Use your LMS's built-in badges if you only need simple recognition inside one course or system. Choose a dedicated credentialing platform if your credentials need to be verified by employers, carry your branding, be shared on LinkedIn, or be issued to thousands of people at once. Many institutions do both, connecting the LMS to a platform so badges issue automatically.
Digital Badges and Certificates in LMS Platforms
Many modern LMS platforms include features that allow instructors to issue digital badges and certificates to recognise learner progress. These can be used to encourage participation, mark key milestones, and highlight specific skills acquired.
Moodle, for example, has built-in Open Badges support, and Canvas users can issue badges through Instructure's Canvas Credentials.
Advantages:
- Seamless Integration: Badges and certificates are issued directly within the LMS, reducing the need for external platforms.
- Cost-Effective: Utilising built-in LMS functionalities can lower costs compared to implementing separate credentialing solutions.
Limitations:
- Limited Customisation: LMS platforms often provide basic design and issuance criteria for badges and certificates, offering little flexibility.
- Verifiability Challenges: Many LMS-generated credentials lack secure verification mechanisms, making them prone to fraud and misrepresentation.
- PDF Security Issues: Certificates issued as static PDF files can be easily altered or falsified, reducing their trustworthiness.
- Lack of Tracking: Once a badge or certificate is issued via an LMS, organisations often have no insight into when, where, or how it is shared or used by recipients.
Dedicated Digital Credentialing Platforms
Digital credentialing platforms offer a more secure, verifiable, and trackable way to issue badges and certificates. These platforms make credentials tamper-evident and easy to share, and provide valuable insights into their usage.
Advantages:
- High Customisation: Organisations can design badges and certificates that align with their branding and specific qualification criteria.
- Secure Verification: Credentials issued through dedicated platforms leverage blockchain or other security mechanisms, ensuring authenticity and reducing fraud risks.
- Real-Time Tracking & Analytics: These platforms offer dashboards that allow organisations to monitor where and how credentials are being shared and utilised.
- Improved Shareability: Badges and certificates can be easily shared on platforms like LinkedIn, email signatures, and professional networks, increasing visibility and impact.
Limitations:
- Integration Complexity: Implementing a dedicated credentialing system may require additional effort to integrate with an existing LMS.
- Cost Considerations: While these platforms offer superior features, they may involve additional licensing or issuance fees depending on volume and functionality.
How do LMS badges compare with a dedicated platform?
The table compares typical built-in LMS badges with Certify as an example of a dedicated platform.
| Built-in LMS badges | Dedicated platform (Certify) | |
|---|---|---|
| Verification | Many LMS credentials, especially PDFs, have no secure verification | Every credential has its own verification page, and a cryptographic hash and timestamp are anchored to a public blockchain, so any alteration is detectable |
| Open Badges support | Some LMSs issue Open Badges that can be exported | Open Badges 2.0 compliant, with Open Badges 3.0 coming soon |
| Branding and custom domain | Basic design options | Your logo, colours and fonts, with recipient pages on your own custom domain on paid plans |
| LinkedIn sharing | Usually limited | A one-click button in the claim email adds the credential to LinkedIn, or shares it to 40+ other platforms |
| Analytics | Little or no insight into how credentials are shared | Claims, shares, views and reach on a real-time dashboard |
| Batch size | Depends on the LMS | Issue to thousands by CSV, API or LMS integration, with no batch size limits |
| Portability after leaving the institution | Depends on the LMS and whether badges can be exported | Every recipient gets a personal backpack they keep for life, even after they leave |
Key Considerations for Choosing the Right Solution
When deciding between an LMS-based credentialing approach and a dedicated digital credentialing platform, consider the following:
- Verification Needs: If your credentials need strong authentication and fraud prevention, a dedicated platform is essential.
- Tracking & Analytics: If you want insights into how recipients share and use their credentials, an LMS alone will not suffice.
- Security Risks: If issuing PDF certificates, consider that they are prone to forgery without a verifiable digital layer.
- Long-Term Recognition Goals: If the aim is to issue credentials that hold real value in the job market, a dedicated credentialing system is the better choice.
Using your LMS and a dedicated platform together
You don't have to choose one or the other. Connect your LMS to Certify and credentials issue automatically when learners complete a course, while your courses stay where they are. Certify connects to LearnUpon, Canvas, Moodle, Blackboard and Totara, and works with any platform that has an API or webhooks. See how Certify integrates with your LMS and other systems.
Conclusion
While LMS-based badges and certificates provide a basic solution for internal recognition, dedicated digital credentialing platforms offer far greater security, shareability, and tracking capabilities. Organisations looking to build trust and credibility around their issued credentials should invest in a solution that ensures authenticity, prevents fraud, and provides long-term value. Our buyer's guide to digital credential platforms sets out what to compare before you sign.
If you issue badges through Canvas or Parchment today, our guide to Canvas Badges and Parchment alternatives covers what to check before you switch. Universities can also see how Certify works for higher education.
