How to add ratings and reviews to online courses in WordPress
The short answer
WordPress does not provide course star ratings, review averages and learner eligibility controls by itself. You can use comments for simple written feedback, but a LearnDash ratings and reviews add-on is the practical route when you need moderated reviews displayed on course pages.
What you need
- A WordPress course site with an LMS installed
- Administrator access
- A test student account
- A backup or staging site for configuration changes
The fast route
Get LearnDash Ratings Reviews and Feedback
Let LearnDash Ratings Reviews and Feedback do it
LearnDash-focused ratings, reviews, moderation, and feedback analytics for course creators who need structured learner input.
Sources
- learndash.com /support/kb/add-ons/uncategorized/ratings-reviews-feedback-i…
Questions
- Can WordPress add star ratings to courses without a plugin?
- No, WordPress comments alone do not provide course star ratings or average scores. You can collect written feedback with comments, but a complete rating system needs custom development or an LMS-compatible plugin that stores ratings, calculates averages, displays them and manages submissions. For a small site, comments may be enough; for public course reviews, use a dedicated extension.
- Should students review a course before completing it?
- Only if early feedback is useful for your course. Allowing reviews after enrolment produces feedback sooner, but students may have seen too little content to judge the course. Requiring course or lesson completion usually produces more informed reviews. LearnDash-compatible review tools can base eligibility on enrolment, course completion, lesson completion or topic completion.
- How do I moderate course reviews in WordPress?
- Enable administrator approval before reviews are published, then review submissions from the course review management screen. Approve useful reviews, reject spam or abusive content, and keep a written moderation policy. The documented LearnDash review workflow lets administrators edit, trash, view or reject individual reviews, with new reviews pending by default.
- Why is the review form not appearing on my course page?
- The form is usually missing because reviews are disabled for that course, the learner has not met the eligibility rule, the output placement is wrong, or the LMS theme template does not display the relevant content area. Check the global and course-level settings first, then test the documented review shortcode with the correct course ID and view the page while logged in as an eligible student.
- Can I show course reviews on a separate testimonials page?
- Yes, if your review tool provides an output shortcode or block. LearnDash's documented review feature includes a shortcode for one course, a shortcode for all reviews, and a separate shortcode for displaying star ratings. This lets you place reviews in course pages, landing pages or a central testimonials page while keeping the submissions attached to their courses.