Udemy vs Coursera: Difference & Which is Better?

Are you struggling to pick between Udemy vs Coursera? Well, this article will make your pick easier!

Whether you want to gain new skills, earn a professional certificate, or switch careers, choosing the right platform can make a huge difference.

In this article, I have compared these leading online learning platforms side by side on multiple factors. This will help decide which platform is worth choosing! 

So, without further ado, let’s get into the details below. 

Udemy vs Coursera: Key Differences

Here are the key differences between Udemy and Coursera.

• Coursera has over 7000 courses divided into 10+ categories, whereas Udemy offers 200K+ courses divided into 12 categories.
• You can get a Coursera certificate at just $49 or buy a subscription to Coursera Plus at just $399/year and earn as many certificates as you want.
• On Udemy, you can buy and start your subscription at $20 or purchase individual courses with 90% off.
• Anyone can create a course and start selling on Udemy, whereas prestigious universities and companies offer all the courses on Coursera. 
• Coursera offers free courses you can learn from, but to get a certificate, you will need to pay $49.
• Coursera certificates are accredited. In contrast, Udemy offers course completion certificates.

Udemy vs Coursera: Overview

Udemy hosts both free and paid courses, making it an ideal choice for the unemployed and salaried members. On Udemy, you can find online courses that professionals and experts curate into a form of class.

These classes provide a lot more exposure than a classroom method, as you learn directly from global experts’ recorded content.

All the courses on this platform are at least 30 minutes long. Most of its courses provide a certificate of completion with your name, which you can later add to your LinkedIn and CV.

Coursera, on the other hand, is home to certified professionals from renowned educational institutes worldwide. Many of these experts even work at some of the top global firms and teach you how to get into one yourself.

The courses on this platform are based on a free-to-audit basis. Hence, you are free to go through any course content you want.

But to get the certificate of completing a particular course, you have to pay the fee levied by Coursera. To complete the certification, you have to enroll in the specializations section. Its certificates are provided by renowned institutions worldwide and, hence, add a certain amount of credibility to your CV or LinkedIn.

Udemy vs Coursera: Which Has Better Courses?

Udemy is a platform that offers courses that experts and professionals mostly make. It consists of courses on most of the things that can ever come to someone’s mind. The range of the courses it provides stretches from the field of IT to the arts.

Some of the best categories in which Udemy provides its courses are:

Development
IT & software
Business
Finance & Accounting
Office Productivity
Design
Personal Development
Lifestyle
Marketing
Photography
Music

It is a remarkable feat to cover all of these work fields. However, these are just the fields in which Udemy provides specialized courses. Many other high-rated courses on the platform belong to different work fields.

On the other hand, Coursera’s preferred field of courses are those related to industrial usage. Since most of its courses are provided by renowned institutions, you won’t find courses that can help you with your hobbies.

Most of its courses are specialization-based and require complete dedication instead of the general interest.

Most of the courses that you’ll find on Coursera will fall in the category of these work fields:

Data Science
Business
Computer Science
Information Technology
Language Learning
Health
Personal Development
Physical Science and Engineering
Social Sciences
Arts and Humanities
Math and Logic

These fields are pretty educational-based and require some prerequisites as well. Therefore, these courses are perfect if you want to learn skills that can land you a job or a promotion.

Udemy vs Coursera: Community

Udemy provides many more courses than most other online education platforms globally. The number of learners on the platform resonates in proportion with this number of courses.

However, even after such a widespread student community, it does not provide a proper forum for its learners.

As important as providing the right kind of content at the right price may be, not having a proper community forum does not go unnoticed. Due to this, many students leave studying and working on their course halfway.

On the contrary, Coursera does not provide courses in as much depth as Udemy. However, to support the quality of its courses and ensure that its learners complete their courses on time, it provides a properly built and managed community forum.

The forum is helpful for learners with issues on the platform while learning. The community of learners is also appropriately watched over and managed. Therefore, it provides a suitable space for learners to discuss their queries and thoughts.

Udemy vs Coursera: How to Decide The Best One For You?

Both Udemy and Coursera are the best in their ways. To choose between them, you need to understand your needs first. To put all the considerations that you need to take to make the right decision between the two areas below:

• Which is the field that you want to get a course in?

If you want to take a course to improve at an instrument, painting, or any other hobby, then Udemy is your go-to platform. But if you are serious about pursuing an interest in the field of data science and engineering, then Coursera will be the right choice for you.

• Do you want to add more credibility to your CV or LinkedIn profile?

If your aim in studying and completing a certification is to learn something new while adding more credibility to your resume, you might want to go with Coursera. When you complete a course on Coursera, you get a completion certificate from a recognized educational institution. Meanwhile, when you complete a course on Udemy, you get a certificate from Udemy, which does not provide as much credibility.

• Do you want to work on a timeline or on your own accord?

When you buy a course from Udemy, you can take it for a lifetime and study it anytime you want. Hence, you can now work on a little part of it and return to it after some months or years.

• If you want to just go through the study material and content or complete assignments in between?

When you opt to take certification from Udemy, you can either go through the paperwork or not. You can just go through all of the video content presented in a certification course without passing any assignments.

But when you choose to complete a certification from Coursera, you must give timely assignments and gain the required marks to advance in a course. You also have to complete tests after each module and provide a combined test at the end of all modules in a certificate to get the certificate for completing the course.

By considering each of these aspects, you can list the platform you chose the most and take up a certification course in it.

Udemy vs Coursera: Pros & Cons

Here are the pros & cons of using Udemy and Coursera.

Udemy Pros

• Udemy has a very large course library where you can find courses in various categories, and some of the courses are also free.
• When you upload the videos for your course, they get reviewed by Udemy experts only after they go live for the general public.
• There is no limit to buying courses on Udemy, you can buy as many as you want, and you will get lifetime access to those courses as well.
• Udemy also runs sales and promotions almost every month, so you can buy the courses you want at a very affordable price.
• You can access the courses you bought on Udemy from any device you want and learn from anywhere in the world.

Udemy Cons

• Even after the deals and promotions, there are certain courses that may be expensive compared to the quality of the course.
• The certificates you get from Udemy don’t add any value to your resume.

Coursera Pros

• Most of the courses available on Coursera are offered by accredited institutions, universities, and companies.
• You can audit as many courses as you want on Coursera for free. Auditing the course doesn’t give you a course completion certificate.
• You can choose from single courses, specializations, degree programs, and master track programs on Coursera.
• The quality of the courses available on Coursera is top-notch because they are created by prestigious universities and companies.
• Coursera focuses on helping learners learn professional job-ready skills, and after they finish a course, they will also get a course completion certificate.

Coursera Cons

• If you’re auditing the course, you will get access to the course for a very limited time, and you will need to finish it within that time frame.
• After completing the course, it does not show you the materials you submit, like assignments, assessments, and projects to complete this course.

Udemy vs Coursera: Prices

Udemy offers flexible pricing plans to cater to different learning needs—whether you’re an individual looking for skill development, a professional aiming for career growth, or a team seeking corporate training solutions.

These courses often have regular pricing of about $199 but are seen to be mainly on sale. This sale lists them in an amount worth 95% less and about $10.

Here is the Udemy Pricing Plans in a quick table:

Udemy Plans	Udemy Free Trial	Udemy Cost
Personal Plan	7 days	Starting at $20/month after trial
Buy Individual Courses	❌	$19.99 – $199.99 per course
Team Plan	14 days	$30/user per month

On the other hand, Coursera provides a free auditing option to its users. Users can sign up for free on the website and watch over 1,000 courses partially on the platform for free. But when you want to avail its other features, such as full courses, graded assignments, certificates, and mentorship, you would have to pay the fee charged by Coursera.

Coursera charges you for the time that you avail of a course. Most of its subscriptions are divided into monthly and yearly subscriptions. The standard price you’ll have to pay for availing of Coursera’s courses lies anywhere between $49-$80. You can also check our working Coursera Plus Discount Offer here.

Here is a quick table showing Coursera cost:

Coursera Plan Type	Coursera Free Trial	Coursera Cost
Individual Courses	❌	$49-79/course
Monthly Subscription	7 days	$59/month
Annual Subscription (Regular)	7 days	$399/year ($33.25/month)

Related Read:

Udemy vs Skillshare
Skillshare vs MasterClass
Lynda vs Skillshare
Udemy Statistics
How Often Does Udemy Have Sales

Udemy vs Coursera: Final Verdict (2025)

Both Udemy vs. Coursera excel in providing the best certification courses straight to your mobile device. You can use both to learn and hone skills you want or need to improve.

Choosing either depends on your preferences and expectations from the platform and the fields in which your selected platforms provide specialization. To make the right choice, you must put your thoughts in order and remember the things discussed above. 

Pick Udemy for in-depth skill learning. But if you want accredited certificates and knowledge, I suggest you go with Coursera.

I hope our article helped you understand the differences between Coursera and Udemy. So, which platform are you choosing? Let us know in the comments section below.