Updated E-Learning Authoring Tools Comparison

With the release of Adobe Captivate 8 a few weeks back, I thought I would update our popular—and often controversial—comparison grid on the major authoring tools. As always, the information contained within this comparison is based solely on my opinions. You may not agree with some of my assessments, and that’s okay! At the end of the day, the decisions about which tool(s) you choose to use should be based on the features that are most important to you and your organization.

Comparison Chart

Notable Changes

The only notable change since my last comparison is in the mobile category. With the new responsive design and geolocation features, Captivate 8 moved to first place and broke the previous three-way tie with Studio and Storyline.

You can learn more about my thoughts on Captivate 8’s responsive design and geolocation features in my recent ATD Learning Technologies blog post.

Updated Authoring Tools Comparison Webinar

This past week, I had the privilege of delivering my updated authoring tools comparison on one of our free webinars. Feel free to watch the recording here.

Diane Elkins
Diane Elkins is the co-owner of E-Learning Uncovered, as well as Artisan E-Learning, a custom eLearning development company specializing in the use of Storyline, Captivate, and Lectora. Diane has been in the eLearning industry since 2001, speaks regularly at national conferences about eLearning, and is co-author of the popular E-Learning Uncovered book series.

16 Responses to “Updated E-Learning Authoring Tools Comparison

  • Jerry Dugan
    10 years ago

    I greatly appreciate the free webinar from June 20th where you discussed this content in greater depth. I have been going back and forth on which platform to invest first, and this helped me make a good all-around decision. Ultimately, I’ll need to be familiar with all of them, but I know where to start at least.

  • Diane Elkins
    10 years ago

    Thanks for the info!

  • Paul Schneider
    10 years ago

    Great info Akanksha. We would love to get feedback from your team on our solution, Claro. If you are interested please drop me a line – paul.schneider@dominknow.com

  • Where’s the key? Is a 1 good or bad?

    • Diane Elkins
      10 years ago

      Hmm. That is pretty important to know — thanks for pointing out the oversight. 1 is best.

      • So if 1 is best why is its background color RED and not green 😉

  • Would be good to know the vendor names as well. Who makes Studio, for example?

  • I think “Studio” is made by Zenler. Is this the case?

  • Diane Elkins
    9 years ago

    Curious about how Storyline 2 changes this grid? It actually doesn’t change it at all. The biggest advantage of SL2 is the various usability enhancements that make some of the advanced features easier to use. Storyline already gets the highest marks of the three of the more powerful tools, so it maintains its position there.

  • I assume you were comparing to Storyline 1. How does Storyline 2 fit into the comparison?

Leave a Reply to Paul Schneider Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.