Exploring your creativity is a great idea. Let me guess. And you are looking for an unbiased Skillshare Review from a user?
I used Skillshare to enhance my writing to become a pro at it, but did I? Find out.
I took a writing course in Skillshare and made the utmost benefit out of it while staying in the comfort of my home. Thanks to Skillshare’s self-paced modules.
In this article, I reviewed Skillshare in-depth on several aspects, including the key features that make Skillshare stand out, the benefits, pros & cons, and its price.
I also share my honest verdict on Skillshare and some of the best alternatives to Skillshare if you do not find Skillshare helpful. Let’s get started, shall we?
Skillshare Review: At A Glance (2024)
Skillshare is a creative-focussed learning platform that aims at producing the best quality content in a plethora of unconventional fields and niches.
Still, Skillshare expands its platform with unique courses on business, marketing, productivity, and more. You can find a course that will help you somehow.
Mark my words. Skillshare has short and digestible content in a self-paced module that makes learning feel like binge-watching your favorite Tv series on Netflix.
Although Skillshare produces bite-sized content, it is not guaranteed that all the courses in Skillshare follow the same format or curriculum since they are different.
You can either stream Skillshare Originals curated by the official Skillshare Team or opt for your favorite creator/celebrity who has a course on their craft in Skillshare.
Regarding instructors, Skillshare allows any individual to come up with a compelling course and sell it on its platform to share their knowledge and wisdom globally. Plus, Skillshare has an engaging community that allows you to give honest feedback!
With a well-defined interface, the ease of use in Skillshare is precise, and mobile application support is phenomenal, which means you can continue the desired course even if you are traveling somewhere or do not have your laptop.
I also noticed that some instructors in Skillshare host exclusive workshops that promise insightful guidance and offer an adequate classroom experience.
There’s more than you can do with Skillshare. Please sit back and continue reading to know them!
How Does Skillshare Work?
Skillshare is an online learning platform that works on a subscription basis. You pay for a monthly or annual premium plan and get access to all the available courses in the Skillshare library. It also works as a marketplace where instructors can sign up and post their courses and earn some money from them. The courses get published and added to the Skillshare library only after they pass the quality test.
With the Skillshare premium subscription, you can get access to over 40,000 courses. You can also enroll in learning paths where you will learn a skill completely through different courses. Skillshare also asks you to complete a real-life project to finish the course. You can share that project directly with the Skillshare community. With the annual subscription to Skillshare Premium, you will also get exclusive discounts on platforms like Canva, Squarespace, Adobe Lightroom, and FreshBooks.
What Makes Skillshare Stand Out? (Key Features)
Skillshare is famous for its excellence and top-notch quality, but what else makes Skillshare stand out from other online learning platforms? Find out right now.
I have highlighted all the best features that take Skillshare to the next level in providing one of the finest learning experiences with exclusive benefits:
Shared learning
To give an immersive classroom experience, Skillshare allows you to take shared lessons with peers taking similar courses on the platform.
As of now, Skillshare is the only learning platform that offers such features. You can enhance your observation with shared learning and guide each other if you find trouble. Considering the community forum, you can use it efficiently.
Become an instructor
If you are good at something and have decent teaching knowledge, that’s enough. You are eligible to become an instructor in Skillshare. The entire process of turning into an instructor is simplified, and you can start getting paid instantly.
The feature of becoming an instructor is open to all users globally, so there are no restrictions based on geography or difficulty level. In fact, Skillshare takes care of the hard work and makes it easier for you to focus on teaching.
Community hub
Skillshare has one of the most engaging and interactive student community forums, allowing dedicated students to give feedback, clarify projects, and get insightful tips directly from the instructor. In fact, you can also ask for doubts/queries, if any.
Although it is not guaranteed that all instructors will engage with the students considering that they are held up with workload and commitments, you can always drop a comment under the course module, and they will get back to you later.
Free courses
Yes. You read that right. Skillshare offers free courses but not entirely.
Even if there are many paid courses on Skillshare, you can find some basic courses that do not demand a subscription or enrolling fee. Considering the fact that Skillshare produces thousands of courses in various niches, you are good to go!
Finding a course that adds value yet is available for free is easy in Skillshare.
Student workshops
Being a visual learner, I have felt that it would be great if learning platforms could incorporate student sessions or tutoring. Thankfully, Skillshare is doing exactly that.
Although not all courses in Skillshare have an add-on workshop, you can find exclusive workshops that are live and engaging and hosted by the instructor.
You can make the best use of the workshops since it will be external learning and give exposure to the core subject better. As a bonus, you also get to interact with the instructor directly on call and enjoy the learning session with your peers.
Instructors: Who Teaches On Skillshare?
It is evident that without the instructors, all the learning platforms will go to dust, and so the sole success of Skillshare is truly dedicated to its global set of instructors.
Starting with Skillshare Originals, the instructors handpicked in-house experts from various fields since Skillshare covers all the creative niches.
As Skillshare started progressing by a wave, it unlocked the feature of becoming an instructor allowing thousands of educators globally to teach their craft to everyone.
To give a heads-up, you might not find big celebrities endorsing their brand or clothing line on Skillshare, which instantly makes the platform inclusive.
Each instructor that releases a course in Skillshare is verified with authenticity and relevant experience on the craft that they are teaching, and so you are secured.
- Sean Dalton (Photographer)
- Jessica Hische (Letterist)
- Mel Armstrong (Illustrator)
- Seth Godin (Author)
The above-listed names are some of the top-performing instructors in Skillshare who provide insightful lessons on their respective fields. Similarly, thousands of courses in Skillshare are led by numerous global experts in various categories.
You might not see billboard ads or headlines about them, but there is a big deal regarding online learning, and those instructors have leveraged Skillshare.
Let me give a quick tip if you are skeptical about an instructor’s quality in Skillshare, simply look at the reviews and the feedback submitted by ongoing students. It will give you an idea of how the course quality and teaching by the instructor really is.
What Are Skillshare Learning Paths?
If you don’t have much time to browse and find the right courses for yourself, then you can choose any of the Skillshare Learning Paths. These are created for those users who want to reach their learning goals quickly. It has sequential classes to help users learn a certain skill. Skillshare puts together handpicked courses in a Learning Path, so you don’t have to waste time finding the courses from the course library.
At the time of writing this article, Skillshare has created 43 different learning paths that cover different subjects and have multiple classes. When you enroll in a learning path, then you directly enroll in 2-4 Skillshare courses at once. Some of the learning paths I’ve enrolled in are Start Your Career In UX Design, Get Productive: Overhaul Your Approach For Big Results, and Master Workplace Communication.
What Classes Are Available On Skillshare?
There are three major categories for classes available on Skillshare: Create, Thrive, and Build. These categories also have their own sub-categories into which the classes are divided. The sub-categories available in the Create category are fine art, animation, web development, creative writing, graphic design, film & video, photography, music, illustration, and UI/UX design.
The sub-categories available in the Build category are marketing, business, leadership & management, and freelance & entrepreneurship. The sub-categories available in the Thrive category are productivity and lifestyle. Skillshare also offers plenty of free courses in all the categories that are listed here. You can also take advantage of Skillshare premium free trial to get access to the complete library for seven days.
My Honest Experience With Skillshare (My verdict)
If you are considering Skillshare, you need to read this before enrolling. I took three different courses on multiple categories on Skillshare – this is my experience:
Firstly, the structuring of lessons in all three courses was top-notch. I learned writing, marketing, and designing. Yes, three creative in-demand skill courses.
The designing course that I took in Skillshare highlighted everything from scratch by explaining everything in-depth. Being a beginner was highly beneficial for me. Along with it, the instructor shared the best alternatives for high-end software.
You know, not everybody owns software like Photoshop and Illustrator, so it was helpful. Plus, the lessons were digestible, and I finished the entire course within 3 days.
If that doesn’t speak volumes, I don’t know what will. Similarly, the remaining marketing and writing courses that I took in Skillshare were insightful as well. I learned about SEO optimization, leveraging social media, monetizing ads, and more in-depth.
Although two different talented instructors handled both courses, the writing course stood apart with added tips and practical tasks to get going. The instructor gave me assignments related to the topic, and it was engaging.
The self-paced format was helpful because I got to take the courses whenever I wanted without completing them within a fixed deadline. Thanks to Skillshare!
Regarding the user experience, I loved the mobile application of Skillshare because it had easy-to-navigate tools and was constantly updated with new exciting features.
How Are the Classes Structured in Skillshare?
You might have gained some knowledge or an idea about Skillshare in your mind by now. Let me talk about the big picture that sells Skillshare. Any guesses?
I am talking about the structuring of classes and the curriculum followed that simplifies the learning experience in Skillshare.
As I kept bragging about the short-and-crisp content in Skillshare, you can understand that Skillshare is precise. Skillshare ensures to make learning easy.
Each course has at least 10-15 lessons clubbed together under a single module. Each chapter per course might range from 5-to 7 minutes, making it easy to stream.
For instance, if you are enrolling in a course, you will be able to see the overview of the course in short descriptive content along with the author bio about the instructor.
After enrolling, you can instantly start taking the courses in Skillshare and unlock exclusive tabs like projects, resources, and discussions. Your dashboard will be updated with each course you take and a progress tracker.
In recent updates, the latest news about Skillshare read that it allows instructors to host Skillshare Live, club students together in Skillshare Groups, and host insightful Skillshare Workshops, which allows you to get hands-on learning directly.
- Skillshare Live: The live sessions organized by the instructors in Skillshare take place in a webinar format where you will be invited to an exclusive members-only meeting and learn from the instructor in real-time. Plus, you won’t be charged an additional fee because it is included in the membership.
- Skillshare Workshops: Like the regular workshops, the workshops conducted via Skillshare are open for all the users who’d like to learn more about a specific skill. For instance, a workshop on watercolor painting is conducted.
- Skillshare Groups: The working of Skillshare Groups is similar to the community forum that already exists in the platform, but with enhanced features and tools, you can have discussions about a common topic and the instructor.
Do You Get Certificates on Skillshare?
Getting rewarded for the efforts and commitment to learning something new is a great feeling, but unfortunately, Skillshare does not offer any certificates for its users. In fact, there are no badges or tags that you can flaunt on social media.
If you are taking a course expecting to receive an accredited certificate that will boost your resume and land a potential job, Skillshare is not a good option.
Whom Skillshare is Best Suited To?
Being a universal-open platform with compelling courses on all the niches to ever exist on the platform, Skillshare can be taken by anyone for light learning efficiently.
The common folk who are neutral about niches may not find any problem with Skillshare yet if you are bounded by filtering difficulty levels and certificates. You need to make sure that you are ticking the following boxes to use Skillshare:
- You are an aspiring creative who wants to improve your skill-set.
- You are clueless about a niche and want to learn about it in-depth.
- You want to get guided by educators who have experience in the field.
- You are on a budget yet want to take a course that produces quality.
- You want to learn something unconventional during your leisure time.
- You want to teach and educate students on a global scale via courses.
If you said yes to any of the above-listed points, then Skillshare will be beneficial. Even if you didn’t, there is a lot to learn from Skillshare. Some creative courses like illustrations and lettering are available for free, so you can take them without paying!
Pros & Cons of Skillshare:
Although Skillshare offers various benefits in different aspects, you can still find some downsides that make you reconsider choosing Skillshare.
Hold up—no big issues. Certain obstacles might be disappointing to some students and users enrolling in Skillshare.
Skillshare Pros
- Budget-friendly.
- Short and digestible content.
- Direct expert advice and guidance.
- The option of a free trial is available.
- All the courses are well-structured with instructions.
- You can join an engaging student community forum.
- Anyone can compile a course and sell it on Skillshare.
- Live workshops are conducted for effective learning.
Skillshare Cons
- No constant instructors’ quality.
- No additional language support except English.
What I feel Can Be Improved In Skillshare?
As mentioned earlier, Skillshare has both valid points and drawbacks.
The benefits overlook the downsides, yet if Skillshare considers and makes changes accordingly, you are guaranteed one of the best learning experiences on a budget.
Certificate On Completion
Skillshare might offer courses on a budget with a bonus of free introductory courses. Yet, if it provides an accredited certificate with the Skillshare branding, students might find it beneficial while applying for job or internship opportunities.
Even if Skillshare does not offer accreditation on certificates, a mere appreciation for successfully completing the desired course can be considered.
Support for non-English Languages
Although the majority of the student database might be consuming content in English, it will be great news for non-English speakers if Skillshare offers courses in at least 3-to 4 other native languages like German, French, Spanish, and Italian.
Even language support with the option of subtitles will be beneficial.
Standard Protocol
In my experience with Skillshare, I noticed that there is no standard quality, and each course varies on different aspects. To some extent, it felt like an advantage, yet it started disrupting the learning experience since each course was truly different.
To be precise, jumping from one course to another was like switching from one learning platform to another. Still, it might not be an issue for most students. Skillshare can standardize a defined format so that the quality is the same throughout.
How Much Does Skillshare Cost?
Skillshare is a run-for-money learning platform that lies on the budget side, which means you can take high-quality courses at reasonable pricing. With the option of a free trial, you can explore your creativity in Skillshare without paying. You can check these Skillshare discount codes to save up to 40% on Skillshare.
Skillshare Premium
Coming to the pricing structure, Skillshare offers subscription-based plans called Skillshare Premium that can either be paid monthly or yearly. Check my detailed Skillshare free vs premium comparison.
- You can pay $19/- per month as a monthly subscription.
- You can pay $99/- per month as a yearly subscription.
You can instantly remove all the annoying ads by purchasing Skillshare Premium and accessing thousands of courses on multiple creative niches without any hassles.
Plus, the monthly subscription is a great option since it is also cost-efficient, yet the annual subscription is a fantastic deal if you are taking several courses on Skillshare.
Alternatives to Skillshare:
For some reason, if you are not entirely settled with Skillshare, I have other excellent e-learning platforms that might elevate your learning experience with great perks! Check our complete list of Skillshare alternatives here.
I have personal experience on each of the following learning platforms, which means you can trust me since I am sharing the effectiveness of each alternative genuinely:
1) MasterClass vs Skillshare
Note: We have done a detailed comparison of Skillshare vs MasterClass here.
MasterClass is an extraordinary learning platform led by global experts and celebrities who have excelled in their craft with years of expertise. In MasterClass, you pay $180 and get access to 180+ courses in all creative niches. Additionally, you get helpful learning resources, practical tasks, and direct learning from legendary icons.
2) Pluralsight
Pluralsight is a tech-based learning platform exclusively designed for IT and creative professionals trying to find courses related to coding and programming.
Note: Check our detailed Pluralsight review here.
Only professional experts teach the courses in Pluralsight, which means the quality is promising, and you get a certificate on completion, which is a great benefit. You can use the free trial and get a hands-on learning experience right away!
3) Udemy vs Skillshare
Udemy is one of the most popular e-learning platforms that offer courses in almost all the niches, a solid alternative to Skillshare. Unlike Skillshare, you can buy an individual course and not pay for the rest of the course library.
Note: Check our detailed Udemy vs Skillshare comparison here.
Many benefits like multiple language support, lifetime access, provision of certificates, and access to free introductory courses, are available in Udemy.
Similar Platforms:
Skillshare Review Conclusion: My Take (2024)
Voila! There you go—my honest review on Skillshare – home to thousands of compelling courses on various creative niches and categories.
To wrap up my verdict on Skillshare, I’d say that Skillshare is trying to be the best at what it is doing by offering workshops, live sessions, and community forums.
Still, you can spot certain drawbacks like inconsistent quality and no provision of certificates, and so some people might find Skillshare disappointing.
If you look at the bright side, you are paying just $19/- and learning in-demand skills at the comfort of your cozy sided-bedroom. In fact, the free trial allows you to access the entire platform of Skillshare without paying a single penny.
By following Skillshare’s tagline, let me recall “explore your creativity” on a budget.
FAQs On Skillshare
Is Skillshare free?
Skillshare offers free courses, but you have to pay for Skillshare Premium to complete the entire course module.
Who is Skillshare made for?
Visual learners, creatives, hobbyists, and students who would like to learn in-demand skills via self-paced lessons at the comfort of their homes.
Does Skillshare give certificates?
Unfortunately, Skillshare does not provide any certificates at the moment.
Can you find tech-related courses on Skillshare?
Yes, but Skillshare is molded for the creative industry.
Are there courses on other languages in Skillshare?
As of now, Skillshare produces courses in English only.
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