How Long Does It Take to Create an E-Learning Course?

How much time does it really take to create quality e-learning content? The answer might surprise you—and it's probably holding back your training initiatives.

According to Chapman Alliance's widely-cited research, it takes an average of 72 work hours to develop a basic 1-hour e-learning course. For more engaging, interactive courses? That number jumps to over 184 hours.

We recently reviewed this study and measured our own course creation process at Konstantly. The results reveal a significant opportunity for organizations to reclaim hundreds of hours while improving content quality.

The Traditional E-Learning Development Challenge

Before diving into the numbers, let's understand why e-learning development has historically been so time-consuming:

The Traditional Process

1. Content gathering — Collecting information from subject matter experts
2. Storyboarding — Planning the course structure and flow
3. Scripting — Writing narration and on-screen text
4. Asset creation — Designing graphics, recording audio, shooting video
5. Development — Building slides, interactions, and assessments
6. Review cycles — Multiple rounds of feedback and revisions
7. Quality assurance — Testing functionality across devices
8. Publishing — Exporting and uploading to the LMS

Each step involves multiple stakeholders, handoffs, and potential delays. A typical e-learning project can involve instructional designers, graphic designers, video producers, voice talent, developers, and project managers.

Industry Benchmarks: The Chapman Alliance Research

The Chapman Alliance study established development time ratios that became industry standards. These ratios represent hours of development time required per hour of finished learning content:

Instructor-Led Training (ILT)

E-Learning Level 1 (Basic Interactivity)

E-Learning Level 2 (Advanced Interactivity)

These numbers mean that a single 1-hour interactive course could take over a month of full-time work to complete—assuming no other responsibilities.

Where Does All That Time Go?

Breaking down the 184-hour average for a moderately interactive course:

Typical Time Allocation:
├── Analysis & Planning: 15% (28 hours)
├── Content Writing: 20% (37 hours)
├── Storyboarding: 10% (18 hours)
├── Visual Design: 15% (28 hours)
├── Development: 25% (46 hours)
├── Review & Revisions: 10% (18 hours)
└── QA & Publishing: 5% (9 hours)

The Hidden Time Sinks

Beyond these categories, significant time is lost to:

• Waiting for SME availability — Subject matter experts have day jobs
• Tool learning curves — Complex authoring software requires training
• Format conversions — Moving content between applications
• Revision ping-pong — Multiple feedback cycles with stakeholders
• Technical troubleshooting — Fixing compatibility issues

How Konstantly Reduces Development Time

We measured development time for courses created in Konstantly and compared against industry benchmarks:

Instructor-Led Training Materials

E-Learning Level 1

E-Learning Level 2

Bottom line: Konstantly reduces development time to an average of 9.5 hours for a basic course and approximately 52 hours for a non-linear advanced course.

What Makes the Difference?

How does Konstantly achieve 70-80% time savings? Several key factors:

1. Visual Storyboarding

Traditional e-learning development separates planning from production. You write a script, then build slides, then add interactions.

Konstantly's visual storyboard lets you see the entire course structure while building it. Changes flow instantly across the project—no copy-pasting or reformatting.

2. AI-Powered Content Generation

Starting from scratch is the slowest part of course creation. Konstantly's AI can:

• Generate initial course outlines from your objectives
• Suggest quiz questions based on content
• Create assessment variations automatically
• Recommend learning paths based on content relationships

3. Integrated Asset Management

No more switching between tools. Import PowerPoints, PDFs, and existing SCORM content directly. Search Google Images and YouTube from within the editor. Everything stays in one place.

4. Built-in Collaboration

Instead of emailing files back and forth:

• SMEs can contribute directly to the storyboard
• Reviewers comment in context
• Version history tracks all changes
• No "final_v2_FINAL_revised.pptx" chaos

5. Instant Preview and Publishing

See exactly how learners will experience your course while building it. When ready, publish immediately—no export, upload, test cycle required.

Real-World Impact

What do these time savings mean in practice?

For a 10-Course Onboarding Program

Traditional approach (at 79:1 ratio):

• 10 hours of content × 79 hours each = 790 hours
• At $75/hour = $59,250 development cost
• Timeline: 4-5 months

With Konstantly (at 15:1 ratio):

• 10 hours of content × 15 hours each = 150 hours
• At $75/hour = $11,250 development cost
• Timeline: 4-6 weeks

Savings: $48,000 and 3+ months

For Annual Compliance Training Updates

Traditional approach:

• 2 hours of updated content × 79 hours = 158 hours
• 4 weeks of development time

With Konstantly:

• 2 hours of updated content × 15 hours = 30 hours
• Less than 1 week of development time

For Rapid Response Training

When you need training quickly—new product launch, policy change, crisis response—development speed becomes critical.

Traditional approach: 2-3 weeks minimum With Konstantly: 2-3 days possible

Tips for Faster Course Development

Regardless of your tools, these practices accelerate development:

1. Start with Clear Objectives

Vague goals = endless revisions. Define exactly what learners should be able to do after the course.

2. Gather Content First

Collect all source materials before starting development. Waiting for content is the #1 delay.

3. Use Templates

Don't reinvent layouts. Build templates for common course structures and reuse them.

4. Limit Review Rounds

Set expectations: two review cycles maximum. More than that indicates unclear requirements.

5. Think Modular

Build small, reusable modules rather than monolithic courses. Easier to update and recombine.

6. Prioritize Engagement Over Polish

A good-enough course delivered on time beats a perfect course delivered late. Launch, learn, iterate.

The Cost of Slow Development

Beyond direct development costs, slow course creation has hidden impacts:

• Delayed training = delayed performance — Every week of development is a week employees operate without needed skills
• Outdated content — By the time complex courses launch, information may have changed
• Opportunity cost — L&D teams stuck in development can't focus on strategy
• Stakeholder frustration — Business units lose confidence in training's ability to respond quickly

Making the Shift

If your organization is spending hundreds of hours per course, consider:

1. Audit your current process — Track actual time spent on recent projects
2. Identify bottlenecks — Where does work get stuck?
3. Evaluate modern tools — Compare development time with current platforms
4. Start small — Pilot new approaches on a single project
5. Measure results — Track time savings and quality outcomes

Conclusion

The days of accepting 184-hour development cycles as inevitable are over. Modern authoring tools have fundamentally changed what's possible.

With Konstantly, organizations are creating quality interactive courses in a fraction of traditional timelines:

• Basic courses: 9.5 hours instead of 72
• Advanced interactive courses: 52 hours instead of 267
• Time savings: 70-80% across all complexity levels

That's not just efficiency—it's the difference between training that keeps pace with business needs and training that's always playing catch-up.

See how fast you can build with Konstantly →

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