LearnPress Not Sending Email Notifications? Here Is the Fix

LearnPress relies on email notifications to keep students informed about course enrollments, lesson completions, quiz results, and certificate awards. When these emails stop sending, students may never receive their login credentials, course access links, or completion certificates. The result is confusion, frustration, and an increased support burden as students contact the site owner asking why they haven’t heard anything.

This problem is widespread among LearnPress users because the plugin, like many WordPress plugins, uses the default WordPress wp_mail() function to send emails [citation:4]. This function is notoriously unreliable, especially on shared hosting servers that are not optimized for email delivery. Emails may be blocked entirely, marked as spam, or silently dropped by email providers like Gmail and Outlook.

The most common cause of this problem is that LearnPress email notifications are disabled in the plugin settings. Another cause is that the WordPress default mail function is being blocked by the hosting server, or that SPF and DKIM DNS records are missing from the domain configuration [citation:4].

Why LearnPress fails to send email notifications

LearnPress uses the WordPress wp_mail() function to send all email notifications, including welcome emails, enrollment confirmations, lesson completion notifications, and quiz results. The wp_mail() function sends emails directly from the hosting server using the server’s built-in mail transfer agent (MTA). Most shared hosting servers are not optimized for email delivery, and their IP addresses often appear on email blacklists because other customers on the same server have sent spam [citation:4].

Even if the email is not blocked outright, it may be filtered as spam due to missing authentication records. SPF (Sender Policy Framework) and DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) are DNS records that prove the email was sent from an authorized server. Without these records, email providers assume the message might be forged and treat it as suspicious [citation:4].

Another common cause is that specific LearnPress email notifications are turned off inside the plugin settings. If the “New Order” notification is disabled, the admin will never know when someone enrolls in a course. If the “Enrolled Course” notification is disabled, students will never receive confirmation of their enrollment [citation:4].

How to check if LearnPress email notifications are enabled

Navigate to LearnPress → Settings → Email tab. You will see a list of all email types that LearnPress sends, including “New Order,” “Enrolled Course,” “Completed Course,” and others. Check that each notification has a blue checkmark next to the “Email” column. If any are missing, enable them individually or use the “Enable All” button at the bottom of the page to activate every notification type [citation:4].

Step by step guide to fixing LearnPress email problems

Follow these steps in order to restore email notifications in LearnPress. The most important step is configuring an SMTP plugin to replace the unreliable wp_mail() function.

• Check that LearnPress email notifications are enabled in LearnPress → Settings → Email
• Install an SMTP plugin like FluentSMTP or Post SMTP from the WordPress repository
• Connect the SMTP plugin to a professional email service such as Brevo (formerly Sendinblue), SendLayer, or SMTP2GO [citation:4]
• Create a free account on Brevo for up to 300 emails per day, which is sufficient for most small course websites
• Copy the SMTP credentials from the email service dashboard into the SMTP plugin settings
• Send a test email using the SMTP plugin to verify the connection works properly before testing LearnPress
• Add SPF and DKIM records to the domain DNS settings as instructed by the email service
• Wait up to 48 hours for DNS changes to propagate across the global internet system
• Test a course enrollment to see if the email notifications arrive in the inbox
• Use mail-tester.com to score the email and identify any remaining deliverability problems

How to force a consistent From email address for LearnPress notifications

When different plugins use different sender addresses, it creates confusion for email servers and increases the chance of messages being marked as spam. In your SMTP plugin settings, set a consistent “From” email address that matches your website domain (e.g., courses@yourwebsite.com). Enable the option to prevent other plugins from changing this address. This ensures that all LearnPress notifications use the same authenticated sender, improving deliverability [citation:4].

LearnPress email troubleshooting reference table

Here is a reference table for diagnosing email problems in LearnPress based on specific symptoms you might encounter.

For more information about LearnPress email configuration, visit the LearnPress page on wpwizzy.com.

Preventing LearnPress email problems in the future

Always configure SMTP as soon as you install LearnPress, before creating any courses or accepting any students. This ensures that all email notifications work correctly from day one. Test the enrollment process regularly from different email providers (Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo) to ensure reliable delivery across all major platforms. Monitor email delivery reports provided by the SMTP service to catch potential problems before they become critical issues.

Keep LearnPress and all add-ons updated to their latest versions on a regular schedule, as updates often include fixes for email-related issues. Regularly check the spam folder for course notifications, and consider adding a note in welcome emails telling students to check their spam folder if they do not receive expected communications. Document all SMTP configuration settings for future reference, especially when multiple people manage the website.