, ...

What Does The Data Suggest?

Over the past 4 years, Elucidat has delivered 64,483 pieces of eLearning to over 3 million learners who speak dozens of different languages. As you can imagine, a lot of data has been generated to give us some fascinating insights.

Cost Of eLearning Production

When we take a look at how long a page of content takes to create, we uncover more questions about ROI. Our data shows that it takes, on average, around 2 hours to create each page of content in Elucidat. So, for that 15-minute experience (20 pages), you’d be looking at 40 hours of work.

Time To Learn: Is The Cost Justified?

Just as the time spent creating content is money, so is the time invested in learning it. Consider productivity; learning is only effective if the required time that employees spend away from their day jobs is justifiable. If you’re looking for a demonstrable ROI, it’s important to monitor the “time to learn.”

Rethinking The Shape Of Learning

A foray into the data raises many questions about how we attribute value to learning and the knock-on impact of this for employers, vendors, and the learners themselves.

How much will the e-learning market be in 2025?

eLearning is going to play an ever-larger role in the future of higher education. In fact, by 2025, the e-learning market will reach $325 billion. That’s more than four times the traditional higher-education market. Even better, the benefits offered by online courses include increased student engagement, ...

Why is online learning better than traditional learning?

Even better, the benefits offered by online courses include increased student engagement, the opportunity for peer review and collaboration, and the promise of individualized attention , even in large classrooms. There are many reasons to embrace e-learning, ...

What is learning management system?

Before pricing out any other aspect of course creation, you’ll need to select a learning management system (LMS). This software manages the delivery of course materials and monitors student completion. Because it is the main framework that students and teachers will interact with, it’s important to thoughtfully select a system that meets your needs. Each system has different features and functions that will dictate the kind of content you can offer and the supplemental tools you may need to purchase.#N#While it might be tempting to build your own LMS in-house to perfectly suit your specifications, doing so would be very expensive and time-intensive. Considering the lower price points of many LMS systems, it’s much more cost-effective to shop around for a ready-made solution.#N#There are several different types of learning management systems geared to higher education.

Do I need to host an LMS?

In addition to the tech support required to configure and install an open-source option, you will need to host the LMS on your own website, which comes with storage and maintenance fees.

Do you need to create a course material for an online course?

Just as you would need to create a curriculum and hire an instructor to teach an in-person course, you will need to create course materials and a lesson plan for an online one. You’ll either need to create the content yourself, have your staff do it, or hire someone else to do so.

Is cloud learning more popular?

For all of these reasons, cloud-based options are becoming more and more popular. Cloud-based learning management systems usually operate on a software-as-a-service (SaaS) model, where users pay a monthly or yearly subscription.

Is LMS free?

An open-source LMS is Easy to obtain and typically free, or free at a base level, with paid add-ons. Some of the most established options are Moodle and Sakai. A benefit to open-source learning management systems is that users have access to the source code, so they may adapt the software any way they like.

Why use LMS in eLearning?

Remember, an LMS acts as the face of your eLearning course, because learners interact with the platform directly.

What media do you use for eLearning?

Even if the eLearning course only uses simple media types with low interactivity, just like charts, tables, text, and screencasts, team members will need to be equipped to assess your training needs, manage a training project, and create training materials.

What is an LMS?

An LMS isn’t just a platform for learners to access the eLearning content you’ve created; it also enables regular communication with learners and between learners, and offers assessment and reporting tools to monitor course completion and performance.

Do you need to choose the most expensive eLearning authoring software?

So, you don’t need to choose the most expensive eLearning authoring software from the start, just in case you want to create more complex training materials later. Instead, you can opt for a more basic suite first and scale up your software if your eLearning courses do become more interactive or complex.

Can eLearning be mixed and matched?

Unlike when choosing an LMS, eLearning authoring tools can be mixed and matched when necessary (as long as they export to common file formats).

Is eLearning a costly process?

eLearning development can be fun and constructive. But it can also be a costly process. Being aware of the key eLearning development costs means that you’ll be able to make the best development decisions to achieve your eLearning course objectives – without breaking the budget! Let’s get started!

Is TalentLMS easy to use?

Easy to learn, easy to use, and easy to like, TalentLMS is designed to get a “yes” from everyone, including C-level execs, budget heads, and busy employees. Now, instead of checking out, your whole organization leans into training.

Decisions Related to Online Course Development

See more on coursemethod.com

One-Time Costs vs Time Related Costs

How Long to Create An Hour of video?

Visual Video Decisions

Voice Over vs Live Action Audio

Estimate Considerations

Supplemental Material

Time Estimates For 1 Hour of Video and Supplemental Material

Costs For One-Time Physical Equipment

One-Time Costs For Software