Setting up LearnDash on SiteGround: a pre-launch checklist

Step 1: choose the plan with staging in mind

All three SiteGround WordPress plans meet LearnDash's published minimums. The practical difference is tooling and headroom. On 29 October 2026 SiteGround listed staging and on-demand backups as GrowBig and GoGeek features; StartUp shows neither on the features comparison. For a course site you will update during live cohorts, staging is worth the step up.

Step 2: confirm the LearnDash requirements

LearnDash's requirements page lists WordPress 6.6 or greater, LearnDash 4.7 or greater, PHP 7.4 or greater (noting WordPress recommends PHP 8.3), MySQL 5.6 or MariaDB 10.1 or greater, HTTPS, and a PHP memory limit of at least 128 MB. It also states that LearnDash does not support multisite configurations, so plan one WordPress install per academy rather than a network.

SiteGround's features page lists a managed PHP version (8.2 at the time of checking) plus custom PHP versions 8.6, 8.5, 8.4, 8.3 and 7.4, and 768 MB server memory per process. Choose a version that all your LearnDash add-ons and theme support, rehearse the change on staging first, and avoid 7.4 for a new build since it is only the floor.

Step 3: set permalinks before you build courses

LearnDash's permalink defaults are /courses/course-name/, /lessons/lesson-name/, /topic/topic-name/ and /quizzes/quiz-name/, with an option for nested URLs that place lessons, topics and quizzes inside the course URL. Its documentation advises setting a custom structure early and avoiding changes later, especially after creating course content, because repeated switching causes broken links and 404 errors.

Decide now, because these slugs also feed your cache exclusion list and any redirect rules. If you use custom labels such as "modules" instead of "lessons", LearnDash says to update the permalink settings to match.

Step 4: caching that does not leak lessons

SiteGround's dynamic cache bypasses any request with the wordpress_logged_in_ cookie, so enrolled students viewing lessons are served dynamically. Logged-out visitors can receive cached copies of public pages, which is what you want for sales pages and course catalogues.

Check the pages that sit between those states: the login page, registration, checkout and the purchase confirmation. SiteGround already excludes URLs containing register, checkout, cart, my-account and wp-login, but a page called /enroll/ or /sign-in/ is not on that list. Add those under Speed Optimizer, Caching, Exclude URLs from Caching, and check the X-Proxy-Cache response header reads BYPASS for a logged-out visitor. Our Speed Optimizer exclusions guide has the full list and test table.

Step 5: make scheduled tasks reliable

WordPress runs scheduled tasks when pages load. SiteGround's real cron tutorial explains that wp-cron.php runs every time someone loads a page, so scheduled tasks depend on traffic, and caching can interfere. On a course site that may mean drip-fed lessons, reminder emails or payment-plan renewals run late overnight.

SiteGround's documented fix: add define('DISABLE_WP_CRON', true); to wp-config.php, then create a job in Site Tools, Devs, Cron Jobs running wp cron event run --due-now from your WordPress directory. SiteGround recommends the Twice Per Hour preset and says 30 minutes should be fine for most websites. If drip timing matters to the minute, choose a shorter interval and keep an eye on resource usage against your plan's CPU-second limits; SiteGround's tutorial disables WP-Cron first and then adds the cron job; do both in the same sitting so scheduled tasks are not left without a trigger.

Step 6: email that survives enrollment day

LearnDash's Emails settings cover Course Purchase Success, Group Purchase Success and New User Registration notifications, plus an optional Purchase Invoice. If you leave the sender fields empty, LearnDash uses the site administration email and site title, so set a real From address on your own domain.

SiteGround allows up to 400 emails per hour from a site on StartUp or GrowBig and 800 on GoGeek or Cloud, and counts each recipient separately. A launch where 200 people register and buy within an hour can generate three LearnDash emails each (registration, purchase success, invoice), or 600 sends, before any WordPress or payment emails. If that is plausible for you, route transactional mail through a dedicated sending service before launch; see our SiteGround email limits guide for the arithmetic.

Pre-launch checklist

• Plan supports staging (GrowBig or GoGeek) and a manual on-demand backup is taken before launch.
• PHP version is current, supported by every LearnDash add-on and theme, and was switched on staging first.
• PHP memory limit is at least 128 MB per LearnDash, within SiteGround's 768 MB per process.
• LearnDash permalinks and nested URL setting are final; test lesson and quiz links resolve.
• Login, registration, checkout and confirmation URLs show X-Proxy-Cache: BYPASS while logged out.
• A test student sees lessons served dynamically (BYPASS) and progress saves correctly.
• WP-Cron disabled and a Site Tools cron job runs wp cron event run --due-now on a set interval.
• LearnDash sender name and address set; SPF and DKIM configured for the sending domain.
• Estimated peak-hour email sends are below 400 (or 800 on GoGeek), or transactional mail moved to a sending service.
• Staging deploy method decided: Full Deploy replaces the live database, so never full-deploy over a site that has taken enrollments since the staging copy was made.

Sources & verification

Product details and prices can change. Check the linked provider before buying.

1. LearnDash requirements (docs.nexcess.com) Accessed 29 Oct 2026
2. LearnDash: Permalinks settings Accessed 29 Oct 2026
3. LearnDash: Emails settings (docs.nexcess.com) Accessed 29 Oct 2026
4. SiteGround: Shared hosting features comparison Accessed 29 Oct 2026
5. SiteGround: WordPress hosting plans Accessed 29 Oct 2026
6. SiteGround KB: Dynamic caching configuration Accessed 29 Oct 2026
7. SiteGround: Speed Optimizer caching tutorial Accessed 29 Oct 2026
8. SiteGround: How to replace WP-Cron with a real cron job Accessed 29 Oct 2026
9. SiteGround: Staging tool overview Accessed 29 Oct 2026
10. SiteGround: Deploying a staging copy Accessed 29 Oct 2026
11. SiteGround KB: Acceptable use of SiteGround's email service Accessed 29 Oct 2026