E-Learning Sites Like Udemy You Can Use for Online Education

What do you look for when choosing a learning platform for online courses?

Whether you’re in it for the variety of course topics, the reputation of partner institutions, or user interface, there will ALWAYS be a platform for you!

Sites like Udemy, one of the most popular e-learning sites right now, ALL have their own specialties.

Lucky for you, WE put together this list for you to compare them with each other! We’re certain you’ll find the perfect online learning platform for you by the end of this article.

Let’s begin!

Six Alternative Sites Like Udemy: Choosing the Right One for YOU…

First off, it’s best to approach this list by thinking that these are sites LIKE Udemy… rather than seeing all of them as COMPETITORS.

Learning platforms have ALL come a long way to cater to their specific audiences: from ones that help you develop SOFTWARE SKILLS to HARD SCIENCES and finally THE HUMANITIES.

Data science, artificial intelligence? You’d be surprised by just how varied topics are these days!

That said… we hope you look at these ALTERNATIVES as you simply would other sites like Udemy. 

Coursera: Best Overall Alternative Site

Key Features:

• Comprehensive and Varied Offered Courses
• Bachelor’s and Master’s Diploma Courses
• Certification Upon Completion
• Reputable Partner Institutions (Ivy Leagues, Top Business Schools Internationally, and more)

Coursera is our Best Overall Site for a reason. It is undoubtedly one of the most popular learning e-learning platforms right now!

With instructors hailing from the likes of Yale University, Duke University, Google, and IBM, you’re DEFINITELY up for some quality courses.

And just like Udemy, you can expect a variety of programs and courses to choose from.

Let’s Talk About Courses!

Coursera promotes its platform as having been strengthened by these FOUR PILLARS:

• WORLD-CLASS. Coursera allows you to learn online from experts hailing from OVER 200 LEADING UNIVERSITIES AND COMPANIES.
• AFFORDABLE. You have access to FREE COURSES AND PROGRAMS. You are also entitled to a FREE TRIAL for easier integration into the Coursera education!
• FLEXIBLE. Nothing can get more flexible than having certificate programs ON-DEMAND.
• JOB-RELEVANT. More importantly, the courses you enroll yourself into help you gain ESSENTIAL INDUSTRY SKILLS.

Much like Udemy, you can expect A LOT of entrepreneurial and business courses from Coursera.

You’ll also find similar disciplines related to computer science, social sciences, language courses, and the humanities.

And yet unlike different online learning platforms like Udemy, Coursera EMPHASIZES the multi-faceted nature of education…

You CAN learn creative writing directly, WHILE also learning about technology courses like software development, cloud computing, and data science!

Even better is how Coursera offers their services AS PARTNERSHIPS with various institutions:

Coursera for Business

This is GREAT for onboarding your team!

By partnering your business with Coursera, you can easily have your team enroll in classes relevant to your discipline:

• Hands-on learning for FASTER SKILL ACQUISITION
• Tracking and measuring skills as BENCHMARKS AGAINST INDUSTRY PEERS

This partnership inspires INNOVATION, COMPETITION, AND GROWTH in your business.

Coursera for Campus

Now, THIS is a feature that really boomed over the pandemic.

Coursera EMPOWERS universities by providing their students with job-relevant and credit-ready courses… and most of the time, FOR FREE.

Depending on the partnership, peers of these educational institutions gain access to PAID COURSES and other PREMIUM COURSES that would otherwise have you pay for certification.

This further leads to:

• Improved employability of students
• Mastery with guided projects, course assessments, and self-paced learning

You are free to explore courses of INTEREST, and NOT NECESSARILY for your degree program! You could also explore the diploma courses if you’re interested in MORE than just a certification.

Fostered partnerships include Carnegie Mellon, Columbia University, Stanford, European University Institute, Jacobs University, and a lot more… they might just offer courses right up your alley!

Coursera for Government

Similarly, learning paths to new jobs for the GOVERNMENT WORKFORCE can be accessed through Coursera partnerships.

This makes sure that regional employees and the workforce are READY for anything.

Sounds Great! So What’s the Catch?

Coursera offers FEWER COURSES than Udemy.

The great thing though is that Coursera tackles more in-depth discussions and higher difficulty programs for you to MASTER.

Additionally, you would have to PAY for a lot of courses if you are not affiliated with any partner institutions.

Nonetheless, Coursera is proven to provide QUALITY AND VALUABLE COURSES for both your present and future endeavors… Coursera is DEFINITELY the learning platform for you.

Skillshare: Best Value Alternative Site

Key Features:

• Platform for Creatives Learning
• Affordable Quality and Practical Courses
• Intuitive Site Browsing

Skillshare is our Best Value Site simply because you get MORE than what you pay for!

The online learning platform is designed to help creators with their content. That said, the SKILLS that you learn do not only benefit your present needs but may be useful for future content onwards as well.

As we talk about the website more, you’ll soon find out that Skillshare works just like Udemy.

Let’s Talk About Courses!

Skillshare is best for CONTENT CREATORS and CREATIVE PROFESSIONALS.

This means you can expect a VARIETY OF ONLINE COURSES ranging from the following:

• Film & Video
• Animation
• Music
• Web Development
• Social Media Marketing
• Business Analytics

Skillshare heavily centers on creative topics. It also teaches you HOW to hone these hard skills by letting you BUILD YOUR OWN PLATFORM through some business and marketing topics.

It would be highly recommended for you to check out a free course on a topic that interests you!

Speaking of Free Courses… How Does Pricing In Skillshare Work?

What’s GREAT about Skillshare is that it offers A LOT of free courses.

Additionally, they have low-cost premium subscriptions that give you access to even more courses that are otherwise NOT FREE!

There are also TWO MORE FEATURES that make Skillshare more affordable: Teams and Scholarships.

Let’s discuss them briefly…

Skillshare for Teams

Skillshare allows companies to give CORPORATE GIFT CARDS to their employees for short-term enrollment.

However, Skillshare also offers TEAM PLANS for easier integration of new employees:

• Starter Plan. Priced at $139 per user, per year, this is BEST FOR TEAMS OF 2-20. Your team gains unlimited access to over 35,000 classes and you will be able to easily MONITOR their progress as an admin!
• Enterprise Plan. With a customized pricing plan, this is BEST FOR TEAMS OF 20+. Skillshare provides your team with a Customer Success Manager to help report your team’s progress.
• Revive Plan. Also with a customized pricing plan, this is BEST FOR TEAMS OF 50+. The plan offers better curation of courses for your team.

Scholarships

Skillshare also offers scholarships for students and freelancers who meet their requirements.

Common scholarships include:

• 50% off for ONE YEAR MEMBERSHIP of eligible university students
• ONE FREE YEAR MEMBERSHIP to 10 recipients who demonstrate financial needs

Overall, Skillshare offers TWO WEEKS OF FREE ACCESS to all of its courses for new users.

We highly suggest you take ADVANTAGE of this to see whether a Skillshare subscription merits you.

Sounds Great! So What’s The Catch?

Depending on your needs, Skillshare might have fewer offered online courses compared to other sites like Udemy. They also do NOT offer certificate courses from their online training.

Nonetheless, the TECHNICAL TRAINING offered by this online learning platform is great as is.

Khan Academy: Best Budget Alternative Site

Key Features:

• Free Courses
• College Entrance Tests Preparation
• Concise and Comprehensive Courses and Study Guides

Khan Academy is a non-profit organization that offers courses FREE OF CHARGE.

It is our Best Budget Site because it provides MASTERY OF THE SUBJECT better than most online learning platforms right now… and of course, all at an affordable price!

Let’s Talk About Courses!

The platform provides lessons that are SHORT, EASY TO DIGEST, and ENGAGING. This is because the learning platform’s goal is the mastery of topics that you learn elsewhere.

This is famous especially among STUDENTS studying the following disciplines:

• Mathematics
• Physics
• Chemistry
• Biology
• Computer Science
• Engineering
• Economics

Through the site, you gain access to mini-quizzes, assessments, tasks, and assignments to test what you have learned so far. It also offers PRACTICE TESTS for college entrance tests like the SAT, ACT, and LSAT.

The courses are easy to understand, too! Users particularly like how  the online learning platform designs their courses to make this possible:

• Conversational Language. Khan Academy believes in the use of LESS JARGON for MORE NATURAL EXPLANATIONS.
• Visual Learning. The platform also ensures the proper combination of text and video-based lectures for better knowledge retention.
• Topic Balance. Content-wise, it’s great that the site also provides PRACTICAL CONTEXTS in addition to theoretical discussions.

Overall, the learning platform offers the best self-paced courses for a still incredible learning experience.

Khan Academy Kids

This is another feature that the website offers. It’s a separate space specifically designed to teach CHILDREN.

With an even friendlier tone to their courses, parents LOVE the aid of the separate Khan Academy Kids website for further tutoring their children.

Resources in this site particularly include:

• Video and text formats
• Coloring books
• Recreational activities

All of these help develop better PRACTICAL UNDERSTANDING for kids who can’t keep up with the normal pace of their schools.

Sounds Great! So What’s The Catch?

Although it makes up for INTERACTIVITY, some learners might find it hard to adjust to its less collaborative course design…

What this specifically refers to is how the platform particularly caters to self-learners instead.

Nonetheless, it doesn’t take away from the fact that it is a GREAT PLATFORM for additional learning.

Codecademy

Key Features:

• Coding and Computer Programming Courses
• Certificate Courses
• Gamification Course Design

Codecademy is the BEST e-learning platform to learn coding or programming.

Unlike other online learning platforms on this list, Codecademy offers course materials specifically under this discipline!

Let’s Talk About Courses!

Codecademy offers classes following the major markup and programming languages among many others:

• HTML
• CSS
• C++
• Java
• Python
• SQL

What’s even greater is that Codecademy designs its online courses to suit BOTH beginners and experienced programmers!

To do this, all the course materials in Codecademy employ GAMIFICATION… learning paths are created by establishing play IN LEARNING.

This is a unique approach to knowledge retention as it keeps students ENGAGED.

Codecademy is able to teach students programming with enough practical level training!

How Does Pricing In Codecademy Work?

Compared to other sites like Udemy, Codecademy is on the more expensive side of learning platforms.

Codecademy offers THREE PRICING PLANS:

• Free Plan. Access to online courses mostly in VIDEO format. Lots of limitations, you will barely get anything else.
• Pro Plan. Paid programs for $19.99 per month give you courses AND quizzes, project requirements, and progress tracking.
• Intensive Plan. This is a $199 in-depth course that gives you 1-3 project requirements with GUIDED LEARNING from professional developers. You get to communicate directly with Codecademy instructor programmers!

The platform, unfortunately, does NOT offer free trials of the Pro and Intensive plans… other online learning sites usually do.

Additionally, you can pay $199 for certification of more advanced courses.

Sounds Great! So What’s The Catch?

Pricing may be one of them depending on who you ask… but more users actually report problems related to site navigation.

Yes, the site is interface-friendly and intuitive. The problem is in the COURSE DESCRIPTIONS.

• The descriptions contain A LOT OF JARGON. Students may find keyword-searching easy, but BEGINNERS might find it difficult to decide on which online courses to choose.
• Even ADVANCED PROGRAMMERS find it hard to settle on courses. More advanced topics can only be accessed by FINISHING THE BASICS first.

In Codecademy, programming really is designed to be helpful for both beginners and professionals alike.

edX

Key Features:

• Free Courses
• Certification Upon Completion
• Reputable Partner Institutions (Ivy Leagues, Multinational Companies, and more)

The learning platform edX is founded AND taught by professors from Harvard and MIT.

Catering to over 34 million students, it’s one of the most reputable in the market right now!

Let’s Talk About Courses!

There are more than 3,000 online courses and programs within the content library of edX.

With varied topics from over 150 partner institutions, you can get a bit of almost everything in edX:

• Business and Management
• Engineering
• Data Science
• Language and Humanities

You can also DEFINITELY get certifications from the likes of MIT, Harvard, and other top organizations from the edX curriculum! This is essentially where edX shows how it compares to other sites like Udemy.

Yet more than Udemy, edX certainly offers online courses from more prestigious universities than the former.

• Collaborations. The edX platform secures PARTNERSHIPS with renowned universities and organizations as part of their curricula.
• Feedback. The edX platform also encourages instructors to COMMENT on the students’ projects and assignments.
• Interactive. Most especially, the edX courses are DESIGNED to be more enjoyable than usual theoretical-based learning!

Additionally, edX also offers two-way dialogue courses that are unrivaled! This is definitely what makes it have a MORE interactive learning environment compared to sites like Udemy.

Feedback is simply what students ASPIRE to have in the online setup.

These features are all of course only made possible by the establishment of key relationships with GREAT instructors.

How Does Pricing In edX Work?

The PAID COURSES in edX can guarantee you certificates upon completion.

You can expect to pay within a price range of $50 to $300 for each course depending on the DIFFICULTY and EXPERTISE offered and gained from each one.

There are also some advantages when availing of courses in edX:

• REFUND POLICY. You can start on a PREMIUM COURSE and decide to back out within 14 days. This is GREAT especially if you suddenly feel like the course is not a perfect fit for you.
• FREE COURSE AUDIT. You can likewise still access ALL COURSE MATERIALS on the site for other courses on the side. You just won’t be able to receive certifications for your progress.

Premium or not, most of them are more importantly still self-paced!

Sounds Great! So What’s The Catch?

Despite the NUMBER OF AVAILABLE COURSES, there is still an evident limitation in the topics that edX offers. Unlike other sites like Udemy, edX doesn’t offer that many courses for hobbyists and creatives.

Additionally, course structure may heavily vary depending on the partners who create courses as tasked. This sometimes results in users recognizing course inconsistencies.

LinkedIn Learning

Key Features:

• Extensive Library of Course Materials
• Courses For Improved Employability
• Monthly Subscription Model

LinkedIn Learning is the go-to website if you want to develop your skills in Business, Technology, or the Creatives.

As professionals and employers now MIGRATE to LinkedIn for finding prospect job employees, it’s almost a no-brainer to want to hop onto the LinkedIn Learning train!

Let’s Talk About Courses!

This side offers courses aimed at WORKING PROFESSIONALS. They’re meant to provide you with REAL practical skills for better job performance.

That said, several courses and programs teach you a lot on how to strengthen your BUSINESS SENSE and enhance your CREATIVE FREELANCING SKILLS:

• Software Development
• Web Development
• Graphic Design
• Social Media Marketing
• Human Resources Management

You can even learn MORE practical skills through their Microsoft Excel lessons and workshops.

LinkedIn Learning makes as many courses perfect for online learning!

How Does Pricing In LinkedIn Learning Work?

There are unfortunately NO FREE COURSES on the platform.

However, there are THREE CONVENIENT WAYS for you to gain access to any of the platform’s course materials:

Individual Course

These would usually cost you around $20 to $40.

This is a GREAT option if you plan to take only one online course… or maybe you might just want to learn more about the platform itself!

A purchase would entail you the following BENEFITS:

• Unlimited offline rewatching of the course
• No time limit for accessing the course

Now to finally find this feature and finally start on your journey, here are the SIMPLE STEPS that you can follow:

• Find the individual course that you want to enroll in
• Click the Buy This Course button specific to the course
• Select the appropriate Subject or Software

This will officially enroll you in a class!

Monthly And Annual Subscriptions

Both of these subscriptions give you the same benefits:

• Access to over 16,000 expert-led courses
• Personalized course recommendations from your LinkedIn interests
• Practice exercises and activities
• Downloadable files for offline viewing
• Certification upon course completion (you can share this on your LinkedIn profile!)

Nothing short of great, right?

The specific fees are as follows:

• Monthly Subscription: $29.99 per month
• Annual Subscription. $240 payment per year (around $19.99 per month)

LinkedIn Learning also offers a free 1-month trial if that can suit your needs better.

Sounds Great! So What’s The Catch?

Unfortunately, their ENTIRE COURSE LIBRARY can only be accessed upon payment… nothing is free on the platform.

Additionally, it doesn’t have any unique courses that you can find on other sites like Udemy.

Don’t worry though! This doesn’t take away the fact that a subscription can still give you UNLIMITED ACCESS to an already extensive library of course materials.

How Does Udemy Work?

Udemy is an open online course platform where ANYONE can create courses as alternatives to physical educational classes.

Likewise, student enrollees in the form of online users can gain FREE KNOWLEDGE and earn CERTIFICATIONS for it… these users can be YOU!

Several courses in Udemy provide these users the PRACTICAL SKILLS industry professionals highly and deeply value.

Let’s Talk About Udemy Courses!

There are OVER 40,000 ONLINE COURSES to choose from in Udemy.

Having already served over 10 million students, the platform offers VARIOUS TOPICS AND PROGRAMS ranging from the following:

• Design and Marketing
• Data Science
• Business and Development
• IT and Software
• Photography and Music
• Personal Development

Courses are especially taught by professionals worldwide. Unlike sites like Udemy, these industry leaders are NOT necessarily affiliated with huge universities or companies.

You can simply learn from professionals who EXCEL in their respective fields!

You just need to FIND THE RIGHT EDUCATIONAL PLAN AND UNIQUE LEARNING PATTERN FOR YOU.

Great! How’s the Pricing?

Udemy actually offers both FREE AND PAID COURSES.

There are quite a few differences between the two so let’s discuss them briefly!

Udemy Free Courses

Udemy designs their free courses as a sneak peek at what you can ACTUALLY GET from their paid counterparts… that said, free classes are usually not as comprehensive:

• Limit of 2-hour video lessons
• No consultation with other students
• No direct feedback from an instructor

These limitations are great introductions to the Udemy platform.

However, they demonstrate obvious lapses when compared to the advantages you can get with an UPGRADE TO UDEMY PREMIUM COURSES.

Udemy Paid Courses

Instructors DETERMINE and SET the price of the course materials.

These can range from $12.99 to $199.99 with additional in-site discounts from Udemy!

But what exactly makes premium courses WORTH the additional upgrade? Well here’s just some of them for your reference:

• Certification of completion
• Lifetime access to the course material
• Access via the Udemy app
• Course discussion with instructors and fellow students
• 30-day money-back guarantee

These features make it EASIER for students to learn at their own pace… you can learn anytime AND anywhere!

Finally, What’s Udemy Business?

Companies TRUST Udemy for the training of their employees.

If you are interested in teaching your team some skills for the job, then Udemy definitely offers courses under this team-based plan!

Through a DEMO, you gain the following for a sneak peek into what Udemy Business is ALL ABOUT:

• UNLIMITED ACCESS. There are over 6,000 courses you can choose from to offer to your team.
• WORLD-CLASS EDUCATION. Similarly, you do gain quality access to ALL the courses that the platform offers.
• PERSONALIZED LEARNING MANAGER & INSIGHTS. You also gain a personal learning manager AND great admin functionality in order to manage your team’s learning habits better.

It really is no wonder that even small and medium businesses alike in the Udemy Business feature.

This quality of education and care for users are some things that you should highly consider when looking at other sites like Udemy.

The Udemy Verdict

Why EXACTLY should you be interested in finding alternative sites like Udemy?

Well, here are a few things you should consider:

• Unlike other sites like Udemy, the platform does NOT offer certifications
• And unlike other sites like Udemy, the course content creators are NOT ALWAYS affiliated with more reputable institutions

Nonetheless, the course materials are all still worth it.

Udemy in itself is a GREAT platform to invest your time and resources in.

Which Learning Platform is the Best?

Learning isn’t always tailor-fit… especially if we’re talking about the existence of a thousand other platforms.

There’s always the RIGHT one for you!

If you’re starting to look for other sites like Udemy for whatever reason that may be, do consider our TOP THREE PICKS FOR YOU:

Coursera: Best Overall Alternative Site

This is the platform for you IF you value comprehensive courses from TOP BUSINESSES AND EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTES.

As one of the most popular sites like Udemy, you definitely PAY FOR WHAT YOU GET… certifications included!

Students and employees alike BOTH find Coursera courses valuable for their future careers. And trust us, employers look at the ways you show a desire for personal growth.

Skillshare: Best Value Alternative Site

Skillshare is our Best Value Site because of the way it HELPS CREATORS IMPROVE THEIR CONTENT:

• Courses to improve on creatives and visuals
• Courses to learn more about the business and marketing topics related to content creation
• Courses that are quality, practical, and affordable

With scholarships for more advanced courses, you can definitely do a lot with Skillshare despite the price!

Khan Academy: Best Budget Alternative Site

It is our Best Budget Site because it provides mastery of the subject FOR FREE!

The website is simply the go-to of students for college entrance tests preparation AND a better understanding of school topics.

The courses are interactive, easy to understand, and affordable… what’s not to like? Have you tried any of these sites? How do they fare to other sites like Udemy? Any experiences you might want to share? Let us know in the comments section below!

If you want to keep your options open, here’s a lit of the Best Online Course Platforms!