Tutor LMS Settings Explained: A Complete Walkthrough

Tutor LMS keeps almost all of its configuration on one screen: Tutor LMS > Settings. This walkthrough explains each tab in Tutor LMS 4.1.3, which options matter most and what we usually recommend. Tutor LMS Pro and its add-ons add extra fields, noted where relevant.

Developers: all of these values are stored together in the tutor_option option and can be read with get_tutor_option( 'key' ). The keys are shown in brackets where useful.

General

• Dashboard Page (tutor_dashboard_page_id): the page that shows the student and instructor dashboard. Created on install.
• Terms and Conditions Page and Privacy Policy: linked from registration and checkout.
• Enable Marketplace (enable_course_marketplace): turn on if other instructors can sell courses on your site.
• Pagination: items per page in dashboard lists.
• Become an Instructor Button, Allow Instructors to Publish Courses and Allow Instructors to Trash Courses: control what instructors can do. For a single-instructor site, turn off the button. For a marketplace, consider requiring review before publishing.

Course

Course

• Course Visibility (student_must_login_to_view_course): require login to view course pages. Usually off, so course pages can sell and be indexed.
• Course Content Access: lets instructors and admins view course content without enrolling.
• Content Summary: shows a summary of the course content.
• Auto Complete Course on All Lesson Completion: completes the course automatically when all lessons are done.
• Course Completion Process: Flexible lets students complete a course at any time; Strict requires lessons and quizzes to be finished first.
• Course Retake and Course Reset Progress: allow students to retake a course or reset their progress.
• Publish Course Review on Admin's Approval: moderate reviews before they appear.

Lesson

• WP Editor for Lesson: edit lesson content in the WordPress editor.
• Automatically Load Next Course Content: moves to the next item when one is completed.
• Enable Lesson Comment: comments under lessons.

Quiz

• When time expires: Auto Submit or Auto Abandon.
• Correct Answer Display Time, used when answers are revealed.
• Show Quiz Previous Button.
• Final Grade Calculation: Highest Grade (default), Average Grade, First Attempt or Last Attempt.

Video

• Preferred Video Source: which sources instructors can use (YouTube and Vimeo are enabled by default; HTML5 upload, external URL, embedded code and shortcode are also available).
• Use Tutor Player for YouTube and for Vimeo: show Tutor LMS's own player controls instead of the default embed.

Monetization

• Options > Select eCommerce Engine (monetize_by): Native, WooCommerce, Easy Digital Downloads, membership plugins (Pro) or Disable Monetization. With Native you also set the Cart Page, Checkout Page and currency format here.
• Payment Methods: enable and configure gateways for native eCommerce (PayPal in the free plugin; more with Pro).
• Taxes: tax rates for native eCommerce.
• Checkout: Enable Coupon Code and Enable "Buy Now" Button.
• WooCommerce: Automatically Complete WooCommerce Orders, Auto Redirect to Courses and Enable Guest Mode.
• Revenue Sharing: Enable Revenue Sharing and the Sharing Percentage between instructor and admin.
• Fees: deduct fees (a name and an amount or percentage) before revenue is split.
• Withdraw: Minimum Withdrawal Amount, Minimum Days Before Balance is Available, enabled withdraw methods and Bank Instructions.

Pro adds guest checkout and invoice settings. See selling courses.

Design

• Appearance: Learning Mode (Modern, Kids or Legacy), Default Theme, Brand Color and Brand Logo for light and dark mode.
• Course: Column Per Row, Courses Per Page, Course Filter, Preferred Course Filters and Course Sorting for the course archive.
• Layout: Instructor List Layout and the instructor and student public profile layouts.
• Page Elements: whether the site header and footer show on the dashboard and in the learning area.
• Course Details: which elements appear on course pages, such as instructor info, wishlist, Q&A, author, level, social share, duration, total enrolled, update date, progress bar, material, about, description, benefits, requirements, target audience, announcements and reviews.

Advanced

• Gutenberg Editor: edit course descriptions with the block editor.
• Hide Course Products on Shop Page: for WooCommerce stores.
• Course Archive Page, Instructor Registration Page and Student Registration Page.
• YouTube API Key: used to read video durations from YouTube.
• Base Permalink: the URL bases for courses, lessons and quizzes.
• Profile Completion: prompt users to complete their profile.
• Enable Tutor LMS Login: use Tutor LMS's login screen.
• Erase upon uninstallation: deletes all Tutor LMS data when the plugin is deleted. Keep it off unless you really want everything removed.
• Maintenance Mode: temporarily close the LMS.

Legal Consents

Tutor LMS 4 adds consent checkboxes, such as accepting terms at registration or checkout, with records kept for GDPR purposes. See GDPR and consent settings.

Pro additions

With Tutor LMS Pro, add-ons add their own fields: certificate settings, Gradebook scales, assignment options, notification and email settings, content security (Prevent Hotlinking and Copy Protection), enrollment expiry, social login keys, AI Studio connectors and more. They appear in the related tab once the add-on is enabled.

Frequently asked questions

Where are Tutor LMS email settings?

The Email add-on in Tutor LMS Pro adds an email settings area. Without it, Tutor LMS sends a smaller set of default emails.

Can I export Tutor LMS settings to another site?

Tutor LMS stores them in one option, which can be moved with the database. Tutor LMS > Tools also keeps a settings log you can review.

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