Custom eLearning Software Development

Custom e-learning software development services for scalable, interactive and secure digital learning platforms. This page names the platforms a school, a university or a training team runs, the interoperability standards that let content and tools move between them, the rules that reach student and child data, how the build runs, what moves the cost, and what to ask any firm bidding for the work, including us.

On this page

• E-learning software development services, line by line
• The standards that let learning content and tools interoperate
• The rules that reach student and child data
• How an e-learning build runs
• Build, buy or configure an LMS, compared
• What drives the cost of e-learning software
• What to ask learning software companies before you hire one
• What you receive
• Case studies, delivered by NeoSOFT
• Frequently asked questions
• Related pages

E-learning software development services, line by line

The six service lines above are the elearning solutions this page covers, each in one line. Together they reach K-12, higher education and corporate training, in a classroom, online or both.

A learning management system is the centre of most of these: software that delivers, tracks, and manages training and education in one place, holding the course content, enrolling the learners, running the assessments, and reporting on who completed what. Our LMS explainer sets out the term; the section below sets out how an elearning solution built around one talks to everything else.

The standards that let learning content and tools interoperate

Seamless integration with existing systems and tools is a highlight on the LMS card, and integration with existing LMS and content systems is one on the assessments card. Three published standards for that integration are defined below.

SCORM, content that runs on more than one LMS

Who issues it. The Advanced Distributed Learning Initiative at the US Department of Defense, whose published profile describes “the Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM) capabilities, which was initially developed to make courseware interoperable with learning management systems” and says “SCORM is a mature and formal specification that allows for delivering content and tracking learner's progress.” Our SCORM explainer puts it simply: it is the reason a course built once can run on many platforms without being rebuilt.

xAPI, learning that happens outside the LMS

Who issues it. The same ADL Initiative: “The Experience API (xAPI) is a technical specification that aims to facilitate the documentation and communication of learning experiences.” Its specification goes on: “It specifies a structure to describe learning experiences and defines how these descriptions can be exchanged electronically.” It was written for a wide range of formal and informal learning experiences, both on and offline, which is where the immersive, mobile and live learning on this page sits.

LTI, tools that plug into the learning environment

Who issues it. The 1EdTech Consortium, which describes LTI as a “technical standard (not a product) used to connect learning tools with an institution's learning environment”. On this page that is the assessments card's integration with an existing LMS.

The rules that reach student and child data

FERPA, 34 CFR part 99

Who issues it, and whom it binds. The US Department of Education. The rule states its purpose: “The purpose of this part is to set out requirements for the protection of privacy of parents and students under section 444 of the General Education Provisions Act, as amended.” It says “this part applies to an educational agency or institution to which funds have been made available under any program administered by the Secretary”, and the Department's student privacy office describes FERPA as “a federal law that affords parents the right to have access to their children's education records”. The rule text is at 34 CFR part 99.

Where it touches this page. Learner tracking, assessment results and progress data in an LMS serving K-12 and higher education are the kind of records the rule is about.

COPPA, when the learners are under 13

Who issues it, and whom it binds. The Federal Trade Commission, at 16 CFR part 312. It reaches “any operator of a website or online service directed to children, or any operator that has actual knowledge that it is collecting or maintaining personal information from a child”, and it defines the age: “Child means an individual under the age of 13.”

Where it touches this page. K-12 is named on the LMS card, and adaptive learning personalizes content by analyzing learner progress. Both involve personal information from learners, some of them under 13.

How an e-learning build runs

The four steps below condense the stages published on our custom software development page. We work in two week sprints, so working software arrives every two weeks and a first production release typically lands in three to six months, as published on our about page.

1. DiscoveryThe problem, the constraints and the success criteria are mapped before a line of code. It ends with a written scope and a costed roadmap, which is the point at which a fixed price becomes possible.
2. Architecture and designThe data model, where state lives, how the system fails, how it scales, and how a reviewer will later verify its security posture.
3. Build and releaseTwo week sprints that end in something reviewable, then hardening, testing and a controlled release with the rollback path decided before the deployment.
4. Handover and supportThe repository and the cloud accounts in your name, then monitoring, maintenance and a roadmap tied to business outcomes.

Build, buy or configure an LMS, compared

Requests that arrive as a need to build custom software for learning have three honest answers, and only one of them is a build. If you already own a learning platform, the gap is often configuration, data quality and integration rather than a missing system.

The full comparison, with where each answer goes wrong, is on our custom software development page.

What drives the cost of e-learning software

Our rates are $150 to $250 per hour, depending on the seniority and mix of the team, and a typical project runs $50,000 to $200,000. Where the scope is clear we quote a fixed price for a defined outcome, with a costed roadmap before any build starts.

• How many systems it has to talk to. Existing systems and tools, existing LMS and content systems, and devices across web and mobile are all on this page, and every integration adds a counterparty whose availability, data quality and release calendar you do not control.
• The control framework the contract names. Work scoped against FERPA, COPPA or an accessibility target carries evidence, review and documentation the same build would not otherwise need.
• How scarce the technology is. AR, VR and mixed reality narrow the pool of engineers who can be put on the work, which shows up in the rate rather than in the hours.
• How settled the scope is. A settled scope can be quoted as a fixed price; an unsettled one priced as though it were settled is where the buffer comes from.
• The seniority and mix of the team. This is the stated reason our own rate band has a range at all.
• What happens after launch. A quote that stops at go-live is not cheaper, it is shorter.

What to ask learning software companies before you hire one

Every one of these is already published on this site, so you can put all of them to us as easily as to any of the elearning development companies on your list.

• Ask what they have integrated with, by name and version. Experience with a platform and a completed integration against it are different claims.
• Ask which of SCORM, xAPI and LTI the content and tools in scope actually use, before anyone designs the integration.
• Ask which certifications are audited and which are self declared, then ask for the report date.
• Ask for named engineers on the contract, and a notice clause if they change.
• Ask what documentation is a contractual deliverable, not what they promise to write.
• Ask what they would not build.

What you receive

• The repository and the cloud accounts, in your name from the first commit, with no licence back to us.
• A written scope and a costed roadmap, before any build starts.
• Working software every two weeks, not a status report about software.
• Architecture and a security posture you can put in front of a reviewer.
• Infrastructure your own engineers can run once we hand it over.
• Monitoring, maintenance and a roadmap after launch, priced up front.

Case studies, delivered by NeoSOFT

The two case studies in the carousel above were delivered by NeoSOFT: the cloud-based learning management system built for a K-12 education provider, delivering an immersive, secure and scalable digital learning experience across school networks, and the digital learning platform built for a global education network, enhancing student learning outcomes and engagement through a scalable digital solution.

Frequently asked questions

What is a learning management system?

A learning management system, or LMS, is software that delivers, tracks, and manages training and education in one place. It holds the course content, enrolls the learners, runs the assessments, and reports on who completed what.

What is SCORM?

SCORM is a set of technical standards that lets e learning content work across different learning management systems and report progress in a consistent way. ADL, which publishes it, calls it a mature and formal specification that allows for delivering content and tracking learner progress.

What is the difference between SCORM and xAPI?

SCORM was initially developed to make courseware interoperable with learning management systems. xAPI is a technical specification that specifies a structure to describe learning experiences and defines how those descriptions can be exchanged electronically, and it was written for formal and informal learning experiences, both on and offline.

Does FERPA apply to an e-learning platform?

FERPA applies to an educational agency or institution to which funds have been made available under any program administered by the Secretary of Education. It is the institution's rule; a platform built for one is built to the institution's obligations.

What do elearning software development services cost?

Our rates are $150 to $250 per hour, depending on the seniority and mix of the team, and a typical project runs $50,000 to $200,000. Where the scope is clear we quote a fixed price for a defined outcome, with a costed roadmap before any build starts.

Does Sthenos hold a SOC 2 report or an ISO 27001 certificate?

No. As of September 2026 Sthenos holds no SOC 1 or SOC 2 report, PCI DSS attestation or ISO 27001 certificate of its own. We build to the controls a contract names and hand over the evidence; formal certifications and audits are the institution's to hold.

Related pages

• What is a learning management system? and what is SCORM?
• What is a digital publishing platform?, for course and textbook content.
• Media and entertainment, including digital publishing platforms.
• Mobile app development, for learning on phones and tablets.
• Public sector, for education agencies and government programs.

Talk to an engineer about elearning development services. We are happy to answer any questions you may have and help you determine which of our services best fit your needs. Talk to our engineers.