Coursera Review (2024 Updated) Does it Really Worth it?

Last Updated on December, 2024

Is Coursera worth the attention and hype it has?

The short answer is yes. But it’s the long answer that benefits you or your organization.

If you want to know whether Coursera is legitimately good, this brutally honest coursera review is all you need.

But wait — why trust me?

Why Trust Me?

For starters, I’ve been using Coursera since 2015. But for this review, I contacted several stakeholders I personally know whose opinion helps me see areas that I might not see. However, while writing this review, I’m following with 3 Coursera courses, too.

Additionally, I thoroughly browsed several unofficial communities such as Reddit, Quora, and even YouTube to expand my view. That’s why what you get here is inimitable (unless they copy me).

Let’s start with the first question: what is Coursera?

What is Coursera?

Coursera is one of the industry leaders in online education, with a sky-high brand reputation. The platform was founded in 2012 by two Stanford professors, Andrew Ng and Daphne Koller. 

Their vision is a world where anyone, anywhere, has the power to transform their lives through learning.

In making that a reality, Coursera offers courses not only to individuals but also to businesses, universities, and even governments. These are typically high-quality video-based lectures that you can download.

I’ll dive into the details of Coursera courses in the next subtopic, but you should know that the platform has nearly 130 million registered learners. Now, let’s get into the heart of this review: the analysis for Coursera courses.

In-Depth Analysis of Coursera Online Courses

Coursera is elated to collaborate with 300+ established universities and companies, including leading establishments, including Google, IBM, Imperial College London, and even Stanford University.

The platform boasts its 5,800+ course catalog that millions of registered students use. This is an in-depth analysis of Coursera online courses.

Variety of Courses

Coursera online education spans across 11 main subject areas. I’ll discuss the course structures in the last subtopic before moving into the next main subtopic.

Let’s look at them one by one.

1. Data Science

Data is the modern oil, and being a data science professional is a great career choice.These Coursera courses for data science teach students how to collect, analyze, and visualize data using tools and techniques.

These techniques (and/or languages) are interconnected and go up from the fundamental level. In a later subtopic, I listed my favorite courses, which mostly included top-rated courses. So, keep reading.

Up next is business.

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2. Business

Top business leaders in the market sure have their gut feelings; they have unparalleled knowledge.

In your journey of harvesting such knowledge, Coursera’s business courses are ideal for learning about how to start, lead, manage, and innovate in the business world across multiple aspects.

These areas include accounting, finance, marketing (online and offline), entrepreneurship, branding, strategy, and so on.

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3. Computer Science

The world is rapidly digitalizing itself, creating a massive market for computer science experts. 

Let’s look at information technology next.

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4. Information Technology

Coursera’s information technology courses are ideal if you’re not very fond of C.S. but wish to pursue a tech career.

These courses teach you how to support, secure, and optimize I.T. infrastructure and services. The approach will be based on cloud computing, cybersecurity, networking, etc.

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5. Language Learning

Being an American who knows French has helped me get into some career-changing places. That’s why Coursera helps you learn how to speak, read, write, and listen in different languages with their language course catalog.

Some of the languages you can learn include Japanese, German, Korean, and Spanish. On top of all that, there are separate Coursera courses designed for non-native English speakers to brush up their English skills to the native-speaking-and-writing level.

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6. Health

Don’t worry; there aren’t any online MBBS courses here. Instead, these Coursera courses teach you skills areas that cover the physical body and psychology across several subject areas.

Next, let’s look at the personal development section.

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7. Personal Development

You could lose opportunities even with a better CV because your personal development levels are insufficient. 

To fix that and elevate yourself, Coursera courses on personal development focus mainly on areas such as leadership, communication, creativity, public speaking, critical thinking, emotional intelligence, soft skills, and so much more.

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8. Physical Sciences and Engineering

This area of Coursera is dedicated to students who want to learn how to understand and apply concepts of physical science and engineering from simpler to complex extents.

Let’s move to the next part.

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9. Social Sciences

Have you wanted to pursue a career in areas involving human behavior and societal operations? If so, Coursera has got your back.

And more.

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10. Art and Humanities

These Coursera courses are designed for aspiring students who want to learn how to appreciate and express the beauty and diversity of human culture and creativity.

These courses cover topics such as history, philosophy, applied arts, music, photography, architecture, Photoshop, drawing, and even film. And the list doesn’t stop there.

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11. Maths and Logic

For the last category, in no order of importance, maths and logic are focussed more on problem-solving.

With that, we have covered all the subject areas. With that, you’ll be able to get an idea of where to start. But let’s look at the quality and content next.

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Quality and Content

Coursera takes great pride in its elite panel of instructors. Additionally, the platform is directly affiliated with some of the world’s best universities. These instructors are industry experts who are well-known and reputed.

Even the free Coursera courses have so much rich content that even the introductory lesson itself teaches you something valuable. That’s one of the main reasons why Coursera courses are respected.

However, this makes it quite difficult for instructors to hop in. According to my research, getting on Udemy is easier than going to Coursera. 

But as a minimum requirement, any aspiring Coursera instructor is required to create and submit a course of at least 25 pages or 10,000 words long. Although not mandatory, video lessons are highly encouraged.

After that, Coursera evaluates your academic background. If you happen to have a few decades of industry-specific experience backed up by a reputable academic history, you have a good chance of becoming one.

Almost always, Coursera courses are offered by reputed universities and conducted by reputed instructors from the said prestigious universities.

One of the biggest issues I encountered using Udemy is the lack of people’s presence. The slides are amazing, but I had used MasterClass before. But Coursera has the best of both worlds by having both the instructor AND a slideshow behind for most courses.

For example, check out the below screenshot from a Korean language course.

So, the content and product quality are a perfect blend of MasterClass and Udemy, which is amazing. 

In conclusion, Coursera learning materials’ content and production quality are admirable. What about the video quality? Typically, the lowest quality is 240p, which can go as high as 1080p. You’ll notice how most free courses stop their video quality at 720p.

Next, let’s discuss the method of delivery.

Method of Delivery

Similar to most competitive online platforms, Coursera also delivers pre-recorded videos. But I absolutely love how all courses give time-stamp-based transcripts, so you don’t hear anything wrong. Here’s how it looks on Coursera web.

If you notice it, you can also see that the transcript is available in multiple languages. In other words, all Coursera courses are delivered with subtitles in various languages. 

And this list goes on. By implementing these subtitles, Coursera has gone the extra mile to shatter many language barriers.

The cherry on top is how some courses are conducted in foreign languages, too. Of course, you’d find them to have less number of reviews as the majority goes for courses taught in English.

I’ll discuss more details on the user interfaces in a later sub-topic. Next, let’s look at the course structure — you’re in for a surprise if this is your first time with Coursera.

Typical Course Structure

Coursera sure had its growth arc, and today, there is no standard or common course structure. 

The reason? It’s because the platform no longer offers just certificate courses. Since Coursera works with several accredited universities, you can directly enroll for a degree from a legitimate university, too. 

These are basically traditional college degrees provided online. The advantage of obtaining one via Coursera is the lowered cost, and it’s fully remote.

And it’s a delight.

The course structure of a degree varies based on the course and the institute. But typically, you only have to meet the studying hours and score the necessary college credit bracket.

Let’s look at certificates and diplomas now.

In a typical Coursera certificate, as I said earlier, Coursera only quality controls the structure forwarded by respective institutions and instructors.

I’ll show how a typical course looks when we discuss the user interface-related stuff. Next, let me share my special guide to help you choose the BEST Coursera course.

My Personal Guide to Find the BEST Coursera Course for You

I used to look up the course names on Reddit and Quora, but the accuracy is questionable on secondary platforms — EXCEPT when you want to learn about the platform as a whole.

Alternatively, you can always start from the course filter on the left.

Now that we’re done with the course selection special formula let’s look at the user experience.

Analysis of User Experience: Homepage & Inside Courses

I know we’re taught not to decide on books based on the cover, but it’s only natural. Don’t we abandon web pages if it looks really off?

But don’t worry; Coursera’s user experience is top-notch, with some excusable shortcomings. The platform operates on the web and an App. Let’s start from the website.

Coursera’s Website User Interface and Navigation

The home page’s clutteredness is one massive similarity across all industry-leader online learning platforms. 

This is excusable, given that it has thousands of courses, and the brand wants to show as much as possible to a first-time viewer. And, if you pay attention, you’ll realize the user interface gives you multiple starting points for course selection.

For example, Most Popular Certificates are typically at the top. If you have already created your account and browsed a few courses, Recently Viewed Courses and Specializations will be below that.

Underneath that is the Get Started with These Free Courses section. Scroll down a bit, and you’ll see the Earn Your Degree section directing you to degree programs.

Coursera is a global online learning platform that offers massive open online courses (MOOCs), specializations, and degrees; remember that too.

And a few more. But that’s about the main page. Next, let’s look at the user interface inside a course. For example, let’s consider “The Strategy of Content Marketing” offered affiliated with the University of California, Davis.

Don’t mind me cutting off my username there at the top right; that’s where your account will be.

The cherry on top is how you can complete assignments at your own pace.

When you scroll down a little, you’ll see more details about the certificates, the number of quizzes and assessments, and their language. You’ll also see the complete module breakdown, which you can click on to read more. It’s super easy to know. 

What would you see when you’re engaging in a course? Let me show you the earlier Korean language course.

On the left, you can see the course material breakdown based on the week; in the middle, you can access all lectures conveniently. Not only that, but Coursera also lets you set up weekly goals so you can keep tracking better.

When you come back later to the website, this is what you’ll see. Because of this U.I., it’s super easy to follow up and select courses on the spot.

And when you watch every video, you can easily skip back and forth as you turn subtitles on or off, adjusting resolution and playback speed with a few clicks.

Next, let’s look at the app.

Coursera’s Official Mobile App

All the leading online educators have their own mobile app, and so does Coursera. The app is compatible with both iOS and Android.

Unlike the website, browsing is more restricted if you don’t have an account. Once you do, it’ll be pretty much the same user interface as the website, except a bit more vertically squeezed. 

However, you’ll find course filtering to be much easier, but I also think that depends on the phone you use. I use an iOS device, so there is an added advantage.

Speaking of the iOS version of the app, Coursera boasts a stellar 4.8-star rating with over 100K and a growing number of reviews. The user interface is pretty much the same as Android; in other words, it is very aesthetic and easy to use.

As you can see, these are just the details; I’ll share my experience with the platform from an overall perspective. Next, let’s look at who Coursera is Coursera for.

Who is Coursera for?

In a nutshell, Coursera is for ANYONE who likes learning. But let’s segment their target audience, which helps Coursera to provide the highest quality courses of all types.

And this list goes on. When you connect a need that can be fulfilled with a Coursera course, then Coursera is definitely for you. But did you know Coursera offers 3 non-personal or non-individual options? Next, let’s talk about that.

Coursera for Non-Individuals

While Coursera is mainly known for educating single users, the platform is also ideal for businesses, universities, and even governments. You can easily access these sections via the top strip of Coursera’s home page.

If you already didn’t know, Coursera is pretty much the only platform that does this. Others only have the “platform for business” segment. Let’s see what this is about.

Coursera for Business

Coursera Business boasts an elite clientele of 3,800+ businesses, including top brands such as Emirates NDB, L’Oréal, P&G, and even TATA.

Not only that, organizations are given complete control to monitor and assess the ROI, too. It’s like you’re the Dean of a university with visibility to their performance. 

Coursera business operates across 6 key academies. The best feature of these academies is the customization extent. 

For example, let’s consider the leadership academy. Coursera is happy to share that 88% of H.R. professionals cited leadership development as a top priority for business success.

This academy’s courses are as organized as individual courses. It is segmented as courses for leading yourself, leading teams, leading organizations, and leading transformation.

In each segment, skills required, course recommendations, and who Coursera has partnered with to deliver these courses are clearly mentioned. Here’s a quick look at how it all looks.

The segmentation is similar but with subject-specific areas for other academies. I’ll let you do the exploring by yourself. The only condition for Coursera Business is that the employee pool must exceed 125 heads. But what if you don’t have that?

The solution for that is Coursera for Teams.

Coursera for Teams

Coursera Teams is basically a Coursera business for smaller teams. In this section of Coursera, you can upskill 5-125 employees while getting unlimited access to program set and launch tools, too.

That unlimited access makes what Coursera offers very valuable. Full access to the Coursera library will be granted, which has over 3,000 guided projects, 200,000 clips, and over 5,800 courses.

The cherry on top is how you can use analytics and benchmarking dashboards, too.

Without taking a cent from you, Coursera also lets you browse EVERYTHING they offer so you can confirm you’re getting the value for what your organization invests. That’s clever investing.

Coursera for Universities

Even if you represent Harvard or Cambridge, integrating online degrees with a platform like Coursera can immensely increase your market share and further strengthen your industry leadership.

If you’re from another segment of universities, you can do what the leading universities don’t do to acquire more market share. But ultimately, it’ll be students worldwide who will be more educated.

This customer testimonial is proof that universities could be better with Coursera.

But let’s assume that you represent a government — Coursera has got your back there, too.

Coursera for Governments

Governments can move mountains with effective government employees, regardless of the country and the budget. One common feature of thriving nations is well-educated government employees via cost-effective online learning.

This is what Coursera offers for governments. If you represent a government organization, you can upskill your workforce better with Coursera classes for government affordably. So many governments actively do that.

Could yours be the next government to go down in history to educate its employees and citizens? You have that opportunity without breaking your treasury with credible platforms like Coursera.

Across all the non-individual Coursera types, there’s a comprehensive form to fill, and the Coursera team gets back to you sooner than you’d expect — these are high-value ticket sales for them.

Next, let’s look at Coursera’s community.

Coursera Community

As a leading e-learning platform, Coursera also has its own official and unofficial communities for current and prospective Coursera students.

Coursera Official Community

Coursera has a comprehensive and diverse community filled with positive instructors and fellow learners. But, the Coursera team is directly connected to the community area as well.

The community is mainly divided into two main sectors accessible by the community home.

Topics are much more course or subject-specific, and groups are more people-oriented.

From the community home, you can access multiple trending and standardized topics. As I said, these are more subject-oriented. So, these topics are basically the main subject areas of Coursera and some more, including UX design, Sales operations, etc.

You can also access various discussions from the community home. One example discussion thread is about “What Machine Learning Can and Can not Do.” 

What I think is most useful is how you can filter these discussions as the latest posts, top questions, and most recent activity. Groups are similar to Facebook groups on various topics and interests.

And the list goes further. But there are more filters here than in the topics area, such as the number of members, member names, last activity, etc. 

Within Coursera, it’s amazing how supportive and patient everyone is with questions across all age groups. It shows how mature everyone in a learning platform really is, too.

Coursera Unofficial Communities

Coursera has some minor Facebook groups and several Qoura threads, but only Reddit has a dedicated large-scale community with the subreddit I.D. r/Coursera.

With little or no community guidelines, there is so much to learn here to get the maximum return on investment. You can search for some keywords about your issue or inquiry, and the chances of finding the solution are quite high here.

But remember not to sneak into the platform illegally, as that’ll take away your chances for an excellent certification.

That brings up a good question. How recognized or accredited are Coursera online courses?

How Recognized Are Coursera Online Courses?

MasterClass doesn’t provide any certificates. Udemy does, but almost all are issued from the platform itself. The same theory applies to Coursera certificates; they’re not accredited.

But hold on — you can still get your promotions and jobs with these qualifications since it’s a matter of relevance.

You can’t expect to be appointed as a licensed Engineer in the USA without an accredited degree, which applies to certificate courses, too. But having a Meta or Google certification in digital marketing is completely different from that.

The point is that, even if Coursera certificate courses aren’t accredited, you can get what you want, as long as the appointment or promotion doesn’t require degree-level accreditation.

However, I told you that there are so many degree programs in Coursera offered by reputed universities. The only difference is that you save a massive fortune on physical attendance.

Are these Coursera degrees accredited? They are!

Coursera is merely the mode of connection between the universities and students. This does not affect the quality and the curriculum of Coursera-hosted degrees. So, as long as you acquire the needed credits, you’re an accredited degree holder.

Don’t believe me? Let’s consider the BSc in Computer Science degree offered by the University of London below.

With all the course details there, pay attention to the far left of the thick white strip: accredited Bachachor’s degree — that’s enough proof there.

Even if the accreditation level isn’t exclusively available for certificates, universities and organizations offer these. Below is one example of that.

Did you notice that the instructor represents the university? That brings us to another important topic: Coursera instructors.

Coursera Instructors

In Udemy, pretty much everyone can submit courses, although it’s up to Udemy to decide whether or not to update the website. 

With Coursera, that’s not possible at all; you cannot even upload a course unless you have some requirements.

All Coursera instructors ALWAYS represent the university or the organization that offers the certificate. If it’s a degree, it will be the lecturers from the offering university. Because of that, the quality of all qualifications provided by Coursera is sky-high. 

Think about it; even if you were an instructor-worthy resource in a university, would a university want you representing them? Imagine the backlash and the consequences if the expected quality was not met.

So, all the Coursera instructors who represent various universities and organizations are the best of the best.

However, Coursera allows you to share guided projects. Although there aren’t any certificates there, you can learn there too. 

But when you follow a Coursera course by a designated instructor, remember that respective organizations chose them. If you need your own reassurance, feel free to look them up.

The few times I did, I was surprised and wondered how difficult it should have been to major in two areas at once. All of this sorted out, let me teach you how to open a Coursera account; it’s very easy.

How to Open a Free Account in Coursera?

Udemy website is the best way to make an account, and it’ll easily sync with the app.

Verification of Your Email

If you don’t verify your email, resetting your password can be a real nuisance. 

If the button isn’t working, Coursera’s email verification link also has a link you can simply copy and paste. Don’t panic if the email isn’t in your inbox because sometimes it can end up in the spam folder.

Once you do all these, you can comfortably embark on your learning journey. Before we move to price, let me quickly run you through some of my favorite courses next.

My (Favorite) Most Popular Coursera Courses

One of the best things about Coursera is how they are interconnected. For example, you can follow a beginner French and Spanish course from two universities with the same standard.

Keeping that in mind, let’s look at some of Coursera’s courses that are very popular but also my favorite, in no order.

First Step Korean Offered by Yonsei University

Maybe you already guessed this one. This elementary-level Korean language course consists of 5 lessons with 4 units and covers 4 skills: reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Successful completion of this course allows you to learn about Korean culture.

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The Strategy of Content Marketing

In this course, you will learn content marketers’ core strategies to acquire and retain customers profitably.

Specifically, you will learn how to develop, organize, and implement a content marketing strategy, analyze and measure the effectiveness of content marketing, write compelling copy, use a strategic framework when writing, and build your professional brand and authority through content marketing.

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Meta Social Media Marketing Professional Certificate Offered By Meta

This course mostly focuses on establishing an online presence, building a following, and managing your social media accounts to evaluate and interpret the results of the subsequent engagement.

There are so many more outside these areas that you’d love. After all, there are so many free courses too.

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Next, let’s talk about the investment.

How Much is Coursera?

Coursera’s fees fluctuate from free to various prices, and this depends on the type and the seriousness of the course.

Free Courses

Coursera is an admirable online learning platform offering hundreds of free courses. So, the starting price of Coursera is actually 0$; completely FREE.

Professional Certificates

Certificates offered by the Coursera platform are accredited and job-ready. That’s why financial aid is available at the starting price of $49/month. The cherry on top is the 7-day free trial.

For financial aid, you should have an application that includes information about your educational background, career goals, and financial circumstances. Most courses come as scholarships and with financial aid.

MasterTrack Certificates

Coursera’s MasterTrack courses start at $2,000, and these aim to earn a university-issued certificate and credit towards a degree.

Specializations

Specializations start at $49 per month, and they focus on mastering a specific skill. 7-day free trial is available here too.

Degrees

Courser’s superiority comes from accredited degrees, and the price starts from $9,000. You’re required to apply for degrees with an application form, unlike many other courses.

Coursera Plus

Coursera’s subscription plan is Coursera Plus, and it gives you access to 7,000+ courses, projects, professional certifications, and specializations. 

However, Coursera Plus doesn’t include degrees and MasterTrack certificate programs. You can subscribe to the monthly or annual plan.

That’s it for individual plans. Next are solutions for organizations.

Coursera Business & Teams

Coursera offers options for organizations such as Coursera Team and Coursera Enterprise. 

Coursera Enterprise has custom pricing for companies with 125+ users.

Refund Policy of Coursera

Customer Testimonials: Coursera

Coursera video lectures and certificates receive high praise on multiple platforms; this is merely a glimpse of it.

Luke has points out the overall convenience and risk-free nature of the platform, and I agree.

This Reddit thread points out the increased employability with Coursera certificates. I’ve been on both end of it, and it’s true.

This X (formerly Twitter) thread aims to discuss the accreditation of Coursera certificates, which is one of the strongest plus points of the platform.

Next, let me share my personal experience with the Coursera lectures and the platform overall.

My Experience With Coursera Courses

As I said in the beginning, I’ve been using Coursera for years since 2012; I’ve seen it grow, and the platform always takes massive leaps with upgrades.

As a marketing professional, my exposure to some niche areas was well-polished thanks to specialization courses. I have followed free and paid courses almost equally, which has helped me be a practically superior service provider in my industry.

Remember, knowing how to show the value of a product or a service is admired in marketing. 

With the development of the user interface and the mobile apps, learning is fun with Coursera.

Whichever field you are in, Coursera has a course for you. All you need to do is browse a little and know how to filter. That’s why I shared my special course selection guide with you.

I also like how the website and the app let you set study reminders.

With a knowledge-filled course library, Coursera redefines the quality of online learning. That’s why I have always felt I get more than the expected return on investment.

However, I noticed one downside: not all courses can be bought separately. But in Coursera’s defense, and to our advantage, following a course inside the subscription is actually cheaper.

So, all things considered, I admire Coursera, and I believe it will only grow with time. Fingers crossed!

Next, let’s have a quick comparison of Coursera with leading platforms.

Coursera Vs. LinkedIn Learning, Udemy, SkillShare, And MasterClass

Coursera has been able to fix many of the gaps in some of the leading online education platforms. For example, unless you have premium LinkedIn, you cannot access LinkedIn Learning, at least the impactful courses.

Both SkillShare and Udemy’s courses are not accredited. Leading universities and organizations directly offer the majority of Coursera courses. Not all competing platforms have resources or affiliations to offer accredited remote degrees.

You might be able to learn from celebrity experts in MasterClass, but you can’t use them as qualifications in your CV as there’s no proof. There are no courses or degrees there in MasterClass at all.

In comparison, Coursera is much more affordable at the same level as LinkedIn learning.

Pros and Cons of Coursera

Coursera is loaded with pros, but it also has some cons. Let’s look at them next.

Coursera Pros

Other Online Learning Platform reviews:

• Simplilearn Review
• GetSmarter Review

Coursera Review Verdict — Should You Buy Coursera Courses?

Coursera has been revolutionizing online learning since 2012, and after 2020, it’s almost as if there’s nothing else to improve.

With sky-high quality learning content offered by leading universities and organizations worldwide, having Coursera qualifications is a privilege.

So, it’s not hard to recommend this platform. Is Coursera worth what you spend? Absolutely, yes, whether it was a degree program or professional certificates.

Remember to refer to this review when you sign up and find courses. That way, you can find the best ones.

I hope this review was helpful. Happy learning!

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