What’s an eLearning Authoring Tool? Plus 10 Top Solutions

So you’ve decided it’s time to spruce up your online learning material. You want to ramp up content production, but you might not have the internal tools or expertise to do so efficiently.

That’s where authoring tools come in. This specialized software helps those in charge of eLearning and corporate training produce high-quality training materials at scale.

There’s no shortage of great tools out there, though, which makes choosing the right solution a major task in its own right.

In this article, we’ll help you find the right tool for your needs. First, we’ll explore the different types of authoring tools, help you determine whether you need one in the first place, and guide you through the selection process. Then, we’ll look at the 10 best authoring tools for workplace eLearning content production.

What are eLearning authoring tools? 

eLearning authoring tools are a specialized type of software designed to help you produce digital educational content. This content can be an animated or AI video, long-form written material, interactive visual content, or simple image-based content like a PowerPoint presentation.

Authoring tools come equipped with features that support learning content creation, such as the ability to create interactive content, integrations with learning management systems (LMSs), responsive design elements, templates, and compliance with content standards like SCORM.

Authoring tools, LMSs, and eLearning software 

Many people confuse these three kinds of tools for one another. While they all support digital learning and, in many cases, work together seamlessly, they aren’t the same.

Here are the main differences:

• An authoring tool is a software solution for designing and developing learning content.
• eLearning software is where educators deliver learning content and learners access it.
• An LMS is like an eLearning platform but with more comprehensive features, such as engagement analytics, advanced course management, and compliance and certification support. 

However, there is some overlap between these categories. For example, some of the best LMS platforms also offer built-in content authoring functionality, which may remove the need for a separate authoring tool.

Do you need an authoring tool? 

Before you start looking at the various options available to you, it’s worth asking whether an authoring tool is actually right for your needs.

Here are a few signs that you might need to invest in content authoring software:

• You have an eLearning tool or LMS that doesn’t have authoring capabilities.
• You are struggling to deliver training content on time or keep training content up-to-date.
• You don’t have an in-house content developer or instructional designer (and either don’t have the budget for one or aren’t interested in hiring one).
• Your team is growing quickly, and you need to deliver more training quickly. 
• You’d like to create more interactive, complex training content.

Do some of those apply to you? If so, eLearning authoring software may be right for you. Let’s take a look at how you can benefit from investing in one of these tools.

Also read: What Is Structured Content Authoring? A Guide for Success

The benefits of an authoring tool 

The biggest benefit that an authoring tool provides is the ability to deliver high-quality online learning experiences quickly and at scale. With specialized tools to streamline the learning course creation process and custom templates to kickstart content development, you’ll be publishing more online courses than ever.

Authoring tools also make iterating and editing existing content easier – which means you don’t have to start from scratch when you have a small update to publish.

The best eLearning authoring tools integrate with the world’s most popular LMS platforms and adhere to SCORM and other technical standards, making it fast and easy to publish new learning content.

Types of authoring tools and their uses 

One of the tricky things about finding the right authoring tool for your needs is that no two software solutions are equal.

We can, however, break them up into a few different categories:

Cloud-based vs. on-site tools

Most of today’s solutions are cloud-based authoring tools, meaning you can access them from any web browser.

There are, however, a few offline solutions out there, which means you’d need to install them on your device and ensure compatibility with your operating system (such as Microsoft Windows or Mac OS).

Stand-alone vs. built-in authoring tools

Stand-alone authoring tools are software solutions that specifically help with eLearning course creation. They might integrate with other platforms, but they don’t offer other features like a learner-facing portal.

Built-in authoring tools are the opposite of stand-alone tools – they are authoring suites built into an existing software solution with a broader feature set. Typically, you’ll find these in LMSs, which are a natural fit for built-in content authoring tools.

HTML5 vs. Flash authoring tools 

HTML5 and Flash are two different “languages,” or technologies, for creating content.

Flash was common in the past, but HTML5 is more effective today. It’s easier to use, offers better support for multimedia formats, works better on mobile devices, and provides greater security and accessibility.

You shouldn’t need to know how to code in either of these languages because the best content authoring tools provide intuitive user interfaces and often use drag-and-drop elements to reduce the learning curve.

What you should do, though, is opt for an HTML5-enabled tool.

AI authoring tools

AI is steadily integrating into learning content authoring software. While some legacy tools are beginning to use AI to speed up workflows, others use AI as their foundation for content creation.

Colossyan, for instance, is an AI video generation platform specifically designed for workplace learning use cases, such as employee onboarding. Colossyan uses realistic AI avatars to generate interactive videos across many different workplace scenarios, which makes it an incredibly useful AI authoring tool. 

Interactive content authoring tools 

Interactive content authoring tools allow you to produce learning content that learners can engage with directly. Rather than passively consuming content, such as watching a video, interactive content users can complete quizzes, engage in simulations and assessments, or navigate branching scenarios (sort of like a “choose your own adventure” story).

Gamified content authoring tools 

Some content authoring tools offer gamification features to improve learner engagement, such as quizzes and challenges.

However, you’ll need to implement other gamification features – like points, scoring, and leaderboards – in your LMS to make this strategy effective.

How to choose the right authoring tool 

Ready to look for your first authoring tool? Start by following these six simple steps:

1. Determine your content creation needs

Your first step is to clarify what you’re looking for from an authoring tool. Do you need to create interactive videos, infographics, or gamified training? Does your content need to be SCORM compliant, and does it need to support mobile learning? Does the authoring tool need to integrate with any existing software tools?

Create a checklist of key requirements and features to reference as you consider your options.

2. Prioritize key features

Next, comb through your list and highlight any nonnegotiable features. You can cross off any authoring tools that fall short of offering these features. 

3. Consider compatibility and integrations

As you start shortening your list of potential solutions, look at their compatibility with other tools.

For example, do you need your authoring tool to integrate natively with your LMS? Or are you fine with exporting content from your authoring tool and manually importing it into your LMS? 

4. Look into collaboration features

You’ll next want to consider how each authoring tool supports collaboration, especially if multiple members of your team will need to create content within the tool. 

Take Colossyan, for example. Our AI video authoring tool provides a number of powerful collaboration features like custom shared workspaces, adjustable user permissions, and commenting capabilities. 

5. Assess pricing

Now, it’s time to start looking at pricing. Most authoring tools require a monthly subscription, but you should pay attention to content creation limitations and choose a plan that fits your needs.

Pricing for Colossyan, for instance, changes based on how many minutes of video you wish to generate each month.

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6. Test and trial

At this point, you’ve probably either chosen an authoring tool or created a shortlist of two or three potential options.

Many software providers will offer a free trial (check out ours here). A trial is a great way to see what value the tool provides and make sure you’re happy with aspects like usability and user-friendliness.

Once you’ve finished your trial, all that’s left to do is sign up for a paid plan and set your training content production into full swing.

10 eLearning authoring tools to consider 

Now that we’ve covered what you need to consider when evaluating a new authoring tool, it’s time to better understand the options out there. 

Without further ado, here are the 10 best eLearning authoring tools you’ll want to consider. 

1. Colossyan

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Colossyan is our generative AI video authoring solution. It's the perfect tool for content creators looking to create learning materials with AI avatars.

With a user-friendly interface, dozens of premade templates, and over 100 different voices and accents for customized voiceovers, Colossyan can help you produce realistic video content at scale. 

This allows learning and development teams to not only create content quickly, but to create better content. Plus, using AI avatars means you won’t need to rerecord your videos when material changes. Instead, simply update your script and regenerate your video.

Here are just a few of the advanced features on offer for content authoring:

• Over 150 high-quality AI avatars, plus the ability to create your own custom avatar
• Hand gestures to add context to video tutorials
• A built-in screen recording tool
• Text-to-speech, text-to-video, and document-to-video workflows
• Automatic subtitles and captions
• Translation into 70+ languages and dialects 
• Interactive features like multiple choice quizzes
• Side-view avatars for more realistic conversational scenarios 
• A collaborative digital workspace for content production
• SCORM export 

All of this starts at just $19 per month.

2. Articulate Storyline 360

Storyline 360 is a simplified tool from Articulate, an eLearning and content creation platform. It's well-known for its ease of use, customizable templates, and interactive content elements like quizzes and clickable hotspots.

3. iSpring Suite 

iSpring Suite is an eLearning authoring tool with a Microsoft PowerPoint-inspired interface. If you’re accustomed to PowerPoint, you’ll be able to use iSpring Suite without issue since its layout is almost exactly the same.

An LMS called iSpring Learn is also available, so if you buy both, you can benefit from a single monthly bill and seamless integration between the two.

4. Vyond 

If you’re looking to use animations as your main learning content format, Vyond is the authoring tool for you. You don’t need to have any technical animation experience to use it since it’s specifically for non-designers. Vyond also offers an intuitive drag-and-drop interface, as well as a vast library of predesigned assets.

5. BranchTrack 

BranchTrack excels in its ability to create interactive learning content, especially for branching scenarios where the learner’s experience depends on how they interact with the content. This tool supports SCORM and xAPI standards and also integrates with a number of popular LMS tools, which makes content delivery easy.

6. Kotobee Author 

Kotobee Author is an authoring tool for creating interactive ebooks and EPUBs. You can import existing written content, such as a PDF or Word document, and start editing, formatting, and adding interactive elements such as questions, widgets, video and audio, and clickable images. 

7. Classcraft

Classcraft is an authoring tool for the educator that focuses specifically on classroom learning. It’s known for offering engaging gamification features and integrating with a wide variety of education-centric software tools. It also provides behavioral management functionality and support for parent engagement.

8. Adobe Captivate

Adobe Captivate is a leader in virtual reality learning content. It allows you to create immersive, 360-degree content that adds a unique experience to your learning materials.

9. Chameleon Creator 

Chameleon Creator offers both content authoring and hosting on a single platform, which makes it a great all-in-one solution for ease of use. It’s also SCORM compliant and offers reporting functionality to help you understand how students are progressing and how you can deliver more engaging, effective learning content. 

10. CourseLab 

CourseLab is one of the few free authoring tools out there. Its functionality is a bit more limited than other options on this list, but its “what you see is what you get” editor makes authoring learning content fairly easy. It’s also compliant with both SCORM and Aviation Industry Computer-Based Training Committee standards.

Colossyan: The video content authoring tool for all your needs

Authoring tools are critical to have in your learning management toolkit, whether you use them to produce animated videos, interactive infographics, or multimedia content.

If you’re planning on using video content, consider Colossyan for your needs. It’s one of the most accessible and affordable platforms around for creating realistic, interactive, and engaging AI-powered videos.

Don’t just take our word for it – check it out for yourself today.