---
title: "Shared Course Steps"
source: "https://docs.nexcess.com/software/learndash/shared-course-steps/"
description: "The Shared Course Steps feature in LearnDash allows course creators to reuse the same Lessons, Topics, or Quizzes across multiple courses. This eliminates the n…"
vertical: "Software"
area: "LearnDash"
date: "2019-04-10"
last_modified: "2026-07-02"
---

# Shared Course Steps

The **Shared Course Steps** feature in LearnDash allows course creators to reuse the same **Lessons**, **Topics**, or **Quizzes** across multiple courses. This eliminates the need to recreate content for each course and offers several benefits:

- Speeds up course creation
- Reduces duplicate content
- Allows edits to a step in one place, applied across all associated courses
- 

**WARNING**: Once **Shared Course Steps** is enabled, it should not be disabled without careful consideration. Disabling this setting will break associations between shared steps and any courses using them.

## Key Considerations

Before enabling Shared Course Steps, here are a few important details to keep in mind:

### LearnDash Course Builder Is Required

This feature only works when the **Course Builder** is enabled, since course steps are no longer linked one-to-one with a single course.

### Permalink/URL Changes

When Shared Course Steps is enabled, LearnDash updates your permalink structure to use **nested URLs**.

- **Without Shared Course Steps:**  
    `https://yoursite.com/topic/topic-name/`
- **With Shared Course Steps:**  
    `https://yoursite.com/courses/course-name/lessons/lesson-name/topic/topic-name/`

### All Courses Listing Page

In the WordPress admin, the **Assigned Course** column will no longer appear on the **Lessons**, **Topics**, or **Quizzes** listing pages.

Use the **Course filter dropdown** to view which steps belong to a specific course.

![LearnDash admin, filter lessons by course](https://docs.nexcess.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/lessons-admin-filter-by-course-animation.gif)**Important:** Editing a shared step (Lesson, Topic, or Quiz) will affect all courses using that step. To make unique edits, use the **Cloning** feature to create a copy that can be edited independently.

## Course Progression Behavior

Progress is always tracked **per course**, even when steps are shared.

Example: If a student completes a shared quiz in one course, it will **not** be marked complete in another course where that quiz also appears.

## How to Enable Shared Course Steps

- Go to **LearnDash LMS > Courses** in the WordPress admin.
- Click the **Settings** tab.
- Scroll to **Global Course Management and Display Settings**.
- Ensure the **Course Builder** is enabled.
- Toggle on **Shared Course Steps**.
- Click **Save** to apply changes.

![](https://docs.nexcess.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Shared-course-steps.png)## Understanding Key Terms

### Primary Association

A **Primary Association** means a step was linked to a course **before** Shared Course Steps was enabled. Each step can have only **one** primary course.

### Secondary Association

A **Secondary Association** is created when a step is added to another course **after** Shared Course Steps is enabled. Steps can have **multiple** secondary associations.

### Bare URL

A **Bare URL** is a standalone URL for a Lesson, Topic, or Quiz **without** a course slug. These are useful for admins when a step is not yet assigned to a course.

- **Example Bare URL:**  
    `https://yoursite.com/lessons/lesson-name/`
- **Example Nested URL:**  
    `https://yoursite.com/courses/course-name/lessons/lesson-name/`

Only administrators can access bare URLs.

## Associated Content and Course Switcher

When editing any Course, Lesson, Topic, or Quiz, a new **Associated Content** box appears in the sidebar.

This section:

- Shows which courses the step is used in
- Provides quick access to edit associated steps
- Displays a **Course Switcher** if the step belongs to more than one course

![LearnDash Associated Content metabox](https://docs.nexcess.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/learndash-associated-content-metabox-scaled.jpg)**Note:** The Associated Content box is **view-only**. To change which courses a step belongs to, always use the **Course Builder**.

When editing a **Course**, the **Associated Content** box in the sidebar displays all connected **Lessons**, **Topics**, and **Quizzes**. Click any listed step to open its edit screen directly.

When editing a **Lesson**, **Topic**, or **Quiz**, the same Associated Content box appears, showing the courses that use this step.

If the step is used in more than one course, a **Course Switcher** dropdown will also appear. This lets admins view how the step is connected in other courses. Use the Course Switcher to quickly review a step’s context across multiple courses—helpful for confirming consistency or spotting variations.

**Note:** To make changes to course-step associations, always use the **Course Builder**.

![LearnDash associated content metabox course switcher](https://docs.nexcess.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/learndash-associated-content-course-switcher-animation.gif)**FAQ and Troubleshooting**My course content is not associating correctly and redirecting me to the original course of the lessons/topics/quiz.If shared Lessons, Topics, or Quizzes are redirecting to a different course than expected:

Go to **WordPress Dashboard > Settings > Permalinks**  
Ensure **Nested URLs** are enabled

Details