Top 5 Instructional Design Tools In 2024

Creating instructional designs can be tough for course creators, especially when you are responsible for crafting engaging and effective learning experiences from beginning to end. As a learning designer, you're like a magician, bringing ideas to life every day. Whether you're drawing characters or designing course materials that fit a brand perfectly, having the best instructional design tools is essential for creating effective learning experiences. 

These tools are helpful because they help you determine whether your learners are fully engaged or if the training program is missing the mark.

So how do you choose the right instructional design tool for your organization?

Let’s look into the best instructional designer tools that support instructional designers throughout every step of the process. From structuring learning sequences and conducting needs assessments to producing training videos, hosting your courses, and assessing their effectiveness, this blog will help you find the right tool available to assist you at every stage of the content creation process.

Why Choose An Instructional Design Tool?

Instructional design tools play a crucial role in learning and development by providing structured frameworks and resources that enhance the effectiveness and engagement of educational materials. 

According to the LinkedIn 2023 Workplace Learning Report, around 89% of L&D professionals agree that building their employees’ skills helps the organization navigate a better future. 

Learning and development programs, eLearning courses, and training sessions play a significant role in helping employees upskill efficiently. But how are they created? What is the role of an instructional designer in the creation of course content?

Read more about the Essential Role Of An Instructional Designer to learn everything about corporate instructional designers in detail.

Top 5 Instructional Design Tools In 2024

Here's a roundup of the learning design tools that our instructional design team is raving about in 2024 and why you should try them too!

1. Calibr.ai 

When it comes to finding the best course development tools, Calibr.ai is one of the most best and versatile choices. This is one of the best instructional design tools for designers that allows instructional designers, HR Managers, and L&D experts to create efficient and engaging course modules within minutes.

Calibr Craft is a user-friendly AI-powered course authoring tool, designed with the needs of learners in mind, focusing on intuitive interfaces and user-friendly features that streamline the course creation process. It offers a variety of interactive elements and templates that allow designers to incorporate multimedia content, quizzes, assessments, and simulations seamlessly into their courses.

Apart from robust analytics and tracking capabilities, this tool allows you to facilitate collaboration among team members and stakeholders, enabling real-time feedback and iteration to enhance course quality. Calibr Craft scales well to accommodate the needs of both small-scale and enterprise-level projects, empowering instructional designers with the tools they need to create impactful and learner-focused courses.

Price: $2 per user per month.

Pros:

• AI assistant for creating engaging modules in minutes
• In-built drag-and-drop features
• Access to 4M+ royalty-free images and a library of pre-built course templates
• Interactive elements with rich multimedia content
• Seamless SCORM support and PPT export functionality
• Zero coding knowledge required

Cons: 

• Not suitable for users wanting AR/VR features
• Limited animation features

2. Articulate 360

Articulate 360 is a comprehensive solution that includes Rise 360 and Storyline 360, along with several other eLearning design software applications. With robust authoring capabilities and a user-friendly interface, this tool helps them create visually appealing and responsive courses seamlessly. 

With only a single subscription, Articulate 360 allows you to build interactive modules with Rise 360 or develop more complex simulations and scenarios with Storyline 360, Articulate 360 provides the tools to meet diverse course development needs effectively.

Price: $1,099 per user per year.

Pros:

• Compatible with all mobile devices
• Access to over 9 million assets, including characters, videos, icons, and stock photos
• Provides comprehensive training videos on their website to assist in course creation

Cons:

• Requires more time to learn compared to Rise 360
• Does not support self-hosting; an existing LMS is necessary
• Limited to Windows compatibility, not compatible with Mac OS

3. Figma

Figma is a powerful cloud-based interface design tool known for its collaborative features, making it ideal for creating, prototyping, and receiving feedback seamlessly in one platform. This tool is an optimal choice for designers looking to optimize their workflow and learning experiences for learners.

Since it is a cloud-based tool, it allows various collaborators to work together on the same file, make edits, and changes, and leave comments in real-time.

Price: $12 per editor per month

Pros:

• Easy-to-use interface
• Ideal for designers to collaborate on the file

Cons: 

• No offline version
• Lags while working on big projects with collaborators

4. iSpring Suite

iSpring Suite is a unique instructional design tool that empowers users to develop a wide range of learning materials directly within PowerPoint. This tool can easily convert PPTs into eLearning modules and build test surveys with in-house tools and functionalities.

This tool makes it easier for instructional designers to export the files as per the SCORM standards and includes features like creating engaging ebooks with attractive flipbook effects to enhance learner engagement. Additionally, its content library facilitates the creation of professional instructional materials efficiently.

Price: $770 per user per month.

Pros: 

• Compatible with other LMS tools
• No coding required
• SCORM compliant

Cons:

• No auto-sync feature or shared drive
• Limitations for Mac users

5. Adobe Captive

Adobe Captivate is a sophisticated authoring platform designed to effortlessly create visually captivating, mobile-friendly courses in minimal time. Adobe Captivate enables instructional designers to push the boundaries of traditional e-learning with advanced features like virtual reality (VR) capabilities and smart learning interactions. This empowers designers to create immersive and engaging learning experiences that are innovative and impactful.

With its responsive design and robust multimedia capabilities, Adobe Captivate is an ideal platform for crafting engaging content that deeply connects with learners.

However, to get the best of graphics and create custom illustrations for your course modules, Adobe Illustrator would be the best choice. This tool allows you to create characters, graphs, or even infographics to incorporate motion graphic videos into your modules.

Price: $33.99 per month per user.

Pros: 

• Integrates with LMS systems
• Compatible with Mac OS
• Converts PPT into mobile-friendly courses

Cons: 

• Limited animation feature
• Complex UI functionality
• Complicated built

Design Beautiful Courses With The Best Instructional Design Tools

Regardless of the specific tools you use, the essence of an effective learning experience lies in great design. It's not just about creating visually appealing content; it's about the thoughtful and strategic approach you take to design a solution that genuinely meets the needs of learners.

Effective learning design involves understanding the learners' objectives and challenges, crafting content that is engaging and relevant, and ensuring accessibility and usability. 

The key is to structure the information in a way that promotes understanding and retention and integrates interactive elements that encourage active participation and feedback.

Ultimately, your goal is to create learning experiences that are impactful and meaningful. This requires a blend of creativity, empathy for the learner, and a deep understanding of instructional design principles. So, by focusing on these aspects, you can ensure that your courses not only look good but also deliver real value and enhance the learning journey for your audience.

Choose The Best Instructional Design Tool

Designing is more than just the top decorations. Learning and development experts invest hours into developing the right structure for their training programs and creating a course shouldn’t be a hassle.

Invest in Calibr.ai’s AI-powered course-authoring tool to create engaging course modules without any coding or technical acumen. You can also use Calibr LXP to provide effective learning, corporate training, and skills development for your employees using our AI-powered learning experience platform. So accelerate your eLearning journey as an instructional designer with Calibr.ai today. Request a free demo session now!

FAQs

1. How do I choose the right instructional design tool for my organization?

When selecting an instructional design tool, consider your team's familiarity, integration with existing systems like LMS, needed features (like multimedia and collaboration tools), and budget to find the best fit for your organization.

2. Why should I use an instructional design tool?

Instructional design tools streamline course creation with templates, multimedia integration, collaboration features, and analytics, ensuring engaging, effective courses aligned with learning objectives.

3. What role does an instructional designer play in course creation?

Instructional designers play a vital role in developing effective learning experiences by analyzing learner needs, designing curriculum, selecting instructional methods, creating content, and evaluating course effectiveness.