When running an online course or membership platform with LearnDash, managing who can see your content is crucial. Whether you want to protect premium lessons, limit access to specific users, or drip content over time, understanding how to restrict content in LearnDash ensures your learning environment is secure, organized, and engaging.
LearnDash offers flexible options for restricting content natively, and it becomes even more powerful when integrated with plugins like MemberPress, Restrict Content Pro, or BuddyBoss. In this guide, we’ll explore how content restriction works in LearnDash, how to implement it properly, and how to combine it with membership tools for full access control.
Why Restricting Content Matters in LearnDash
Restricting content isn’t just about locking lessons—it’s about delivering structured, goal-oriented learning. With proper restrictions in place, you can:
- Ensure only enrolled users access course material
- Prevent users from jumping ahead in a course
- Sell different courses or tiers of access based on pricing
- Offer members-only lessons, topics, or bonus content
- Create urgency through timed access (drip-feeding)
Without proper restrictions, you risk exposing your course content to unauthorized users or losing control over how students engage with your material.
Native Content Restriction Features in LearnDash
LearnDash comes with built-in tools to control access to courses, lessons, topics, and quizzes. These features are often sufficient for basic course delivery needs.
Course Enrollment-Based Access
By default, LearnDash restricts course content to enrolled users. Once a user purchases or is manually enrolled in a course, they gain access to associated lessons and quizzes.
You can set the course access mode to:
- Free: Anyone can enroll
- Buy Now: One-time payment required
- Recurring: Subscription-based access
- Closed: Access controlled manually or via membership plugin
- Open: Content is public
The “Closed” mode is commonly used when LearnDash is paired with a membership plugin or WooCommerce to restrict access based on user roles or purchases.
Lesson and Topic Access Control
Each lesson or topic can be restricted based on course enrollment. If a user is not enrolled in the parent course, they’ll see a message indicating the content is unavailable.
You can also:
- Set lesson prerequisites to force users to complete prior content
- Enable linear progression to require content to be completed in order
- Use drip-feed scheduling to release content after specific time intervals
These restrictions provide structure and prevent students from skipping important material.
Using Shortcodes for Partial Content Restriction
Sometimes, you might want to show part of a page to all users and hide another section from non-enrolled users. LearnDash includes shortcodes for this purpose.
Here’s an example using the [ld_content] shortcode:
php
[ld_content]
This section is only visible to users enrolled in this course.
[/ld_content]
You can use this within lessons, pages, or even in blog posts to personalize the experience for logged-in students.
There’s also [visitor], [student], and [group] shortcodes to target specific user types or groups, enabling more granular content control.
Restricting Access by User Role or Membership Level
For more advanced content control, especially across multiple courses or non-course pages, integrating LearnDash with a membership plugin gives you full flexibility.
MemberPress and LearnDash
MemberPress is one of the most popular tools to create protected areas and restrict access based on membership level. When paired with LearnDash:
- You can create membership levels that include one or more LearnDash courses
- Use MemberPress rules to protect pages, posts, or custom content
- Control who can access bonus resources, webinars, or community features
This is ideal if you’re building a content-rich platform that includes courses, forums, and downloadable resources.
Restrict Content Pro and LearnDash
Restrict Content Pro is another powerful option. It integrates well with LearnDash and lets you:
- Restrict lessons or full courses based on subscription levels
- Display teaser content with upgrade prompts
- Offer free vs premium versions of the same course content
It also includes shortcodes for restricting visibility within any WordPress post or page.
Restricting Content by Group in LearnDash
LearnDash Groups are useful for organizing students and assigning content at scale—especially for corporate training or classroom-style models.
With groups, you can:
- Assign multiple users to a group leader
- Restrict content access based on group enrollment
- Provide unique content or messaging to specific cohorts
When combined with group-specific shortcodes and custom dashboards, this becomes a powerful way to deliver personalized learning experiences.
Restricting Access to Non-Course Content
Sometimes, you may want to protect custom pages, documents, or forums that aren’t part of the LearnDash course structure. While LearnDash doesn’t restrict general WordPress pages by default, integrating it with plugins like:
- BuddyBoss Platform: To restrict forums, profiles, and social features
- WooCommerce Memberships: To protect downloads, blog posts, and more
- Content Control: For lightweight visibility management
…can help ensure that only the right users can access non-course resources tied to their enrollment.
Best Practices for Restricting Content in LearnDash
To manage restrictions efficiently and avoid user frustration:
- Use course prerequisites to maintain learning paths
- Test access levels with dummy accounts or user role emulators
- Combine shortcodes with custom messages to guide users
- Clearly label restricted content to avoid confusion
- Use conditional navigation to reduce distractions from inaccessible modules
These practices enhance user experience and reduce support requests related to access confusion.
Build a Secure and User-Friendly Learning Platform with LearnDash
Restricting content in LearnDash isn’t just about hiding lessons—it’s about creating a smooth, structured, and secure learning experience. From native tools to membership integrations and shortcode-based controls, you have everything you need to design learning journeys that are intuitive and properly gated.
If you’re planning to build a LearnDash-based LMS or want to integrate content restriction into your existing platform, Wbcom Designs offers end-to-end development, customization, and user experience enhancement services.
Interesting Reads:
10 Best Software for Remote Work
Enhancing Your LearnDash Courses with User Reviews: Why and How