Thanks to this huge demand for those ready to jump into video games, there are thousands of online courses available – ready to teach you the skills you need to succeed. In fact, maybe there are a few too many courses to choose from. So where do you start?

In this article, we’re going to showcase six of the best game design courses you can take to upskill yourself and get ready to apply to any sort of game you want to make!

Let’s get started!

What is game design?

Game design is a broader skill set in the field of game production, referring to the use of creative design to develop engaging video games. Video game designers are tasked with creating worlds, stories, characters, and objectives for the purposes of driving the game forward and making it as entertaining or educational as possible.

Those that work in game design are creative, analytical, and problem-solvers – all transferable skills that are beneficial in other areas of life. To succeed in this constantly evolving industry, game designers need to have a passion for game production, have patience, and be quick learners.

Game designers are rewarded a good income in the US, reflecting the skill needed to get a job in the industry. On average, game designers earn $74,920 per year, with some making well over $100,000 depending on experience.

By learning game design, you’ll develop a number of transferable skills including the ability to problem solve, design skills, teamwork, and independent learning skills.

You’re also easily able to learn game design skills from home, since there are thousands of professional courses you can take online. There’s no need to enroll in university when learning game design, and many professionals in the industry are self-taught.

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What are the best game design courses?

There are thousands of game design courses available online, and it can be difficult to know which one is right for you. Luckily, we’re diving into the top game design and development courses that you can take from the comfort of your home. Whether you’re a beginner or have some experience in coding and game development, there’s something out there for everyone.

Additionally, we’ll also be trying to cover a wide range of tools – so you’ll get plenty of options to choose from!

Unity Game Development Mini-Degree

Unity is a massively popular game engine, responsible for powering over half of all games. It is used in over 190 countries, and it’s also one of the easiest engines to start with in terms of game development.

Why? Unity is basically the ultimate cross-platform machine, being able to make 2D & 3D games, VR games, AR games, mobile games, multiplayer games, console games, and beyond. This has made it hugely popular for both beginners and experienced developers alike, and even among non-developers for things like film.

With Zenva’s Unity Game Development Mini-Degree, students can get hands-on experience with the platform by building a number of topics. This full curriculum covers everything from the fundamentals of using the engine, to making full projects such as action RPGs, FPS games, idle clickers, and more.

While the curriculum skews a lot towards game development, game design is not neglected. Learners also get the opportunity to explore a variety of tools used when designing games, including things such as audio and animations. Beyond this, learners also get the chance to experience the full scope of project management and learn how the entire game-making process works – an important facet to being a successful game designer!

Key topics covered:

• Coding basics
• UI systems
• Audio effects
• Cinematic cutscenes
• Special effects
• Procedural terrain
• Animation

Skill level: Beginner. This is a comprehensive curriculum, meaning you’ll learn everything you need about Unity to reach an advanced skill level.

Duration: 36h 23m

How to access: Access the curriculum here.

Game Artwork Academy

With the development of advanced digital art tools, game makers are able to create custom assets pretty easily. For independent developers, this means they can work solo without any hiccups. For designers in bigger teams (where the main assets will get delegated out), this can still be a great boon for helping with things like storyboards and similar.

Regardless, art is an important skill to have for game design, since you’ll need to do things like help dictate the art direction and similar. And the smaller your team, well, the more these skills will benefit you to bring the game to life!

With Zenva’s Game Artwork Academy, students will learn the skills needed to start creating 2D and 3D game assets – choosing from a variety of styles including vector art, 3D models, and pixel art.

The curriculum covers popular tools, including Blender, Photoshop, GIMP, MagicaVoxel, and Inkscape, which are used by professional game designers and artists working in the industry. With a balanced approach, learners will master both the tools each program has to offer and the fundamental art skills as they create projects on the go!

Thus, you’re going to build a strong portfolio along the way as well!

Key topics covered:

• 3D modeling basics
• Voxel model creation
• Pixel art painting
• Vector art techniques
• Exporting and importing assets

Skill level: Beginner. No prior art skills are expected for these courses and are tailored to work for everyone from soloists to large teams.

Duration: 9h 5m

How to access: Access the curriculum here.

Game Design Academy

Game design involves a lot more than just making the stories or creating various art assets for planning purposes. A lot of game design is focused on understanding the how and why things are constructed the way they are. After all, design is about making specific choices to get a specific effect.

In the case of video games, it centers around some specific questions, such as: Are my mechanics fun? Are players able to navigate my levels easily? Are my characters engaging?

These questions are at the heart of all design – from the biggest AAA game to the smallest indie project.

In Zenva’ Game Design Academy, you’ll be taught all these core design principles and learn how to balance the creative and technical aspects of your project. Learners will not only master how to conceptualize gameplay and characters, but also create engaging stories that build a cohesive theme throughout the video game.

As you learn, you’ll also get to see how these design principles apply to real-life games – as these design techniques are the same ones used by industry professionals. In so doing, learners can gain a new understanding how these choices influence the overall engagement games possess. Plus, you’ll get to see how they work for just about any genre – whether we’re talking about an action-packed FPS game or a calming walking simulator.

Key topics covered:

• Core game loop setup
• How to guide players
• Game feel
• Level design foundations
• Storytelling techniques

Skill level: Beginner. The entire curriculum is designed for complete novices.

Duration: 3h 5m

How to access: Access the curriculum here.

Learn Unity – Beginner’s Game Development Tutorial

Sometimes, learning game design is simply about learning development and making your own games as an indie creator. Not only does this give you useful knowledge of the tools available, but the approach challenges you to put design principles into action up front.

FreeCodeCamp.org’s Learn Unity – Beginner’s Game Development Tutorial is a free course designed to give learners everything they need to develop games using the Unity game engine. The course covers everything from UIs to C# coding to working with player characters. It’s also beginner-friendly for those who have never even touched Unity before in their life.

This said, it is a bit lighter on the design aspects than other choices on this list (such as the courses from Zenva above) – so something to keep in mind when diving in. However, the skills here can still be immensely valuable as you explore the world of video game development in general.

Key topics covered:

• Introduction to Unity’s Interface
• Starting with Unity’s Basics
• Rigid Bodies and Colliders
• Audio Source and UI Elements
• Moving our Character with Code
• Introduction to Variables & Operations With Variables
• Functions, Conditional Statements & Loops
• Coroutines & Classes
• Accessibility Modifiers (Data Encapsulation) & Inheritance
• Getting Components & Importing Assets. Sorting Layers And Order In Layer
• Creating The Game Background
• Player Movement & Animating The Player Via Code, Player Jumping & Camera Follow Player
• Enemy Animations, Scripts, Enemy Spawner, Enemy Collision
• The Collector Script & Unity’s UI System
• Creating Main Menu & Navigating Between Scenes
• Selecting A Character & Creating Player Animations
• Static Variables & Singleton Pattern
• Events And Delegates & Instantiating The Selected Character
• Finishing Our Game

Skill level: Beginner.

Duration: 7h 20m.

How to access: Access the course here.

Unit: Advanced JS: Games & Visualizations

While engines like Unity or Unreal are very popular, you can still make games with plenty of other coding languages. This includes JavaScript – one of the three pillars that make up all web development. Though JavaScript isn’t the typical choice, it still makes a great backbone for web-hosted games and is used in popular game frameworks like Phaser.

The Advanced JS: Games & Visualizations course, hosted by the nonprofit Khan Academy, offers learners the chance to undertake an advanced understanding of game visualizations, demonstrated through practical learning using design programs. Users can learn how to change between multiple scenes, create clickable buttons, implement side scrollers, and learn how to use features such as translate, rotate, and scale for better manipulation of program shapes.

These principles both challenge you to think about how you design your games – such as how buttons look or similar – but teaches you the skills to unlock JavaScript for game development.

As a catch though, and as the title suggests, this is for more advanced users who have prior experience coding with JavaScript. So if you’re a novice, best to stick with some of the earlier entries such as the ones from Zenva.

Key topics covered:

• Intro to Games & Visualizations
• Scene management
• Buttons
• Making a side scroller: Hoppy Beaver
• Making a memory game
• Transformations
• 3D shapes
• Advanced development tools

Skill level: Advanced.

Duration: Taken at own pace.

How to access: Access the course here.

Unreal Engine Game Development Basic to Advanced Full Course

We’ve featured a lot of Unity and a lot of digital art tools. However, there is one more engine worth discussing that is widely used within the game development industry – Unreal Engine. Unreal Engine is an immensely popular engine, known most for its high-fidelity graphics that even indie developers can unlock with a few simple clicks. As an engine used so widely in AAA studios, it doesn’t hurt to understand the tool for the purposes of game design.

The Unreal Engine Game Development Full Basic to Advanced Full Course by Free Course is designed to teach independent learners the skills needed to start working with Unreal Engine. With a huge focus on the tools, future or current game designers can explore things such as using Quixel – the free, photorealistic assets provider – or working with sounds.

Along the way, of course, you’ll also learn about various other aspects useful to development with Unreal. Even if not pursuing that path in its entirety, knowing these techniques will give you a leg up in understanding the capabilities and limitations of the tool – which is also quite important for game design.

Key topics covered:

• Recreate the process for blocking out a 3D environment.
• Ambient and Procedural Sound
• Converting Blueprints to C++
• Creating Photoreal Cinematics with Quixel
• Bind C++ functions to user input levels and delegates.
• Core concepts and best practices of using C++ in Unreal Engine.

Skill level: This is a beginner course designed to teach you everything you need to reach an intermediate/advanced level.

Duration: 8h 55m

How to access: Access the course here.

Best Game Design Courses Wrap Up

And that wraps up our post on the best game design courses. Now, of course, there are definitely more courses out there. Plus, what’s the “best” does come up a bit down to you, reader. What aspects of game design do you want to learn? How do you learn? There’s a lot to think about.

Nevertheless, we hope this list helps and we hope you try a variety of things out. Part of learning game design is about experimentation, as it’s the best way to find out what does and doesn’t work for games. You’ll also want to experiment on whether you work best with free courses that are totally independent, or paid services like Zenva that offer more support and supplemental learning materials to help you master the topics.

Regardless of your choice, we wish you the best of luck with your game design journey!

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If you find yourself in this situation with your kids, you’re probably always looking for excellent resources to prepare your children for the future. We have to ask, though: have you considered adding game design to your homeschooling curriculum?

Teaching children game design and development not only encourages creativity, but gives them many transferable skills useful for other subjects and real life. Plus, if your child already likes video games, this is a perfect way to engage them and make learning a bit more fun for everyone involved!

In this article, we’ll dive into why game design is worthwhile for homeschooling – and help you get started in bringing it to your classroom.

Let’s dive in!

Is game design suitable for homeschooling?

Whether game design is suitable for your child depends on whether they enjoy art and design, have a creative side, and are interested in computers. If this is the case, game design and development is an excellent choice of homeschooling subject.

Game-making skills will also open your child up to a profitable career, with the global video game industry set to grow by 73.8 percent from 2020 to 2027.

Of course, game creation can be a difficult subject to learn, particularly without guided teaching and structured classes. There’s a reason why game creators are paid handsomely – it’s because it’s a highly-skilled profession that requires time and dedication.

If your child is committed to learning the art of game development, there are professionally run online courses specializing in teaching coding for children – for example, Zenva offers a huge collection of game-oriented courses in popular tools and languages like Unity.

Thus, regardless of your personal skills, teaching kids to make games can work for anyone with the right resources.

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What are the benefits of teaching game design?

Teaching your child game design and development skills early makes learning more complicated programming techniques much easier later down the line. By doing this, you could set your child up for a very profitable career in game development and give them attractive transferable skills such as problem-solving, math abilities, and creativity.

Children that learn game design and development skills could benefit from the following:

• Artistic skills. Game design involves devising unique characters and worlds, and learners of the skill will usually learn illustration, sketching, UX creation, 3D modeling, and animation. These skills are immensely useful in many different industries – so even if games aren’t for your kid, these skills can be applied just about everywhere.
• Creativity. Designing games involves coming up with engaging storylines, dialogue, character design, world-building, and more. Teaching your child game creation skills allows them to enjoy the creative process through building their own worlds.
• Problem-solving abilities. Learning to design games gives learners a fresh perspective on solving problems, since the skill involves complicated processes that will force them to learn and adapt to the problems they face. It will also teach kids to stick to a problem and to persevere until the issue is solved.
• Encourages practical learning. Game design is best taught through action. By teaching children the skill through practical learning, they’ll be able to transfer this form of teaching to other school subjects such as science and mathematics.

What game-making concepts should you teach?

Up until this point, we’ve been using game design and game development interchangeably. However, both feature some specific nuances to what they involve. So, let’s take a moment to explore concepts related to both!

What game design concepts should you teach your kids?

Game concept

In simple terms, the game concept is the vision board for your child’s supposed game. You can work with your child to develop their game vision, including the storyline and characters, the art style, and a roadmap for the future.

A fun way to help your child with their game concept is by helping them create a vision board with their own drawings and designs.

Storyboarding

Storyboards are used by professional game designers to flesh out the ideas and stories behind a game. They usually consist of flow charts and detailed illustrations for the purposes of creating a linear storyline.

During the storyboarding process, your child can envision their game characters and worlds. This not only releases their creativity, but allows them to plan a project and learn necessary design and organization skills. You could either help your child draw out their storyboard on paper, or improve their computing skills further by using online tools such as Canva or Boords.

Regardless, it can be an important step for understanding what events and sequences a game will need.

Character development

Similarly to the storyboarding process, teaching your child the ins and outs of character development will help with their creativity and drawing skills. Ask your child questions on their proposed game character: How old are they? What is their backstory? What are their relationships like?

After your child has fleshed out the story behind their character, they can start sketching what they look like. Use tools such as Paint or Photoshop to further develop their computing knowledge.

Animation

If your child isn’t quite ready for coding, learning the basics of animation can be a productive first step. Help your child to draw characters and bring them to life to inject a sense of fun into lesson time. And don’t worry if you aren’t an animator – when we get to our resources section, we’ll cover courses to help even with this topic!

What game development concepts should you teach your child?

Stages of game development

Before your child masters the principles of coding, you can teach your child the main stages involved in making an effective game. These not only replicate and enhance real-life understanding, but coincidentally teach children project management! The main stages are:

• Planning. The planning stage is fundamental to game success. Ask your child relevant questions about their project, such as: What genre will the game be? Who are the main characters in your game? Who is your game designed for?
• Pre-production. During pre-production, game designers begin creating storyboards, character designs, and prototypes. As we’ve already said, storyboarding can help your child get creative and think about the crux of the game. In essence, though, the steps in the first section cover these first two phases.
• Production. The production stage is when the magic happens and the game starts to come to life. Professional game makers spend the most time developing the game, making decisions on how the game looks, writing the script, coding the logic, and so forth.
• Testing. To make sure the game isn’t filled with bugs or lagging issues, game creators will spend time testing the mechanics of the game before it hits the market. It’s fundamental to teach your child why testing is important, and what happens if a game isn’t functional. This is where key skills in problem-solving can be taught, as even the most experienced developer will have bugs in their code.
• Launch & Maintenance. At the launch stage, the game is finally released to the public and is available to play. This is a pivotal moment for game designers and developers. After the initial launch, though, there may be multiple updates as developers fix small bugs, so teaching kids about maintenance and documentation can be conveyed during this time.

Programming Fundamentals

Regardless of the type of game your homeschooled kids want to make, the whole point of this homeschooling subject is to teach some programming.

Before you worry about it being too difficult, know that there are a ton of languages and tools out there. For example, while older kids may have the best time with Unity and C# programming – which gives them ultimate freedom – younger kids will probably do best with visual coding and Scratch.

Some programming fundamentals you’ll want to include are: algorithms, variables, arithmetic operators, conditionals, and loops.

There is a lot to programming – and in homeschooling situations, this is one where we know online resources can come to save the day!

What ways can you make game design fun?

Children learn better when they are fully engaged and interested in a subject. Try not to overwhelm your child with the complicated nature of coding and instead stick to the methods below to inject fun into the classroom.

Play games

Did you know that playing games can actually be educational?

Help your child learn the mechanics and concepts behind gaming by playing age-appropriate games such as Minecraft and Roblox, with easy-to-understand coding mechanics that your child can learn to modify.

For those less computer-oriented, there are also specialized board games available that teach kids concepts related to algorithms – which can be transferred later to computer programming if necessary.

Practical learning

Rather than overwhelming your child with long-winded lessons on programming languages, make lesson time more fun with practical learning.

Let your child play around with making their own mini-games and using design tools such as Photoshop to draw their own characters and worlds. At the very least, we highly recommend using project-based courses, as this will produce tangible results that help cement what your kids are actually learning.

Ready to teach your child game design? Check out these resources

If you’re ready to take the plunge and teach your child the wonders of game design, it’s fundamental to find the right resources to not only help you on your teaching journey, but to give your child the best learning experience possible.

Here are the best online resources you can use to teach students game design and development.

Zenva Academy

Zenva is a learning platform dedicated to teaching students valuable coding, design, and development skills. Age isn’t a limiting factor when learning with Zenva, as there are over 250 courses with different age recommendations.

Zenva aims to give all students the knowledge they need for a future in the gaming industry, teaching practical skills through game building, app development, website creation, and more. Additionally, students don’t just learn through video lessons either. Instead, many courses offer a ton of other activities ranging from live coding exercises to quizzes. Plus, with text-based lesson summaries of every video, the content can be made to suit any student’s learning style.

There are 23 homeschooling-specific courses available on Zenva, catering to children from grades 3 to 12, and offering lessons for a variety of skill sets.

Some of the homeschooling courses available with Zenva include:

• Scratch – Scratch is an online tool that features an easy, drag-and-drop scripting language. In this way, young kids can get started understanding algorithms first before jumping into syntax. Additionally, kids can learn to work with animation and basic game interactivity.
• Python – One of the most popular and in-demand coding languages out there. With the courses, students can get a real feel for programming while building digital art, mini-games, or even a medical diagnosis app.
• Unity – For older teenagers, Unity represents a great dive into teaching programming through games. Students get to build a ton of projects from mini-games to platformers and even to a mini-farming simulator. Plus, all the projects can be used to flesh out a portfolio for the future!

Code.org

An educational nonprofit platform, Code.org aims to make teaching and learning coding and game development skills more accessible for students, with courses aimed at young children to adults. While Code.org does work primarily with schools, they also provide learning resources for children learning from home.

All courses are free to access, and are designed for children from grades 5 to 12. That said, course content tends to skew younger, so something to keep in mind when using the platform!

Some available courses include:

• Computer Science Fundamentals Express Courses. Designed for children in grade 5 and above, this course is designed for students learning the basics of game development with basic learning tools such as a drag-and-drop box.
• Introduction to Game Lab. For older students, Introduction to Game Lab are short modules designed to teach basic concepts that are used in all programming languages and tools.
• Turtle Programming in App Lab. With this module, your child can use the easy-to-use App Lab and learn basic JavaScript commands by drawing shapes and images. By breaking down complicated coding issues into manageable pieces, your child can learn transferable problem-solving skills.

Khan Academy

Khan Academy is similarly a nonprofit platform offering free courses for US students in-line with the curriculum. Khan Academy does not specialize in teaching coding like Zenva or Code.org, and instead teaches a range of subjects such as math, science, and economics.

Coding courses hosted by Khan Academy offer introductions to coding languages such as JavaScript, CSS, and HTML, but offer a limited number of courses. The courses they do provide come with easy-to-follow video tutorials and modules.

That said, where Code.org skews towards younger audiences, Khan Academy tends to skew older (so only with Zenva do you get a true all-ages range).

Homeschooling & game design wrap up

Throughout this article, we’ve tried to impart why using games is a great way to teach your kid important technology skills for the future. Letting kids focus on games while they learn programming has a ton of benefits – whether that’s getting them to get creative or teaching them to problem-solve. Either way, we feel confident in stating that making games turns boring lectures into engaging activities to grab their interest.

Fortunately, with platforms like Zenva, it’s very easy to incorporate games into your homeschooling plans, so you don’t have to become some secret game developer on the side.

We wish you the best of luck with your education journey!

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While it’s easy enough to cover typical subjects like math, English, and science, other subjects are a bit tougher to decide on. However, one you might overlook is computer science. Not only is it an important skill for kids today to master, but the job market’s demand for programmers and coders is skyrocketing.

In this article, we’ll first go in-to-depth about why you should add computer programming to your homeschooling curriculum. Then, we’ll show you how you can start getting your kids involved regardless of their age group!

Let’s get learning!

What is computer programming?

Computer programming, or coding, is the process of writing instructions specifically for devices and systems. Running a computer program translates the instructions into a language that computers are able to understand – and then execute to perform a specific functionality. Understandably, the more instructions you include, the more complicated tasks the computer is able to do!

In order to program, though, users must learn a programming language to communicate with the computer. There are thousands of coding languages in use, including Python, Java, and C-based languages. Regardless of language, though, they’re able to power everything from video games to web browsers.

Although this sounds complicated, kids from an early age are able to learn the basic skills of coding and the importance of algorithms (i.e. the instructions), making it suitable as a homeschooling subject.

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Is programming a suitable subject for homeschooling?

If your child has a passion for playing video games, art & design, or coding, enrolling them in a programming course is a fantastic idea. The video game market is set to reach $372 billion by the end of 2023, and the demand for coders is also expected to increase – with an expected 32,090 job openings in the video game design field by 2029.

Because of this, programming skills are invaluable and could lead to a profitable career in the future.

Having said that, coding can be tricky – especially without structured learning from professional teachers. Luckily, there are a variety of ways to learn programming skills from home, with available courses designed for young learners, such as the homeschooling collection provided by Zenva.

With plenty of structured courses taught by professional tech teachers, programming is a suitable subject for just about any homeschooling parent who wants to expand the subjects for their children.

What are the benefits of teaching children coding?

As we’ve already said, the programming profession is a profitable endeavor, and teaching your child how to code can get them onto the ladder of career success. However, learning to code shouldn’t just be about future prospects.

Children that learn to code can benefit from the following:

• Coding teaches creativity. Similarly to cooking or drawing, coding teaches children to craft a finished product from nothing and to inject their personality and creativity into their work. It allows children to enjoy the creative process through experimentation and questioning.
• Learning to program makes math engaging. Math and coding are sometimes one and the same, and teaching kids how to code will simultaneously teach them complicated math concepts with practical applications. With programming skills, learning math may become easier for your child later down the line.
• Develop problem-solving skills for the future. By learning to code, children can gain a new perspective on problem-solving, since coding isn’t an easy skill to develop and programs always involve some problem-solving to make. Kids will no doubt have to learn to adapt and overcome issues on their way. It also encourages them to work on a problem until it’s solved, which is a transferable skill for other school subjects.
• Coding promotes practical learning. Teaching is made easier through a hands-on and practical approach. Learning to code involves physically programming apps and games, making it a much more engaging practice for children interested in learning since it produces undeniable, tangible proof.

What programming concepts should your child learn?

While coding might seem like a massively complicated skill, it’s actually very approachable and appropriate for children of all ages. By teaching programming to your child at a young age, you’ll set them up for future success in the industry.

Here are six concepts appropriate for children as young as five years old – all of which you can wrap up in courses oriented on teaching the fundamentals of making algorithms.

Sequencing

Sequences in coding refer to the ordering of tasks, i,e. When the programmer tells the computer which tasks to perform and when. This is fairly easy for children to understand since it only requires them to order tasks within the right order. You can even begin this concept outside coding – such as asking kids to describe how they make a sandwich.

Variables

Variables are simply how we store bits of data in programs. This data can be manipulated, read, or rewritten throughout the program as we use it. For example, we can use variables to store player scores, names, and so forth. In this way, our program only needs to know the variable to perform certain functions – not the exact data that variable holds.

Arithmetic Operators

Arithmetic operators are how we manipulate our data mathematically and generally include four basic functions: addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. This is a key area where kids get to learn math at the same time they program, since these core concepts underly almost every program.

Conditionals & Branching

Conditionals, or conditional statements, are a type of code that allows a computer program to execute certain sections of code depending on whether a condition is true or false. For example, in the popular game Minecraft, the game is coded with conditionals to set whether the world is on daytime or nighttime.

Loops

Loops are a very common coding concept. A loop will continually perform a command only while a particular condition is true. The command is discontinued once the condition ends. An example of a condition might be whether a counter has reached a designated number or an item of data is changed.

Syntax

Children that are skilled at speaking or reading will have no issues with learning syntax. This coding method refers to a collection of rules that a programmer must follow when writing code. Every coding language has a different syntax.

How to make teaching coding fun for your child

We understand that coding can appear complicated, especially to a child who is first learning the skill. Rather than focusing on complex coding methods and sitting your student down in front of a wall of information, you should incorporate project-based learning into their curriculum.

For example, if your child is a fan of Minecraft, you might want to use gameplay as a teaching tool. Minecraft is programmed using Java, which is a common and easy-to-learn programming language that beginners can easily learn.

Here are some other ways to make learning code fun:

• Printable workbooks and worksheets detailing the coding behind your child’s favorite games (for example Minecraft, Roblox, or Fortnite). This is a fantastic way to keep them engaged and interested.
• Incorporate practical learning into their course content such as programming mini-games or drawing game characters. Zenva, for example, focuses heavily on practical skills, teaching children how to make their own animations and bots.
• Unlock their imagination with video game storyboards, character design, and plot points. This shows children the fun side of coding and how it can be used for more than making boring programs like Excel.

Ready to teach your child coding skills?

If you’re ready to start teaching your child programming skills, then you’ll need to start by finding the right resources that are the best fit for their individual needs. There are plenty of learning tools to choose from, but we’ve compiled a good list to get you going that can be used with a variety of different age groups.

Zenva

Zenva is an online learning platform specializing in teaching programming skills.

Zenva aims to make learning code simple and accessible for all with affordable courses available to individuals of all ages and abilities. The overall aim is to give students the skills they need to gain real industry knowledge by building games, apps, websites, and much more.

The learning platform offers over 250 courses, with several courses designed specifically with education in mind. The courses are suitable for children from grades 3 to 12, and cater to children with a variety of skill sets. However, the courses also work for adult self-learners too looking to expand into new skills.

Alongside the video courses, Zenva also offers a ton of other supplemental features to help make learning stick, including live coding exercises, quizzes, access to course mentors, and text-based summaries of lessons! Did we mention these courses are also entirely self-paced?

Some great homeschooling options on Zenva include:

• For grades 3 to 6. For younger students, Zenva offers courses based on the basics of how computers work, including the simple idea of what hardware and software is.
• For grades 6 to 8. After children understand flat-out basics of computers themselves, they’ll get the chance to learn some beginner Scratch projects for animation and mini-games. Scratch is one of the easiest programming languages to get to grips with, as it uses visual elements like the drag-and-drop function.
• For grades 7 to 12. Once students have learned the basics of Scratch, they will move on to learning Python, which, while slightly more complicated, is one of the most popular programming languages. As with other Zenva courses, learners are encouraged to build their own software in Python, such as a medical diagnosis bot, mini-games, and more!
• For grades 9 +. Designed for older students, Zenva offers courses on game development with Unity – a very popular engine used in the actual video game industry for games such as Genshin Impact. These take a very practical approach, featuring such projects as a mini farm simulator!

Code.org

Code.org is an education and innovation nonprofit platform, with the vision of making learning computer science more accessible for children of all ages. Code.org not only expands access to computer science in schools, but teaches children from the comfort of their homes with easily accessible and free courses.

The platform offers various free courses for children from grades 5 to 12 and beyond. These include:

• Grades 5 +. For younger learners, Code.org offers ‘Computer Science Fundamentals Express Courses’ for children starting out on their own and looking to learn the basics of computer science with easy-to-understand learning tools like a drag-and-drop box.
• Grades 6 – 12. After children understand the basics of programming they can move on to the more complex courses aimed at 9-year-olds and above. These free modules cover the fundamentals of programming while creating drawings and basic games. Programming languages such as JavaScript and Python are used.
• Grades 12 +. Code.org has partnered with schools and universities to bring older learners free beginner and intermediate courses on programming in languages such as JavaScript, Python, and C++. Free modules include ‘Harvard’s CS50 program’ and ‘Computer Science 101’ hosted by Stanford.

Khan Academy

Khan Academy is another nonprofit organization with free online courses for students primarily in the US, teaching subjects such as math, science, computing, economics, and reading and language arts.

Khan Academy’s computing courses offer basic introductions to coding, teaching JavaScript, HTML, CSS, and SQL. Each course comes with video tutorials and easily navigable modules teaching one basic element of coding.

This said, Khan Academy generally skews a bit older, so we recommend this one more specifically for parents with older students in need of a coding education.

Google Classroom

If you’re looking to directly teach your child programming skills at home, you should consider Google Classroom – an excellent resource for educators to track, manage, and access learning resources.

Google Classroom has various training courses and guides for educators which can be applied to teaching coding skills to your child, including how Google Tools can be used for in-person learning.

If you decide to curate your own course for your child, YouTube has thousands of easy-to-follow videos on coding for all ages.

Of course, this is the more difficult path – but it’d be negligent for us to not mention this option for parents who want a little more control!

Programming and homeschooling wrap up

At this point, we hope we’ve made it clear why incorporating programming into your homeschooling plan is important. Programming can teach a plethora of skills that will help children both in the present day and long into the technological future. It’s also a subject that is considered a lot more engaging – given it can result in tangible projects children can be proud to show off.

Plus, with amazing resources like Zenva around to help do a lot of the teaching for you, you don’t have to be an expert yourself.

All in all, don’t miss out on this amazing topic and give your kids a chance to learn this modern-day marvel!

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When it comes to homeschooling, coding should be considered no less important than other subjects. Teaching coding, however, can be stressful and difficult – and it’s often better to find online learning resources to aid you.

Thankfully, with a general increase in demand, more and more online learning platforms are providing programming and video game development courses, including CodaKid and Zenva. So, you definitely have some options to consider when choosing!

In this article, we’ll cover everything you need to know about CodaKid and discover how it fares against the competition in your homeschooling journey.

Let’s jump into it!

What is CodaKid?

CodaKid is an online-based coding academy teaching children to make games, apps, and mods by using coding languages such as JavaScript and Lua. All online classes provided by CodaKid are designed to be self-paced and taken individually. However, the academy does offer live support from engineering professionals. Additionally, CodaKid does offer one on one coding lessons with professional teachers, undertaken online (but obviously at a premium price).

CodaKid’s goal is to create the next generation of programmers, designers, and entrepreneurs with the tools they need to create the next big games, apps, and much more. The courses teach children the art of coding, of course, but also focus on key computing concepts to help them become independent learners and problem-solvers.

Since its founding in 2016, CodaKid has taught over 10,000 children how to code in over 15 countries.

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Is CodaKid suitable for homeschooling?

If your child is currently homeschooled (or will be in the future), CodaKid is a good choice for providing engaging, well-structured lessons that suit kids’ interests. The courses are designed to be self-paced, meaning students can take as long as they need to get through the workload.

As we’ve mentioned, CodaKid doesn’t just teach students how to create games and apps – lessons take the time to explain key computing subjects to give learners the information they need to work independently in the future. If your child does have any issues, though, help is on-hand with access to a team of engineers available to answer any questions.

Worth noting is that CodaKid’s lessons are designed with children in mind, and learners are able to level up and earn badges every time they complete a lesson to incentivize them.

This said, CodaKid is not the sole platform for homeschooling – and there are much more established platforms out there. Zenva, for instance, offers a ton of the same things, including: self-paced learning, game & app creation focus, emphasis on core foundations and programming concepts, and help through with course mentors. Zenva, however, also offers a variety of supplemental features to aid in the learning process as well, such as live coding exercises, quizzes, text-based lesson summaries to suit different learning needs, and more.

What homeschooling courses does CodaKid offer?

CodaKid offers a variety of courses taught by professional software developers, designers, and educators. Here are the main homeschooling course verticals that CodaKid offers its students.

• Minecraft Coding Courses. Using the popular game Minecraft, learners can try beginner-level coding skills in Java by creating 15 mods. Ages 8 and up.
• Roblox Coding Courses. Discovering Roblox and Lua, learners make 13 Roblox projects. Ages 8 and up.
• Game Programming Courses. With 10 courses available in Python, JavaScript, Unreal, and Unity, children create their own 2D and 3D games from scratch. Designed for children 9 and up.
• Scratch Coding Courses. With 17 courses available, kids use the online tool to create apps and game projects. Suitable for ages 7 and up.
• Speciality Coding Courses. CodaKid’s specialty coding courses stray away from gaming and instead focus on website building and drone programming. Suitable for ages 8 and up.

As was previously mentioned, if your child works better with more support, you can consider CodaKid’s private coding lessons. These lessons are suitable for children from the ages of 6 to 18 and teach many of the same topics above. However, as these are orchestrated by a professional teacher, kids get that extra bit of help to get going.

What homeschooling courses are not here?

While CodaKid has a lot to offer, there are some huge gaps. This comes mostly in the form of its much smaller collection of courses. While Scratch, Minecraft, and Roblox got a lot of love, other languages did not get the same form of attention. Certainly, they’re there, but the collection is shallow at best for any parent wishing to instill those skills in their children.

Taking a look at another platform, Zenva offers content on Scratch and Roblox as well – with a similar approach in terms of project-based, self-paced learning. However, Zenva’s much larger collection of courses (250+) allows them to cover that many more topics, including more content for Python, Unity, and Unreal. Plus, because of the larger catalog, Zenva ensures kids don’t just learn coding fundamentals, but also real-world skills they’ll require for professional jobs in the future.

Popular homeschooling courses provided by Zenva include:

• How Do Computers Work? (Grades 3-6). These two courses are designed to teach younger students the basics of computers, including introductions to digital systems and hardware and software.
• Intro to Coding with Scratch (Grades 3-7). Scratch is perfect for young children looking for an introduction to coding processes, since it’s an easy-to-learn visual scripting language. Children can learn how to animate using Scratch, with courses such as ‘Cat on Trampoline’ and ‘Fish Animation.’
• Intermediate Scratch (Grades 6-8). With intermediate Scratch lessons, students can start programming their own games such as the ‘Beach Clean up Game’ and the ‘Self-Driving Car Simulation’ course. This prepares children to move on to more complex coding languages such as Python and Unity.
• Python Programming (Grades 7-12). Older children can begin learning Python once they have built their knowledge of computers. Zenva provides Python courses including ‘Intro to Coding with Python Turtle’ and ‘Learn Python by Making a Game.’
• Game Development with Unity (Grades 9-12). Unity allows students to create 2D & 3D games. On Zenva, students can learn how to ‘Construct a Micro-Farming Unity RPG’, and ‘Create a First Game with Unity’ (to name a few)
• Data (Grades 7-12). Zenva data courses are designed to give students an introduction to complicated systems for older children. Courses include ‘Managing Data in Networked Systems’, and ‘Data Representation in Binary’.
• Web Development (Grades 9-12). If your child is more interested in website development than gaming, Zenva web development courses are designed to teach teens the necessary skills to build websites. Courses include ‘Create your First Responsive Website’ and ‘Intro to Web Development with HTML and CSS’.

All in all, though, CodaKid is great, but not the best depending on exactly what your child wants to learn.

What age range does CodaKid cater to?

CodaKid’s courses are aimed primarily at kids 7-8 and up. Most are extremely beginner-friendly, so they work well for kids in that age range and a little older.

That said, while older kids can take the courses, they may not find them suitable or engaging for a homeschooling setting. This is especially the case for high school students who generally aren’t as interested in games like Roblox. Sadly, this is one area where CodaKid’s smaller course collection truly hurts it.

By comparison, other platforms like Zenva may be a better choice. Zenva, for example, has courses for kids in as young as Grade 3, all the way up to adult self-learners. Thus, there’s a little something for everyone and you don’t have to worry about switching platforms as your kids age up.

How expensive is CodaKid?

CodaKid works on a subscription basis, and (at the time of writing this) parents can either pay $29 every month or $199 annually for access. With a subscription, you can access all courses available on the CodaKid platform and take each lesson at your own pace.

As for private tutoring, parents can pay $249 per month for 4 private classes, or $450 for 8 private classes.

If you’re unsure whether CodaKid is worth your hard-earned cash, they offer a free 14-day trial for both self-study and private tutoring courses. For private tutoring sessions, every family is offered a free session so you can assess CodaKid’s offering.

In terms of other platforms, this is fairly competitive pricing. That said, the value for the money is not necessarily comparable. For example, Zenva has similar pricing for their services. Per the previous mentions, though, Zenva has a much, much larger catalog of 250+ courses. Additionally, Zenva adds a new course (if not more) every month – so there’s always something new to learn on the platform.

Is CodaKid worthwhile?

If you’re looking for casual coding lessons for your young child to learn at home, CodaKid could be a suitable option. CodaKid has mastered making learning fun, with Minecraft and Roblox-based lessons. And when it comes to the 7-10 range of children, CodaKid is a well-established platform with a lot to offer.

However, there are a number of reasons other platforms might be more suitable. For example:

CodaKid vs. Zenva

Throughout the article, we’ve demonstrated how Zenva may suit your needs more than CodaKid. While CodaKid and Zenva shared many similarities, there are more than a few differences. This includes:

• Course collection size and variety. CodaKid has a focused but small collection of courses, while Zenva is able to offer 250+ courses on a wide variety of programming topics.
• Age group: Despite advertisements, CodaKid is more suited to younger kids than the older age group. Zenva, however, is able to cater to both with their offerings.
• One-on-one tutoring: Students can receive one-on-one classes – but for a very, very high price and without guarantee your kid will want to stick through everything.
• Real-world skills: While coding in general teaches real-world skills, CodaKid’s focuses lean more towards just being useful for education. Zenva’s courses, however, are worthwhile and include projects that can be used to build actual professional portfolios for job seekers.

The choice is, of course, up to what you and your children need for homeschooling. However, just in terms of variety, we think Zenva stands out a bit more in terms of getting the most value for the price you’re paying.

CodaKid Review Wrap Up

When it comes to homeschooling, it’s no wonder CodaKid is highly recommended. Teaching coding is especially hard when it comes to younger age groups, but CodaKid managed to pave the way in terms of how it can be done. If your kid is into Minecraft or Roblox, CodaKid is an especially good platform, then.

That said, don’t put your eggs into one basket. As we’ve shown, other platforms like Zenva have just as much to offer, and can be more suitable as your kids up, mature, and potentially re-focus their interests elsewhere.

Regardless, we hope this review has helped you take one step further in picking courses for your homeschooling activities, and we wish you the best of luck!

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Due to this demand, online learning platforms such as GameDev.tv and Zenva are offering students access to quality learning from the comfort of their homes.

So, is GameDev.tv worth it? In this article, we’ll undertake a full review of the GameDev.tv platform, and also look at how it stacks up against other competition.

What is GameDev.tv?

Gamedev.tv provides online courses for those looking to learn the art of game development. Teaching subjects such as development and design, with a specialty in indie games, GameDev.tv offers a ton of highly ranked online courses – offered through their own platform and other platforms such as Udemy.

Boasting over a million students, Gamedev.tv offers courses on Unity, Blender, and Unreal, as well as coding in C#, C++, and more.

GameDev.tv’s online courses are aimed at beginners looking to learn how to code, giving their learners the opportunity to build and design their own indie games. You don’t need to have prior knowledge of game development to start a GameDev.tv course, so it isn’t hard to see why GameDev.tv is a popular choice amongst coding enthusiasts.

What courses does GameDev.tv offer?

GameDev.tv has over 50 courses available to learners, ranging from RPG coding to 2D character design. Unlike some platforms that focus on one game engine, GameDev.tv offers courses on both Unity and Unreal Engine – along with other courses to boost your C# and C++ coding for the engines (respectively). Both options are regarded as the top choice for game developers.

However, alongside this, GameDev.tv also offers courses on related subjects. This includes a large library of 3D modeling courses with Blender – a skill many indie devs choose to pursue as solo developers. Beyond this, they also have courses on other practical skills, such as math for games or finding professional careers.

Every GameDev.tv course comes with a beginner-friendly introduction with details on how to install the game engine. Each course features comprehensive lesson segments from qualified instructors and gives learners access to the community support forum for additional help. GameDev.tv also offers a Discord chat server, where you can sometimes enjoy live community events.

Some of the courses available on GameDev.tv include:

• Blender Environment Artist. A hands-on Blender class focusing on landscape environments with 3D models.
• C++ Fundamentals: Game Programming For Beginners. A course teaching everything you could want to know about C++ (and how it works for games).
• Complete C# Unity Game Developer 2D Online Course. This course focuses on teaching the foundations of 2D development with Unity.
• Unity Mobile C# Developer Course. A course focused on mobile development, going from scratch to publishing an monetization.
• Unity Visual Scripting: Learn Programming The Easy Way. A course focuses on Unity’s visual scripting service so you can make games with no coding.
• Complete Drawing Course: Create Video Game Concept Art. A course showing you how to design game art from scratch using traditional drawing fundamentals.
• Unity Multiplayer: Intermediate C# Coding & Networking. As the title suggests, this course focuses on some of the more complicated aspects of multiplayer development.

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How do GameDev.tv courses compare to others?

All this said, it’d be a disservice to say GameDev.tv’s course offerings are one of a kind.

Zenva, for example, also specializes in courses on Unity and Unreal Engine, and includes other courses for game art with tools such as Blender and Photoshop. Zenva even offers whole curriculums such as the Unity Game Development Mini-Degree, Unreal Game Development Mini-Degree, and Game Artwork Academy. In so doing, they take the guesswork out of “where to go next” in terms of your learning path.

However, Zenva goes beyond this, and also offers courses on popular topics such as Godot, Python, web development, and more!

Likewise, Zenva offers comparable features to GameDev.tv, including:

• Access to expert course mentors for assistance with courses
• Beginner-friendly courses
• Highly qualified instructors – including Unity Certified instructors and industry professionals

Did we also forget to mention Zenva has 250+ courses for you to learn from?

Regardless, while GameDev.tv has a lot to offer, course variety is actually not its strong suit.

What age range is GameDev.tv designed for?

GameDev.tv caters to people from all ages and backgrounds – from complete novices to established coders. All communities operating on GameDev.tv are PG-13 friendly, with the team describing themselves as ‘an all ages community’.

However, in practicality, much of GameDev.tv’s content may be too high-level for younger learners. And yes, this includes both their intermediate/advanced courses and their beginner-level courses.

To example, while Unity is often very popular in formal schools, most teachers won’t even touch it until grade 8 – and even then it’s usually older high school students who are considered skilled enough to handle Unity even from a beginner’s perspective. This is not to mention topics like C++, which is generally considered a language often too difficult even for high school students.

Of course, this is not a universal truth. Some kids excel at coding right away (just as some adults never click with coding in their lifetimes). As a general rule of thumb, though, it is still worth keeping in mind that the courses are not necessarily made for kids.

This said, not all is lost. For example, and as mentioned, learners that need extra support can benefit from excellent community support from fellow course enrollers. The courses can also be taken at whatever speed is needed, so younger learners can take time to go through each module.

Before we move on, it’s worth noting this is one of the areas where course variety really hurts GameDev.tv. To example again, because Zenva is able to offer courses on more than just Unity and Unreal Engine, their courses are much more suitable for younger audiences. In particular, their Jr Coder Mini-Degree, which focuses on Scratch and even includes some game development aspects, is suitable for kids as young as grade 3. Thus, GameDev.tv has fierce competition in this area.

Is GameDev.tv suitable for homeschooling?

The short answer: yes.

GameDev.tv courses are designed to be taken at home at your own pace. With a structured learning environment and designated instructors to guide you through the process, GameDev.tv is perfect for learners that need a pathway to guide them through their learning objectives.

GameDev.tv also offers bundles that include multiple courses, making it easy for parents to collect several courses at once to cover a full semester or two of learning.

However, as a cascading effect, because GameDev.tv is not the most suitable for every age group, it may not be a great platform unless your children are already in high school.

Similarly, other competition may be better in this arena. Zenva offers much of the same that GameDev.tv can offer in terms of homeschooling, including:

• Self-paced, at-home learning
• Structured learning paths
• 250+ courses for coverage

However, due to the wider library, Zenva also excels a bit more in this area because it can reach younger kids – making it a better platform for multiple different grades.

Again, though, GameDev.tv is a great choice depending on your circumstances, so this may come down to your personal needs.

Is GameDev.tv expensive?

GameDev.tv courses are can range from inexpensive to expensive depending on your learning needs and when exactly you look. At their default retail price, courses range from $27-$200 depending on topic – with heavier-duty game development courses running for more. Bundles on average cost a little north of $400 – again depending on how many courses are in the bundle.

That said, this depends on the when you look – GameDev.tv often runs deep, deep sales, thus it’s very easy to pick up courses for less than $50.

How does GameDev.tv’s cost compare to other platforms?

GameDev.tv is fairly average compared to other platforms in terms of price. However, it may not be the most cost-effective for your needs. While many people prefer to “own” their courses, costs add up quickly when you need to purchase several courses in order to get what you need.

In comparison, other platforms like Zenva – which offers a low monthly or yearly fee for their entire 250+ catalog, may be a more suitable option.

Is GameDev.tv worth it?

In our opinion, GameDev.tv is only worth it for learners that are looking for Unity, Unreal Engine, or Blender-related content. This is where the platform’s specialty lies, and it’s where their courses tend to be well-received. While they do have a ton of useful features – like their community support areas – these are only worthwhile if those are features you want.

Plenty of other platforms out there are often better suited, such as:

GameDev.tv vs Zenva

As we’ve covered throughout the article, GameDev.tv and Zenva are both excellent learning platforms with guided learning and structured modules by professional instructors. Both platforms:

• Offer course support – GameDev.tv through community support forums and Zenva through expert mentors
• Have a variety of courses on Unity, Unreal Engine, and game art
• Have self-paced, online learning to suit any schedule
• Are beginner-friendly while also working for experience developers
• Cater to many different age groups

However, there are key differences between the two, namely:

• Zenva has a much wider catalog of content
• In terms of age, Zenva has a clear advantage for younger audiences
• The pricing structures are vastly different
• Offers extra features we didn’t mention previously – such as text summaries of the videos so you can learn how you want

While the choice always depends on your needs, we believe Zenva stands a bit stronger from the wider catalog and more courses in general comparatively to learn from. The more languages and tools developers have, the more appealing their results often are.

GameDev.tv Review Wrap up

GameDev.tv is a strong contender in today’s world for anyone wanting to learn game development. Honing in on the two most popular platforms – Unreal Engine and Unity – there is a lot to be learned that can get you started as a game developer. Their Blender collection is also quite astounding and focused to help you get all the skills you need even as a solo indie artist.

However, it’s not the only platform out there. If you’re interested in other languages like Python or JavaScript, for example, Zenva has a lot more to offer in that realm. Zenva also has courses on Godot – which is quickly becoming a strong competitor to Unity and Unreal Engine.

Your learning journey is yours to decide – but we hope this review helps ease the way!

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The surge in people learning to code has been helped by the wide range of online learning platforms that provide coding courses. One of the biggest names in this area is Udemy, a platform with a huge range of high quality courses and instructors teaching all manner of subjects.

While Udemy has many great coding courses of its own, it’s also given rise to new competition such as GameDev.tv. GameDev.tv runs a number of courses on Udemy, but also has its own learning platform that’s steadily expanding and gaining new students.

But which is the better option for learning to code? This guide will examine Udemy and GameDev.tv across a number of important factors to help you choose the right learning platform for you.

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Course Quality

Possibly the biggest factor in choosing where you’ll learn to code is the quality of the courses that each learning platform offers. No matter how much effort you put in, you’ll find it hard to learn much if a course isn’t actually any good – so what level of quality do Udemy and GameDev.tv offer?

Udemy

Since Udemy allows instructors to sign up and start creating courses with little to no vetting procedures, the quality of courses on the platform can vary massively. Pretty much anyone can make a course – there are no qualification or experience requirements, which leads to hugely varying levels of expertise among instructors and widely differing course quality by extension.

However, despite the absence of any particularly strict quality or production standards, there are still some great coding courses to be found on Udemy. Every course displays user reviews to show what feedback or criticism other learners gave, and features like the Udemy Instructor Partner program make it easy to pick out the most trusted course providers.

GameDev.tv

The GameDev.tv team have earned a name for themselves as trusted experts when it comes to teaching coding. Their range of courses have consistently high reviews on both Udemy and their own platform, and they’ve also qualified for the Udemy Instructor Partner program, further marking them out as specialists in teaching people how to code.

Their video content consistently meets good production standards, and courses are well structured to guide learners through a particular topic without any confusion. Overall, DameDev.tv offers an impressive level of quality across its offerings.

Verdict 

While Udemy definitely has some great, high-quality courses on offer, the overall course quality on the platform is highly inconsistent owing to the very lax vetting procedures for instructors. GameDev.tv, meanwhile, is run by an expert team who produce excellent content to high production standards, with the reviews to prove it. As such, GameDev.tv wins on quality.

Other smaller platforms have comparable quality to GameDev.tv though. Zenva, to example one, also focuses a lot more on hiring industry professionals and reviewing the courses before they make it to students. So, sometimes the more focused approach is the way to go.

Course Variety

Coding is a huge subject with a wide range of subcategories, specialties, and offshoots, so it makes sense that budding coders should look for a platform that lets them explore whatever topics they’re most interested in. Providing a wide choice is, therefore, an essential element of a good learning platform – so how do Udemy and GameDev.tv stack up?

Udemy

When it comes to variety, Udemy excels. While their open approach to course creation does have drawbacks for quality, it also means that the platform has amassed an absolutely enormous library of courses ranging across pretty much every topic you could think of.

Not every subject is given equal attention, however – there are loads of courses for basic topics, but often fewer for more specialized subjects. Overall, though, Udemy’s course variety is hugely impressive.

GameDev.tv

As you’d expect from the name, GameDev.tv’s primary focus is on coding for game development, with courses on Unity, Unreal, Blender, and more. As such, if your goal isn’t to learn to code for game development, then the platform doesn’t have much to offer you.

There are a few exceptions that go into more varied subjects, such as a Math For Coding course, a marketing workshop, and a motivation and scheduling course, but these are more supplementary than fundamental. The other issue is that in total GameDev.tv currently only offers 28 courses in total, which naturally limits the breadth of their subject coverage.

Verdict

There’s little question about this one – Udemy absolutely blows GameDev.tv out of the water when it comes to course variety. GameDev.tv offers a decent variety within its specialty of game development, but if you aren’t interested in games then Udemy offers much better choice by far.

Again, though, balance this with quality. Zenva equally has a small catalog, but much more consistent quality – and many other platforms are the same. All in all, Udemy’s variety isn’t everything in all cases.

Price

In an ideal world, money wouldn’t matter if you want to learn to code. Sadly, that’s not the case, so learners on a budget also need to consider what each platform actually offers for their money. With that in mind, let’s look at what Udemy and GameDev.tv offer in terms of value for money.

Udemy

All of Udemy’s instructors set their own prices, ranging from $10-$100 each. Many instructors also offer a selection of free courses, although these lack certain features such as completion certificates which are reserved for paid courses.

Paying for a course on Udemy gives you lifetime access to its contents, meaning there’s no time pressure to complete a course once you’ve enrolled in it. Udemy also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee on all its courses, so if you start a course and decide it isn’t what you expected then you don’t risk wasting your money.

GameDev.tv

Individual courses on GameDev.tv cost anywhere up to $234, although if you make use of the platform’s sale events then you could get as much as 50% off the normal price. As with Udemy, courses come with lifetime access and a 30-day money-back guarantee. There are also a handful of free courses, and bundles of 3-6 courses that cost between $354-$414.

Perhaps the best deal on offer on GameDev.tv is their Lifetime Membership option, which provides unlimited access to all their current and future courses. For a one-time fee of $420, this essentially means you’re paying $15 per course for their current library, and as they add more, this option will only increase in value.

Verdict

Udemy and GameDev.tv are fairly even on price – both platforms offer fairly affordable courses with lifetime access and the option of a refund if they aren’t what you expected. The great value found in GameDev.tv’s lifetime membership option does give it the overall lead against Udemy, however.

These prices are also decently competitive with other platforms like Zenva – so it really depends more so on what you prefer in terms of other areas (and what payment model you’re comfortable with).

Course Updates

Coding isn’t a static subject – it continues to grow and develop alongside new technologies and trends. Because of this, it’s important that learning platforms reflect new developments in their courses whenever necessary. So, let’s examine how Udemy and GameDev.tv handle course updates.

Udemy

Udemy’s approach to course updates is fairly lackluster. While instructors do have the option to amend and add new lessons to their courses in order to keep them up to date and relevant, there’s no actual requirement for them to do so. 

In other words, it all depends on how dedicated each instructor is to keeping their courses and content relevant. Some instructors will put the effort in, others won’t; there’s no real way of telling until you take their courses, unless other learners have mentioned the instructor’s approach to updates in reviews and feedback.

GameDev.tv

GameDev.tv regularly updates its courses to reflect new developments and trends, adding new content and amending outdated resources as necessary. The platform allows users to track these changes through the Announcements section of the free GameDev.tv Video Game Course Updates course.

This isn’t exactly the most convenient way to track new changes, but each update does come with a video explaining what changes and new content have been added, making it easy to understand once you do find the announcements.

Verdict

Udemy’s barebones approach to course updates means that GameDev.tv is the clear winner here. While the update announcements are slightly buried, they do show a commitment to providing continuous updates and new content – which there’s no guarantee that Udemy’s instructors will provide.

Course updates are also pretty available on other platforms. For example, Zenva has an easy-to-find course update policy and regularly updates content based on industry developments. So, once again, Udemy is more the wild card here.

Mobile Usability

For many learners, a fast-paced life and a busy schedule can often get in the way of making time to study. Because of this, it’s important for learning platforms to make it easy for their users to study wherever and whenever they have the opportunity to. With that in mind, let’s see how Udemy and GameDev.tv fare when it comes to mobile usability.

Udemy

Udemy’s website is fully mobile optimized and relatively easy to navigate on the go. They also offer a robust mobile app for both iOS and Android, which comes with the useful ability to download videos to watch offline later – which can be very handy for dealing with wifi and data blackspots on your commute.

GameDev.tv

GameDev.tv doesn’t offer their own app, but their site is mobile-optimized and fairly easy to use. Navigating through the online courses can be a little fiddly and confusing if you aren’t used to the mobile site, but this isn’t too much of a difficulty once you get used to it. Unfortunately, though, there’s no option for offline playback – you’ll have to be online if you want to access course videos.

Verdict

While GameDev.tv is still decently usable on mobile, its fiddly navigation, lack of offline playback options, and the absence of an actual mobile app mean that it doesn’t quite match up to Udemy in this department. If your schedule means you’ll be learning on the go a lot, then Udemy’s more robust mobile app and offline functionality may be the better option for you.

That said, the stability of mobile apps is quickly becoming questionable. Recent industry changes both in mobile SDKs and in store policies have made the ecosystem more volatile. Thus, good mobile sites such as offered by Zenva and GameDev.tv are plenty all right and guaranteed to last.

Professional Development

While coding may be simply an interesting hobby for many learners, for others it’s the key to unlocking an exciting new career. For these learners, an online learning platform that supports their professional development is essential – so do Udemy and GameDev.tv offer the support you need to advance your career?

Udemy

Udemy sadly doesn’t offer all that much when it comes to professional development. While individual instructors may offer extra advice separate from their courses, Udemy itself doesn’t offer any concrete professional development courses beyond providing completion certificates for your resume.

With that said, the breadth of subjects covered on Udemy means you may be able to find general careers advice outside of coding-specific courses. There are also plenty of coding courses on Udemy that aim to help you create finished projects for your portfolio. Otherwise, Udemy doesn’t offer much for career-building.

GameDev.tv

Considering how small its current course library is, GameDev.tv’s professional development resources are relatively impressive. As well as the odd workshop that dives into the business of videogames as opposed to game development, they offer a large library of developer Q&As in the free Video Game Course Updates course.

These offer a wide range of advice ranging from industry insights to motivational tips for finishing game projects. Aside from themed bundles that help you master specific game engines or design programs, however, there’s not much else on offer on GameDev.tv career-wise – and if you aren’t interested in game development as a career, then there’s basically nothing.

Verdict

Professional development is an area where both Udemy and GameDev.tv fall down. GameDev.tv’s resources are relatively good considering how small the platform currently is, but ultimately there isn’t that much on offer, especially if you’re pursuing a career outside of game dev.

Udemy, meanwhile, leaves it up to individual instructors as to whether they offer any career support. Portfolio-building projects and course completion certificates are a nice touch, but ultimately the platform does very little for professional development.

Still, sometimes all is needed is a portfolio. Zenva likewise takes a project-based approach focused on portfolio building for careers – and many students have succeed with that alone. At the end, you’ll need to decide how much support you want and need here to make the best choice.

Final Verdict

While there are categories where Udemy and GameDev.tv clearly excel, it’s hard to name an overall winner due to just how different the two platforms are. Udemy offers a huge range of courses on all manner of subjects, but with widely varying quality levels; GameDev.tv, meanwhile, offers more consistent quality but only really caters to learners interested in game development.

As such, it depends on your own needs as to which platform is the better choice. If you want to learn about a wide range of coding subjects delivered in a range of teaching styles, Udemy may be the better choice for you – especially if you’re planning to learn on the go, since Udemy’s mobile app offers some great functionality for mobile learners.

GameDev.tv, meanwhile, is the clear choice for anyone who has a specific interest in game development. Their courses are consistently high-quality, and the free developer Q&A library can offer some useful hints and tips. The platform’s lifetime membership is also a great option for those who want access to an ever-growing library of courses for a relatively cheap price.

It’s worth bearing in mind that these aren’t your only two options, though – there are all manner of learning platforms beyond just Udemy and GameDev.tv, each with its own advantages and specialties. For instance, there’s Zenva, which offers a library of over 250 courses on a range of coding subjects for just $20 a month.

So before you set your heart on Udemy or GameDev.tv, be sure to do your homework on other online learning platforms – you could end up finding one that’s an even better fit for you!

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In particular, two online learning platforms are increasingly being chosen by those looking to learn to code online: Udemy and Treehouse. These platforms work in very different ways, which gives each of them distinct advantages and disadvantages compared to the other.

This can make it hard to decide which is the right option for you – which is why we’ve created this guide to the strengths and weaknesses of both Udemy and Treehouse in a variety of categories. By looking at some of the most important aspects of each site, this guide will help you to decide which platform is right for you. We also will talk just a bit about other platforms too (such as Zenva), so don’t think these are the only fish in the sea.

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Course quality

One of the most important factors in choosing an online learning platform is the quality standards of the online courses it offers. After all, you won’t learn much if the courses on the platform aren’t actually any good. So what’s course quality like on Udemy and Treehouse?

Udemy

On Udemy, courses are created by a huge network of independent instructors, with production left entirely up to them. Udemy doesn’t enforce many quality standards of its own, so course quality largely depends on how much effort and expertise each instructor puts into their courses. As a result, quality is highly variable.

That isn’t to say there aren’t some impressively high-quality courses available on Udemy – many of the courses on offer can be extremely helpful to those learning to code. However, chances are you’ll have to sort through a large number of lower-quality courses in order to find these gems, which can quickly become a slog.

Treehouse

Treehouse creates all of its online courses and content in-house in conjunction with its team of expert instructors. It enforces fairly rigid quality standards, leading to a high standard of quality throughout each of its many coding courses.

What’s more, Treehouse operates its own video studio, meaning that all of its video content feels very polished and professional. Overall, Treehouse’s production standards are impressive, and the majority of its courses feel very high quality as a result.

Verdict

While Udemy does offer some very high-quality courses, the sheer number of all the courses on the platform and the absence of any strong vetting procedures for instructors means that many of its courses end up being far less impressive. Treehouse, meanwhile, ensures all of its courses have input from experts and are made to high production standards – so it wins in this category.

Noteworthy is Udemy is actually the rarer one here. Zenva, to example, also personally selects every course instructor, makes sure everyone has proper industry experience, and reviews each course. And that’s just one of many.

Course Variety

As well as quality, the variety of different courses on offer is another important factor when it comes to learning to code online. Coding is a diverse, multifaceted field with all sorts of applications, so it’s vital that learning platforms reflect this with courses on a broad range of subjects. Let’s see how Udemy and Treehouse fare when it comes to variety.

Udemy

Course variety is arguably Udemy’s biggest selling point. Since just about anyone can become an instructor and create a course, Udemy has built up a massive range of courses on all manner of subjects. If there’s a subject you want to learn about, chances are you can find a course on it on Udemy, if not multiple.

The drawback is that since Udemy doesn’t do much to curate its content, not every subject is given equal attention. Some courses will have dozens of courses available, while others may only have a handful. Still, the course variety on Udemy is nothing to be sniffed at.

Treehouse

Compared to Udemy, Treehouse has far fewer courses available. Currently, there are just over 300 courses available on Treehouse, as well as 278 workshops. These are split across 23 topics including Android, business, computer science, HTML, and more.

While there are definitely fewer programming courses available, Treehouse still manages to cover an impressive amount of ground. Moreover, it offers a number of different course structures – as well as individual courses – so there are tracks that take you through a number of courses to master a specific skill, and Tech Degrees that give extensive training to prepare for specific careers.

Verdict

While Treehouse does offer a good amount of variety among its courses, its library is undeniably much smaller than that of Udemy. Udemy’s immense course catalog allows learners to find courses on an absolutely huge range of subjects, making it the clear winner here.

This said, this factors immensely into the previous point – quality. It is a trend that smaller catalogs like Zenva let their focus lead to higher-quality content, whereas author Wild Wests like Udemy sacrifice quality assurance for variety.

Price

Another vital factor to consider when choosing an online learning platform is how much it costs, and what exactly you get for your money. After all, no matter how good a platform’s courses are, it won’t be the right choice for you if you can’t actually afford it. How do Udemy and Treehouse stack up when it comes to pricing?

Udemy

Udemy’s paid courses range in price from $10-$100, and once you’ve paid, you get lifetime access to the course and its contents. This means there’s no time pressure to finish a course to avoid paying for renewed access – simply learn at your own pace.

Udemy’s courses also offer a 30-day money-back guarantee as well, which is a helpful addition for those who worry about making the wrong choice on a course and wasting their money.

Treehouse

Unlike Udemy, Treehouse runs on a subscription model rather than charging for individual courses. There are three separate subscription plans: Courses, Courses Plus, and TechDegrees.

The Courses subscription gives access to all of Treehouse’s courses, interactive quizzes, code challenges, and learning tracks for $25 per month. Courses Plus offers all this alongside additional premium content and the ability to download videos for offline viewing, at the higher price of $49 per month.

TechDegrees, meanwhile, provide a curated curriculum designed to master the skills for a specific career. They include projects, project reviews, workshops, and a final exam that grants a certificate upon completion. These come at a much steeper price of $199 per month (which includes all Courses and Courses Plus content as well).

Verdict

It’s hard to pick an outright winner here, as Udemy and Treehouse have very different pricing models that both offer good value for money. Udemy offers a large number of highly affordable individual courses, while Treehouse’s subscriptions provide great value for money if you plan on taking several courses per month.

These prices are decently competitive to other platforms like Zenva, so you’ll need to balance this area with other factors.

Instructors

It’s not just the courses that matter – it’s also the people that will be teaching them. Learning isn’t a solo endeavor; you’re likely to need some additional support along the way, so it’s important that learning platforms provide you with this support via their instructors. So, what are the instructors like on Udemy and Treehouse?

Udemy

Udemy’s instructors are very much a mixed bag. Since basically anyone can sign up to Udemy and start making courses, with extremely minimal vetting, there’s no set standard of expertise required for instructors to begin teaching there.

There’s also little guarantee of support from these instructors beyond the courses themselves. Each course does come with a Q&A where learners can ask for advice and clarification, but instructors aren’t necessarily obligated to reply to these questions.

Treehouse

All of Treehouse’s instructors are employed full-time to create courses, aid with content production, and provide support to learners via workshops and the Treehouse Community forum. Treehouse’s instructors are all experts in various fields of technology, meaning they bring real insight to the courses they teach.

Since they take an active role in writing and recording videos, creating exercises, and producing additional content, Treehouse’s instructors are able to bring their expertise to all of the platform’s offerings.

Verdict

While there are definitely some great instructors on Udemy who are proven experts in their field, the lack of vetting procedures means there’s no real guarantee of any specific experience level. Moreover, instructors don’t necessarily provide much support beyond their actual courses. 

Treehouse, meanwhile, has a dedicated team of experienced professionals working as instructors, giving them the win in this category.

Other platforms like Zenva also use industry professionals specifically, so Treehouse is among friends. This is yet another area where it can be said quality over quantity is better for courses.

Mobile Usability

Not everyone has a schedule that allows them to learn to code at home or on a desktop; for many learners, studying has to happen on the go. As such, it’s important that learning platforms cater to this need with good mobile functionality. So, what do Udemy and Treehouse offer to mobile learners?

Udemy

Udemy’s website is fully mobile optimized and works well on mobile devices of all shapes and sizes. It also offers a dedicated mobile app with robust functionality, including the ability to download videos for offline playback.

In addition, since each Udemy course comes with lifetime access, there’s no time pressure to complete a course. This can be handy for mobile learners, who are likely to be more pressed for time than those who can learn at home.

Treehouse

Treehouse doesn’t offer a mobile app, but its website is mobile optimized and is easy to use on mobile devices. The downside is that users must be online to complete exercises and quizzes, which may be a problem if your mobile learning happens on a commute with spotty mobile coverage.

Courses Plus subscribers can get around this issue slightly, since they’re able to download videos for offline playback. However, locking this feature behind a higher price tier may sting a bit for learners whose budget is more stretched.

Verdict

Both platforms offer decent mobile experiences, but Udemy comes out on top here by providing a dedicated mobile app with good functionality and the ability to download videos for offline playback – without having to pay for a more expensive subscription.

However, it’s actually becoming rarer to find mobile apps like Udemy’s simply due to regulation changes for the Android and iOS stores and SDKs. So having platforms like Zenva who at least ensure that the site is mobile responsive can be just as good in today’s elearning space.

Professional Development 

While many learners may choose to learn to code simply as a hobby or for the transferable skills it helps to develop, others are more focused on the career opportunities it presents. 

It’s therefore important that learning platforms provide guidance for learners to help them develop the right skills they need for their desired career. How do Udemy and Treehouse treat professional development?

Udemy

Professional development is one area where Udemy undeniably falls down somewhat. Since Udemy’s model is built around choosing individual courses from a range of instructors, there isn’t much on offer in terms of career guidance or specific learning paths.

It is possible that instructors may offer additional guidance if you ask them, but they aren’t required to help. On the other hand, there are plenty of Udemy courses that focus on creating real-life projects for your portfolio, and each course does grant a certificate for your resume.

Treehouse

In contrast to Udemy, Treehouse excels in professional development. It has an explicit focus on helping to prepare learners for a new career in coding, and its guided learning tracks help you to learn a subject from beginning to end to master specific skills.

Treehouse’s TechDegrees are the real stars of the show, though. These are comprehensive bootcamps that provide extensive training for specific careers, with workshops, projects, and more all designed to prepare students for a job. 

Besides TechDegrees, Treehouse also offers plenty of courses built around creating finished projects like websites, web apps, mobile apps, and more. These can be very helpful for students looking to expand their portfolio to enhance employability.

Verdict

While Udemy shines in many other areas, it fails to offer much in terms of professional development. It may be possible to gain some extra guidance from particular instructors, but don’t count on it.

Treehouse, on the other hand, offers far more guidance and support to learners looking to secure specific careers. In particular, its TechDegrees are a great option for getting job-ready. As such, Treehouse is the clear winner for professional development.

Of course, Treehouse’s services due come with a higher cost – and they may not be needed. Other platforms balance the approach a bit more. Zenva, for instance, is generally cheaper as a whole than Treehouse, but is at least able to offer course mentors to answer course questions and project-based courses to help students build portfolios.

So, do a cost-benefit analysis on this one before you commit.

Final Verdict

While Udemy and Treehouse each have their own specific strengths and weaknesses, overall it’s hard to proclaim a definite winner. In truth, the better option will largely come down to what your specific needs and goals as a budding coding student are.

If you want to pick and choose from a huge range of different subjects without worrying about time constraints, Udemy may be your better choice. Its library of courses is massive, and most of them are also highly affordable, so it’s ideal for dipping your toe into a broad range of topics to find the ones that interest you most.

However, if you want a more guided experience that’s more career-focussed, Treehouse has more to offer you. Their instructors are all experts in their fields, and the course quality is much more consistent across the board than Udemy’s.

Of course, Udemy and Treehouse aren’t your only options. There are many more online learning platforms that provide coding courses, each with its own strengths that may suit your needs better. 

Take Zenva, for instance – their subscription offers over 250 courses for just $20 a month, with impressive support for beginners and a variety of learning paths for those seeking to advance in specific careers.

So, even if your heart is set on Udemy or Treehouse, be sure to research your other options before making a final choice. Learning to code is rewarding, but it can also be difficult, so choosing the right platform for you is essential to make the process easier and more enjoyable.

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If you’re planning on learning to code, it’s important to compare platforms across a number of important factors such as price, course variety, and professional development. It’s likely that Udacity and Coursera are two of the main options you’re considering, so this guide will break down how they perform in a wide range of categories to help you make the best choice between in the Udacity vs. Coursera debate.

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Course Variety

One of the most important factors in choosing an online learning platform is how much choice it offers in terms of the courses it offers – after all, it’s important to develop a wide skillset. So how do Udacity and Coursera compare when it comes to course variety?

Udacity

Udacity’s library of online courses is somewhat smaller than other platforms, but it still offers a good amount of variety. The platform focuses heavily on programming but also emphasizes courses on data science, new technologies like AI, and business-related programming.

What’s more, Udacity also offers some impressively niche subjects that you’re not likely to find on many other platforms, such as programming smart cars. So, while Udacity’s overall library of courses may be limited, it still packs in a good amount of variety.

Coursera

Coursera offers a huge range of courses – there are over 1200 courses in its IT, computer science, and data science categories. These range from short guided projects to longer courses and even entire certificates or degrees.

Coursera doesn’t focus solely on IT-related subjects, so it’s also possible that you’ll be able to find courses in other subject areas that can teach you valuable soft skills and transferable expertise.

Verdict

While Udacity does offer a decent amount of variety within its online courses, its smaller library does make it more limited than Coursera overall. Coursera’s much larger library covers more subjects than Udacity’s, and the platform also offers access to subjects beyond IT which could prove valuable for widening your skillset.

This said, focused approaches also tend to mean more quality. For example, Zenva takes an approach similar to Udacity, where because there’s less topics and subjects, they can focus more on making the courses the best they can be.

Course Quality

Having a variety of courses available to study is important, but it means nothing if those courses aren’t actually any good. It’s therefore a good idea to assess the course quality of different platforms to decide which is more worthwhile – so let’s look at the course quality offered by Coursera and Udacity.

Udacity 

Udacity’s instructors and mentors are heavily vetted, meaning that you’ll be taught by highly qualified individuals who know exactly what they’re talking about. This naturally means you’ll enjoy high standards of teaching in Udacity’s courses.

The production values for Udacity’s courses are also very high, thanks to their dedicated in-house video production team. Udacity also benefits from partnerships with a variety of industry leaders including Google, AWS, and Nvidia, meaning you can gain valuable industry insights through these courses.

Coursera

Coursera’s courses are consistently high quality, being made by experienced industry professionals in collaboration with a range of universities and industry-leading organizations like Google and IBM. Production standards are very high – every course is very polished with high attention to detail.

The professional input on Coursera courses also leads to highly effective teaching styles, so if you’re looking for guided learning rather than a DIY approach, Coursera is a very good option.

Verdict

It’s hard to pick a winner here – both Udacity and Coursera offer very high-quality online courses created and delivered by experienced professionals, with the backing of industry-leading organizations and teaching institutions. It’s safe to say that whichever you pick, you can be sure the courses you take will be consistently high quality.

While not true of every platform, other platforms, such as Zenva, do also offer similar high-quality courses due to more quality control over who is making the courses and making sure the skills are industry tested.

Price

Another important factor in choosing an online learning platform is how well it matches your budget. Coursera and Udacity both use different pricing models, so which offers more value for money?

Udacity 

On average, Udacity’s Nanodegree programs cost between $339 and $399 per month – and since courses can often last between two and six months, this cost can quickly rack up. There is, however, a 15% discount for paying the entire course fee upfront, which can reduce the cost slightly if you can afford a bigger lump sum.

Udacity does offer a number of free courses and classes, but you won’t be able to access certain features like mentorship and certificates unless you pay for a course. If you want to take a course but can’t afford it, you may be able to apply for a Udacity scholarship to help with the costs.

Coursera

Coursera’s prices vary widely – most individual courses cost between $29-99, while its online degrees may cost anywhere between $9,000 and $25,000. Prices can also be confusing due to the number of different options that Coursera gives you for paying for each one.

The platform does offer nearly 2000 free courses across all its subject categories, but you’ll have to pay for them to access features like graded assignments and certificates of completion. If you’re interested in taking a number of individual courses, then the Coursera Plus subscription offers decent value – a $59 monthly payment unlocks access to everything apart from MasterTrack courses, certain certificates, and degrees.

Verdict

Both Udacity and Coursera fall on the pricier end of the spectrum compared to other online learning platforms. On the face of it, Coursera offers cheaper options when it comes to individual courses, but the confusing range of payment options often obscures exactly how much you’re paying and for what. Overall, both platforms are a fairly costly investment.

This is definitely an area where you should seriously evaluate other platforms. Zenva, to example one, offers courses at a fraction of the cost but still comes with a variety of features including 250+ courses, projects to construct courses, supplemental activities, and more.

Course Updates

IT is a field that’s constantly changing and evolving as new technologies emerge, which means that it’s important for learning platforms to reflect these changes and developments by frequently updating their courses. How well do Udacity and Coursera handle updates, then?

Udacity

Udacity handles course updates fairly well, with courses updated on a regular basis, often adding entire new lessons to deal with recent developments and trends. This is helped by their partnerships with industry-leading organizations that can offer expert insights on new trends.

The one downside is that it’s unclear what the process is for reporting issues with outdated courses or requesting new content to be added. Other than this, Udacity fares very well when it comes to course updates.

Coursera

Because Coursera’s courses are made alongside universities and industry partners, they’re usually kept highly up-to-date and in line with industry developments, meaning you’re unlikely to have any issues with outdated content on Coursera.

However, these partnerships are a bit of a double-edged sword, since the nature of Coursera’s collaborations can sometimes mean a slower response to problems with courses, as this necessitates making changes to the course through the partner organization in many cases.

Verdict

Both Udacity and Coursera handle course updates very well, offering regular updates to keep courses up-to-date and relevant to current trends. This is helped by both platforms having solid relationships with industry organizations that can offer cutting-edge insights.

Now before you think is, the industry organizations are not what dictates course updates. For example, Zenva does not have the same industry partnerships as the platforms above. However, it still is able to maintain a regular course update policy – so be wary of platforms that offer zero course updates ever.

User-Friendliness

The usability of an online learning platform is another key factor to look at when weighing up your options – no matter how good a course is, you’ll have a hard time completing it if the platform itself doesn’t offer the right functionality. So how user-friendly are Udacity and Coursera?

Udacity

Udacity is a fairly easy-to-use platform, with a mobile-responsive site for learners who need to study on the go. However, it doesn’t currently offer a mobile app – in fact, Udacity removed its mobile app from app stores in 2019.

For coding beginners, Udacity courses are fairly easy to get to grips with, with a number of beginner-friendly courses on offer. However, the focus is mostly on intermediate-level courses, although there is a fairly clear framework of progression to help you reach this level,

Coursera

Coursera offers both a mobile responsive site and dedicated Android and iOS apps, allowing you to easily access courses on the go. However, Coursera limits the flexibility of your schedule somewhat, as there’s a time limit of 180 days for one-off-payment courses and a monthly subscription requirement for “specializations” offering multiple courses, meaning there’s some time pressure to complete courses before you have to pay for them again.

In addition, Coursera is often fairly unfriendly to beginners, since many of its courses require or assume prior knowledge and training. 

Verdict

This category is another close one – Udacity is more beginner-friendly and has less time pressure than Coursera, but Coursera offers more robust usability for mobile learners thanks to its mobile apps. Overall, it comes down to personal preferences for this one.

This is one area where you might want to consider price alongside it. To example again, Zenva which we’ve already stated has a fraction of the price has a mobile-ready website for learning. The platform also works wonderfully for beginner and intermediate developers alike, as there are plenty of courses for both and guided pathways.

Accessibility

Not everyone has the same requirements when it comes to learning, so it’s vital that learning platforms address this by implementing accessibility measures to help everyone access their courses. Let’s take a look at how Udacity and Coursera address accessibility.

Udacity

All of Udacity’s courses come with closed captions in their videos, making them more accessible to learners with hearing difficulties. These captions are sometimes also available in other languages, and selected courses have been fully translated to a handful of languages including Mandarin Chinese and Spanish.

Udacity’s site also follows general accessibility guidelines, providing an easy-to-read site that caters to extra display options and makes various other accommodations.

Coursera

Coursera takes accessibility pretty seriously – most of its courses provide closed captions for videos, and many of these have also been translate into a variety of languages to help learners whose first language isn’t English.

Coursera also states that it follows all applicable Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, and most importantly, they have a dedicated accessibility team. This means that even if accessibility problems may crop up, the platform is actively working to improve its measures and proactively address issues that learners may have.

Verdict

Both online platforms do a fairly good job with accessibility, but Coursera’s dedicated accessibility team shows a commitment to continuous improvements to accessibility in future, which makes them the clear winner for this category.

We also want to note accessibility should also be a bit of a red flag. While we aren’t saying a whole team is needed, there are plenty of platforms out there that basically offer nothing. So, you should aim to stick with platforms like those here or Zenva where accessibility is a priority and there are plenty of options to suit user needs.

Course Reviews

Being able to see what other learners think about a certain course is a very helpful way of seeing if it’s one worth taking. Because of this, course reviews are a vital feature for any learning platform – so let’s see how Udacity and Coursera handle them.

Udacity

Udacity does display course reviews on each individual course’s page, but it seems more like a feature for promoting courses than giving potential students access to previous learners’ feedback. Each course has an aggregated review score and displays some of the “top reviews”, but there’s no option to see more negative reviews to root out potential issues.

Coursera

Each of Coursera’s courses comes with an aggregated user review score and makes it easy to view what past learners have to say about the course, helping you to assess whether it’s the right one for you. What’s more, instructors also have aggregated review scores, helping you to see how good your mentor will be as well as the course.

Verdict

Coursera is the clear winner here, as it offers reviews to help learners pick the right course rather than simply using them as a promotional tool. The ability to see instructors’ review scores is also very helpful.

Bear in mind, though, other platforms do offer reviews too. Zenva for instance includes their platform reviews readily on the product pages – so it’s not a rare thing to put that much weight into. Then again, just keep in mind platforms that don’t take reviews at all should be held under suspicion.

Professional Development

To some, coding may simply be a hobby, but for others, it’s the path to a new career. It’s therefore important for learning platforms to provide frameworks for professional development. How well do Udacity and Coursera support their learners in progressing their careers?

Udacity

Professional development is actually the core focus of Udacity. It offers a number of services such as project reviews, resume assistance, and job-searching to help learners advance their careers. The platform also provides clear frameworks for what to learn to enhance your skillset and employability, and there’s a focus on guided mentorship for those that want it.

If you take a paid course, you’ll also receive a certificate of completion for your resume; these aren’t accredited by any major organizations, but they’re widely recognized by employers in the industry.

Coursera

Coursera’s partnerships with universities, academic institutions, and industry leaders are designed with career progression in mind – they’re all about getting you ready for a career in coding. There are a wide range of professional certificates you can achieve through Coursera, as well as full degrees through degree programs and other qualifications. You can even find university recognized online degrees within its offerings.

You can also take modular courses which can count towards a full degree, while other courses are designed to help you build up a portfolio of finished projects to enhance your employability. There are also some job listing resources on offer if you’re actively looking for your next position.

Verdict

This is another category where Coursera and Udacity are very close. They both have a keen focus on enhancing employability through their courses, and provide various other features to support career development as well. Overall, which is better is likely to come down to exactly which qualifications or skills you want to pursue.

All this professional development help is quite the investment – and many would argue its not needed. Zenva, for instance, takes a project-based approach so users can focus on building professional portfolios as they learn to code. Yet, even with just that portfolio, plenty of students have found successful careers and jobs. And again – this was at a fraction of the cost.

The Final Verdict

Overall, Udacity and Coursera are two impressive learning platforms that offer a multitude of helpful features and a wide range of courses, powered by partnerships with industry-leading organizations. While each has its own strengths and weaknesses, it’s hard to say which is definitively better – it’s better to look at the pros and cons of each to decide which is better suited to you personally.

Udacity’s course library is smaller than other learning platforms, but still has a good range within its courses, as well as some surprisingly niche subjects you’re unlikely to come across elsewhere. It also offers more beginner-friendly courses than Coursera, making it a better option for beginners. However, be aware that its high monthly prices can quickly stack up.

Coursera is geared more towards those who already have a background in coding and are looking to progress their career to the next step. They offer a wide range of courses (many of them free), and depending on which courses you choose, it often works out cheaper than Udacity. However, its confusing pricing options can get very muddled very easily, which can be offputting if you’re not sure what you’re actually paying for.

Of course, Udacity and Coursera aren’t your only options for learning to code online – there are all manner of other platforms available, and many of them would be on a full list of the best online learning platforms. For example, if you’re looking for a more affordable option than Coursera or Udacity, then Zenva may be a good choice; their entire catalog of beginner-friendly, professionally-led courses can be accessed for just $20 a month.

So now that you know all about Udacity and Coursera, make sure to do your research on other platforms as well – even if you’re sold on one or the other, it can’t hurt to see what your other options are.

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Two of the standout options for learning to code are Udemy and Codecademy. Both platforms offer a variety of free and paid courses, but they work in very different ways, which can make it hard to decide which is the better option.

So which should you choose if you want to learn to code? This guide will examine how Udemy vs Codecademy stacks up in a variety of categories to help you find the right option for you. We’ll also give you our thoughts on how they rank compared to other platforms too, giving you an extra step in the right direction.

Let’s start exploring the platforms!

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Course Variety

One of the biggest factors in choosing the right online learning platform is how much course variety it offers. Udemy and Codecademy approach the way they provide courses very differently – so which has the better variety?

Udemy

Udemy has a staggering amount of course variety thanks to the fact that just about anyone can create a course on the platform. There’s a huge variety of topics to explore, and since multiple instructors may create courses on the same subjects, you have plenty of options for each subject, allowing you to pick online courses based on your learning style as well as your goals.

Udemy doesn’t just stick to coding either – it provides courses on a variety of other subjects, meaning you can easily gain other transferable skills with non-coding courses as well.

Codecademy

Unlike Udemy, Codecademy is focused specifically on coding. This means its course options are more focused, but it still offers a good amount of variety in the subjects it teaches. Codecademy provides online courses in 14 different major coding languages, so whichever language you plan to start with, there’s a course for you.

However, Codecademy doesn’t treat all its subjects equally. For example, there are all manner of web development courses, but only a handful of game development courses. This could limit your options depending on what aspect of coding you want to specialize in.

Verdict

Udemy is the clear winner when it comes to variety. Providing a huge range of online courses is one of their main selling points, and is helped along by the fact that the platform is largely open for anyone who wants to be an instructor to create a course.

This said, sometimes focused approaches are better. Zenva is another example of a platform that only chooses a few subjects to focus on – but it in turn renders them able to pay more attention to the elements covered in the next section.

Course Quality

Quality is just as important a factor as quality when it comes to finding the right platform – after all, it doesn’t matter how many courses are on offer if they’re not made to a high standard. Let’s look at how Udemy and Codecademy stack up when it comes to quality.

Udemy

Udemy’s biggest strength is unfortunately also one of its major weaknesses. Just about anyone can sign up as an instructor with no vetting or quality control, meaning that the quality of Udemy courses can vary massively between instructors.

This isn’t to say that there aren’t some fantastic courses on offer on Udemy – it just means you’ll have to pick carefully and try to weed out the less effective courses from the good ones. 

Codecademy

While Codecademy’s courses are generally made to a very high standard, it’s unclear how much quality assurance the platform undertakes in the background. There’s also very little transparency over who actually makes the courses outside the company itself, so it’s hard to judge what amount of expertise fuels their courses.

This lack of transparency is only a minor concern, though, since for the most part, Codecademy’s courses are consistently high quality.

Verdict

Codecademy wins out when it comes to quality, but only by a slight margin. Udemy does offer some very high-quality courses, but the sheer number of courses available means it’s hard to pick out the good ones from the bad. Codecademy, meanwhile, offers consistently high-quality courses to its users.

Other platforms definitely do this area better though. For example, Zenva has its courses made by industry professionals and takes the time to review each course before it even arrives on the platform. So, there’s just a general high-quality maintained for the courses.

Pricing

Another important factor for choosing the right platform is their pricing models – especially if you’re learning on a tight budget. Udemy and Codecademy take different approaches to pricing, but which is better value for money?

Udemy

On Udemy, you pay for individual online courses, with average prices ranging from $10 to $100. This one-time payment gives you lifetime access to the course, so there’s no time pressure to complete it. Udemy also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, so if you find a course isn’t right for you, you don’t need to worry about wasting your money.

As well as paid courses, there are also many free courses. However, these may lack certain features such as completion certificates and access to instructor Q&As.

Codecademy

Unlike Udemy, Codecademy runs on a subscription model with two main plans. Basic offers free access to a selection of courses, interactive lessons, and daily practice exercises. Pro, meanwhile, gives full access to the entire catalog of courses and a wider range of content and resources, plus certificates of completion when you finish a course.

A Pro subscription costs $39.99 a month or $239.88 per year (saving $240 compared to a monthly plan). College students may also be eligible for the Student Pro subscription, which costs just $149.99 a year.

Verdict

Udemy and Codecademy are fairly even when it comes to price. Udemy offers a wide range of very affordable courses, with lifetime access and a money-back guarantee providing even further value. Codecademy’s Pro plans are also very good value for money if you can afford to pay for a year upfront – especially if you’re eligible for the student discount.

However, there are a few cheaper options. Zenva, for instance, also requires regularly billed access plans – but at a greatly reduced price compared to Codecademy. With 250+ courses available in the catalog that come with the plans, you’ll also have plenty of learning material for a long time to come without having to invest extra money in more courses.

Course Updates

Coding is an ever-evolving field, meaning that information can quickly become outdated due to new developments. Because of this, it’s important that learning platforms update their courses to reflect new developments. Let’s look at how Udemy and Codecademy handle their course updates.

Udemy

Udemy takes a very lax approach to updates. While instructors are given the ability to add to and amend their courses to keep them relevant and up-to-date, there’s no requirement for them to do so, which means courses can easily end up becoming outdated if instructors neglect them.

On the other hand, the rate at which new courses are added to Udemy means that even if some courses become outdated, newer courses may still reflect new developments, so updates may not pose too much of a problem if you can find newer courses on your desired subjects.

Codecademy

Codecademy’s approach to updates is fairly opaque – there’s not much information available on how regularly they review their courses or amend them to reflect new developments. 

However, Codecademy courses largely focus on how to learn coding fundamentals, which remain largely stationary in the majority of cases. Because of this, it’s unlikely that you’ll run into much trouble with Codecademy when it comes to outdated courses.

Verdict

Course updates are an area where both platforms could stand to do better. Udemy could benefit from making more robust requirements for instructors to maintain and update their courses, while Codecademy could provide greater transparency on how often it updates courses.

We have to give credit to other platforms in this area too. Zenva, to example again, provides fairly clear transparency about how and when courses are updated (and they do update things, so all the more credit there).

User-Friendliness

No matter how good a course is, it makes no difference if you can’t actually get to grips with the platform it’s on. So how easy to use are Udemy and Codecademy?

Udemy

Udemy offers a mobile responsive site and a robust mobile app supporting offline playback, making it a great option for learning on the go. 

However, it does suffer from the sheer amount of courses on offer. It can sometimes get overwhelming or confusing trying to find the right courses, so it’s best to go in with a good idea of what you want to study. 

Codecademy

Codecademy’s site is not mobile optimized, and will even try to stop you from using it from a mobile browser, so it’s not great if you want to be able to learn on the go. There is a mobile app that lets you do practice exercises, but it’s severely limited in functionality compared to the main site.

On the other hand, Codecademy does offer a lot of support and guidance in choosing the right courses. It’s geared towards beginners, with plenty of entry-level courses to help ease you into coding and learn the basics.

Verdict

The winner here depends on what you’re looking for. If you want to learn on the go, then Udemy is the better option thanks to its more effective mobile offerings. However, Codecademy may be the better option if you think the choice of courses on Udemy may be overwhelming since its courses are much more structured to help you get started with coding.

But, what if you could have a bit of both? Zenva offers guided learning pathways to make finding your “next” course very easy. In the same vein, their site is also mobile optimized, so you won’t get blocked from learning on the go (or even on what may be your only computing device).

Accessibility

Not everyone has the same needs and requirements when it comes to learning, so accessibility measures are an important factor for choosing the right online learning platform. So how well do Udemy and Codecademy cater to different users’ needs?

Udemy

As far as accessibility features go, Udemy isn’t great. Courses are not required to provide closed captions for video, and those that do provide them often use auto-generated captions which may be inaccurate. Moreover, many courses are provided in purely video formats, which neglects users who have visual or hearing difficulties. 

Udemy does, however, provide some courses in other languages, but as with most aspects, this is entirely down to whether instructors provide them, so if you’re looking for non-English courses then Udemy isn’t that reliable.

Codecademy

Codecademy does away with the need for closed captions by providing almost all of its courses in purely text-based, browser-hosted formats. Its code editor also implements a number of accessibility features such as high contrast toggling, font options, whitespace changes, and more.

Codecademy does not provide courses in languages other than English, but since almost all of its content is browser-based, it’s possible to use tools such as Chrome’s in-built translator to access them in different languages if necessary.

Verdict

Codecademy takes a much more robust approach to accessibility than Udemy, offering a variety of accessibility options to help learners with special requirements to access content and resources.

Udemy’s lack of enforced accessibility also stands out in comparison to other platforms. Platforms like Zenva take special care with accessibility so that can cater to different learning needs in a variety of ways. So Udemy feels a bit behind in this regard.

Course Reviews

User reviews are a very helpful tool when it comes to choosing the right courses and subjects to study, so it’s important that online learning platforms allow users to share feedback on courses. Udemy and Codecademy handle this very differently – so let’s take a look at how they approach course reviews.

Udemy

Users can leave reviews and feedback on any course provided by Udemy, helping learners to find high-quality courses that cater to their particular learning style. Learners can also access Q&As with instructors to gain further guidance and clarifications, with all previous questions and answers visible to any user who signs up for that course.

However, there’s little indication that Udemy actually does anything about low-rated courses, meaning you can still accidentally sign up for a poor-quality one if you aren’t careful.

Codecademy

Codecademy does very little to help users see feedback on their courses. There are no reviews available on any of their course pages – the only indication of quality is a stat showing how many people have taken the course in question.

There are also no instructor bios, meaning you can’t see who runs a course or what their previous students have to say about their teaching ability.

Verdict

Udemy is the clear winner here, since Codecademy provides practically nothing when it comes to user reviews. Udemy, by contrast, helps you pick the right courses by allowing you to see what previous learners have to say about each course.

Reviews also aren’t rare. For instance, Zenva makes their reviews from various sites available on the product pages so people can be assured of the service’s quality. So, the fact Codecademy neglected this a bit is a bit disappointing.

Professional Development

For many people, learning to code is a hobby. For other people, though, it’s the start of a new career, which means that it’s important that online learning platforms provide the necessary support for learners to develop their skills and become more employable. So how do Udemy and Codecademy approach professional development?

Udemy

Udemy’s paid courses offer certificates of completion for your resume, but that’s about it in terms of professional development. Unless an instructor decides to provide any additional guidance to help with professional development, it’s up to you to ensure you take the right steps to making yourself more employable.

That said, Udemy offers more than just coding courses – so it may be possible to find courses that offer general guidance for employability, resumes, portfolios, and so on.

Codecademy

Codecademy offers a number of Learning Paths designed to help you learn the right skillset for certain careers, such as computer science or web development. In addition, you can get certificates of completion for courses if you’re on the Pro plan – although these aren’t actually accredited by any major organizations.

Codecademy also offers a number of courses centered around completing real world projects that you can add to your portfolio, further enhancing your employability. On the other hand, since Codecademy is mainly focused on beginner-friendly courses, you may have to look elsewhere to learn more advanced subjects.

Verdict

Codecademy provides more structured support for professional development than Udemy, so it may be the better option if you want more support and guidance to boost your employability. However, there’s a limit to what Codecademy can offer in terms of development since it is mainly geared towards beginner coders – so if you want more advanced courses, Udemy may be better for you.

On the other hand, there are other ways to achieve professional development help. Zenva, for instance, takes a project-based approach so users can build their portfolios at the same time they learn new skills. So, just be aware there are indeed other pathways to take here.

Overall Verdict

It’s hard to say in the Codecademy vs Udemy debate which is the definitively better option. They each have their own strengths and weaknesses which makes them better suited to different learners. Which option is right for you largely depends on your own goals and needs.

If you can afford a yearly subscription to the Pro plan, Codecademy provides great value for money. It’s an excellent platform for coding newbies to get started, with beginner-friendly courses offered in well-structured frameworks and learning pathways. It can also be helpful for intermediate users who want to build out their portfolio with impressive projects.

Udemy, on the other hand, is the better option for people looking for a more flexible approach to learning. Its mobile app is great for learning on the go, and lifetime access to courses means there’s no time pressure to complete them – which is handy if you have a busy schedule. Moreover, the wide range of courses on offer means you can shape your own online coding curriculum based on your interests and skill level.

Udemy and Codecademy aren’t your only options, of course – there is a wide variety of other platforms that you could also consider that would also be considered the best online learning platform. For instance, Zenva offers a range of beginner-friendly courses designed and led by industry veterans, with an extremely affordable subscription option offering access to over 250 courses that can be done at your own pace. All the courses offered feature a wide array of topics – from software development, to mastering web development, and even to topics like data science, machine learning, and others related to the Python programming language.

So even if this guide has helped you settle on either Udemy or Codecademy, it’s still worth doing your homework on other platforms for learning coding online – you might be able to find an even better option!

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Two of the biggest of these online learning platforms are Udemy and Coursera. Both platforms have unique advantages and disadvantages in terms of price, course quality, opportunities for professional development, and more, which can make it hard to choose the right one for you.

If you’re trying to decide what your best option is for learning to code online, this guide will break down how Udemy vs. Coursera stack up against each other in a variety of categories to help you make a more informed decision. We’ll also discuss a bit about how other platforms compare, so you can also weigh your options elsewhere.

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Udemy vs Coursera: Course Variety

One of the most important factors in choosing the right learning platform is how wide a range of online courses they provide. With that in mind, let’s look at the variety of courses that Udemy and Coursera provide.

Udemy

Udemy course variety is one of its biggest selling points. Just about anyone can create a course on Udemy, leading to an absolutely staggering number of different online courses to choose from.

One of the major advantages of Udemy’s model is that since there are often multiple different course instructors offering courses on the same subjects, learners have more options available to find a teaching style that suits them. However, the choice can sometimes be a little overwhelming – so make sure to go in with a good idea of exactly which subjects you want to learn.

Coursera

Coursera also offers a wide variety of courses to choose from. There are over 1200 different courses available across their IT, computer science, and data science categories, offering learners the opportunity to study a wide range of subjects.

These online classes range from short guided projects to longer courses, and even online degree courses. Because of this, Coursera caters to a wide range of learning goals.

Verdict

While Coursera’s variety of courses is definitely not to be sniffed at, Udemy is the clear winner when it comes to the range of courses on offer. The fact that anyone can make a course on Udemy means that there’s an incredible amount of courses to choose from, and new ones are constantly being added.

This said, there is a such thing as choice overload. So, don’t let this be the ultimate determining factor. Other platforms like Zenva who have smaller catalogs may still be a better choice if you want something more focused.

Udemy vs Coursera: Course Quality

It’s not just the quantity of courses on offer that matters – the quality of the courses that Udemy and Coursera provide is also an important consideration. So how do the two platforms compare?

Udemy

Udemy course quality is highly variable. Just about anyone can make an online course on Udemy, and since instructors aren’t vetted particularly strongly, there’s no guarantee that those courses will actually be any good.

That’s not to say there aren’t some truly excellent courses to be found on Udemy, of course – but it does mean that to find the best ones you may have to sort through a lot of lower-quality courses first.

Coursera

Coursera offers consistently high-quality courses thanks to its partnerships with leading, prestigious universities, educational institutions in general, companies, and organizations in the industry. Some of its most prominent partners include Google, Stanford, and IBM.

These partnerships ensure that all Coursera courses receive input from experienced professionals to provide valuable insights and guidance. Courses are also made to high production standards, resulting in very polished presentation as well as quality content.

Verdict

While Udemy wins on quantity, Coursera takes the crown for quality. While there are definitely a number of excellent courses to be found on Udemy, Coursera is much more consistent in delivering high-quality courses made in collaboration with experienced professionals.

Quality is also a big component on other platforms as well. To example, Zenva puts a lot more emphasis on quality with courses created by industry professionals and reviewed before they ever reach the platform.

Udemy vs Coursera: Prices

For the budget-conscious learner, one of the major factors in finding the right learning platform is affordability. So which offers better value for money: Udemy or Coursera?

Udemy

Courses on Udemy range from $10-100, with prices set by individual instructors. There are also a wide variety of free courses available, although these may be missing features like completion certificates and instructor Q&As.

What’s more, once you pay for a course on Udemy, you have lifetime access to its contents, meaning you won’t have to pay any costly monthly subscriptions. There’s also a 30-day money-back guarantee, meaning you don’t risk wasting your money if a course doesn’t meet your expectations.

Coursera

Prices vary widely across Coursera courses – individual courses start at $29 – $99, while online degrees cost anywhere from $9,000-25,000. There’s also the Coursera Plus subscription, offering access to all their courses except for MasterTrack courses, certain certificates, and degrees for only $59 a month.

Coursera also offers nearly 2000 free courses across all its subject categories (although again, these don’t provide features like graded assessments or certificates). However, pricing options can often be quite confusing for paid courses because of the many different options given for each course.

Verdict

Coursera and Udemy are on a fairly even footing when it comes to pricing, so it largely comes down to what you’re looking for. If you’re looking to fit in only a couple of courses each month, Udemy may be the better option.

Coursera, meanwhile, is better for going all-in on major certificates or degrees, or for accessing unlimited smaller courses each month via Coursera Plus.

These are by far not the most affordable options though. Zenva, for instance, gives you access to the 250+ course catalog for a fraction of the cost of both – and even adds new courses to the platform constantly that you don’t have to spend extra to get!

Udemy vs Coursera: Course Updates

One of the factors that’s often overlooked when choosing an online learning platform is how well they keep their courses updated in order to ensure they keep up with new developments and trends in the industry. Here’s how Udemy and Coursera handle course updates.

Udemy

Udemy allows its instructors to update their courses whenever they want to keep them current and relevant, make corrections, or add new material – but there’s no guarantee that instructors actually will update their courses.

On the other hand, the rate at which new Udemy courses emerge means that even if instructors don’t update old courses, there’s usually a good chance that new courses will cover recent developments instead.

Coursera

Because of their collaborations with universities and professional partners, courses are usually kept highly up-to-date and in line with industry trends. Working with industry leaders in creating courses means that Coursera can take advantage of specialist insights to create courses that are highly modernized and relevant.

However, making courses dependent on these partnerships can also slow down Coursera’s response to problems with courses since the terms of their collaboration may necessitate making changes through the partner organization instead of doing it themselves.

Verdict

Coursera comes out on top when it comes to course updates thanks to its greater reliability and consistency. Udemy does offer up-to-date, modern courses, but leaving updates up to course instructors is a much less reliable system for keeping courses updated.

This said, Udemy isn’t alone. Other platforms that are more of a vehicle for course authors to promote their content also have the same update problems. Whereas platforms like Zenva where quality is much more controlled tend to have updates to keep courses relevant.

Udemy vs Coursera: User-Friendliness

It’s just as important to look at how a platform works as it is to know what it provides. Knowing what a platform does to make the user experience as pleasant as possible is vital to making the right choice – so let’s look at how Udemy and Coursera compare.

Udemy

Udemy’s huge variety of courses is a win for user-friendliness, as it caters to a variety of different learning styles and experience levels. On the other hand, the sheer amount of courses on offer can lead to an overwhelming choice, so it’s best to have a clear idea of what you want to study before starting.

If you’re looking for flexibility and the ability to learn on the go, Udemy has you covered. Their mobile app provides offline playback, allowing you to study wherever you are, and lifetime access to courses you’ve paid for means there’s no time pressure to complete them – just work to your own schedule.

Coursera

Coursera has its own mobile app on both iOS and Android, plus a mobile responsive website, allowing learners to study on the go. However, it’s less beginner-friendly than Udemy, as many courses require or assume prior knowledge of the subject to some extent.

There’s also a certain amount of time pressure for completing courses – individual courses come with a 180-day time limit, while “specialization” course bundles require a monthly subscription to maintain access. This means there’s more pressure to complete courses quickly to keep costs down, rather than working to your own pace and schedule.

Verdict

Udemy just edges it in this category since lifetime access to courses can be a real benefit to budget-conscious learners and users who require a more flexible studying schedule. It’s also easier to get into for beginners, as its range of courses caters to more experience levels.

It is worth noting, though, that other platforms balance the cost and flexibility better. For example, as we previously mentioned Zenva offers content at a fraction of the cost despite also requiring a regularly charged access plan, achieving a better balance in not pressuring students to be learning every second of the day.

Udemy vs Coursera: Accessibility

Not everyone has the same needs when it comes to learning, so how well a learning platform caters to different accessibility needs – such as additional languages, different course formats, and navigation aids – is an important consideration. Let’s take a look at how Udemy and Coursera compare when it comes to accessibility.

Udemy

As with most factors, Udemy leaves accessibility measures up to individual instructors to implement. Some instructors may offer courses in additional languages other than English; others may provide closed captions to help learners with hearing impairments (although these are often auto-generated and not necessarily 100% accurate).

However, there’s no set requirement for instructors to include these measures, so the sad truth is that many simply don’t bother. Moreover, many courses are designed as video-only formats, which isn’t ideal for users who struggle to see or hear videos.

Coursera

Coursera takes accessibility fairly seriously. Many courses are offered in multiple languages, allowing non-English speakers to make use of them. Coursera also makes good use of closed captions and translated subtitles for video lectures.

Their site also states that it follows Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, and they have a dedicated accessibility team focused on making continuous improvements and meeting new requirements as necessary.

Verdict

Coursera has a much stronger commitment to accessibility than Udemy, taking steps to make many of their courses very accessible to learners with different needs. Udemy may offer some accessible courses, but without enforcing any major accessibility requirements for instructors, there’s no guarantee of finding a course that meets your needs.

We also want to note that accessibility these days is very important. So platforms like Zenva that offer a variety of accessibility features are going to just generally do better than platforms where it’s less guranteed.

Udemy vs Coursera: Course Reviews

Course reviews are a useful tool for deciding whether a course is the right one for you, and whether it meets high standards of teaching. Both Udemy and Coursera make use of course reviews, but who does it better?

Udemy

Users can leave reviews on Udemy courses to help other learners understand how a course functions and how good it is. Learners can also use Q&As to get additional information and guidance from instructors, and other learners can browse past Q&As as they please.

Coursera

Coursera’s courses feature easily visible user reviews that help show what a course covers and how effective it is. What’s more, individual instructors also have an aggregated user rating, allowing learners to choose between courses based on both course reviews and instructor reviews.

Verdict

Both platforms are fairly even when it comes to reviews, offering learners the opportunity to view helpful feedback from other users to make an informed decision on which online courses to take.

All said, reviews aren’t rare. For example, Zenva showcases reviews from several different areas regularly on its pages as well. Still, we encourage you to keep an eye out for reviews!

Udemy vs Coursera: Professional Development

While some learners may be interested in coding courses as a way to get more into coding as a hobby, for others it’s all about how a learning platform can help get into or advance a career in coding. Let’s take a look at Udemy and Coursera’s approaches to professional development.

Udemy

Udemy doesn’t really offer much in terms of structured professional development – it’s largely down to users to choose a slate of courses that will help them develop the new skills they want or need. It does cater to a wide range of experience levels, however, meaning that learners can benefit no matter what stage of their career they’re at.

Many of Udemy’s paid courses also provide certificates for your resume, which can help to enhance your employability by demonstrating you’ve mastered a particular skillset.

Coursera

Professional development is one of Coursera’s bigger focuses – hence their partnerships with various universities and industry organizations to create their quality courses. The platform provides a wide range of professional certificates, as well as online degrees and modular courses that can provide credits towards a full degree.

Other courses offered, meanwhile, are designed specifically to build out your portfolio with finished projects. Coursera also offers some support with job listings, helping you find your next role more easily.

Verdict

Coursera’s more structured approach to professional development and personal development, as well as its partnerships with leading organizations, make it a stronger choice for career development than Udemy. That’s not to say Udemy doesn’t offer opportunities for development and learning job skills – but if you’re serious about a career in coding, Coursera may be the better option.

However, always remember these features come at a premium cost! Other platforms for Zenva might be a better choice for the budget conscious, as there’s a project-based approach to help build professional portfolios – which are often enough to break into the industry.

The Final Verdict

Both Udemy and Coursera have their own strengths and weaknesses, which makes it hard to pick an overall victor. However, each platform does lend itself better to particular learners and purposes.

Udemy is an affordable, flexible option that offers lower risks through its money-back guarantee and reduces time pressure with lifetime course access. This makes it a great option for those who are just starting out with coding, or learners whose busy schedule requires more flexibility and less pressure.

Coursera, on the other hand, is clearly designed for learners who are serious about enhancing their coding skills to pursue a career in technology. It offers a lot more structure to developing your skills, and its collaboration with universities and leading companies in the industry mean you can access support and guidance from experienced professionals.

It’s important to also remember that while Udemy and Coursera are two of the biggest names in online learning, there are still other options. Take Zenva – a beginner-friendly option that offers high-quality, beginner-friendly courses made by heavily-vetted industry veterans. Their subscription option even allows you to access over 250 courses for just $20 a month.

Zenva is just one example of the many other alternative online learning platforms to choose from – so make sure to do your research on a variety of online learning services to find the one that’s right for you!

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