The best platforms offer a wide variety of courses to choose from, making it easy to tailor the courses to your time and pace, as well as many tools that enhance the learning experience.
If you’re looking for the best online course platform to learn from or create and sell your course, this top 10 list is for you.
Tips for choosing the best online course platform
Here are some key tips to help you choose the best online course platform.
- Identify Your Needs: Whether you want to learn or teach, you must first look within to identify the exact features you need from an online course platform.
- Check the platform’s credibility: Learning is serious business, so you need to make sure the platform is attracting the right audience.
- Compare prices and subscriptions: For learners, this one is up to you. It all comes down to the quality of education you need and the price you are willing to pay. There’s everything from free courses to courses costing thousands.
- Evaluate Ease of Use: The platform should be good, provide an intuitive user interface, or even offer mobile apps for on-the-go.
- Check for customization options: When you create a course, you want a platform that gives you the flexibility to customize your content as you see fit. If you want to learn, you want flexibility; the ability to pause modules, learn at your own pace, and so on.
Best Online Course Platforms
| Rang | Name | Spotlight | Prices | Website |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Coursera | 1,700+ Free Courses, Pro Certificates | freemium | coursera.org |
| 2. | Udemy | Affordable, buy & sell, extensive | freemium | udemy.com |
| 3. | edx | IMT &Harvard, the top professor | freemium | edx.org |
| 4. | Skillshare | For creative skills, 7 days free | $ 14 / ma | skillshare.com |
| 5. | gratis codecamp | Free list of online resources | Free | freecodecamp.org |
| 6. | After all | Create courses and sell them easily | $ 119 / ma | besides. com |
| 7. | MasterClass | Learn from recognized experts | $ 15 / ma | masterclass. com |
| 8. | Udacity | Career building, industry diploma | freemium | udacity. com |
| 9. | Khan Academy | Basis K12 & hbo-opleiding | Free | khanacademy.org |
| 10. | Thinkific | Create courses and engage students | freemium | thinkific.com |
1. Coursera
Featured: 1,700+ free courses, professional certificates, industry collaborations
Prices: Freemium
Website: coursera.org
With over 100 million users and 5,400 courses on topics ranging from the financial markets to psychology, statistics, data science, marketing, programming, and almost anything you can think of, Coursera is an impressive online course platform for anyone serious about getting ahead in life.
You can start for free with the approximately 2,000 free courses on the platform and learn as much as you can about your target topic. Then, when you need to move forward in your career, you can enroll in one of Coursera’s numerous professional certificate programs.
Coursera partners with approximately 300 leading universities and companies to provide certification programs that can help you or someone else launch a new career in just 6 months.
These offerings include bachelor’s and master’s degrees from top universities, as well as certification programs from top companies such as Google, Meta, IBM, and Amazon. These certifications can take 3 to 12 months at 4-10 hours per week and cost $29 only.
2. Udemy
In the spotlights: Affordable courses, extensive market, buying & selling
Prices: Freemium
Website: udemy.com
Udemy offers over 200 courses on everything from programming to video making, Excel, drawing, Python, marketing, personal growth, and so on.
Udemy is also a great platform to create and market a course if you want to become a teacher. You can teach your way, earn money and get the satisfaction of helping people around the world.
The platform has over 57 million users in 180+ countries and 75+ languages. However, unlike most of the other platforms on this list, you have to buy every course you want to take. But all purchases on the platform come with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Although the prices on Udemy are quite competitive, you can still find many free courses on various topics. However, what you don’t get on the platform is certification to help you get a job like on Coursera and EdX.
3. edx
In the spotlights: Professional certificates, IMT & Harvard foundation
Prices: Freemium
Website: edx.org
If you can’t afford a Harvard or MIT degree but appreciate something pretty close, EdX might be a nice platform to check out. It offers free courses from the world’s top professors and industry experts. And everyone is welcome.
EdX was founded through a collaboration between MIT and Harvard to provide free online courses from top schools and educational institutions around the world. And if you want, you can always buy the course certificate for a small fee, which can boost your CV.
EdX offers over 5,000 courses ranging from business to art, biology, architecture, chemistry, computer programming, data analytics, law, math, history, and much more. And these courses are taught by some of the world’s top universities.
The platform has more than 40 million users and further offers the EdX MicroBachelors and MicroMasters programs that allow you to earn college credits while learning relevant skills at your own pace and becoming certified. If you wish, you can later combine these real credits to accelerate your bachelor’s or master’s degree at participating universities.
4. Sharing ability
Featured: Learn creative skills, video editing, music, art, business, and 35K+ lessons
Pricing: About $14 per month, $168 per year
Website: skillshare.com
If you’re looking for an affordable platform that allows you to learn a wide range of creative skills to boost your career or just do what you’ve always wanted to do, then you might want to check out Skillshare.
Classes here range from animation to creative writing, film and video, visual arts, music, UI/UX design, web development, business management, marketing, lifestyle, productivity, and so on.
Skillshare offers over 35,000 classes and you have unlimited access to all classes, including discovery and filtering features. You can view and manage your lessons, class overviews, and student profiles, download lessons and watch any video at home or on the go. Skillshare is also available for teams and includes an admin panel, custom experiences, and reporting.
This platform offers new members a 7-day trial with unlimited access. However, please note that you must cancel before the 7 days are up to avoid being charged if you do not want to continue.
5. Freecodekamp
In the spotlights: Free list of online learning resources
Prices: Free
Website: freecodecamp.org
Freecodecamp differs from most of the other learning platforms on this list in that it does not offer access to paid courses. Rather, it is a free service to learn how to code for free, with the option to get certified.
You can learn everything from JavaScript to Python, HTML, CSS, and so on using an interactive environment with a code sample, console, and learning instructions.
Freecodecamp also shows you all the places on the internet where you can learn stuff for free. From lists of universities that teach various science, engineering, business, etc. topics for free, to thousands of detailed tutorials on almost every programming topic on the site.
This platform is great if you’re into coding, or else you might want to look elsewhere.
6. Surprise
In the spotlights: Create and sell, marketing tools, automation, 14 days free trial
Pricing: From $119 per month
Website: kajabi. com
Kajabi is an online platform for all types, of course, developers with everything a tutor needs to excel and make money. It allows you to focus on teaching what you know best by providing all the research and marketing tools.
There are 3 plans on Kajabi, the least is the Basic at $119 per month which allows you to create and market up to 3 products using 3 funnels. It offers 1 website, 1 admin, unlimited pages, marketing emails, up to 10 contacts, and 1 active customer.
The next plan is for $159 per month. This plan allows for up to 10 admins, 15 products and funnels, 25 contacts, and 10 active customers. Plus, you get 24/7 chat support and advanced automation features, and you can remove the Kajabi branding.
Kajabi’s next plan is the Pro for $319 a month with even more features. Needless to say, this platform can be of great help if you want to create courses and earn from them. It has created more than 100 companies, and more than 300 courses, and earned more than $5 billion.
7. Masterclass
Spotlight: Learn from recognized experts, masters, and celebrities
Pricing: From $15 per month
Website: masterclass. com
Interested in learning from a recognized expert, craft master, or celebrity? Then Masterclass might be something for you.
For example, Masterclass gives you the chance to learn comedy from Steve Martin, tennis from Serena Williams, acting from Samuel L. Jackson, cinematography from Martin Scorsese, plus Pharell Williams, Spike Lee, and so on. You get the drift.
The platform offers unlimited access to all of these courses for $15 a month and you can learn anything in 11 categories from food to business, music, writing, science, wellness, and so on.
On the other hand, to successfully become a tutor on the platform, you must be an excellent expert in your field or a celebrity. All memberships include a 30-day money-back guarantee.
8. Udacity
In the spotlight: For career development, technology, AI, machine learning
Pricing: Freemium, $399 for a degree
Website: udacity. com
Udacity is a great platform for anyone looking to advance their career in technology through further education and certification. It can easily help those with the talent prepare and land real jobs.
The Udacity platform offers a combination of free and paid courses. Then there are the Nanodegree programs that start at $399 per month and last 3+ months.
Although a relatively high price, it includes real-world projects from industry experts, mentoring support, and career support to help you land your dream job.
If you want to advance your career in fields from Artificial Intelligence to Machine Learning, Data Science, Programming, Autonomous Systems, Cloud Computing, and Cyber Security, then an Udacity Nanodegree program can help you achieve your goal.
9. Khan Academy
In the spotlights: Kindergarten, primary, secondary, and higher education
Prices: Free
Website: khanacademy.org
Khan Academy is a unique offering on this list in that it is a non-profit organization that focuses on basic K12 education through early college.
The platform offers free learning materials for students, teachers, and parents. They range from math to chemistry, biology, reading, economics, physics, computer science, finance, life skills, history, and more.
Kahn Academy is fully customizable, so you get the right education step by step. Teachers can also assign lessons to students with a due date, etc. You can also use Kahn Academy for test preparation, but also to help children aged 2-7 with Kahn Kids.
The platform is available online as well as in the Android version here, while the Kahn Kids app is here and the iOS version is here. Another interesting feature of Kahn Academy is Kahnmigo, an AI-powered guide that acts as a tutor for students and an assistant for teachers.
10. Thinking
In the spots: create courses and talk to students
Prices: Freemium
Website: thinkific.com
Thinkific is another course creation platform just like Kajabi, but it offers a freemium model that lets you test the system with just 1 course, 1 community, and 1 admin for $0 per month.
With its Basic plan for $36 per month, you get unlimited courses and up to 5 common areas. This plan also allows for a custom domain as well as affiliate marketing. Other plans include the Start for $74 per month and the Grow plan for $149, each with more features.
All Thinkific plans allow you to create your course using a drag-and-drop builder. You can also add quizzes and surveys. Moreover, e-commerce payment handling is included with 0% transaction fees and many more features.
Frequently Asked Questions/FAQ
Here are the most frequently asked questions about online course platforms.
What are the benefits of online learning platforms?
They offer convenience and the flexibility to choose, as well as easy access to a wide variety of courses. They are also less expensive and can enhance the learning experience with their interactive tools. And for course creators, they provide global reach, as well as monitoring and analytics features to make improvements.
What is the best online course platform?
Each platform is unique in its way, so the best platform for you will depend on your needs and career goals.
Are there free online course platforms?
Yes, many platforms offer free courses or are completely free to use, such as Kahn Academy, edx, and free codecamp.
Are there any drawbacks or limitations to participating in online course platforms?
Yes. The first is the lack of personal interactions. Second, you need some self-motivation to keep going and complete your courses.
Can I create and sell courses on online course platforms?
Of course, if you are an expert in your field. Many teachers from all over the world earn an income by learning what they know best online.
What is a MOOC?
MOOC stands for Massive Open Online Course and refers to courses that anyone can enroll in. They are usually designed for large-scale participation over the Internet and provide people with a flexible and affordable way to learn new skills.
Conclusion
Coming to the end of this list of the web’s 10 best online course platforms, you can see that quite a few people are actively upskilling themselves and moving on with their careers and personal lives.
However, which of the above platforms you ultimately choose is up to you. Since they are all the best in their respective ways, you should pick the one that best meets your needs.
