Udemy Review: Is it The Right Elearning Platform for You?

Catherine Cooke

17 August, 2023

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You’ve probably already heard of Udemy, Right?

Well, it’s one of the largest online educational platforms out there.  You will be pleased to know that they offer over 210,000+ courses and more than 62 million+ learners. Pretty impressive, huh?

Udemy describes it selves as ‘The leading global marketplace for learning and instruction’.  They provide access to thousands of courses produced by independent instructors to millions of students.  Udemy provides access to training courses for individuals, to businesses and provides a platform for instructors and experts to host their own course content.

Sounds pretty good right?

Udemy Review

However, it doesn’t mean that Udemy is the right educational platform to enhance your knowledge and skills. Is Udemy’s content exactly what you’re looking for?

Let’s find out what all the fuss is about in this in-depth Udemy review.

Affordable

Udemy courses are affordable, starting at $11.99 and go up to $199.99.

Free Courses

Udemy is offering close to 600 free courses on a selection of topics from wordpress to fitness.

30-day Refund Policy

If the course wasn’t what you expected, Udemy will give your money back no questions asked.

Lifetime Access

Udemy will grant you access to every course you’ve purchased for life.

Wide selection of courses

Offering more than 210K+ in 13 of categories and dozens of sub-categories. You really will be spoiled for choice.

Self-Paced

All of Udemy’s courses are self-paced, so learners can start and complete courses at their own pace.

Certificate at Completion

Although the courses aren’t officially accredited, you’ll be given a certificate of completion – for paid courses only.

 

Non-Accredited Certificates

If you are looking for an official certification Udemy isn’t for you. Alternatively, check out Coursera or edX.

Doesn't create course content

With Udemy the course instructors are responsible for creating its content which can impact the quality of the course.

Quality Control of Courses

Udemy runs a quality control of the courses, but with so many how thorough can this really be.

Limited Interaction

Although some courses do offer discussion forums, the reality is there isn’t much interaction with instructors for feedback or Q&As.

Udemy Review Verdict

Udemy is the biggest online learning platform offering over 210k+ affordable online courses where users can learn new skills or improve existing ones. It offers a wide variety of categories and subcategories from Business, Design, Personal development and much more, leaving users with plenty of choice. Udemy’s courses are designed, created and published by independent instructors and learners can pay for each individual course with a one-off payment or subscribe to a personal subscription plan. All courses are designed, so you can learn at your pace and fit around your schedule. Udemy’s individual courses start at $12.99 and its personal subscription plan costs $16.58 a month, giving you access to 8,000+ courses. When you successfully complete a course, you will receive a certificate, but this certification isn’t officially verified by any external partner. Any Udemy purchased individual course comes with lifetime access and a 30-day refund policy. If you aren’t ready to financially commit, there are also a bunch of free courses to get you started.

Who Is Udemy for?

You are probably asking yourself, is Udemy right for me?

If a variety of courses is something that you are looking for, then you are considering the right elearning platform. Udemy offers such diversity of courses, there really is no limit to what you could learn with categories like ¨Finance & Accounting¨ to ¨Lifestyle¨.

If you are thinking of a career change and gaining a new professional skill like coding knowledge or maybe you want to dabble in an exciting new hobby like cake decorating, then Udemy has it all.

Udemy 10 Gorgeous Cake Decorating Techniques for All Levels

Its courses vary from beginner to advanced levels so you will certainly find a course that is suited to your skills and ambition. The diversity of its courses really makes Udemy stand out from other competitors like Skillshare or Pluralsight. The fact is that Udemy is open to everyone, it doesn’t matter if you don’t have any prior experience.

In short, Udemy is good for:

  • Professionals looking to gain skills
  • People looking for a career change
  • Students looking to complement their studies
  • Those looking for free courses
  • Individuals looking to publish their own courses
  • International students looking for courses not just in the English language

Note: That Udemy certificates are not recognized by employers because it’s not an accredited (official) institution.

Udemy Personal Plan

As well as purchasing individual courses, Udemy offers a subscription plan called Udemy Personal Plan which gives you access to 8,000+ of its top-rated courses in tech, business and more.

Udemy Personal Plan

Udemy for Business

Udemy for Business is for employees to help empower them with relevant and up-to-date knowledge with content that is taught by expert instructors. Udemy for Business offers thousands of courses from its variety of categories. It offers three different plans to choose from:

  • Team plan (5-20 users)
  • Enterprise plan (21 or more users)
  • Leadership Development Programs (Open & Private Programs)

Udemy for business

Udemy Business Plans

Team

The Team plan is designed for 5-20 users and will give the user access to 8,300+ courses. As well as that you will have features like analytics & adoption reports, custom logo & URL and mobile app access. This plan is for smaller teams and is the most affordable costing $360 per user a year.

Enterprise

The Enterprise plan is for 21+ users, which will have access to 19,000+ courses. Other features include custom logo & URL, creating learning paths, user groups, custom topics, advanced insights and analytics and much more. You can request a demo and its pricing is custom-based.

Leadership Development Programs

Finally, the Leadership Development Programs include 68+ leadership development courses, executive content curated by universities, expert faculty to guide and coach participants, live synchronous events and much more. To find out more you can contact sales for pricing.

To read a more detailed review on Udemy for Business, check out our article over on the blog.

How Much Is Udemy?

There is quite a range of prices, with some courses starting at $11.99 and others going up to $199.99. All of Udemy courses are a one-off payment which is made when you purchase the course, and you get given lifetime access, so even after completing the course, you can go back as many times as you wish.

A course with more information, harder subjects and longer run time will be naturally more expensive, which is pretty understandable. It is important to keep in mind that Udemy is not the one setting the price, that is the job of the instructors. The reputation of the instructor will also have an impact on the price tag.

Once you have an account with Udemy and are signed in, you will quickly notice a high number of discounted courses. When I say discounted, I mean heavily discounted, with some courses originally priced at $194.99 and are now $13.99. Its courses are on a constant year-round promotion of 90% to 95% discounted off the original price.

Udemy discounted courses

Udemy courses discounted

So, why does Udemy’s marketing strategy include such heavily discounted courses?

Their pricing model is focused on offering a wide range of courses for a lower price so that millions of students enrol, vs offering courses with higher prices with fewer students.

It’s a pretty simple pricing model when you break it down – a lower cost of entry for the many compared to a higher cost for the few. Because Udemy doesn’t provide accredited certificates, the course costs are lower. If you are looking to read in more detail about Udemy’s costs and refund policies, then feel free to check out our detailed cost guide to know all your options.

And if you are on a tight budget, then Udemy offers close to 600 free courses on topics like WordPress, Personal Productivity, Meditation and much more. It is a great way to test your interest and capability in learning a new topic for no cost.

Udemy Personal Plan

If you are someone that likes to have access to thousands of courses through a subscription plan. Then Udemy’s Personal Plan may suit you better. The plan includes a collection of 8,000+ top-rated courses in tech, business, and more.

  • Personal Plan: $16.58 USD monthly or $198.96 USD annually

Udemy Personal Plan

Udemy Personal Plan

All the courses you can access in the personal plan have an average rating between 4.4 and 5, that include 4,000+ practice exercises and 3,000+ top instructors. You have the option to cancel at anytime and a 7-day free trial is included when you first sign up.

> Check out Udemy Personal Plan

If you want to find out more about Udemy’s free courses, then check out this post on what free courses are available.

Udemy Gift this Course

If you are looking for a gift that is a little different for a friend or loved one, then Udemy offers the option to Gift this course. The course will be sent (via email) to the recipient as a gift, you can decide the date and even leave an optional personalized message.

Udemy Gift this course

Udemy ‘Gift This Course’ option

If, for whatever reason, you aren’t satisfied with a course, you’ll be able to refund the course within 30 days. Most refunds are returned via the original payment method (e.g. credit card) and take between 5 and 10 business days to arrive to your bank account.

If you are looking for something to help your workforce, then ‘Udemy for Business’ could be right for you and your team. It is on-demand learning for teams of 5-20 to help improve skills in business, tech, design and more. If you are curious to find out more on what Udemy for Business offers, you can check it out here.

Udemy Refund Policy

Udemy 30 day money back guarantee

Udemy believes that its learners should be satisfied with the course they purchase. In case you aren’t, the platform offers a generous 30-day refund policy. To request an Udemy refund, you just need to follow these easy steps:

  1. Navigate to your purchase history
  2. Locate the course to be refunded
  3. Below the course title, click Request Refund and you will be directed to the course refund page
  4. Select your refund method either the card you paid with or Udemy credits

Udemy request a refund

> Request an Udemy Refund

How To Open A Udemy Account?

The registration process for Udemy is really intuitive. The design and layout of their platform is user-friendly and easy to follow. But let me show you how the registration process looks like:

  1. Open a browser and visit www.udemy.com
  2. Click Sign Up in the top right corner
  3. Add your Full Name, Email and Create a Password
  4. You’ll be sent a confirmation email

Udemy Sign Up

Udemy Sign Up

Once you are signed up you can click on Categories and begin browsing the different courses on offer.

Udemy Categories

Udemy Categories

After selecting a category you can pick one of the subcategories which will take you to all the relevant courses. You can then begin to look at each course individually and read a little more in-depth.

Examples Of The Most Popular Udemy Course

I checked out the most popular courses on Udemy from its 13 categories. Its popularity is based on student popularity and feedback.

Development

2021 Complete Python Bootcamp: Go from zero to hero in Python – This course is to learn Python, a popular programming language, has had over 800,000 students enrolled. It comes with 185 lectures and 24 hours of on-demand video. It’s a bestseller with a 4.5 (out of 5) rating by students with over 450,000 reviews.

> Check out the course here

Business

An Entire MBA in 1 Course: Award Winning Business School Prof – In this course you will everything you need to know about business. It has had over 400,000 students enrolled. It includes 8 hours of on-demand video, 33 articles and 31 downloadable resources. Furthermore, it’s a bestseller with a 4.4 (out of 5) rating by students.

> Check out the course here

Finance & Accounting

The Complete Financial Analyst Course 2021 – In this course you will learn the practical skills of Financial analysis and a successful career in Finance. It includes 18 hours of on-demand video, 11 articles and 491 downloadable resources. Plus it’s a bestseller with a 4.6 (out of 5) rating by students.

> Check out the course here

IT & Software

AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate 2020 – In this course you will learn AWS (Amazon Web Services). The course is designed for absolute beginners and it includes 18 hours of on-demand video, 17 downloadable resources and 2 practice tests. It’s a bestseller with a 4.5 (out of 5) rating by students.

> Check out the course here

Office Productivity

Microsoft Excel – Excel from Beginner to Advanced – In this course you will learn a combination of introduction, intermediate and advanced Microsoft Excel courses. It includes 18 hours of on-demand video and 37 downloadable resources. It’s a bestseller with a 4.6 (out of 5) rating by students.

> Check out the course here

Personal Development

Become a SuperLearner 2: Learn Speed Reading & Boost Memory – In this course you will learn the skills of worlds fastest readers and memory record holders. It includes 5 hours of on-demand video and 5 articles. It’s a bestseller with a 4.5 (out of 5) rating by students.

> Check out the course here

Design

The Ultimate Drawing Course – Beginner to Advanced – In this course you will learn how to create advanced art, the course will enhance your skills in the world of drawing. It includes 11 hours of on-demand video, 4 downloadable resources and 5 articles. It’s a bestseller with a 4.6 (out of 5) rating by students.

> Check out the course here

Marketing

The Complete Digital Marketing Course – 12 Courses in 1 – This course is ideal for pre-launch business owners and website owners wanting to increase their traffic. It includes 22.5 hours of on-demand video, 10 downloadable resources and 38 articles. It’s a bestseller with a 4.5 (out of 5) rating by students.

> Check out the course here

Lifestyle

Reiki Level I, II and Master/Teacher Program – In this course you will about Reiki and to take the practice to the next level. It includes 5 hours of on-demand video, 39 downloadable resources and 7 articles. It’s a bestseller with a 4.7 (out of 5) rating by students.

> Check out the course here

Photography & Video

Photography Masterclass: A complete Guide to Photography – In this course beginners and advanced photographers will learn how to take amazing photos. It includes 23.5 hours of on-demand video, 31 downloadable resources and 63 articles. It’s a bestseller with a 4.7 (out of 5) rating by students.

> Check out the course here

Health & Fitness

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) Practitioner Certificate – In this course you will learn how to help people increase their mental health and wellbeing. It includes 31.5 hours of on-demand video, 168 downloadable resources and 9 articles. It’s a bestseller with a 4.6 (out of 5) rating by students.

> Check out the course here

Music

Pianoforall – Incredible New Way To Learn Piano & Keyboard – In this course you will learn piano in weeks with only 20 minutes practice a day. It includes 10 hours of on-demand video and 9 downloadable resources. It’s a bestseller with a 4.7 (out of 5) rating by students.

> Check out the course here

Teaching & Academics

IELTS Band 7+ Complete Prep Course – In this course you will learn major keys to success. It includes 80.5 hours of on-demand video, 157 downloadable resources and 10 articles. It’s a bestseller with a 4.4 (out of 5) rating by students.

> Check out the course here

Udemy Instructors

Udemy is the world’s largest online teaching and learning platform. Udemy makes it possible that anyone can become an Instructor. So if you are passionate about a topic and want to empower tens of millions of students to achieve their goals, then Udemy is for you. I wanted to share with you the teachers and the courses that Udemy learners have been enjoying so far.

Top Udemy Instructors

Alan Murray has been training businesses around the world for over 20 years. Alan is a Microsoft MVP and Excel trainer and is the founder of the Computergaga blog and author of the “Advanced Excel Success”. His classes are fun and relaxed and uses real-world practical examples from his experience of training and developing software for businesses. All of Alan’s courses have a 4.4 (and above) out 5 rating, and he has had close to 8,000 students enrol on his courses and counting.

> Check out Alan Murray’s Udemy courses here

7 Tips To Find The Perfect Udemy Course

If you are now umming and arrrhhing about which course is right for you. I have thought about some tips which may help you to choose the perfect course.

Udemy Filters

A very useful and helpful feature to use is the filter system. Once you have an idea on the Category that you want to learn about for example Development you are then able to start browsing the courses and that’s where the filter comes in pretty handy. You can select multiple filters like the Ratings, Video Duration, Topic, Subcategory, Level, Language, Price, Features or Subtitles (see image below).

 

Udemy Filters

Udemy Filters

All of these filters will help to narrow down your search and find exactly what you are looking for. I found the features is pretty helpful as you can pick the options of having Quizzes or Practice Tests.

Look at the course content and profile

You are able to check out the course content, see what lectures are included and how long each of the on-demand videos are. This gives you a comprehensive overview of the course and shows you how the various course modules are organized.

Udemy Course Content

Udemy Course Content

Read reviews at Udemy

Every Udemy course has reviews and ratings from past students in the student feedback section that you can check out to see what others think about it. Their review system will allow you to also search for certain keywords within the Search reviews box (e.g. ‘responsive instructor’). As well as a rating option where you can select between Five and One stars.

Udemy Reviews

Udemy Search Reviews

Check out the instructor

An instructor bio is included in each of the courses. You can read a small blurb about him or her, their prior experience, feedback and evaluations from other students and the courses they teach.

This is an ideal way to find more about who will be teaching the course, and some are even open to letting you contact them personally to ask particular questions.

Udemy Instructor Bio

Udemy Instructor Profile

Instructors may also add teaching assistants to their courses, who can help them with their course materials and respond to students’ questions. Even though a teaching assistant profile may not appear on the course, they are also experts in the course subject.

When was the course launched

Udemy courses are (should be) regularly updated and you can find when it was last updated in the header of the course (see image below). This is especially important if you are learning a new software application such as a program in the Adobe Suite as you will want to be learning the latest version of the software.

Udemy Last Updated

Udemy Latest Course Updates

Quality of the course preview

Another great feature is that you can preview the course before purchasing. I think this really is one of the best ways for you to get a feel of what to expect from the course, it’s very useful being able to check the quality of the course preview to give you a taste of what is to come.

Udemy Preview

Udemy Course Preview

Your budget

Due to Udemy’s pricing strategy with most of its courses heavily discounted its courses really are affordable for most. So if you are looking at it from a financial standpoint it really shouldn’t leave you out of pocket.

Udemy Popularity Selector

Udemy Sort By Pricing

A good tip, if you are on a tight budget, would be for you to list the courses by price from lowest to highest price (see image above). Remember there are also a bunch of free courses.

CriteriaComment
Ease of use

The registration process is really intuitive, you’ll only need to add your name, email and create a password. The design and layout of their platform is user-friendly and easy to follow, I particularly like how the courses are organised by categories.

Convenience

Udemy’s courses are completely on-demand, that means you can enrol in your chosen course and start learning right away. All courses are self-paced, and you have the flexibility to begin the course when it is convenient for you. There are no deadlines for completing the course either.

There is also an option to preview the course before you buy it where you can watch the introduction video lesson before purchasing.

Available platforms

Learning with Udemy allows you access to all purchased courses using different devices including desktop/laptop, an Android app and an iOS app. There is also the option of downloading an entire course for offline viewing on both the Android and iOS app. The Udemy app has a 4.6 rating with both Android and Apple.

Official certifications:

Once you have completed an Udemy course you will receive a certificate of completion. Keep in mind though that Udemy is not an accredited with any Universities or Organizations as individuals create the courses. Therefore, the certificate cannot be used for formal accreditation.

Categories

Udemy offers over 200k+ courses taught by individuals, some are experienced instructors and others maybe complete beginners. The categories range from Development, Business, Marketing, Music and much more. There are 13 categories and dozens of subcategories.

Free courses

Yes, Udemy offers just over 500 free courses, many are beginners courses and some an introduction to a paid course. You may also be interested in reading our free Udemy courses article here.

Content quality

Every Udemy course will go through a Quality Checklist. All courses are required to have HD video, good audio, 5 lectures or more, and at least 30 minutes of video content.

Languages

Udemy offers it courses in 75+ languages including the following: German, English, Spanish, French, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Turkish, Dutch, Polish, Chinese, Indonesian, and Thai. You can set or change the language of your course on your Udemy account.

Instructors

Every Udemy course is created, owned and managed by the instructor(s). There is no formal approval needed to get started as an Udemy Instructor. If you would like to become one, you are free to choose any topic to teach.

There is, of course, a small number of restricted topics like sexually explicit content or content promoting violence.

You can see who your instructor is for each of the courses and review information about them by scrolling down to the About The Instructor section on the course landing page.

Instructors may also add teaching assistants to their course who can help them with their course and respond to students’ questions in the Q&A. Any questions can be answered either by contacting the instructor via direct message or checking previous Q&A’s.

Course requirements

All Udemy courses have a general structure to follow, all Udemy courses are video-based. Courses must have at least 30 minutes of video and at least 5 lectures or learning modules.

There is a Quality Review Process that all courses go through to ensure that students are having the best learning experience. For example, HD video quality (720p or 1080p), clear course goals, etc.

Course structure

The structure of Udemy courses are lectures, that can include videos, slides, text and additional resources. In addition, the instructor can add quizzes, practise tests and assignments to help accompany the learning of the course for the student. There are no deadlines students need to meet.

Quizzes & tests

The instructor may add quizzes and practice tests, but it isn’t compulsory within the course structure of Udemy to have them.

Payments & refunds

Udemy is supporting several payment methods, The following methods are available: Credit and Debit Card (Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover), Paypal, Cash Payments and Bank Transfers, Apple Pay Store and Google Pay.

The cost of Udemy courses vary widely depending on the course information, subject matter and duration of the course.

All courses purchased on Udemy can be refunded within 30 days no questions asked. To read in more detail about Udemy’s cost, check out our detailed guide here.

Support

Udemy offers help and support and a useful FAQ section you can access from the footer of the site. If you have any specific questions you can contact them at support@udemy.com.

Overall rating

Udemy has a mix of strengths and weaknesses like any other elearning platform. A few of its strengths are the fact it offers such a wide range of affordable courses (even free ones) that are available in many languages. Sadly, none of its courses are officially accredited, and the course quality can’t always be guaranteed due to the fact anyone can teach at Udemy.

Will Udemy Help Me With My Career?

Udemy courses are ideal for someone wanting to learn or improve their personal development or possibly looking for a career change. It can help you with qualifying for a job if you are lacking skills or even help you to be promoted.

With all paid Udemy courses, you will receive a Certificate of Completion, which you can share with co-workers and potential employers. The certificate demonstrates your accomplishments and the skills you have learnt.

Udemy Certificate of Completion

Udemy Certificate of Completion

Remember though that Udemy is not an accredited institution, so if it is an employer asking for an official certificate you won’t be able to provide them with one.

Note: If you are actually looking for officially certified courses, you can check out platforms like Coursera or edX.

Is Udemy Legit?

A question I keep being asked is: Is Udemy legit?

That’s normal, especially when a course can cost under $20, you may be inclined to think that Udemy is a scam.

To put your mind at rest, Udemy was launched in 2010 and its headquarters are located in San Francisco with satellite offices all over the world, so its a well-established organization. It has had over 295 million course enrollments and more than 42,000 instructors and the number is still growing.

Udemy is part of the growing Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) movement that empowers everyday experts to create courses on topics they are passionate about.

Udemy’s marketplace model attracts thousands of instructors, it means that new courses are being added all the time and updated regularly.

In terms of the course quality, I think you have to really consider the purpose of pursuing a course with Udemy. If it’s for your own personal development then why not, but if you are wanting the course to prove something on a more professional level (e.g. with an official certification) it may not be for you.

Anyways to clarify, Udemy is legit and it’s safe to use, you won’t be scammed.

Become an Instructor At Udemy

As well as taking a course on the Udemy platform, it also offers anyone the opportunity to become an instructor.

Udemy Become an instructor

Many of the Udemy instructors are professionals and experts in their field, but anyone who has an interest in a particular topic (within reason) is able to publish a course. Some of the reasons that attracts someone to teach at Udemy are that they can: Teach in own way, Inspire learners and Get rewarded.

How to get Started

Udemy Instructor How to begin

The best way to get started is by following these simple steps;

  1. Plan your curriculum: You start with your passion and knowledge, and make sure you choose a promising topic, you can use the Marketplace insight tool to help you choose. There are also plenty of resources to help you create your first course.
  2. Record your video: Use basic tools like a smartphone or a DSLR camera and a good microphone. It is recommended a course of 2 hours or more for a paid course. There is a support team to help during this process.
  3. Launch your course: Once your course has gone through the quality review process, the Udemy team will evaluate and provide necessary feedback. Then your course will be ready to be found on the Udemy marketplace, and you can begin earning revenue.

Instructor Revenue

The amount of money an instructor makes depends on how their course is sold, which can be through a couple of ways, either with instructor promotion or a sale through non instructor promotion. As an instruction, the following gives you an idea of how much money you would make with each course sale.

Instructor Promotion: Instructors receive 97% of the revenue when the student purchases their content using an instructor’s coupon or referral link.

Non Instructor Promotion: Instructors receive 37% of the revenue for any Udemy sales where no instructor coupon or course referral link was used. This could happen when a user clicks on an Udemy ad or browses through the Udemy catalog.

Some of the pros are;

+ No set up costs for publishing your course. It really is completely free.

+ There is no maintenance cost, for keeping your course on the Udemy platform

+ Udemy has more than 50 million users, that means your course will be exposed to big community of learners.

On the other hand, the cons are;

  You cannot extract the contact details of your learners, so will be unable to build a database.

Udemy very often discounts the price of its courses which means your course is highly likely to be discounted.

Lack of support, if you are looking to reach out to an Udemy representative you can only go through the online forum.

Udemy Vs Coursera

Like Udemy, Coursera offers a wide variety of courses, but one of the main differences is the type of learning programs it offers. As well as individual courses, it offers specializations, professional certificates and degree programs which can range from $9.99 and go all the way up to $50,000. It’s important to consider your budget if you intend on taking one of its Degree or Master programs. Udemys courses can be created and taught be anyone, regardless of their qualifications. Whereas Coursera’s courses and learning programs are designed in partnership with leading Universities and Companies like Stanford and Google. Udemy offers a generous 30-day refund policy if you change your mind and Coursera has 14-day refund policy on individual courses and Coursera Plus. If you are still undecided and want to read in more detail about these two leading online learning platforms, then please check out our detailed Udemy Vs Coursera article.

Last Thoughts: Is Udemy Worth It?

Let’s break it down as to whether Udemy is worth it.

If you are wanting to learn a hobby then Udemy is definitely the right platform for you, and if you look at it from a value for money perspective then hands down YES. It’s also a good option for personal and professional development (e.g. get solid Excel knowledge).

Saying that you may still find that Udemy isn’t the platform for you. So, it may be worth checking out our overview article on Best Online Learning Platforms to compare other learning platforms. If you’re looking for a professional course or degree program, then Coursera would be a good fit or MasterClass if you’re wanting highly engaging video classes from famous instructors.

You will love Udemy because of:

  • It’s affordable prices
  • The diverse range of courses
  • Wide range of available languages (e.g. over 65)
  • It’s learning flexibility as it doesn’t have deadlines
  • Its lifetime access and ease-of-use

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

Review Updates:

08/02/23 – Udemy’s Personal Plan Updated

07/04/23 – Udemy’s Pros & Cons Updated

06/05/23 – Udemy Personal Plan Pricing

05/08/23 – Udemy Personal Plan

03/28/23 – Udemy Pros & Cons Updated

03/02/23 – Udemy Vs Coursera Added

03/17/23 – Udemy In detail Updated

01/26/23 – Udemy Verdict Updated

01/19/23 – Udemy Refund Policy

01/01/23 – Final Thoughts Udemy (Updated)

11/23/22 – Udemy for Business

08/25/22 – Udemy Verdict

08/15/22 – General Update & Udemy for Business

08/05/22 – Udemy Update

07/14/22 – Become an Instructor at Udemy

02/20/22 – Publishing A Course At Udemy

10/22/21 – General Update

07/17/21 – Udemy Logo and images update

05/17/21 – Popular Udemy Courses

04/26/21 – Udemy Instructors

03/21/21 – Publish a course at Udemy

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.

Udemy Alternatives

Skillshare: offers courses on creative subjects like Animation, Creative Writing, Graphic Design and much more. Its subscription plans give you unlimited access to 35,000+ classes.

Pluralsight: offers over 6,500 courses that range from software, IT, creative design and business. Its courses are organized into 3 paths; Beginner, Intermediate and Expert to help you decide which is right for you.

LinkedIn Learning: offers over 16,000 courses in Business, Technology and Creative skills. Ann annual subscription will give you access to all courses, which you can watch at any time.

If you are looking for a more detailed overview of Udemy Alternatives, then head over to our blog and check out this article.

FAQ

Are Udemy Courses Recognized?

Free courses do not offer certificates of completion, but paid courses do. A certificate of completion helps to demonstrate what you have achieved with completing the course. But it’s important to remember that Udemy is not an accredited institution and certificates can’t be used as a formal accreditation.

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pallavi
pallavi
25 days ago

udemy certificate is valid to interview

Karina Whiteley
Karina Whiteley
3 months ago

Udemy also has a partnership with Gale, a provider of digital resources, who sells “Gale Presents: Udemy” to public libraries. So at participating public libraries (for those with a library card), Gale Presents: Udemy is FREE! Public library cardholders have access to more than 20,000 continuously updated, on-demand video courses across a variety of categories such as business, technology, design and personal enrichment. So, check to see of your local public library offers Gale Presents: Udemy.

GhostRider
GhostRider
5 months ago

HI,

monthly earning amount?

isabelle HUBER
isabelle HUBER
6 months ago

Hi,
I was considering enrolling in a course about being a make-up artist however after reading these comments I am unsure. Saying that ,with these certifications am I able to have a business?

Mohammad Khader
Mohammad Khader
6 months ago
Reply to  isabelle HUBER

Hi Isabelle, in many countries there is a governmental department that it is specialized in vocational training. they train many professions such as make-up art and hairstyle. They should give official certifications after finishing the course.

Barbara Sanders
Barbara Sanders
6 months ago

Udemy has a lot of rules and restrictions that limit what instructors can do thus stifling course creativity. It is no longer a good platform for publishing your courses. Look elsewhere.

Hugo
Hugo
8 months ago

Honestly, how much do you think Udemy and others alike can truly develop skills and competencies in organizations?

White
White
8 months ago

Udemy’s lack of customer service is a major drawback. I had 20-30 paid courses on my Udemy account and someone hacked into it and deleted my entire account. I now have no access to the coursesI paid for “lifetime access” and all I’m getting from Udemy support is auto response emails suggesting I read the FAQ articles on security. There is no phone number and no live person to contact. I was given a ticket number and an automatic email response with FAQ articles to read. Meanwhile all the courses I paid for are gone. Customer service at Udemy is… Read more »

Victor
Victor
8 months ago
Reply to  White

I completely agree with you. There is no support, no phone number… Very bad service.
I cannot find one of my purchased courses which suddenly disappear. I have been trying to get any support for a few days but nothing..Automatical response only.. Completely luck of customer service..

alanya escort
alanya escort
8 months ago

Good post! We will be linking to this particularly great post on our site. Keep up the great writing

Isa
Isa
1 year ago

I finished my course and actually signed up for 3 all in one day.. I just received my first certificate and I am quite dismayed with it. I am not even going to print it out and show it or hang it. It only has my name and what course I completed, and UDEMY written in large letters on the top, that’s it. At the right corner, there is a list of 2 URL’s where I can find my certificate on the website. Really? It’s just not that very ceremonial, looks rather cheap. I was not expecting pomp and circumstance,… Read more »

R. Lohse
R. Lohse
1 year ago

I purchased three classes in July and they have not loaded into my learning. I have sent several emails and nothing. I sent my info so they know I paid for the classes. It just keeps referring me back to an FAQ page which doesn’t help at all. I am very sad because I have always been happy with the service before.

R. Lohse
R. Lohse
1 year ago
Reply to  R. Lohse

Follow up…the classes have been found and added to my account. Once again, all is good with Udemy!

Josh
Josh
1 year ago

udemy customer service is terrible. I will never take courses with them ever again. Use a different service!

Md Sohag
Md Sohag
1 year ago

Hi Catherine,

Thank you for your post. I took a course from Udemy and I was worried if I choose the right way of learning. I purchased web-development course and I am still working to finish this in order to gain new skills.

Thank you once again.

Godsent Mathew
Godsent Mathew
1 year ago

Please I wanted to know if Udemy offers free courses on content creation and graphics designs

Godsent Mathew
Godsent Mathew
1 year ago
Reply to  Godsent Mathew

Thanks Catherine, I appreciate

Emma
Emma
1 year ago

Hi!

I had a question to the courses not being accredited.

A lot of the course say accredited so what are they referring to?

Thank you for your help! 😊

Nik
Nik
1 year ago

Hi .. i want to be an instructor.. before that i would like to know , how is udemy going to pay me .. what percentage of the course price goes to udemy and me? Is it like a 50-50 share?
thanks

Catherine
Catherine
1 year ago

“If you don’t want to find out more on Udemy’s free courses, then check out this post on what not to miss out on.
Hello, Catherine. Thanks for the link. Is the word “don’t” a mistake?

Bruce
Bruce
1 year ago

My two cents on Udemy: I am a Vice President of System Architecture, Design, and Engineering at a Fortune 25 company. Most of the people who report to me have engineering degrees. We all buy Udemy and watch Udemy courses. I have nieces and nephews who are just getting into the work world or are switching career paths to fields in the IT or related technical world. I recommend Udemy courses to all of them. Some points: * Udemy is not accredited, but so what. Many of the job skills taught have industry certification exams. * You can start learning… Read more »

junior fripo
junior fripo
1 year ago

Wow lovely i used this udemy some years back and i will keep using it. But i am making a blogpost about this and i find this very informative

Richard
Richard
1 year ago

Udemy is fine for learning material & has some good courses. But woe betide you if you get locked out of account. It looks like they have support, it seems like they have support, but when it comes down the nitty gritty, their support is basically A BIG ZERO, no one in too interested in solving any technical issue, with your account, kike the incorrect email address, or such like. I have purchased over $450.0 from Udemy in courses & because i made a simple error with my email address, i have been locked out of my account & my… Read more »

liliana vess
liliana vess
1 year ago

Customer service on Udemy is very poor and inconsistent. They do not honor the guarantees on their website.

Djon
Djon
1 year ago

The required Google Widevine DRM makes the Udemy platform a lot more unattractive. Even making a screenshot of an interesting schedule is being blocked. This seems pretty bad to me.

Asfand
Asfand
2 years ago

This is exciting for me. Very good and helpful content on this site. Best for beginners who want to learn any skills.

savita
savita
2 years ago

Don’t go for these courses . They don’t provide you certificate

Frank Scafidi
Frank Scafidi
2 years ago

Having issues with Udemy – instructors are not available to answer questions. Very frustrating. More frustrating is inability to contact Udemy’s corporate leadership. Smells like a shell company drawing in “teachers” who they pay a percentage and the parent reaps the profit

Mohammad Khader
Mohammad Khader
2 years ago

Thank you Catherinefor the comprehsive details. There are some courses on Udemy that offer a number of studying hour units as a benifit after completing the whole course. These units can be used to fulfull required number of units for a certifification. For example, there is a well built course on Udemy for preparing for Project Management Profissional exam (PMP). In the course details it is mentioned that once you complete the course you will earn 35 Professional Development Units (PDU). While to obtain a PMP certification accredited by the Project Management Instution you are required to have 60 PDU.… Read more »

Arleen Canlas
Arleen Canlas
2 years ago

Appreciate the detailed instructions and review Catherine. Thank you!

Sarat Bushan
Sarat Bushan
2 years ago

Udemy has changed its refund policy off late. It is not refunding the amount immediately and say it is violation of policy. You will not get response even if you request explanation. Best policy is read the course details, read social forums, understand the feedback of the course designer. Make a choice . There are lot of alternatives like Linkedin Learning, Coursera, edx, Skillshare, pluralsight, Frontendmasters, youtube education sites, 2u, Datacamp, Datapro and may of them. Do proper research and do not take it from Company words be it Udemy or Coursera. I realized it after I had very bad… Read more »

Prince
Prince
2 years ago

I think Udemy is best if you want to learn a new skill or upgrading your existing ones at a very low price

KudaOnline
KudaOnline
2 years ago

What are the pros and cons of publishing a course on your own website as compareed to using udemy?

Matt Dumouchelle
Matt Dumouchelle
2 years ago

Thanks for all the hard work putting these reviews together Catherine. Was trying to decide between Udemy, Skillshare and Coursera and your information has made that an easy choice!

Justice
Justice
2 years ago

Great review – more detailed information that we need to know than ANY other Udemy write- up. I specifically appreciate the evaluation of a training sites legitimacy – as we are sharing financial information with the site when we pay for courses (this is the only review I have seen that included this information).

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