Academi is a free, open-source Moodle theme from LMSACE, released under GPL v3. It is a Boost child theme, so standard Moodle behaviour stays intact while it layers a marketing-style front page on top: home slider, promoted courses, site features, marketing spot, jumbotron and footer. It is actively maintained - v5.2 shipped on 28 April 2026, nine days after Moodle 5.2. It suits institutions wanting a branded Moodle front page without a developer. Its ceiling is template control: presets, two colour pickers, some layout toggles and a custom CSS box, not the ability to restructure pages.
Key takeaways
- Academi is free and open source under GPL v3, built by LMSACE. It is not a paid product, though some theme round-ups list it as premium.
- It is actively maintained: v5.2 was published on 28 April 2026, nine days after Moodle 5.2 was released on 20 April 2026.
- It is a Boost child theme, so course pages, the course index and the edit switch behave as stock Moodle.
- Customisation is preset-driven: presets, two colour pickers, logo, favicon, login background, font size, nav style and a custom CSS box.
- The ceiling is structure. Front-page regions are fixed in shape, so changing layout means a child theme or Mustache overrides.
What the Academi theme actually is
Academi is a free Moodle theme from LMSACE, maintained in the Moodle plugins directory since 2015 under the GNU GPL v3 licence, with source on GitHub.
That is worth stating plainly, because Academi is often listed among premium Moodle themes
in comparison articles. It is not. LMSACE also sells commercial themes, which is likely where the
confusion comes from, but theme_academi carries no licence fee.
Technically it is a Boost child theme: config.php declares
$THEME->parents = ['boost'], so it inherits Boost's page structure, FontAwesome icons,
the course index and the editing switch, then adds a configurable front page on top. That inheritance
is good news, because your course pages and admin screens keep behaving as administrators expect.
Which Moodle versions it supports, and whether it is still maintained
It is maintained, and current. The directory lists 16 versions available, and the release history shows LMSACE tracking each Moodle release rather than skipping them.
| Academi release | Published | Moodle support added |
|---|---|---|
| v5.2 | 28 April 2026 | Moodle 5.2 |
| v5.1 | 18 December 2025 | Moodle 5.1 |
| v5.0.1 | 3 May 2025 | Moodle 5.0 (bugfix, deprecated classes removed) |
| v5.0 | 30 April 2025 | Moodle 5.0 |
| v4.5 | 4 January 2025 | Moodle 4.5 LTS |
The number that matters most: Moodle 5.2 was
released on 20 April 2026, and Academi v5.2 followed on 28 April 2026. Nine days is fast for a
free community theme. The v5.2 package declares $plugin->requires = 2026042000 and a
maturity of MATURITY_STABLE, so it targets Moodle 5.2 specifically rather than claiming
blanket compatibility. Matching releases exist for older supported branches such as 5.1 and 4.5 LTS,
so install the one for your version rather than the newest tag.
The honest caveat is not maintenance, it is coupling: with any third-party theme you cannot upgrade Moodle until the theme ships support. That dependency is yours to carry.
The customisation levers Academi genuinely exposes
Academi's settings use Moodle's standard tabbed theme settings page. From the plugin source, the tabs are General, Home slider, Promoted courses, Site features, Marketing spot, Jumbotron and Footer. The General tab is where most branding happens:
- Theme preset plus a preset file upload, so you can load a supplied SCSS preset or your own. Bundled styles include eGuru, Klass and Enlightlite.
- Primary and secondary colour pickers.
- Logo, favicon and login background uploads.
- Font size, navigation style and header style.
- Page size, a back to top toggle and a course-type selector.
- A custom CSS box for anything the settings do not cover.
The remaining tabs each drive one front-page region: slides, promoted courses, the icon-and-text feature strip, a marketing banner, the jumbotron headline and call to action, and a multi-column footer with its own background image and contact fields.
Where you hit the ceiling
Academi's model is configure the regions we built, in the order we built them. That is the strength and the limit at once.
| What you want to change | Possible in Academi settings? |
|---|---|
| Colours, logo, favicon, login background | Yes, built-in settings |
| Slider, promoted courses, jumbotron, footer content | Yes, one tab each |
| Spacing and type tweaks beyond the pickers | Yes, via the custom CSS box |
| Reordering or removing front-page regions | Limited, largely CSS-level |
| A different course card or listing layout | No, needs Mustache overrides |
| Role-based dashboards or per-audience layouts | No, needs custom development |
| New page templates or bespoke components | No, needs a child theme |
Once you are writing more than a screen or two of custom CSS to fight the layout, you have passed the point where a settings-driven theme saves time. That is the signal to move to a child theme.
When Academi is the right choice, and when it is not
Academi fits a school, college or training provider that wants Moodle's front page to look like a course catalogue rather than a login box, has no front-end developer, and is content for branding to mean colours, a logo and curated content. A maintained alternative or a custom theme becomes the better call at a simple threshold: when the interface has to do something specific for your learners that no settings page anticipates. If you are still shortlisting, our round-up of the best Moodle themes with advanced features in 2026 compares Academi against premium options such as Edwiser RemUI and KlassRoom, and our guide to the best free Moodle themes in 2026 places it alongside Moove, Adaptable and Boost Union, its closest free alternatives.
- 1Download the release that matches your Moodle version
Take the ZIP from the Academi entry in the Moodle plugins directory. Pick the release for your branch, for example v5.2 for Moodle 5.2, not the newest tag.
- 2Install on a staging copy first
Switching themes changes every page for every user, so work on a staging clone, never directly on production.
- 3Copy the folder into your Moodle theme directory
Unzip the package and place the academi folder in your Moodle theme directory. It must keep the name academi or Moodle will not detect it.
- 4Run the Moodle upgrade
As site administrator, open Site administration, then Notifications. Moodle detects the theme and prompts you to upgrade the database. Confirm it.
- 5Activate the theme
Open Site administration, then Appearance, then Themes, and select Academi. Install plugins from ZIP does the copy and upgrade in one step instead.
- 6Configure branding, then purge caches
Work through the settings tabs, starting with General for preset, colours, logo and favicon. Purge all caches, then check the front page, a course page and the login page on a phone.
Academi is the right call when
- You want a branded, catalogue-style front page without writing code
- Branding means colours, a logo and curated front-page content
- You have no front-end developer and no theme budget
- A free, GPL-licensed, actively updated plugin is what you need
- It is a pilot, a departmental site or a first Moodle deployment
Look further when
- Different audiences need different dashboards or landing pages
- Your design system needs template-level, not CSS-level, control
- You are fighting the supplied layout with lots of custom CSS
- Accessibility or brand compliance has to be provable
- Your upgrade policy cannot wait on a third-party release
The maintenance question, answered honestly
Academi is not an abandoned theme, and it would be wrong to present it as one. LMSACE shipped Moodle 5.2 support nine days after Moodle 5.2 was released. The real question is not whether it is maintained, but whether a settings-driven theme can express what your institution needs. That is a design question, and it is where your evaluation time is better spent.
Before you switch a live site
Install on a staging clone first, then check the front page, a course page, the login page and the mobile view. Confirm key plugins still render, purge all caches, and note your previous theme so you can revert. Theme changes affect every page for every user at once.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Academi Moodle theme free?
Yes. It is published in the Moodle plugins directory under the GNU GPL v3 licence, free to download and use. Some comparison articles list it as premium, which is incorrect. LMSACE does sell other commercial themes, which is likely the source of the confusion.
Who develops and maintains the Academi theme?
LMSACE, an e-learning development company that has maintained it since 2015. The source is public on GitHub and issues are tracked there.
Which Moodle versions does Academi support?
The current release, v5.2 of 28 April 2026, targets Moodle 5.2. Earlier releases match earlier branches, including 5.1 and 4.5 LTS. The directory lists 16 versions, so install the one matching your branch rather than the newest.
Is the Academi theme still maintained in 2026?
Yes. Moodle 5.2 was released on 20 April 2026 and Academi added support nine days later. That is an active maintenance record for a free community theme.
Is Academi a Boost child theme?
Yes. Its config declares Boost as the parent, so it inherits Boost's page structure, course index, editing switch and FontAwesome icons, then adds a configurable front page on top.
How do I install the Academi theme in Moodle?
Copy the academi folder into your Moodle theme directory, then visit Site administration and Notifications as an administrator to run the database upgrade. Select Academi under Appearance and Themes. Install plugins from ZIP does the same in one step.
When should I choose a custom Moodle theme over Academi?
When requirements go beyond what a settings page can express: role-based dashboards, custom page templates, or compliance needing template-level control. A practical signal is how much custom CSS you write to fight the supplied layout.
Not sure whether a free theme is enough?
Academi is a reasonable free starting point. If your requirements point past it, the useful next step is a conversation about what your learners need to see. EDZLMS builds and maintains branded Moodle themes as part of a managed deployment, so the theme stays upgrade-safe as Moodle moves - and we will tell you when a free theme like Academi is the right answer.
Keep reading
- Best Moodle themes with advanced features in 2026 - how Academi compares against premium options
- Best free Moodle themes in 2026 - Academi alongside Moove, Adaptable and Boost Union