edX Review: Is It A Legit Elearning Platform?

Catherine Cooke

16 March, 2023

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If you came across this edX review it means you probably want to know all about edX, right?

Let’s start with a brief overview of this elearning community. If formal education is something you are looking for then you are considering the right platform. edX offers over 3,000+ online courses and 300+ programs that are created by its top partners, 160 institutions in total like Harvard and Berkeley University.

Sounds pretty promising so far, right?

edX new logo banner

edX is a credible platform for education and learning. It was actually founded by professors from Harvard and MIT and has more than 44+ million learners. Its courses are created and taught by some of the top-ranked universities and industry-leading companies in the world.

If you want to hang around to find out more, let’s delve a little deeper into this detailed edX review.

Verified Certificates

You will receive a verified certificate on completion of your course.

Partnerships

Courses are partnered with prestigious organizations, universities and companies like Harvard, Berkeley and Microsoft.

14-day Refund Policy

If you decide within 14 days of purchasing a verified course that you don’t want to continue, edX will give you a full refund immediately.

Free Course Audit Option

You will be granted access to all course materials except graded assignments and you won’t receive a verified certificate at the end of the course. Other than that, you can follow most courses for free.

Learn At Your Own Pace

The majority of courses are self-paced and can begin at any time.

Limited Topics

edX specializes in higher education and the sciences, so you won’t find all the topics (e.g. baking or filmmaking). Alternatively, if you looking for a broader range of topics check out Skillshare or Udemy.

No Course Structure

edX courses are put together by their partners who have the freedom to create the course as they like, this can lead to course inconsistency.

edX Review Verdict

edx is an online platform offering a wide range of courses and learning programs that are partnered with the top Universities and Organizations. edX’s popular subjects include Computer Science, Language, Data Science, Business & Management, Engineering and Humanities and all include dozens of subcategories. Many of its courses and programs have a start and end date and are instructor led. After successfully completing your course or program, you will receive a verified certificate. edX also offers a plan for businesses which can be custom-curated to meet the needs of your team or organization. Each course or program is paid for individually and a 14-day refund policy is available if you do change your mind. edX does offer the option to audit some courses, which means you can learn for free, this does mean that the course has limitations, and you won’t have full access to all its features. But it’s a great way to get started if you aren’t ready to financially commit.

Who Is edX For?

You may be asking yourself, Is edX right for me?

Well, let’s dive right in and see what all the fuss is about.

If you are looking for a higher education course, then edX may be what you are looking for. It offers 3,000+ interactive online courses and 300+ programs that are partnered with the world’s best universities, colleges and organizations.  If a verified course with certificate of completion is something that you are looking for, then you are considering the right option.

edX 3000+ Courses

edX Explore all courses

edX’s homepage highlights its top courses. Its main course subjects are Data Science, Computer Science, Business, Engineering, Design and much more.

edX top courses

edX Explore top courses

edX is a platform for serious learning, if you have a pretty good idea what it is you want to study then its courses should be appealing to you. If you are looking for an elearning platform that offers a broader range of topics to browse then it may be worth checking out Coursera or Udemy.

You will need to put some time and effort, as edX courses are equivalent to University subjects, if you don’t, you may struggle.

In short, edX is good for:

  • Professionals looking to gain skills
  • Learn at your own pace
  • Verified certificates to add to their academic or professional portfolios
  • Gain knowledge to advance on your careers
  • Individuals looking for affordable courses

Note: edX certificates are verified and recognized by future employers.

edX for Business

edX doesn’t only offer plans for individuals, it has plans for Businesses. edX for Business customizes plans to upskill and train your employees. As all its learning pathways are curated for each business and team, sadly it has no indication of pricing. It has worked with well recognized companies like Mercedes-Benz, Goldman Sachs and Hilton.

edX for business

edX for Business offers thousands of courses from world-class content that are informed by science to motivate and engage learners to maximize learning. The administration and learner dashboards provide insight into learner progress while services are available to solve employee skill gaps.

How Much Are edX Courses Really?

edX offers an array of courses with different pricing that reflects the type, of course. If you are looking to ‘Pursue the Verified track’ (paid option) the price range is usually between $50 to $300, cheaper if you compare it to a Full Master’s degree which can be anywhere from $10,000 to $25,000. I speak a little more in-depth about the other professional education courses that edX offers below.

Pursue the Verified track’ is the paid option in which (see image below) you will have access to all course material, graded assignments and awarded a verified certificate on successful completion of the course.

edX pursue the verified track

edX pursue the verified track

When you enrol on a course at edX you have two options.

  • If you choose to Audit this course, you will learn for free but won’t have access to all course material, and won’t earn a verified certificate when you complete the course.
  • Whereas, if you opt to ‘Pursue the Verified track’ you will have access to all the course material and earn your verified certificate.

The professional education courses which edX offers are listed below along with its approximate cost;

  • Master’s Degree: A verified program from some of the world’s top universities – $10,000 to $25,000
  • MicroMasters: Equivalent to 25-50% of a Master’s degree that is powerful to fast track your career – $600 to $1,500
  • MicroBachelors Programs: Designed for adult learners with some or no college experience looking to progress in their education – $500 to $1,500
  • Professional Certificate Programs: Critical skills for a particular career path (e.g. Microsoft) created by industry leaders – $150 to $1,000
  • Global Freshman Academy: Learners to earn full college credit for freshman year, also can opt to take individual courses for credit and transfer to another institution – Approximately $200 a credit 

How To Open An edX Account?

The registration process for edX is super easy. The design and layout of its platform are clean and intuitive. I will outline here the steps taken to register:

  1. Open a browser and visit edx.org
  2. Click Register for free in the top-right corner
  3. Or Register with Apple, Facebook, Google or Microsoft
  4. Add your Full name, Email, Public username, Password and Country/Region
  5. Click Create an account for free

edX Register

edX registration process

Once you have created your account and all signed in you can click on Explore Courses and begin checking out what edX offers.

You can then begin to by checking out either the Courses or Programs & Degrees. There is a big pool of courses/programs to choose from it will be difficult to get bored.

edX Courses

edX programs and courses

If you are looking to refine your search further, you can use the filters like Subject, Partner, Program, Level, Language, Availability and Learning Type.

edX Filters

edX filters

7 Tips To Find The Perfect edX Course

If you are feeling a little hesitant about which course is the right one for you – Do not fear. I thought it would be helpful to put together some helpful tips to help you choose the right course.

Search and filter

A very helpful feature is the use of the filters in the search bar. If you have a topic or area you want to search for, you then have the option to narrow down your search by selecting the following filters like Subject, Partner, Program, Level, Language, Availability and Learning Type. This can save some time if you already have an idea of what you are looking for

edX Filters

edX Search our catalog

Course syllabus

A clear breakdown of what topics to expect each week during the course. This gives you a broad overview of the course as a whole and highlights what will be covered and when.

edX syllabus

edX syllabus

Audit this course

When you enrol in a course on edX, you are given two learning options. One is to Pursue the Verified Track (paid option) and the other one Audit the Course. If you choose the latter you are opting to learn for free, which means you won’t have access to all the learning material and at the end of the course you will not be able to earn a verified certificate.

edX Audit this course

edX audit this course

However, checking out the course for free may be an excellent way to decide if it’s right for you (and pay for the full access later on).

Learner testimonials

At the end of every ‘About the course’ section, you will find ‘Learner testimonials’. These testimonials give you first-hand feedback on what the experience was like for others. However, there are minimal testimonials and I have only found a maximum of 2 testimonials per course. A more extensive range of testimonials would be more insightful.

edX Learner testimonials

edX learner testimonials

Pursue a verified certificate

The majority of edX courses offer verified certificates for a fee (assuming you successfully complete the course), this cost varies depending on the course. Every official and verified certificate will be signed by the instructor and have the partnered institution’s logo to prove your achievement. The certificates will require you to confirm your identity before you can receive it.

edX Certificate

edX verified certificate

Your verified certificate can be connected to your Linkedin profile and your achievement added to your CV which can help to improve your job prospects.

Meet your instructors

Included in each course description is a ‘Meet your instructors’ section which will take you to a small blurb about his or her prior experience and social links. It also highlights their areas of expertise which I think is a really nice touch and helps you get a better idea of the instructor’s specialised areas.

edX instructor

edX meet the instructors

This is super helpful for you to know more about who will be teaching the course and give you insight into the way the course will be taught. Check out if you like how it sounds.

Schools and partners

edX courses are created by one of their 160+ prestigious partnered institutions. If it is important for you to study with a particular school or partner you have the option to view all the institutions that are partnered with edX here. You can then choose your preferred institution and start to browse all the online courses that they specifically offer.

edX Schools and Partners

edX schools and partners

edX regularly partners with different types of organizations from all around the world from academic institutions to non-profit institutions or national governments and more. If there is a strong mission alignment with edX, they welcome you to get in touch to offer courses and programs.

CriteriaComment
Ease of use

To register for an edX account you’ll only need to add your full name, email and create a public username and password, then select your country of residence and your account will be created. Keep in mind that your full name is what will appear on the certificates that you earn.

The design and layout of its platform is intuitive and well organised. I particularly like how easy it is to navigate around the courses and how the partner list is easy to find.

Convenience

edX courses offer a mix of self-paced or instructor-paced classes. Instructor-paced courses will follow a set schedule and the course material comes available at specific times. In contrast, self-paced courses do not follow a set timeframe and all course material is available as soon as you start the course.

Many of its courses offer downloadable videos and transcripts which you can view offline. This makes it really convenient if you are taking a flight or somewhere without an internet connection.

Available platforms

edX can be accessed with a laptop, desktop, tablet and a smartphone.

The edX app has a 4.7 rating with both Android and Apple.

Official certifications:

edX offers verified certificates on its courses, which can be added to your CV and posted on your LinkedIn profile for future employees to see. All course material is created by its partnered institution.

edX offers other professional education courses like the Master’s Degree, MicroMasters, MicroBachelors Programs, Professional Certificate Programs and Global Freshman Academy.

Categories

edX offers 2,800+ courses that are created by their professional partners and taught by experienced instructors.

Its courses cover a wide array of topics, from introductory courses (e.g. CS50’s Introduction to Computer Science) to career-focused learning. edX’s most popular course subject areas are computer science, engineering, humanities, business management and statistics and data analysis.

edX is a platform for high-quality learning – if you are willing to commit and work hard then edX is definitely worth it.

Free courses

By opting for the Audit this course then you will be learning for free. You will be able to access the free content for the course duration. Once you have completed the course you will no longer have access.

The fact that edX offers the majority of its courses with this option means you can’t really complain.

Content quality

Every edX course is created and taught by its partnering institutions. The partners have the freedom to create and design their courses to their views.

edX courses consist of pre-recorded videos, readings, student discussion forums, homework assignments, online quizzes and exams.

Each course will vary in duration depending on course content and professional outcome.

Languages

edX courses are mostly taught in English. Some courses are offered in other languages such as Spanish, French or Chinese with English subtitles available. When you enrol in a course, you can check the course description page to see what languages the course is offered in. edX has mentioned that they do plan to offer courses in more languages in the near future.

Instructors

Every course at edX is taught by an instructor from one of its top partnered institutions. Some of its trusted partnered institutions include Harvard, Berkeley and MIT. You can be assured that the instructors are the top experts in their field.

Course requirements

There doesn’t seem to be formal course requirements to follow but due to the fact they are partnered with leading organizations like Harvard and MIT, you should expect top-quality content.

Course structure

Every edX course is from the world’s best universities, colleges and organizations. Its courses consist of weekly learning sequences that include short videos, interactive learning exercises. Courses often include tutorial videos that are similar to group discussions.

The courses which are instructor-paced have specific dates for assignments and exams and course material only becomes available at specific times as the course progresses. The course has a defined time period, such as 8 to 12 weeks.

In contrast, self-paced courses are designed so the learner can work at their own speed. All the course materials are available as soon as the course begins. The assignments and exams do not have a due date. Self-paced courses are available to complete for usually 3 to 12 months after the date the course is opened to learners.

Quizzes & tests

edX courses have quizzes and tests. If you are taking an instructor-paced course then your exams will be on specific dates whereas a self-paced course means exams can be taken whenever during the available time the course is open.

Payments & refunds

You can pay for the verified track course with a credit, debit card or PayPal. The following credit cards are accepted: American Express, Discover, Mastercard and Visa. As edX is US-based, all fees are in US dollars.

edX offers a 14-day refund policy on verified track courses. It applies 14 days after purchase or 14 days after your course starts whichever comes later. Refunds are processed immediately and should be back in your original bank account within 5-10 days.

Support

edX offers help and support on its Contact Us or Help Center page. On its Contact Us page, you can submit a support request with the Course name, Subject and specific details. On the Help Center, you can search for a specific topic or search through the FAQ.

Overall rating

edX is an elearning platform that focuses on higher education courses. The fact that it partners with top institutions is really attractive to many learners (e.g. get a Harvard certificate).

It also has the added bonus of being able to Audit its courses, which means you can learn for free. All that you need is the willingness to commit to learning.

Will edX Help Me With My Career?

edX courses are perfect for someone who is wanting to study a higher educational program, learn new skills and knowledge with the goal of advancing in their life. If you are looking to refresh and recharge your resumé and add a verified certificate to your LinkedIn profile, then it really is a no brainer.

edX certificate example

edX verified certificate example


The verified certificate from edX will provide proof to a future employee, job promotion or a college application that you have successfully completed the course. The course will include your name, institutions name and logo, edX logo, course title and professors signatures and names who taught the course.

Note: Before receiving your edX certificate you will be required to verify your identity.

Is edX Legit?

A common theme for many when they are considering an elearning platform is: Is this elearning platform legit?

edX was founded in 2012 by professors from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University. It is a non-profit organization that has had so far over 34+ million global learners. edX partners with 140+ prestigious institutions from around the world.

edX also has the Open edX project that is its web based platform. It has been developed by edX and in collaboration with top universities, technology partners and research centers. It can be used on your own server to support as many number of learners as you want. It can support degree programs, online campus and instructor and self-paced courses. Open edX is for elearning on any scale, any content or any device.

To reiterate, edX is completely safe and legit, you won’t be conned.

Partnering with edX

edX partners are a variety of organizations from academic institutions, non-profit institutions, national governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and multinational corporations.

If you’re seeking to partner with edX, there are a few critical points to be aware of;

  1. In-demand course content: Your content must be fitting with edX’s platform and of interest to its learners.
  2. One-time financial contribution: You will recieve the services and benefits that edX provides for your support fee.

Before deciding to partner with edX, I thought it would be helpful to point out some of the pros and cons.

Some of the pros are;

+ Working alongside world-famous institutions, the cream of the crop.

+ edX offers partners technical, marketing and educational support.

+ Partner with receive a percentage of the revenue generated by the course.

On the other hand, the cons are;

  The one-time financial contribution may need to be rethought in the future to maintain the volume and quality of its courses.

Partners will be solely responsible for creating strategic and in-demand content.

> Click here to become an edX partner

Last Thoughts: Is edX Worth It?

So, let’s conclude why edX is worth it.

If you are looking to study on a course to improve your knowledge or skills, then edX is definitely the right platform for you. It has such a great range of learning programs which are valued by employers since edX partners with world-recognised universities and companies.

In contrast, if you want something less serious, and you aren’t looking for a verified certification, then online learning platforms like Udacity or Skillshare would be a better option.

You will love edX for its:

  • Verified Certificates
  • Learn with a prestigious university
  • World-class instructors
  • Interactive online courses
  • Self-paced and instructor-paced courses

Please leave a comment below if you have any questions, and I’ll do my best to help you out.

Review Updates:

16/03/23 – edX FAQ: Is edX worth it?

17/02/23 – edX Review Verdict Updated

19/08/22 – General Update

23/01/22 – Verified Certificates

13/04/21 – edX for Business

12/04/21 – Most Popular edX Courses & Programs

23/03/21 Partnering with edX

Catherine Cooke

Hey. I am Catherine and I have been working as a freelancer for many years now. In 2005, I graduated from a BA honours in Art & Design from BCU and then went onto complete a Master’s Degree in Teaching from UEL. The skills I gained from learning and teaching have led me to create Upskillwise, a place for learners like myself to find the best possible resources and courses to train and upskill themselves, either personally or professionally. If you have a question, please feel free to ask me anything or leave me a comment.

Alternatives

Coursera: offers over 3,900+ courses, specializations, degrees and 100’s of free courses. It works closely with top universities and government agencies to facilitate its online courses. It is a similar platform to edX.

Skillshare: If you are looking to  start learning at an affordable cost and don’t mind not having completion certificates, check out Skillshare

Udacity: comes with a smaller number of courses, around 200. Its courses are focused on gaining skills for careers in the tech and business industry. Its Nanodegree programs are taught by experienced Industry specialists.

FAQ

Is edX worth it?

Yes, edX is worth it. Its courses and certificates are designed in partnership with top Universities like Harvard and Berkeley, so you be reassured they are of the highest quality. In addition, you can access many of its courses for free, so it’s definitely worth giving the platform a try.

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Liz Tilmouth
Liz Tilmouth
9 months ago

Hi Catherine
Just a note for your article – I have looked at a few EDX courses and those all offer the audit/free version but it has an end date which means that you are unlikely to be able to complete the course via this method.
You may wish to update your information if that checks out with you too.
Cheers

Liz

Marc M
Marc M
1 year ago

Hi Catherine, thank you for this creating this review of edX, I found it very helpful and informative. It also leaves me with more confidence that edX is a good learning platform. My only question is about taking a self-paced paid full program. If during the time of my learning, I have a question or I’m confused about a specific topic, I noticed that there is a discussion forum for each course. Are these discussion areas monitored for accuracy? I’m planning to take a programming course and wondered how I would get my questions answered. Mainly, I’m wondering, if anyone… Read more »

Sartika
Sartika
1 year ago

Hi Catherine, I am Sartika. I am doing one of the course now from Harvard Univ. My question is that there some assignments which I have to respond, but it’s stated that I can complete my response at any time before the due date (Monday, Jan 1, 2029 01.00 CET). Meanwhile the program itself (Leadership : creating public value) will ends Wednesday, Sept 21, 2022. This is a verified and certified course that I paid already. Thus this means that when I finish the course before sept 21, 2022, I can not get the certificate because some of my assignment… Read more »

Isabella Valdivia
Isabella Valdivia
1 year ago

Hi Catherine! I would like to ask if the verified edx courses are ‘globally accredited’ or just within the institutional partners. I am a university student in the Philippines and am interested in taking extra courses online that may be eligible for transferring college credit.

Thanks.

PAUL A BELCASTRO
PAUL A BELCASTRO
1 year ago

Hello Catherine Thanks so much for this excellent review. I have been thinking about taking a more structured approach to learning, and you have sold me on edx. I have been a database analyst/developer with some programming experience, but my skills are gradually getting stale. I will be investigating their various computer science courses and will most likely sign up for the certificate-type programs. BTW – your review is one of the best I have read with regards to any online course. It was clear, concise and well structured, with great links and great examples. Thanks for the review! It… Read more »

Veer
Veer
1 year ago

hi I would like know about courses

Milo jabane
Milo jabane
1 year ago

Hi Catherine as a person with not so pleasant experience with eLearning where I would complete a course then when it comes to retrieving my certificate there will always be problems. How can i verify that i will not encounter the sane with edX?

Bo Smit
Bo Smit
1 year ago

Accredited by who?

Tinashe Tadhuvana
Tinashe Tadhuvana
1 year ago

Hi Catherine. Thank you for the great reviews on online learning platforms. I appreciate your writing.

Andrew Morris
Andrew Morris
1 year ago

Thanks for an interesting article. As an employer, I would like to know if it is possible to check the authenticity of a certificate that has been shown to me by a job applicant. There is a validation number on the certificate, but that does not mean much to me. It would be easy to forge it. Thank you.

Mgoyal
Mgoyal
1 year ago

Hi Catherine,I have a bachelors in architecture and want to add more value to my education through edX. I am a little confused about the types of programs ( micromasters, short courses, professional certificates), whether any of these add more value than the other on my resume? Please advice. Thank you!

Mgoyal
Mgoyal
1 year ago

Thank you for the reply. Can you tell me about the short courses as well and the value and recognition it adds to one’s resume. I appreciate your time.

Suzanne Seif
Suzanne Seif
2 years ago

Hello Catherine, it’s a very interesting and useful article. Do you have a similar one but for Universities that want to partner with edX or Coursera? for example that shows the pros and cons to become an edX partner?
Thank you!

Suzanne Seif
Suzanne Seif
2 years ago

Thank you!! sorry I didn’t notice this part 🤦‍♀️ do you have a similar one for the Coursera partnership?

Bud
Bud
2 years ago

Hi Catherine.
Happy St Patrick’s Day.
Is there a specified cadence for each class schedule or can you go at your own pace? (preferably accelerated)
Please advise, thank you.

Ld367
Ld367
2 years ago

The second I saw that there were no cons, I wondered if this was a dependable review. Other than that, the one thing that turned me off, that absolutely should be fixed, is where it says “This course is good for …” And under that, “Young professionals looking to gain skills.” Never, ever exclude any potential business when you’re trying to sell a product. I’m not young and they just lost my business.

Busisiwe
Busisiwe
2 years ago

Hi Catherine I’m. From south Africa and I just enrolled with edx, I want to if I will. Be able to get a hard copy of my certificate via email

Angela Kazazian
Angela Kazazian
2 years ago

Hi Catherine, I am auditing a class right now and I am being offered an EDXQELCOME at checkout. Im over halfway through the class. If I choose that option now, the upgrade, would I qualify for the certificate or do I have to start over? I completed all required course work. Thank you Catherine.

Lll
Lll
2 years ago

Where are the cons?

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