Universities are not the only place you can get education from. Online Education websites became increasingly popular nowadays and there are a lot of topics covered now from programming languages to design and even social skills and lifestyle courses. Those websites may be for adding new experience or education for you current one, or for learning a new skill. It is proven also that some people who only used online education sources became able to work in any place in the technical world. Moreover, the giant tech companies started to discard the university degree from the requirements of employment. In other words, self education using online learning websites may represent the future of learning.
But with all different websites, which one you can trust for getting the correct information? which one is the cheapest and which one is the most popular. In this article we will cover the top 15 websites for online leaning, with the key features, pros and cons.
Quick Comparison
| Platform | Courses | Students | Pricing |
| Udemy | 100,000 | 30 million | Free Courses 10.99$/Course |
| Edx | 2,400 | 20 million | Free enroll 50$ per certificate |
| Coursera | 3,600 | +29$ / Course | |
| Lynda | 13,000 | 29.99$ / Month | |
| Udacity | Free Courses 399$ /Month/Course |
||
| Khan Academy | Free | ||
| Skillshare | 22,000 | 4 million | 15$ / Month |
| Codecademy | 45 million | Free enroll 40$/month premium |
|
| Future Learn | 269$ / year | ||
| Google Digital Garage |
Free | ||
| Alison | 1,000 | 13 million | Free Enroll +25$ per certificate |
Udemy
Udemy is one of the biggest online courses website in the world, with more than 100,000 online course in possible topics. 30 million students studying courses provided by Udemy and 42k instructors publish there courses there. If you want to get free online courses, then Udemy is one of the best places especially with free udemy coupons. (Check the courses we provide)
Key Features:
- Wide range of courses
- Pay per course (Usually 10.99$ in repetitive discount campaigns)
- 30 days money back guarantee.
- Lifetime access.
- Individual instructors create and publish the courses.
Pros
- Easy to access from all devices
- Certificate of completion even for the free courses
- Possibility of finding Udemy Coupons to get paid courses for free.
Cons
- Some courses has low education quality.
- Individual instructors may not be that educated about the topics.
- Wither it is 30 minutes or 50 hours long, still same price in the discounted campaign.
- Certification is not widely recognized because in most cases no tests are done.
Edx
Edx was founded by Harvard and MIT as a platform where universities and institutes can offer there online courses for the students. Later on some big names joined the platform like Microsoft to offer educational courses for their products. Edx has more than 2400 high end courses +20 million students, most courses are academic courses with content similar to what is being taught in the actual universities.
Key Features:
- Enroll for free, Pay for Certificate.
- Certificate price usually 50$.
- Institutions create and publish the courses.
Pros:
- More recognized certificate.
- Content similar to colleges.
- High quality courses.
- Easy to access from all devices.
- Can get the knowledge without paying anything.
Cons:
- Certificates are slightly expensive.
- Sometimes it is hard to pass the tests. You need 60/100 to get certificate.
- Not many online courses available.
Coursera
Coursera is also a well-known online courses platform. It has different kind of programs from single courses to full online degrees. A lot of high class universities use coursera to offer their courses. Also some giants in the tech world do, like Autodesk, Cisco and Google. Coursera has +3600 courses.
Key Features:
- Courses from 29$-99$
- Specializations from $39-$79 per month
- Online Degrees from $15-$25,000, 1 to 3 years long, Need admission.
- Institutions create and publish the courses.
Pros:
- More recognized certificate.
- Content similar to colleges.
- High quality courses.
- Easy to access from all devices.
Cons:
- Can’t access for free (You can click on Audit when trying to buy, but that only give you limited time access.)
- Slightly expensive
- Not many online courses available.
Lynda (Linkedin Learning)
Lynda (or Linked in Learning now) is a website by the famous professional network Linkedin which is owned by Microsoft now. Lynda has more than 13,000 courses. The big names of Microsoft and Linkedin behind it gave it a push toward success even though it is still not famous enough comparing to the previous listed websites.
Key Features:
- 1 month Trial.
- One subscription fee for all courses.
- 29.99$ monthly fee subscription (299.99$ Annual)
- Individual Instructors create and publish the courses.
Pros:
- High quality courses.
- Plenty of topics.
- Easy to access from all devices.
Cons:
- Not suitable if you want one course only.
- Other platforms have better discussion dashboards.
- Individual instructors may not be that educated about the topics.
Udacity
Udacity offers Nanodegree programs and free courses. Some courses are being taught in collaboration with big names like Google, AWS and IBM.
Key feature:
- Focus on Web Development, Machine Learning, AI and Industrial Engineering.
- Nanodegree monthly subscription 399$ per month.
Pros:
- High quality courses.
- 1 to 1 follow up.
- Free courses available.
- Easy to access from all devices.
Cons:
- Very commercial platform, promise more give less.
- Some Nanodegrees content is outdated.
Khan Academy
Khan Academy is a free online learning platform that live on donations. it is mainly focused on the education of students from primary till high schools. With some courses for the upper level.
Key Features:
- Completely free.
- A lot of Math, Chemistry, and Languages Courses.
- International Tests are covered like GMAT, SAT..
Pros:
- It is Free.
- Very good for young students.
- Easy to access from all devices.
Cons:
- Not wide range of topics.
- Less creative than other platforms.
Skillshare
Skillshare is also one famous online courses platform. More than 4 million students and over 22,000 courses are available.
Key Features:
- Monthly subscription to access all courses.
- 15$ per month, or 99$ annual fee for subscription.
- Institutions create and publish the courses.
- Easy to get 2 months free trial.
Codecademy
Codecademy website has more than 45 million learner. If you want to learn coding, this website must be your friend.
Key Features:
- Free to enroll in courses.
- Monthly subscription to access quizzes and other benefits.
- Fees are 39.99$/month or 240$/year.
- Wide range of programming languages courses.
Future Learn
Future Learn follows also the strategy of fixed fee to get access to all courses. A lot of universities offer there courses in the website. But the names are not as fancy as the names that publish in Edx.
Key Features:
- Short courses, In-Depth programs and Online degrees.
- Price is 269$ per year to access all courses.
Google Digital Garage
Opened recently, Google Digital Garage is a free online courses platform that offer courses mainly by Google. It also offer courses from well-known universities like Yale, Illinois and Michigan University.
Key Features:
- Free to access all courses.
- Free certificate in Digital Marketing by Google.
- Still new, more courses are being added everyday.
Alison
Alison platform has more than 13 million students around the world and 1000 courses.. You can access a wide range of courses for free, but you need to pay for the certificate from 25$ depending on the course.
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