Viva Learning

Viva Learning is a hub inside Microsoft Teams. It gathers courses from other providers, SharePoint and a connected learning management system (LMS). A learner who plays an LMS course goes to the LMS web page. Basic features come with Microsoft 365 and Office 365 Enterprise subscriptions. Assignments and tracking need a paid licence at $4.00 per user per month, paid yearly.

By Ashish Manchanda Published 23 Oct 2026 Last updated 23 Oct 2026

Viva Learning puts other systems’ training in Teams at $4.00 a user a month

In one line

Viva Learning is a hub inside Microsoft Teams. It gathers courses and learner records from other providers and from a connected learning management system (LMS).

Buy it if

Your people work in Teams. Your courses sit in an LMS or with providers such as LinkedIn Learning, Skillsoft or Go1. You want managers to recommend courses and follow completion from one place.

Do not buy it if

You want learners to stay in one product from start to finish. A learner who plays an LMS course goes to the LMS web page and signs in there. You need usage reports that name people. Viva Learning usage reports are anonymous, so the admin’s completion export is where you get each person’s name.

Price

A paid licence costs $4.00 per user per month, paid yearly, with an annual commitment. The Viva Suite costs $12.00 per user per month and includes Viva Learning. Basic features come with Microsoft 365 and Office 365 Enterprise subscriptions.

Teams brings courses together, and an LMS course still plays on the LMS

Viva Learning gathers learning content from host systems, such as LMS providers, into one hub in Teams. Each person gets a My Learning view of assignments, recommendations, completions and collections. A learner who plays an LMS course goes to the LMS web page and signs in there. For LMS courses, Viva Learning is where people find and track training. The LMS is where they play it.

Microsoft calls it common practice to get compliance training from the LMS and growth training from content providers. Viva Learning can sync assignments and completion records from a connected LMS. Each assignment carries a status of Not started, In progress or Completed. It also carries the date the course is due.

Viva Learning connects to SAP SuccessFactors, Workday, Cornerstone and Saba. SuccessFactors Learning customers with a Premium licence can bring in catalogues, assignments, learning paths, programs and permissions. The Workday link carries catalogue, assignment and completion data. An admin adds LMS sources in the admin tab, because they are off by default. LMS data refreshes once every 24 hours after the first full pull. A completion can take up to 24 hours to show. Workday assignments sync every 12 hours. A source an admin enables can take 24 to 48 hours to appear for users.

Content providers connect too. They are Go1, Skillsoft, OpenSesame, Udemy Business, Udacity, Pluralsight, Coursera, edX, Infosec and Josh Bersin Academy. OpenSesame and Udacity each need their own licence. SharePoint files come in as Word, PowerPoint, Excel, PDF, audio, video and linked objects. Microsoft’s content-source guidance puts the limit at 1,000 SharePoint files without a paid licence. Its SharePoint FAQ says Viva Learning takes in the first 1,000 items, oldest change first.

Managers can recommend content and track the reported completion status of what they recommended. A recommender can set due dates, and progress tracking is on by default. Microsoft sets a limit of 50 users for recommending learning. A learning path can be curated from content across the providers the organisation has enabled. Creating one needs a paid Viva Learning or Viva Suite licence. Academies group learning paths for selected learners.

Learning Agent is the AI part, and it sits inside Microsoft Copilot. It answers how-to questions. It recommends content from roles, skills, work patterns and what people do at work. It makes short lessons from longer content. It can build a sequenced learning plan from the learner’s goals, role, selected skill and available content. It also builds a multiple-choice assessment after the learner picks a difficulty level and a length.

Our guide to learning management systems covers how the rest of this market handles the same decision.

Free libraries, a pilot result and records an admin can export

One customer’s pilot reported a 3000% rise in mandatory completions on day one

The customer has around 15,000 employees. Its learning content sat across Workday, LinkedIn Learning and Go1. On day one in Q2, its pilot reported a 3000% increase in mandatory learning completions. The comparison was with Q1. The rollout started with 75 super users, then people managers, then all employees. A rise this big depends on the count before it. Ask Microsoft for both numbers.

Free courses and Microsoft libraries

Customers get a selection of 300+ LinkedIn Learning courses. They also get the full Microsoft Learn and Microsoft 365 training libraries. Free global skilling initiative courses from LinkedIn Learning need no premium subscription. LinkedIn courses play in an embedded player inside Teams.

The AI answers from sources the admin picks

Learning Agent answers from sources the admin sets up. The admin can add SharePoint sites. They count as authoritative sources, within existing permissions. Microsoft tells users to check the sources it cites before they rely on an important answer. Learning Agent does not use customer content in Word, Excel, PowerPoint or Teams. Microsoft 365 Copilot does not use prompts, responses or Microsoft Graph data to train foundation language models. A Global Administrator decides who gets Learning Agent. That can be all users or selected groups.

Admins can export completion records

Admins can export learners’ course completion records. They can also export and delete user and usage records in the admin portal. The export includes the name of the person who made each Viva Learning recommendation. The individual can see their own completion data. So can anyone they share recommendations with.

Assignments reach people on their phones

The Viva Learning mobile app runs inside Teams for iOS or Android. Users get a notification when a new assignment arrives or a due date is close. The Assigned to you list offers Overdue and Upcoming courses.

Where records, licences, languages and connections run out

Viva Learning stores data where the Microsoft 365 data is stored. SharePoint sites linked to it must be in the organisation’s home geography. For Skillsoft, Microsoft gives a separate address for the European data centre.

A learner can mark a course complete, and the export includes it

Learners can mark a course complete when the content provider sends no completion signal. Microsoft sets that feature On by default. The completion export covers two kinds of record. One kind is synced from content sources. The other is a course the learner marked complete in Viva Learning. For a compliance course, work out which kind you hold.

Reports are anonymous, with six-month bulk exports

Viva Learning usage reports are anonymous, and report data is kept six months. Microsoft warns about the metrics. They are not designed for evaluation, tracking, automated decisions, profiling or monitoring. Learning Agent reports give aggregate numbers only. The organisation needs 10 or more users before they show. Each bulk export covers six months. It holds completion records for a Microsoft 365 or security group. Plan several exports for a long audit period.

The AI part runs through Copilot, and some of it is in preview

Microsoft Copilot gives access to the main Learning Agent experience. AI Skills Navigator needs a Microsoft Copilot licence. Or it needs Copilot Chat, which comes with a Microsoft 365 subscription. Enterprise grounding on SharePoint, which bases answers on your own files, is for Copilot-licensed users only. Copilot in Viva Learning is in preview. Task inferencing works out the tasks a person does. It is in preview and is not enabled by default.

Some Copilot models sit outside the EU Data Boundary

Copilot offers models from other companies, such as Anthropic and OpenAI. An admin decides whether to use them. Anthropic provides some models as a subprocessor. That is an outside company that handles data for Microsoft. Those models are currently excluded from the EU Data Boundary. That is Microsoft’s commitment to process EU customers’ data inside the EU.

Role play needs a LinkedIn Learning or Skillsoft subscription

LinkedIn Learning role play lets learners rehearse conversations with an AI coach. It needs an active LinkedIn Learning Enterprise or Premium subscription. By default, all learners can use LinkedIn role play once it is set up. CAISY is Skillsoft’s simulator. It needs an active Skillsoft Percipio subscription. Percipio powers CAISY conversations and feedback. Conversation data is covered by the organisation’s Skillsoft agreement.

Skills tools are English (US) only, and managers see individual data

People Skills in Viva Learning works only in English (US). Skills experiences are not supported on mobile. People Skills may not be enabled in every organisation. An admin can ask for it through a support ticket. Group managers and leaders can view skills data for their teams. It can be aggregate or individual. Users can opt out of AI-generated skill profiles. Microsoft warns that People Skills is not designed for performance management. It is not designed for employment decisions such as promotion or pay. AI skill answers may be inaccurate. Turning Skills on deletes the interests users selected earlier.

Right-to-left languages are not currently supported

Viva Learning shows the languages the organisation sets in Microsoft 365. It does not currently support right-to-left languages.

Access is set by group, not person by person

Viva Learning does not support user-based permissions. Microsoft supports only two group types. They are Microsoft 365 groups and mail-enabled security groups. A learner who needs different access needs a different group.

Connected systems leave some data behind

Viva Learning does not support Workday catalogue permissions. Learning journeys or paths from Workday are not supported either. For Cornerstone, events and sessions, certifications and question banks are not synced. SuccessFactors catalogue permissions sync one way.

Every learner on assigned training needs a licence, and a trial rolls into a year

A paid licence costs $4.00 per user per month, paid yearly, with an annual commitment. The Viva Suite costs $12.00 per user per month and includes Viva Learning. Microsoft makes assignments visible only to users with a premium licence. So every learner on assigned training needs one, and not only the managers who recommend. If 1,000 people each need a licence, the list price comes to $48,000 a year. Viva also requires certain Microsoft 365, Office 365 and SharePoint licences underneath. Check Microsoft’s Viva pricing for which ones. Microsoft sells Viva through a Microsoft representative, as an addition to an existing enterprise subscription.

In the UK, Insight Direct sells Viva Learning on the government’s G-Cloud 15 catalogue. The price is £3.08 a month, or £36.96 for 12 months, excluding VAT. The Viva Suite costs £9.23 a month there, or £110.76 for 12 months.

A one-month free trial converts automatically into a 12-month paid subscription. Learning Agent reports for knowledge admins come with a Microsoft Copilot licence. They need no separate Viva Learning licence. Showing Viva Learning content in Microsoft Search for the whole organisation needs at least one purchased licence.

Removing a provider hides its data at once. That includes learner records. Microsoft schedules data from its global providers for deletion from the database in 72 hours. Those providers are Microsoft 365 Learning, Microsoft Learn and LinkedIn Learning. Admins cannot see the stage of deletion in the admin tab. Export the completion records first. When a Microsoft 365 subscription is disabled, users are blocked. Admins can still access and back up data. For Volume Licensing purchases, services stay available for 90 days from the subscription end date.

You could also run training steps with agents built on your own systems. We have mapped what that looks like. The HR Agent Map

Ten questions to put to Microsoft

Can the completion export tell a record a provider sent from a course a learner marked complete? Can an admin switch self-marking off? Good answer: Yes, the export labels each record by source, and an admin can switch self-marking off.
How do we export our full retention period of completion records, given the six-month window per bulk export? Good answer: A written method that returns the full history, with no gaps between windows.
How do we get a course in front of more than 50 people, and does that need the LMS? Good answer: A written route for larger groups, and a clear split between Viva Learning and the LMS.
Does a premium licence lift the 1,000-item SharePoint limit, and which items come in first? Good answer: A written answer for each licence level, with the order stated.
Which licence does each learner, manager and admin need, Copilot included, and what does each cost? Good answer: A table by role with a price for each licence, written into the order form.
The one-month free trial converts into a 12-month paid subscription. Can we cancel in the first month at no charge? Good answer: A written cancellation date, and no charge unless we sign.
Where does each Copilot model process our requests when an Anthropic model is switched on, and who controls that switch? Good answer: A named location for each model, and a named admin setting.
Which course file standards, such as SCORM, play for our content? Good answer: A named list, with the ones that play inside Teams marked.
Which parts of our LMS data does the link leave out? Good answer: A list for our own system, agreed before we buy.
What happens to learner records when we remove an LMS source? Good answer: We export the records first, and we get a date by which deletion is complete.

Alternatives to Viva Learning

If Viva Learning comes off your shortlist, look at Docebo or LinkedIn Learning. Risely’s Merlin suits managers who want to practise hard conversations. Buying nothing is a fourth route.

Docebo is an AI-powered learning platform (LMS). Look at it if you want courses, assignments and records in one learning system. Docebo’s integrations are included in package pricing. Embedded ones such as Salesforce and Teams cost extra. Ask about Teams before you compare the two prices.

LinkedIn Learning is a course library that also offers certifications and personalised learning. With an Enterprise subscription, users reach the whole catalogue in Viva Learning without a Viva licence. If the library is what you want, you can buy it without the $4.00 licence.

Role play in Viva Learning needs a LinkedIn Learning Enterprise or Premium subscription, or a Skillsoft Percipio subscription. Merlin is a separate AI coach for managers. It plays the other person in a hard conversation. That person might be a defensive direct report or a sceptical VP. The manager tries an approach and adjusts it ahead of the real conversation. Merlin also talks a manager through a real situation, such as a team member who is thinking about quitting.

Buying nothing is the last route. If your organisation holds a Microsoft 365 or Office 365 Enterprise subscription, basic Viva Learning features come with it. Copilot Academy is on by default for all Microsoft 365 users. You can try those before you pay $4.00 per user per month. The paid licence adds LMS access, partner content, recommending and tracking.

More in this guide

The Learning management systems guide
Compare the 57 researched products how each delivers training, what its AI does, what it costs and the contract terms.
Mid-market companies which learning products suit 200 to 2,000 people, what they cost and what to ask.
Enterprise companies which learning products suit 2,000 people or more, what they cost, how contracts run and what to ask.
Frontline and deskless teams how training reaches staff away from a desk, what it costs and what to ask.
Regulated industries how learning products keep the training records that auditors check, what that costs and what to ask vendors.
Companies whose HR system has its own learning product what it covers, what it costs and what else exists.