July 2021 - Learn a Course Online

From graphic design to coding, there are tons of skills that you can now learn from the comfort of your own home. When you want to learn something so that you can pursue a new career, there are a variety of courses and online learning platforms that you might consider.

Two of the most popular online learning platforms in 2021 are Udemy and Skillshare. While both online learning platforms can help you meet your learning goals and assist with the learning process, the two have some differences that are worth paying attention to.

Founded in 2010, Udemy has grown rapidly to provide online courses to more than 300 million students. With 150,000 courses in 65 different languages, Udemy offers its classes on a one-off basis, allowing you to take just a single class here or there to help you meet your goals.

Skillshare’s platform is a bit more humble. Also founded in 2010 out of New York, this platform has more than 27,000 courses, which it offers to a smaller niche audience of entrepreneurs, techies, and creatives – about 8 million of them. Though still an impressively sized audience, it is admittedly quite a bit smaller than what you will find on Udemy.

Beyond comparing the basic details, it is important to conduct a more thorough comparison of the many features of Udemy vs. Skillshare to find the right platform for your needs.

Ready to learn more? In this article, we’ll conduct a thorough comparison of Skillshare vs. Udemy so that you have all the information you need to make an informed decision.

Udemy vs Skillshare Ease of Use

Take a look at user reviews, and you’ll probably discover pretty quickly that between the two, Udemy is the more popular platform – at least by numbers alone. Udemy has a larger audience than Skillshare simply because it offers a greater variety of courses in more unique and niche topics.

While Udemy is a jack of all trades, Skillshare is more of a specialist.

That said, both platforms have easy-to-use interfaces and workflows that are relatively straightforward. You don’t have to be a tech genius in order to operate them.

We;lll start by explaining the registration process.

With Udemy, you’ll just need to create an account to start, providing only your email address, password, and name. Confirm the email and you’re good to go. Registering for Skillshare is similarly straightforward. Provide a password and email account and you can get going. The slight advantage that Skillshare has over Udemy in this department is that you can choose to link a Facebook or Gmail account rather than creating a separate user ID – an advantage if you aren’t the best at remembering passwords!

Udemy can be accessed with any internet browser on a desktop or laptop computer. You can also download the Android or iOS app if you’d prefer to take your classes on the move.

Similarly, Skillshare is available for laptops and desktops by using your browser or via the app for Android or iOS.

Both platforms give you offline lifetime access to courses with their apps, but may require a paid subscription or pay for individual courses (which is often the case with Udemy) to do so.

Udemy vs Skillshare Features

Here are some of the top features to pay attention to when you are comparing Udemy vs. Skillshare.

Quality Instructors

When you take classes on either Skillshare or Udemy, you’ll find that the instructors are down to earth and easy to connect with – they’re people just like you!

Although neither platform restricts its hiring to people who are technically “experts” – you don’t have to go through an intensive vetting process to teach on either process – in a way, that’s nice. You won’t be learning from a stuffy Ph.D.! Instead, you’ll usually be learning from instructors who have valuable hands-on, real-life experience with the topics they are teaching.

The downside to this is that you may discover, after signing up for a course, that a teacher doesn’t really know what he or she is talking about. This is more problematic with Udemy, where you will be paying for individual courses, than it is for Skillshare, which follows a subscription model. With the latter, you can just close out of the course and find a new one – but with Udemy, you may find yourself out of the money.

That’s why it’s important to read instructor reviews before deciding on a course. This will help you determine whether it’s a good fit for you.

Something else you may want to take note of is the difference between teaching classes on Skillshare vs. Udemy. Both online learning platforms have a goal of providing accessible, affordable education to all students. If you want to teach online classes, you can do so on either online learning platform.

If you teach on Udemy, you’ll benefit from a transparent instructor payout model. You’ll get 50% of the revenue generated for organic course purchases or 97% for those purchased through direct instructor link. If you’re teaching in an in-demand niche, like technology, you can easily earn thousands of dollars per year because Udemy has such a huge reach.

If you decide to teach on Skillshare, you can earn a great deal of money, too, but the potential payout isn’t quite as high as what you might earn on Udemy. Skillshare is a subscription-based site so you won’t get a payout unless a student watches your class for at least 30 minutes. Then, your payment will be calculated via a complicated algorithm. It can be difficult to determine how much income your class might generate as a result.

Classes in a Variety of Categories

Both Skillshare and Udemy offer a variety of courses in many different categories. Skillshare courses encompass topics such as business, creative disciplines, technology, and “lifestyle.”

Udemy has an equally impressive – though far more extensive – variety of classes. It has hundreds of thousands of courses in just about anything you can imagine, including photography, test prep, health and fitness, office productivity, personal development, marketing, and much more.

Community of Students

Skillshare is the clear winner if you are looking for a vibrant community of students to join in your studies.

On Skillshare, you’ll join an active community of fellow learners who share projects with each other, provide feedback, and participate in a strong connection with their teachers. Courses tend to be more hands-on and interactive since most feature projects – because of this, you’ll be joining a community of your peers as you learn.

For students seeking a learning experience that more closely mimics what you might find at a real college campus, Skillshare is the way to go.

Udemy has Facebook groups, instructor conferences, and forums you can join – but the student community isn’t something that’s as widely developed as it is with Skillshare. You can’t get feedback on your work or ask questions about courses – you’ll be going this one alone. Because of this, Udemy is the better option for learners who’d rather go it solo.

Time Commitment

Both Skillshare and Udemy are online learning platforms that require minimal time commitments. This is something worth noting because there are numerous online learning platforms out there that require months of time for you to complete courses (many of which amount to full degrees and can be quite intimidating to undertake).

With both Udemy and Skillshare, you’ll be able to move through courses quickly and easily. The payment methods for the courses are different – with Udemy, you’ll buy individual courses, while with Skillshare, you’ll pay a monthly subscription – but each class is short and won’t take you more than a month to complete at most.

The shortest Skillshare courses take just ten minutes to complete, while on Udemy, the minimum is closer to half an hour – but the maximum for both platforms is still just a few hours at most. You won’t have to spend weeks, months, or years (gasp!) to learn a single topic.

Completion Certificates

Many online learning platforms offer completion certificates for the work you’ve done. With Udemy, you’ll get a certification of completion for every single class you take. You don’t have to pay extra to access this feature.

The downside to completion certificates on Udemy, though, is that they don’t offer a ton of real-world value. They aren’t measured the same as a university degree and they aren’t accredited.

Skillshare, unfortunately, does not offer completion certificates. You’ll be able to demonstrate that you’ve completed courses by showcasing the skills you’ve learned through them – but besides that, you won’t have any kind of credentials to add to your resume.

Therefore, if you’re looking to show off all the hard work you’ve done, neither Skillshare or Udemy are great fits. They’re better for people who want to take online courses simply to build their skills or have an enjoyable online learning experience.

Udemy vs Skillshare User Interface

Udemy and Skillshare have user interfaces that are admittedly different – but both can be described as clean and easy to use.

Login to Udemy, and you’ll discover that, despite the vast quantity and variety of courses available on this site, it’s still well-designed and intuitive. It’s easy to find what you’re looking for.

Organizing your classes on Udemy is simple, too, since you can create a collection of courses that are organized by topic.

Once you log in and decide to take a specific course, you’ll find that progressing through the course material is simple. Most courses consist of videos with typical video player features that allow you to manage things like quality, subtitles, and playback speed. A unique feature of Udemy’s video player is that it also allows you to add notes at certain points throughout the video – you can download and save these for later.

Plus, the lessons are all organized via the sidebar on the right-hand side. That way, you’ll be able to view each lesson and chapter with ease, marking off the lessons as you move through them to keep yourself on track.

Skillshare has a similar feature that will enable you to keep your resources organized. You can add notes to your courses just as you can with Udemy, too. Although the design of the platform isn’t quite as sleek and intuitive as what you will find with Udemy, it’s still an online learning platform that makes it easy for you to navigate through your online courses.

Again, the video player isn’t quite as modern or advanced – you won’t be able to manage subtitles or video quality. You get what you get! There is, however, a course sidebar just like you’d find with Udemy so you can navigate quickly and easily through your courses.

Udemy vs Skillshare Support

While it’s important to look at things like course content quality and pricing when you’re choosing an online learning platform, something else that needs to be explored is how much support is available. There’s no point in taking an online course if you can’t figure out how to get the help you need, exactly when you need it.

Udemy doesn’t have the easiest interface to navigate when it comes to getting help on specific course questions. However, it does have an organized database where you can find guides and tutorials to help you better navigate the platform. You can find all kinds of information here, from pricing to how to navigate technical glitches.

It can admittedly be a bit tough to get in touch with customer support here, though. You can email support@udemy.com or try to find the answers to your questions on one of Udemy’s social media platforms.

Skillshare makes it a bit easier to get in touch with support. You can simply email help@skillshare.com. Support is a bit slower with free accounts than it is with paid ones, but you’ll still have no trouble getting personalized support. There is a database of general information you can tap into, but this isn’t quite as developed as Udemy’s.

Udemy vs Skillshare Certifications

Only Udemy offers certificates of completion. You’ll be able to print a completion certificate after finishing your course – but since Udemy is not an accredited institution, the certificates don’t offer a ton of real-world value.

Most free classes don’t offer these certificates, either.

However, Udemy is still better than Skillshare in this category because Skillshare offers nothing of the sort – there are no certificates at all.

Udemy vs Skillshare Pricing

Pricing is another important feature to keep in mind.

Udemy charges for individual courses – you might pay anywhere from $10 to $200 for an individual class. Many of these are paired with regular discounts and sales, so you can often find coupons and codes to help you save money on individual courses.

Skillshare, on the other hand, charges on a subscription-based model. You’ll be able to access the entire library of high-quality courses by paying $19 a month or $99 per year. You can join and complete as many courses as you’d like.

Udemy does have free courses, too – more than 600 of them, in fact. These offer limited access to all the features, with some restricting your access to things like direct messaging and Q&A abilities. Skillshare has more free courses – more than 2000. These are offered in the form of free tutorials and allow you to participate in projects just as you normally would.

You can also sign up for a free trial of the Premium membership on Skillshare which offers unfettered access to the full library.

So while Udemy is ideal for the learner who just wants to take individual courses here and there, Skillshare is better for someone who is more serious about their online learning.

Udemy vs Skillshare Courses

You’ll find a vast variety of classes on both Skillshare and Udemy. Although Udemy offers more courses, Skillshare’s classes tend to go a little more in-depth.

Log on to Skillshare and you can narrow down a course search by topic, with sixteen categories to choose from. There are a few filters you can integrate into your search, too, like free versus paid, class duration, and the date the class was created. You can also browse recommended classes.

Before signing up for a class, you’ll be able to view available resources, information about the class structure, and a brief presentation video that has information about the course and its instructor.

Udemy’s approach is similar. You can view topics, with thirteen categories and dozens of subcategories. There are more advanced filters, too, so you can navigate by level, language, resources, duration, student reviews, and more.

On Udemy, you can take high-quality courses in categories such as:

Programming Languages
Web Development
User Experience Design
Graphic Design and Illustration
Communication
Business Analytics and Intelligence
Real Estate
Project Management
Personal Transformation
Memory and Study Skills
Personal Productivity
…and much more.

On Skillshare, classes are categorized by “Create”, “Build,” and “Thrive.” Popular course categories include:

Animation
Creative Writing
Leadership and Management
Marketing
Lifestyle
Productivity

Udemy vs Skillshare Content Quality

Both Udemy and Skillshare offer an excellent content quality for their courses, though this can vary depending on what kinds of classes you are taking and with which instructors.

Both use videos as the primary source of instruction. Skillshare classes tend to be structured into shorter, bite-sized chunks, allowing you to fit class lessons in during your lunch break or after hours.

Udemy courses tend to be a bit heftier but brush the surface of individual topics. Some instructors offer courses up to five hours long!

Skillshare has one advantage over Udemy in this department, and that is that you will be able to complete class projects. These are hands-on and will allow you to create an actual, tangible project that you can take with you into the real world.

Udemy vs Skillshare Instructors

Udemy is an online learning platform that is open to anyone. You have to meet some requirements to put together a course, but in general, just about anybody can create a class. These aren’t vetted by anyone and don’t go through any quality control. You can take a class from someone who is an expert with years of experience – but you could also take a class from a total dud!

Similarly, Skillshare is open to anyone who wants to teach a course. There is no formal vetting process and this can be both beneficial and frustrating at times.

Otherwise, the content and instructor quality are similar. Instructors on both platforms must meet certain requirements – such as minimum lengths for their courses and HD videos. Skillshare does have some courses that are taught in partnership with large companies like Adobe and Mailchimp so you may find higher-quality instructors in these courses.

Udemy vs Skillshare Course Count

Without a doubt, Udemy is the winner when it comes to sheer course count. Udemy has more than six times the courses as Skillshare does. It also has a large selection of free courses.

In addition to user-generated content, both Skillshare and Udemy also feature a handful of courses that are produced by the platforms themselves.

These are often offered in partnership with companies and industry professionals so you can really learn from the best.

Udemy vs Skillshare Available Languages

Skillshare encourages instructors to teach in any language that’s comfortable. Though its community is primarily English, there are a few language learning courses in things like German, French, and Spanish. Courses that are taught in other languages, however, are limited.

Udemy offers courses in a wide variety of other languages – dozens, in fact.

You can even search and filter courses by language so it’s easy to find the one you’re looking for.

Udemy vs Skillshare for Business

If you’re a business owner looking to help your employees develop their skills, particularly in fast-growing or ever-changing fields like marketing, both Udemy and Skillshare have solutions for you.

With Skillshare, you’ll be able to choose from three different team plans to create premium accounts for our employees. These team plans make it possible for you to access the entire library – more than 35000 courses – plus, as the employer, you’ll have user management controls over the accounts.

You’ll choose from a Starter, Enterprise, or Revive plan. The Starter plan is $139 per user, per year, while the other two plans are custom-priced.

With UDemy, you’ll need to have at least five users to qualify for the business plan. It costs $360 per year per user. You’ll be able to access the entire library of courses.

Udemy vs Skillshare Value for Money

Both Udemy and Skillshare offer excellent value for your money. It truly depends on what kind of user experience you’re looking for and what you want to get out of your courses.

With Udemy, you’ll enjoy regular discounts and sales on courses – a plus if you’re a bargain shopper!

Skillshare offers a more consistent experience, though, allowing you to enjoy unlimited access to thousands of ad-free courses provided that you sign up for a Premium membership. You can also access discounts for external services like Adobe Creative Cloud and Squarespace.

Both platforms let you access lessons via the mobile app with various offline features, too. Skillshare also has a 14-day free trial so you can give it a go before you commit to a subscription.

Udemy vs Skillshare Payments and Refunds

You can pay for your Skillshare membership with most accepted forms of payment, including PayPal, credit card, Google Pay, and Apple Pay.

Udemy accepts similar payment methods, including PayPal, credit card, Apple Pay, Google Play, and even cash, in some cases.

Skillshare has limited refund policies. You can get a refund for an annual membership payment if you get in touch with them within seven days after a charge is processed. There are no refunds available after this time and no refunds for monthly memberships, unfortunately. You can pause your membership if you are subscribed to a monthly plan and need to take a break – this can be extended for up to three months.

Udemy offers a 30-day money-back guarantee on all of its courses, no questions asked. Some users write that you do need to be careful about requesting too many refunds, however, since you can have your account flagged for a termination or suspension if you get in the habit of always wanting your money back for classes you have taken.

Conclusion

Udemy and Skillshare are both excellent online learning platforms for the vast majority of students. However, there are plenty of other alternatives besides these two choices, too. You might consider other online learning platforms like Coursera (which offers accredited degrees), edX (which is a bit pricey but offers courses from leading universities like Harvard), and Udacity (which has unique nanodegrees).

When it comes sto Skillshare vs. Udemy, neither platform comes out on top. It all depends one what your learning goals might be. Choose Udemy if you want the broadest variety of courses – but stick with Skillshare if you want top-notch instructors and would rather take a more detailed sequence of classes in the same niche.

Hopefully, this comparison of Skillshare vs. Udemy has been helpful to you in your search for the right online courses. If you’re still undecided about which one is right for you, take some time to read our detailed individual reviews of the Skillshare platform here and the Udemy platform here, too!

Looking for a one-of-a-kind learning experience? If so, you may have considered taking online courses on an online learning platform. Udemy and Udacity are two e-learning platforms that are great for students of all kinds, from those who are interested in exploring the tech industry to students seeking personal development opportunities.

While Udemy has multiple classes taught by expert instructors in everything from creative skills to machine learning, Udacity is a for-profit institution that has a variety of courses, like Udemy, along with unique nanodegree program opportunities.

So which one is right for you? Regardless of your learning goals, you’re sure to find exactly what you’re yearning for by reading this comprehensive review and comparison of the two platforms.

Related reading: Udemy Review – Is Udemy Worth it?

Udemy vs Udacity Ease of Use

If you’re new to online learning, there’s no question about it – you don’t have the time to be muddling through confusing website features and compatibility issues.

Both Udemy and Udacity make online learning easy and are both relatively easy to use.

Let’s start with Udemy. First, you’ll have to complete the registration process. To do this, you will supply your name, email address, and password. You’ll confirm your email and then you’re good to go!

Registering with Udacity is similar. You’ll provide your full name, email address, password, and birthday. However, it’s easier to use in one aspect, and that is that you can link your Facebook account instead of creating a whole new account. That can save some time and make your life a little bit easier since it’s fewer passwords you’ll need to remember!

Udemy vs Udacity Features

Here are some of the top features of both Udacity and Udemy that you should pay attention to.

Individual Courses and Nanodegrees

Both Udemy and Udacity offer individual courses in a variety of subjects.

Udemy has literally thousands of courses that cover a broad span of topics, from business and marketing to health and fitness and design. With Udemy, it’s easy to pick and choose individual classes that you might be interested in.

Udacity also offers more than 200 completely free quality courses along with several paid individual courses. Like the Udemy courses, Udacity courses tend to be self-paced. However, there is an expectation that you complete around six to ten hours per week of work (Udemy doesn’t have this kind of structure in its courses).

Another benefit of taking classes on Udacity is that you can pursue a nanodegree program – as of writing this article, there are more than three dozen nanodegrees on Udacity. Many of these are industry-leading programs offered as a partnership with top companies like AT&T, IBM, and Google.

The nanodegrees are made up of individual courses that all meet a similar goal. You’ll complete exercises and instructional videos just as you might with an individual course but at the end of the nanodegree, you’ll be expected to complete a final project.

Udacity’s curriculum tends to be more focused and niched in nature. Most courses center on programming and development, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, business, data, and other “tech-related” topics.

Lifetime Access to Courses

With Udemy, you’ll get lifetime access to your course content. That means you can log back in whenever you would like to review the material you learned in the class. If you choose to take a nanodegree on Udacity, you’ll get the same benefit – you will have indefinite access to your program as long as you’ve paid all related fees.

Partnerships

Although Udemy doesn’t partner with any major industry partners in its courses, Udacity does. You’ll learn directly from industry leaders and can often connect with them via live chats. You’ll also be able to work with these partners directly on active learning products and talk with other peers as you learn.

Because of this, Udacity offers countless job prospects for tech enthusiasts. You’ll get a certificate at the end of your course along with access to networking opportunities with real companies – a major benefit of choosing Udacity over Udemy.

Mobile App

You can access Udemy from any internet browser (Safari, Chrome, etc) on a desktop or laptop. Alternatively, you can use the mobile app – there are options for both Apple and Android users and both are easy to use. They are also free.

Sadly, although Udacity can be accessed from any kind of web browser on a laptop or desktop computer, it does not have a mobile app for Android or Apple users at the time of writing this article.

Free Courses

Both offer free courses. However, the quality of these free courses can vary widely between the two options.

Free courses on Udemy tend to be upsells for paid courses – these are meant to promote courses that are more expensive and as such, tend to be brief and of a lower overall quality. They don’t offer much value beyond the paid courses so in most cases, it’s best to opt for the paid classes instead.

Udacity, on the other hand, offers free courses that are a bit more in-depth. These classes cover a lot of the same industry-relevant material that you might find in the nanodegree programs.

The main difference between the free courses and paid courses on Udacity is that the free courses here don’t offer “bonus features” like mentorship, project reviews, or certification. They are still quite in-depth and take a lot of time to complete.

Course Features

Each class on Udemy comes with a video introduction and is categorized based on level, duration, language, price, feedback, and of course, topic. It’s easy to find past student reviews so you can get an idea of whether the course and its features are right for you

Although Udacity’s features aren’t quite as advanced, you can still search by topic, price, level, skills, and course duration. Each course has a video with a presentation of the program and feedback from students. You’ll get a detailed overview of the course syllabus and be able to read about your instructors before you get started, too.

Quality Instructors

On both Udemy and Udacity, you will learn from quality instructors who are enthusiastic about what they are teaching. Although anybody can become an instructor on Udemy – not just experts – that’s not always a bad thing. Instructors on Udemy tend to be enthusiastic about what they are teaching, while those on Udacity have the education and experience to back that enthusiasm up!

Udemy vs Udacity User Interface

The user interfaces of Udemy and Udacity are similarly easy to navigate.

Udemy has a clean, well-structured site that’s easy to follow. You can create your own categories to manage different courses that you’d like to take, saving them by category so it’s easy to come back to them later. You can also browse individual courses by category or by topic – or you can use the search bar to type in your own query.

Another nice feature of the Udemy platform is that you can filter courses based on any kind of qualification you’d like to find – such as language, average student rating, or course length. This can be super helpful when it comes to finding the ideal course for your needs!

Udemy has a nice video player that will allow you to change up the video speed and quality or to enable subtitles. You can even take notes at certain points during the video instruction!

Although individual lessons are not checked by a third-party quality control department, Udemy courses are all structured in a similar way so that they are exceptionally organized.

Udacity has a similar user interface. Although you can’t create lists of courses as you can with Udemy, you likely won’t find that you need this feature since there are far fewer courses to get through.

It also offers a similar method of structuring the lessons, though it’s a bit more creative in its approach. For each lesson, you’ll view a quick text introduction with all resources found on the left-hand side menu. You’ll also get a summary of core concepts, which can be helpful when you’re first jumping into a course.

Udacity has a video player almost identical to YouTube. This advanced player will let you change the playback speed, add subtitles, or change up the video quality.

Udemy vs Udacity Support

Udemy and Udacity both offer excellent student support.

With Udemy, you’ll be able to find a help article on just about any question you might have regarding the platform. These articles are easy to understand.

However, it can be a bit difficult to get in touch with an actual person at Udemy. While most common questions can be answered just by reading the help articles, if you have more in-depth queries, you might have trouble finding the answers to them. You can’t connect to chat with a support agent directly, although you can email support@udemy.com for help.

Udacity also has helpful articles you can read if you’re looking for an answer to a specific question. However, it is much easier to get in touch with an actual person. It can take a while to get an answer if you are a free user (paid users get priority) but you will be able to chat with a live person using the chatbot button.

Udemy vs Udacity Certifications

Udemy offers certificates of completion upon finishing a course. These are not accredited like university degrees or comparable programs at formal educational institutions and as such, cannot be used to help you transfer into a college program or to get a job.

Instead, the courses on Udemy are meant primarily for self-learning new skills in various areas. While you can use these skills in any way you see fit, perhaps to help you start a new hobby or even a new business, they aren’t meant for getting into college or landing a job. The certificates are a nice touch but don’t do much in terms of their applicability in the real world.

Udacity is not an accredited university, either. Although it offers nanodegrees, these are not degrees that can be transferred into another school for college credit.

However, since these nanodegrees tend to be focused in the tech niche, they are starting to gain some leverage there. Although a nanodegree certification still might not look as impressive as a college degree, many companies in the tech industry do hold nanodegrees in high esteem when they are hiring.

Udemy vs Udacity Pricing

Udemy and Udacity are similar in their pricing structure. Both have free courses as well as paid individual classes (the pricing for which varies widely).

Paid courses on Udemy can cost anywhere from $10 to $200 or more. There are often sales and discounts available, with some courses heavily discounted at up to 90% off.

It’s easy to find a well-rated course on a particular subject discounted from $200 to $20.

Individual courses on Udacity are priced in a similar fashion, offered at anywhere from $20 to $500 or more. However, you can also sign up for a nanodegree on Udacity. A nanodegree is typically offered at a flat rate of around $399. Udacity also has a yearly subscription model that will let you save a bit of money rather than paying for individual courses.

There are some premium courses and degrees that might cost more, but on average, these are the costs you can expect from the two online learning platforms.

Udemy vs Udacity Courses

Udemy offers courses in a variety of categories, with categories and course topic examples including:

Business (finance, public speaking, entrepreneurship, deep learning, financial analysis, finance, etc)
IT & Software (cybersecurity, CCNA, network and security, IT certification)
Office Productivity (Apple, SAP, Microsoft, Google, etc)
Design (web design, drawing, graphic design, UI design, etc)
Marketing (search engine marketing and optimization, product marketing, content marketing, mobile marketing, social media marketing)
Photography (digital, commercial, and wedding photography)
Music (various instruments like piano, guitar, and more, plus music software and music fundamentals)
Health and Fitness (meditation, nutrition, self-defense, weightlifting, yoga)
Languages (Chinese, Spanish, English, Portugues)
Lifestyle (training, gaming, arts and crafts, travel, etc)
Personal Development (personal finance, productivity, career development, study skills, leadership)
Teacher Training/Education (course creation, instructional design, presentation skills)
Development (game development, programming languages, web development)

Udacity courses tend to be much more focused on the tech industry. You’ll be able to take classes such as:

Data Engineering
Business Analytics
Programming for Data Science
AI Programming with Python
Intro to Self-Driving Cars
Predictive Analysis for Business
C++ Engineer
Marketing Analytics
Front-End Web Developer
Natural Language Processing
Data Scientist
Blockchain Developer

If you’re interested in taking a nanodegree on Udacity, you can choose between subjects like:

Product Management
Cybersecurity
BUsiness
Cloud Computing
Autonomous Systems
Programming
Data Science
Artificial Intelligence

Udemy vs Udacity Content Quality

Both Udemy and Udacity offer some excellent content quality if you know what to look for.

However, the major downfall to using Udemy for your online learning needs is that there is quite a bit of variability between individual courses. Since anybody can upload a course to Udemy – and the courses aren’t quality checked by the platform – the quality can be iffy.

Some courses are just a teacher speaking into a webcam, while others feature screen captures, slideshows, interactive projects, and other helpful features. That said, on all Udemy courses, the interaction between instructors and students tends to be quite limited as everything is prerecorded and simply uploaded to the site for individual viewing.

Udacity, on the other hand, partners with leading industry experts to deliver courses. While there is still some element of variability between courses, most offer an exceptional value. Even the free courses have an overall quality that’s most similar to what you would find at a formal university course. Some content is even provided directly by industry partners like Google!

On Udacity, you’ll be learning some of the most up-to-date material, from artificial intelligence to machine learning. You’ll be on the cutting edge since the courses are updated so often. Plus, the nanodegree programs pair you with an individual mentor for more personalized learning.

Most Udemy courses take around three to five hours to complete, but this varies widely. Some Udemy courses are as short as half an hour while others last up to 30 hours.

Udacity courses tend to have a longer, more consistent time commitment. Most take up to four months to complete, with nanodegrees naturally taking quite a bit more time than traditional, individual courses.

Udemy vs Udacity Instructors

Udemy courses are unique in that they are often taught by experts – but not always. There’s no “vetting” process involved in teaching a course on Udemy. All you have to do is create an account and sit through a brief training.

Because of this, there is quite a bit of variability in terms of content quality and instructor credentials. Beyond the brief training and orientation videos, there isn’t much to guarantee that the instructors on this platform have the expertise necessary to teach classes.

Udacity is a bit different in that you can become a mentor by building your subject matter expertise. You will need to learn ways to motivate others and provide guidance (and have some valuable leadership experience) so that you can create meaningful relationships to impart your knowledge.

While neither platform requires you to be trained in a certain field of study (or have specific credentials), Udacity does a bit of a better job in terms of training its instructors.

The best way to find the most helpful course is to read past student reviews. This is especially true with Udemy. Some courses are taught by experts and have thousands of reviews, while others seem to be thrown together just in order to make a sale. Look at the course instructor’s details and what their backgrounds are – this will give you a good idea of whether a course is worth your time.

This is true for Udacity, of course, too. While anybody can technically become an instructor on Udacity, the courses there tend to be taught by instructors who have a bit more credentials, with the current lineup of instructors including former teachers, content developers, CEOs of various companies, and more.

The Udacity founder and president even teaches a few courses himself!

Udemy vs Udacity Course Count

If you’re looking for an online learning platform with the largest selection of courses, Udemy is the way to go. This online learning resource is known for its extensive selection – there are more than 100,000 courses with options to choose from in just about any category. Whether you want to build your professional skills or are just interested in personal development, Udemy is the way to go.

Udacity has a smaller course portfolio, offering only a few hundred courses. However, it’s designed as more of a specialist learning platform so the courses tend to be much more focused.

There are business courses on Udacity as well as those that are heavily focused on the tech industry.

While Udemy will help you level up fast and build skills quickly, Udacity will provide more in-depth training that will take you a longer period of time to complete.

Udemy vs Udacity Available Languages

If you are looking for an online learning platform that supports a wide variety of languages, Udemy is the way to go.

You can filter your course search by language with options including English, Spanish, German, Portuguese, and more. It offers courses in more than 65 languages!

Udacity, on the other hand, has a backend that can be set up to support several languages (including English, German, Portuguese, Japanese, and Spanish) but individual courses aren’t offered in any language besides English.

Udemy vs Udacity for Business

If you’re a business owner who wants to offer your employees a way to keep learning and develop their professional skills, both Udemy and Udacity offer an excellent solution.

Udemy has a company-focused plan that provides your employees with full access to Udemy’s entire catalog – more than 130,000 thousand courses. You’ll pay $360 per year for access and have to have at least five users to qualify.

Alternatively, there is a custom plan on Udemy known as the Enterprise plan. Designed for companies with more than 21 users, it’s individually priced but will allow your employees to create custom content, set career paths, and access content in other languages.

Udacity has a similar Enterprise plan in which you will receive an account manager and be able to customize all of Udacity’s programs to your business needs. There’s also an onboarding procedure. Again, this is custom-priced so you will need to get in touch with Udacity directly to find out which business plan is right for you.

Udemy vs Udacity Value for Money

Both Udemy and Udacity offer superb value for your money. However, it’s important to note that they are two distinct platforms and as such, offer distinct benefits.

Udemy offers a better value for your money if you want to take short, casual courses and are looking to improve your practical skills. It’s relaxed and more casual for learners who just want to dabble in whatever it is they are looking to learn.

It is also more personalized, giving your course recommendations based on your needs and goals. It’s the best value for learners who are seeking a platform for personal development and online education.

Udacity, on the other hand, is better for more serious learners who want to pursue new job opportunities with the skills they acquire. In particular, Udacity is the better value for students who want to learn technology and computer or data science topics as well as IT professionals who want to learn new techniques of coding.

Because Udacity offers nanodegree programs, it’s also the best option for candidates seeking employment after taking their courses.

Udemy vs Udacity Payments and Refunds

Each platform has a different pricing model but both accept a wide variety of payment methods, including credit and debit cards, PayPal, and more.

If you aren’t happy with the services you receive on Udemy, you’ll be able to tap into the 30-day refund window. If you’re learning on Udacity, that window is just seven days. Because you’ll just be paying per course on Udemy (rather than for an entire degree) the refund policy here is a bit more forgiving.

Conclusion

Udemy and Udacity offer similar benefits. With both platforms, you’ll take online classes that will prepare you for work with industry-leading companies. You’ll enjoy all the benefits of a traditional degree with none of the hassle, participating in video lectures, real-world experiences, and other hands-on learning opportunities from the comfort of your own home.

While each has its own disadvantages and benefits, it’s important to weigh each of these variables carefully as you consider which individual courses and platforms are right for you. Be sure to share your experiences with both so that other students have the information they need to make an informed decision, too!

Still can’t decide? Be sure to check out our detailed reviews of Udacity and Udemy for more information!

Introduction

Are you interested in taking online courses but aren’t sure where to start?

As you likely have already discovered, you have a wide array of options when it comes to pursuing an online education. From taking individual courses on online learning platforms like Udemy to signing up for a full master’s degree on edX, there is truly something for anyone.

How do you choose the right online learning option for you? It starts with reading our detailed Udemy vs. Coursera review – and choosing which features matter most. Here’s what you need to know.

Udemy vs Coursera Ease of Use

Having a well-organized, easy-to-navigate platform is essential. After all, you don’t want to spend valuable time that could be spent learning new skills and content trying to figure out how to log in to a course in the first place!

Both Udemy and Coursera are relatively easy to use. It all starts with the registration process.

With Udemy, all you need to do is plug in your email, name, and password. You’ll have to confirm your email via a link that Udemy will send you, but that’s it. You don’t have to plug in credit card or other billing information in order to register.

Coursera has a similar registration process. However, if you’d rather register with Apple or Facebook, you can do so by linking your accounts. That means fewer passwords and usernames to remember – a major benefit.

It can be a bit overwhelming to try and find a course on Udemy because there is such a vast collection. However, the platform does a nie job of categorizing courses so that you can browse by section or subsection. There is an advanced filtering system in place, too, that will allow you to search by other qualifiers like price, feedback, duration, language, and level.

There are nearly a dozen categories and dozens of subcategories. Upon finding a course that you are interested in, you can read more about the course on the course page. You can also read things like reviews to help you get an idea of whether a course is right for you.

Udemy vs Coursera Features

Here are some of the top features offered by Udemy and Coursera.

Mobile Compatibility

Both Coursera and Udemy offer online courses that can be accessed on a desktop computer, iOS, or Android device.

The apps offered by both platforms are easy to navigate and download.

Wide Variety of Courses

Coursera and Udemy each offer thousands of courses in a variety of topics – they aren’t like many other e-learning websites that only offer classes in in-demand topics like software development.

You’ll be able to take individual courses on both. Coursera offers the added benefit of specialist programs like full degrees and master’s degrees. These can be pricey but are worth it when you consider how their prices compare to full-fledged degree programs!

Some of the most popular course categories on Udemy include:

Design
Marketing
Development
IT and Software
Personal Development
Photography
Music
Business

On Coursera, you can take classes in similar categories, such as:

Data Science
Business
Computer Science
Health
Personal Development
Physical Science and Engineering
Arts and Humanities

Quality Instructors

Both Udemy and Coursera courses are taught by quality instructors. These courses are delivered by experts and come highly recommended by the vast majority of students.

However, there are a few differences in how each platform goes about hiring its instructors.

While Coursera only employs instructors from leading universities and corporate partnerships, on Udemy, just about anyone can take a course. TO do so, all you need to do is make an account and watch an orientation video on the platform’s basic course guidelines.

This has its benefits and disadvantages. The benefit of taking a Udemy course is that you will learn from people who might not have major educational credentials – but have serious street smarts. They can walk the walk and talk the talk, with many instructors having backgrounds as authors, public speakers, chefs, or other professionals.

However, the downside to this system on Udemy is that you very well could end up taking a course from someone who doesn’t know much about their subject but instead meshed together a bunch of information from the Internet to create a hodgepodge of a course.

You won’t always learn from experts – nor will you always learn from instructors who are the best teachers. However, it’s worth noting that might be the case when you take classes on Coursera, too – just because an instructor works at Harvard doesn’t mean he has the best teaching style. He’s just credentialed!

Accreditation and Certificates

Both Udemy and Coursera offer a certificate of completion options at the end of completed courses. Online course certificates are extremely valuable additions to a resume or CV. However, with Udemy, the courses are not accredited or backed by any kind of organization.

Time Commitment

It’s worth noting the difference in time commitments required by taking courses on either platform. Purchase a course on Udemy, and you’ll have unlimited access to the material. With Coursera, you’ll only be able to start and finish on specific dates. They are more like courses offered by formal institutions.

Udemy vs Coursera User Interface

Both Coursera and Udemy have attractive websites that are easy to navigate.

After registering with Udemy, you can browse around the platform and search for a course. You have a few different options when it comes to finding the right class.

You can search for a specific optic or course or you can browse by looking at categories, subcategories, and popular topics.

A feature that is unique to Udemy – and one that we absolutely love – is the ability to receive personalized recommendations for courses. To do this, you’ll just have to answer a few questions and complete your profile. This will help you avoid feeling bogged down by the vast quantity and variety of courses available on this online learning platform.

Coursera also offers an intuitive user interface. Upon arriving at the homepage, you’ll be able to view a list of the hundreds of partners with whom the platform collaborates. You can browse the list of courses offered by specific partners or read more about other specializations that they offer. This will allow you to learn more about the instructors you might be taking classes with.

It can sometimes be a bit challenging to find the course you are looking for on Coursera because there is so much information crowded onto the homepage. It can be a bit overwhelming if you aren’t confident about what you are looking for. You also won’t receive individualized course recommendations.

It’s a tough call – while both platforms are nicely organized, Udemy is a bit easier to navigate and has a cleaner, less cluttered interface.

Udemy vs Coursera Support

Picture this – you’re sitting in front of your course, a cup of coffee by your side, ready to learn.

Then your course crashes.

You reload the page – and it crashes again.

It can be incredibly frustrating to have to deal with technical glitches when all you’re trying to do is learn. Fortunately, both Udemy and Coursera offer excellent customer support.

Udemy has a solid support system in the palace that will allow you to get help with anything you need. You can message the support chats with your name, email, and issue and somebody will contact you quickly.

Of course, there is also a helpful FAQ page that will allow you to search for a specific topic and get answers to help you solve our problem.

Coursera has a similar support system in place. You can look up a specific topic in the FAQ or you can take a look at popular categories like payments, enrollment, and account setup. It even offers a live chat feature as you are logged in, something that can be super helpful if you have a very specific question and the standard help topics just aren’t cutting it.

Udemy vs Coursera Certifications

Regardless of whether you choose to take courses on Coursera or Udemy, you can rest assured that you will be able to get a certificate of completion regardless.

With Udemy, you will receive a completion certificate as soon as you complete a paid course. The downside to a Udemy certificate, however, is that it is not formal or validated in any way. While it will look cool on your resume or LinkedIn profile, it’s not backed by credentials from any kind of accrediting body or university.

Of course, you’ll still have to pay a fee, too – if you take a free class on Udemy and decide that you want to upgrade to the verified certificate option, you can still do so afterward. You’ll just have to pay an upgrade fee.

With Coursera, you can also receive a certificate. It offers a slight advantage over Udemy in that your certificate will be verified. It will include the logo of the partner institutions, the signature of the instructor, your name, the course name, and a verification URL that will allow other people to check the authenticity of your new credentials.

Both platforms will allow you to download, print, and even share your certificates. The benefit of choosing Coursera, however, is that your certificate is more likely to be recognized by a future employer because it is offered in partnership with a leading university or corporation.

Udemy vs Coursera Pricing

Udemy and Coursera have different pricing structures though they share some similarities.

Udemy works on a pay-per-course approach, with individual courses ranging from just a few dollars to more than $200. Coursera, on the other hand, offers individual courses ranging from $29 to $99 with the option of online degrees – these can cost more than $25,000.

What about free courses?

Udemy has a large pool of free courses and was once hailed as the online learning platform with the widest variety of free classes to choose from. You can take more than 600 different free courses. Although these are more simplified than the paid courses, not offering a certificate of completion or course features like question and answer sessions, they still offer a nice value.

While we wouldn’t recommend going to Udemy solely to take free classes, a free course is a wonderful way to learn more about Udemy and to figure out whether this platform is right for you. If you’re trying to get a feel for a certain instructor’s teaching style, taking a free course from the same teacher’s portfolio will allow you to do that, too.

Coursera doesn’t offer free courses in the same way that Udemy does. Instead, you’ll be able to audit a course. This will let you study an entire topic for free but you won’t receive a certificate of completion at the end. For many students, that’s a huge benefit – you can get the same high quality of education as a paid course, just without the added credentials at the end.

Udemy vs Coursera Courses

Compared to Coursera, Udemy is the way to go if you are looking for a wide selection of courses. It has more than 100,000 different courses on many different topics. Coursera offers around 4000 courses in partnership with 200 institutions.

These courses are also offered in more languages, with 65 different options available.

The structure of the courses on either online learning platform is a bit different.

With Udemy, you can work through your courses at a pace that works best for you. All course material, from assignments to projects to videos, is self-guided and self-paced. Most contain just a few hours of video lectures and written content to work through.

Coursera includes courses that are a bit more rigorous – it’s just like taking a class at a formal institution. All classes start and finish on specific dates. You’ll have to follow a specific timeline.

With Coursera, you will be able to watch videos and complete peer-reviewed and auto-graded assignments. You may also be able to participate in discussion forums to learn more from your professors and classmates.

Udemy vs Coursera Content Quality

The content quality on both Coursera and Udemy is excellent. Coursera classes are taught by some of the most well-respected instructors in the world. These instructors work at places like MIT, Yale, Stanford, and more. There’s no question that the quality of education you will receive here is superb.

Not only that, but the accredited certificates you’ll receive after taking a Coursera course are also a bonus. These will look outstanding on your resume when you go in for an interview!

The content is more structured and requires a bigger time commitment – usually four to five months of study if you plan on pursuing a specialization program or degree.

With Udemy, you’ll have unlimited access to a wider variety of courses and be able to learn new skills in just about any topic. The content here is geared more toward the recreational learner rather than someone who is trying to boost his education in order to get a job.

The courses are not accredited or checked by a team of quality control specialists as they are with Coursera – so while the quality might not always be as good, there’s a greater breadth of content for you to choose from.

Want to learn more about what it’s like to be a student on Coursera? Be sure to check out this comprehensive review of Coursera.

Udemy vs Coursera Instructors

Finding the right instructor is essential when it comes to learning – but especially when you’re planning on doing any online learning, since this is a unique style of education that for some students, can be hard to get used to.

Udemy’s courses are taught by experienced instructors, with many courses even including the help of teaching assistants. Before you start taking a course, you can read a small blurb about an instructor’s prior experience. You can also connect via social media and ask any questions that you might have.

The only downside of Udemy is that not all courses are created according to the same standards. Just about anyone can launch a class on Udemy and it won’t always be of the highest quality or offered by the best instructors – you don’t have to have any specific types of credentials in order to teach here.

While most classes are top-notch, you do run the risk of getting a sub-par instructor. This is where reading reviews can really come in handy!

Every course on Coursera is created alongside a partnering institution, allowing you to get some reassurance in the fact that the instructors have master’s or doctoral level education. Courses are checked and verified thoroughly before they are released on the platform – each one will use a beta tester to review it and give feedback to make sure the content is up to snuff.

Curious about what else Udemy has to offer? Be sure to check out this comprehensive review of the Udemy platform.

Udemy vs Coursera Course Count

Without a doubt, Udemy is the way to go if you are looking for a variety of courses to choose from. This online learning platform has more than 100,000 courses for you to choose from in dozens of categories – which is much more than the few thousand offered by Coursera.

However, Coursera’s courses offer “quality over quantity.” As we mentioned earlier, the courses on Coursera are all offered in combination with partnering universities. These aren’t just any universities but the best universities in the world. You’ll receive a more curated experience.

Therefore, it’s up to you as to which platform will be best. While Udemu offers the highest course count, Coursera’s content quality is slightly higher.

Udemy vs Coursera Available Languages

As we mentioned earlier, Udemy really takes the cake when it comes to diversity.

This platform offers courses in 65 different languages. You can filter to find courses by language, with sample languages including English, German, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and more.

Coursera also offers a wide selection of available languages, including English, Spanish, German, Korean, Japanese, French, Brazilian Portuguese, Chinese, Russian, and more. Not only that, but these video courses also come with interactive transcripts, even on the mobile app, so you can get a clearer idea of what you are learning.

Udemy vs Coursera for Business

If you own a business and want to offer your employees a way that they can keep learning and building their professional skills, both Coursera and UDemy offer excellent resources.

Udemy has an Enterprise and Team Plan. Both will provide your employees with lifetime access to more than 100,000 courses for just $360 per year. To qualify, you must have at least five users. The enterprise plan will also give users unlimited access to courses in other languages as well as to create their own custom content and set career paths. The career paths aren’t always included in the enterprise plan, though, since these are personalized.

Coursera also offers a similar plan. These training and development programs were developed by leading institutions and meant specifically for businesses. You can choose from both Team and Enterprise options.

The Team option is best for small businesses and costs $400 per year per user in a small business. They’ll have access to Coursera’s entire library of courses. The Second option is a custom-priced package that is meant for larger organizations. It’s worth looking into if you have more than a handful of employees.

Udemy vs Coursera Value for Money

Although both Coursera and Udemy offer an excellent value for the money, it’s easy to see that Udemy is the more popular platform. Founded in 2010, this platform has more than 300 million students and courses in 65 languages. Because you can pay per course – and pay a lower price per course than Coursera – it offers an excellent value for your money. You can truly customize your learning experience.

Coursera, founded in 2012 by Stanford professors, offers a wholly different learning process. Although the content quality is typically higher on Coursera – classes are offered in partnership with leading institutions so you’ll always be learning from expert instructors – there aren’t as many classes offered.

It focuses most of its work on its partnerships with corporations, institutions, and universities. The content is more limited but may be of a higher quality. There’s not as much of an option to customize your learning experience, though, so that’s something to be considered.

Both Coursera and UDemy offer an excellent value for your money – neither necessarily come out on top. It will be up to you to decide which learning experience is best for your needs and goals.

Value for Money

Both Coursera and Udemy offer an excellent value for your money – neither necessarily come out on top. It will be up to you to decide which learning experience is best for your needs and goals.

Payments and Refunds

Both Coursera and Udemy offer flexible payment options, though each platform’s pricing structure is a bit different.

With Coursera, you’ll be able to engage in a seven-day free trial. There are also options to audit courses.

Regardless of which you choose, you will ultimately have to pay something if you want to benefit from the full Coursera experience. All courses come with a money-back guarantee.

Udemy also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. It offers numerous free courses with many less than $10.

If you need to get a refund, you can do so within 30 days of purchasing a course on Udemy. These are made to the original payment method.

Coursera also offers a flexible refund policy. If you’re paying for a subscription, you can get a refund simply by canceling the subscription.

If you have a free trial and need a refund after that, there are no worries – there are no payments made until after the free trial ends so nothing needs to be refunded Otherwise, you can get a refund for a course within two weeks of your payment. It’s important to note that you can’t be refunded if you already earned a certificate for a course, which indicates that you already completed it.

As far as payment methods go, Udemy offers payment via Google Play, the Apple App Store, Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover. You can also pay with PayPal. Coursera allows you to pay with a credit or debit card (Visa, MasterCard, JCB, Discover, or American Express) along with prepaid cards, PayPal, and more.

Conclusion

Both Coursera and Udemy offer excellent opportunities to students who are interested in building their skills and taking a wide range of courses in various topics, from data science to business fundamentals.

Depending on what kind of learning experience you’re looking for, both online learning platforms should serve you well in enhancing your experience and building your skills. They provide a phenomenal learning experience and access to some of the best instructors in the country, most of whom are experts in their content areas.

Don’t stress the decision – both Udemy and Coursera offer reasonably-priced courses in a wide range of topics. You aren’t going to be sacrificing life and limb in order to take these classes!

Know that you’ll be in good hands regardless of which of these online learning platforms you select. Enjoy the learning experience – and be sure to leave reviews after taking your courses so that others can benefit from your wisdom!