Install SmartVideo on TutorLMS

TutorLMS is a popular WordPress LMS plugin for selling and delivering courses. Because TutorLMS runs on WordPress, you can use the SmartVideo WordPress plugin’s built-in [smartvideo] shortcode to drop optimized videos straight into your lessons.

If you don’t have a SmartVideo account yet, create one at swarmify.com/start/. Once you’re registered, head back here to get set up.

Step 1: Install the SmartVideo WordPress plugin

1. In your WordPress admin, go to Plugins → Add New.
2. Search for SmartVideo and install the plugin published by Swarmify.
3. Activate the plugin and connect it to your Swarmify account when prompted.

The plugin handles the JavaScript snippet for you, so you don’t need to paste anything into your theme header.

Step 2: Use the [smartvideo] shortcode in lessons

You have two places to put the shortcode in a TutorLMS lesson:

Option A — Lesson content body (most reliable)

In the lesson editor, paste the shortcode anywhere in the lesson description or content area:

[smartvideo src="https://example.com/your-video.mp4"]

Replace the src value with the direct URL of your hosted MP4 (your own server, S3, Dropbox direct link, your WordPress Media Library, etc.). Swarmify will optimize and deliver it from there.

Option B — Lesson video field

In the TutorLMS lesson video settings, choose whichever embed / HTML / shortcode option your version offers and paste the shortcode there. If your version of TutorLMS won’t accept a shortcode in the dedicated video field, fall back to Option A — it’ll render in the same place visually for most TutorLMS themes.

Optional shortcode attributes

If you need them, the [smartvideo] shortcode supports the same attributes as the HTML tag:

[smartvideo src="https://example.com/lesson1.mp4"
            poster="https://example.com/cover.jpg"
            controls="true"]

Common attributes: poster, autoplay, muted, loop, controls, playsinline.

What happens after I install?

The first time a lesson loads, Swarmify will fetch your source MP4 and start re-encoding it for optimized delivery. This takes about 30 minutes for a typical lesson video. While it’s processing, the player still works — it just serves the original until the optimized version is ready.

If a lesson video doesn’t appear after publishing:

• Make sure the src URL points to a direct video file (.mp4, .webm, etc.), not a YouTube or Vimeo page URL.
• Check that the SmartVideo plugin is activated and connected in Settings → SmartVideo.
• If you’re using a page builder for the lesson layout, confirm it isn’t escaping the shortcode into plain text.

Related articles

• Install SmartVideo on WordPress
• How to configure SmartVideo to work with LearnDash Video Progression

Keywords: tutorlms, tutor lms, lms, course, lesson, shortcode, [smartvideo], wordpress lms, online course