65+ Of The Best Online Course Websites Compared

ByLewis Keegan Updated on
list of the best online course sites

If you are after a MASSIVE comparison list of the best online course websites in 2026, you’re in the right place!

Below, you will find a huge comparison table of all the top online learning sites that offer high-quality video courses, cohort-based courses, live classes, workshops, training, and even degrees.

As an added bonus, many of these sites allow you to take many of their courses for free with no upfront cost. Let’s get started!

65+ Of The Best Online Course Websites In 2026 [Free + Paid]

Side note: I have tried my very best to find all the online learning and course websites in 2026. If I have missed any, please let me know in the comments below!

The below table compares the number of courses available, strengths, included certificates of completion, and the price of each online course website.

ProviderCoursesStrengthsCertPrice
Coursera7,000+Engineering & Programming✅Free-$79/mo
DataCamp400+Data Science & AI✅$25/mo
Skillshare29,000+Design & Business❌7-Day Free Trial
Udemy210,000+Design & Programming✅Free-$199
MasterClass200+Lifestyle & Arts❌$180/yr
LinkedIn Learning20,000+Programming & Business✅1-Month Free Trial
Skill Success1,000+IT & Finance✅$7/mo (Exclusive deal)
Brilliant60+Math & Science❌7-Day Free Trial
Domestika1,000+Art & Design✅$15-$100
CreativeLive1,500+Arts & Design❌Free-$199
edX2,500+Engineering & Programming✅Free-$349
FutureLearn2,400+IT & Business✅Free-$379
Fiverr Courses50+Marketing & SEO✅Free-$300
Udacity30+IT & AI✅Free-$1,500
Synthesis School5+Ambitious Kids❌$127/mo
Khan Academy2,000+Maths & Science❌Free
Alison1,350+IT & Science✅Free & Paid
Treehouse300+Web Design & Game Dev✅7-Day Free Trial
freeCodeCamp700+Coding & Programming✅Free
Google Digital Garage130+Digital Marketing & Business❌Free
HarvardX860+Engineering & Humanities✅Free-$5,000
Codecademy100+Python, Java, Go, C++✅Free-$19/mo
Pluralsight7,000+Tech & Programming✅10-Day Free Trial
Egghead600+JavaScript❌$40/mo
Frontend Masters200+Frontend Development✅$39/mo
Scrimba100+Interactive Coding✅Free-$39/mo
Zero To Mastery50+Web Dev & AI✅$39/mo
O’Reilly Learning60,000+Tech & Programming❌$49/mo
Saylor100+Business & Economics✅Free
Upskillist50+Design & Business✅$25/mo
Steezy20+Dance❌$8.33/mo
Simplilearn400+IT & Big Data✅$79-$3,500
Justin Guitar200+Guitar❌Free
Microsoft Learn1,000+Azure & Programming✅Free
BitDegree900+Blockchain & Business✅Free-$20
Creativebug1,000+Arts & Crafts❌$7.95/mo
OpenClassrooms1,000+HR & Development✅$20/mo
Springboard100+UX & Data Science❌$2,000+
Code.org50+Coding & Programming✅Free
HubSpot Academy300+Marketing✅Free
Career Foundry10+UX & Data Analyst✅$2,000+
CBT Nuggets900+IT Certifications✅$59/mo
Drawspace40+Drawing❌$4.74/mo
OpenLearning270+Programming & Law✅$50/mo
University of The People100+Business & Computer Science✅Free
Memrise200+Languages❌$9/mo
SuperHi30+Web Design & Coding✅$149+
Skillcrush10+Coding & Design✅$160/mo
Canvas50+Humanities❌Free
GoSkills70+Programming✅$39/mo
Meta Blueprint400+Meta Marketing✅Free
Tuts+1,200+Web Design❌$16.50/mo
CakeFlix1,200+Cake Making❌$29/mo
Academic Earth500+Business & Marketing❌Free
Mindvalley40+Mindfulness❌$599/yr
Oxford Home Study290+Business & Finance✅Free-$1,000
Cognitive Class100+Data Science❌Free
Code Avengers50+Coding✅$25/mo
Duolingo50+Languages❌$9.99/mo
W3Schools100+Coding✅Free
General Assembly20+Web Development✅$1,000+
Maven500+Cohort-Based Courses✅$199-$3,000/course
Reforge12+Product & Growth✅$2,000/yr
Section420+MBA Alternative✅$995/yr
On Deck3+Founders✅$5,000/yr
AltMBA1+Leaders✅$4,450/course

My Favourite Top 5 Online Course Websites

As you can see from the above comparison table, there is an endless amount of online course sites to choose from. So if you are after some recommendations, here are my favorite picks.

1. Coursera

  • Price: Free-$79/mo (Coursera Plus)
  • Courses available: 7,000+
  • Certificate of completion: Yes
  • Best for: Career changers, working professionals, university credentials

Coursera is the gold standard for professional online learning in 2026. With partnerships spanning 300+ universities and companies including Google, IBM, Meta, Stanford, and Duke, Coursera offers credentials that hiring managers actually recognize on a resume.

What sets Coursera apart is the Professional Certificate ecosystem, structured multi-course programs in Data Analytics, Cybersecurity, Project Management, AI, and more built directly by major employers. Many can be completed in 3-6 months and have become a legitimate fast-track for career switchers. Thousands of courses can also be audited for free.

The Coursera Plus subscription ($59/mo or $399/yr) gives unlimited access to 7,000+ courses, Specializations, and Professional Certificates. If you are serious about career development, it is hard to beat the breadth and credibility on offer here.

2. DataCamp

  • Price: $25/mo
  • Courses available: 400+
  • Certificate of completion: Yes
  • Best for: Data scientists, analysts, developers learning Python, R, SQL, and AI

DataCamp has become the go-to platform for data and AI skills in 2026. The learning format, short, interactive coding exercises done directly in the browser, makes it unusually easy to build practical skills without switching between a video and a separate code editor.

The platform covers Python, R, SQL, machine learning, deep learning, and increasingly, AI tools and LLM workflows. Career tracks bundle courses into structured learning paths, Data Analyst with Python, ML Scientist, Data Engineer: that guide you from zero to job-ready in a specific direction. DataCamp’s skill assessments are also genuinely useful for identifying gaps and benchmarking yourself against the community.

At $25/month, DataCamp is one of the most cost-effective ways to stay current in the data and AI space. If data skills are anywhere on your career agenda, this is the platform to be on.

3. Skillshare

  • Price: 7-Day Free Trial
  • Courses available: 29,000+
  • Certificate of completion: No
  • Best for: Designers, entrepreneurs, coders, creatives

Skillshare offers well-structured, on-demand video classes made both in-house and by their members. Since its inception in 2010, Skillshare has grown to 8+ million students and hosts over 29,000 classes across design, writing, business, web development, illustration, photography, and more.

Unlike platforms focused on certifications and credentials, Skillshare is about building practical, portfolio-ready skills. The project-based approach means you actually make something during every class, a real advantage for creatives and designers who need tangible output to show employers or clients.

New users can try Skillshare free for 7 days. For anyone in the creative or design space, it remains one of the best online course websites available.

4. Udemy

  • Price: Free-$199
  • Courses available: 210,000+
  • Certificate of completion: Yes
  • Best for: Designers, programmers, coders, artists

For anyone looking for a massive library of online courses covering almost every category imaginable, Udemy is the place to be. Founded in 2009, Udemy has helped 65+ million students gain new skills and advance their careers.

Udemy’s crowdsourced model means more courses and more categories than virtually any other platform. Content quality varies, but for large categories like programming, coding, business, data science, and software, the instruction is top-notch. Companies like Mercedes-Benz, Adidas, and Booking.com use Udemy to upskill their workforce.

Udemy frequently runs promotions where courses drop to $10-$15, making it one of the most affordable ways to pick up a new skill. If you want breadth and value, Udemy consistently delivers.

5. Maven

  • Price: $199-$3,000/course
  • Courses available: 500+
  • Certificate of completion: Yes
  • Best for: Professionals seeking live, cohort-based learning from top practitioners

Maven is a different kind of online learning platform. Rather than pre-recorded videos you watch at your own pace, Maven hosts live, cohort-based courses taught by top practitioners, people actively working in their fields, not professional educators.

The format matters: you take a structured multi-week course alongside a small cohort of peers, with live sessions, office hours, and real community interaction built in. This results in significantly higher completion rates and, just as importantly, real professional relationships formed during the learning process.

Courses on Maven span product management, marketing, writing, career development, AI applications, and leadership. Given the live format and practitioner quality, prices are higher than typical video platforms, but the outcomes and accountability justify it for professionals who are serious about leveling up.

Deep-Dive Platform Reviews

The comparison table above is a broad map, for the platforms that matter most to your goals, our in-depth reviews cover pricing breakdowns, course quality, certificate legitimacy, and who each platform is actually worth paying for in 2026.

Lewis founded SkillScouter in 2019 and serves as the site's Senior Course Review Editor. Over the past 8 years he's published hundreds of in-depth reviews across more than 100 online learning platforms — Coursera, Udemy, Skillshare, edX, LinkedIn Learning, DataCamp, Pluralsight, and the rest — and built the comparison-led methodology the site still uses today.

Lewis's value isn't a teaching credential or a single industry background. It's review breadth. After eight years of reading syllabi, watching course intros, comparing instructor credentials, and tracking student outcomes across hundreds of programs, he's developed pattern recognition for what makes a course worth your time and money — independent of the platform marketing. On SkillScouter, he covers technology and coding, data and analytics, design and creative, and the platform reviews and broad comparison roundups that require knowing the whole landscape rather than any single corner of it.