Last Updated on October, 2024
If you’re anything like me, you want to start cooking, painting, gardening, writing, woodwork, and photography on a random Sunday afternoon. And with learning platforms like Craftsy, you can actually learn all these skills from the comfort of your own home!
But out of the dozens of platforms offering lessons in various creative endeavors, it’s difficult to tell which ones are ACTUALLY worth it.
Which is why I’m here to help you out with my Craftsy review!
Find out what Craftsy classes are like, what I love about them, how much they cost, and most importantly- whether Craftsy is worth the hype in this comprehensive Craftsy review.
Effectiveness
Brand Reputation
Price
Contents
- What is Craftsy?
- How Does Craftsy Work?
- The Classes That Craftsy Offers
- Who Are the Craftsy Instructors?
- How Much Does Craftsy Cost?
- What I Loved About Craftsy?
- What Could Be Improved?
- What Other Users Think About Craftsy Courses?
- Pros and Cons of Craftsy
- Will Craftsy Work for You?
- Alternatives to Craftsy
- Bottomline: Is Craftsy Worth it?
- FAQs
What is Craftsy?
Craftsy is a US-based online learning platform that specializes in teaching creative courses. It was formerly known as Bluprint, but the platform was purchased and rebranded in 2020.
Craftsy has quality online courses and resources related to all arts, crafts, hobbies, and skills.
This learning platform is excellent for people trying to learn a new skill, of course. Still, it is also great for veterans searching for downloadable resources. Craftsy has many recipes and downloadable patterns that enthusiasts would KILL to have.
How Does Craftsy Work?
Craftsy offers over 1500 classes that span a wide variety of creative areas. New content is also regularly added to the platform.
Now, I can hear what you’re thinking.
How in the world am I supposed to find the right course when there are 1500+ classes to choose from?
Don’t worry because the Craftsy platform is super user-friendly and has courses separated into listings. This means you can find the right class on Craftsy faster than you can say, “chicken noodle soup!”
These classes are divided into categories that range from beginner to advanced.
Craftsy is a subscription-based service, BUT you can take over 50 free classes and dive right into learning your dream hobby.With a Craftsy membership, you will have full access to all the classes they offer, along with the downloadable class materials.
Additionally, you will be able to participate in their live streams, which allow you to interact with your instructor. There is a class discussion tab under every lesson so you can interact with fellow learners and exchange helpful tips.
You can also purchase individual courses on Craftsy so that you don’t have to spend unnecessarily on classes you don’t require. Learning anywhere anytime is made super convenient with Craftsy because you can download lessons for later.
You can access Craftsy lessons in HD videos that can be downloaded onto any digital device you own, like smartphones, tablets, and PCs.
The Classes That Craftsy Offers
Craftsy courses are categorized as follows:
Here is a closer look at some of the classes the Craftsy team offers.
Culinary Classes
Craftsy offers an incredible amount of 160 cooking classes. Of these 160 classes, 4 are free classes that you can try to determine whether Craftsy is for you.
Craftsy has your back, even if you’re entirely new to the kitchen, as they offer so many classes that teach the fundamentals of cooking and handy new cooking methods.
Craftsy also offers classes for every cuisine you would ever want to learn how to make. You name it, Craftsy’s got a course covering it!
You can learn to make Thai, Japanese, Moroccan, Danish, Italian, Vietnamese, Indian, and Mediterranean dishes, among many others. Aside from dishes like that, there are many classes covering how to make cakes, healthy dishes, and artisan bread.
Cake Decorating Classes
If you want to be in the cake decoration business, you’ll absolutely love Craftsy and its cake decoration classes. The great thing is you won’t just learn about baking and decorating cakes by following these classes.
This section of Craftsy has so many other classes detailing cake logistics, how you can get a cake business up and running, and the various industry secrets that experts usually keep close to their chest.
Craftsy offers 208 classes on cake decoration, and 15 of them are free classes.
Even better is that of these 15 free classes, 13 are done by the famous cake decorator Joshua John Russel!
From cookie and cupcake decoration classes to wedding cake decoration, Craftsy has many courses available to help you in your cake decorating journey. Unfortunately, to reap the full benefits of these classes, purchasing a premium membership is necessary.
Cake decoration is a vast and complex area. And while the free classes give you a taste of what it will be like, they only provide some of what you need to hone your crafting skills.
Painting Classes
Craftsy covers various painting disciplines such as portraits, oil painting, watercolors, landscapes, mixed media, acrylics, etc.
There are currently 107 painting classes on Craftsy, but unfortunately, none are available for free. But the great thing about the Craftsy painting classes is that you can train for the particular aspects of making art you’re interested in.
Say you want to paint watercolors of your pets but couldn’t care less about learning to paint anything else. You would then love Craftsy because you can simply purchase the course on pet portraits in watercolor!
Other areas covered include painting flowers, upcycling furniture, art journaling, screen printing, and more!
Sewing Classes
Craftsy currently has a whopping 253 sewing classes, of which 12 are free. If you want to make your own clothes and are passionate about fashion, this corner of Craftsy is perfect for you.
You can learn to make lingerie, jackets, skirts, tops- any clothing you want. There is also a course on upcycling clothes, which is fantastic!
However, note that these classes aren’t exactly for beginners to sewing as you need to know the basics to complete most courses.
Photography Classes
The Craftsy photography classes make me– someone who has never been interested in being behind a camera- want to take up photography.
This learning platform has 95 photography classes, of which you have free access to just one class. From a Beginners Guide to Manual Mode to The Art of Video Storytelling, Craftsy’s extensive library of photography classes is no joke.
The platform also offers several classes on using photo editing software like Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom.
The greatest thing about this section of Craftsy is that no matter your skill level in photography, there will ALWAYS be a class for you.
Who Are the Craftsy Instructors?
Craftsy courses are all taught by experts in the various disciplines being covered. For example, culinary courses are covered by renowned chefs in the industry, such as Chef Sébastien Canonne, M.O.F., and nutritionists like Robin Miller.
Photography classes are taught by photographer Bob Krist, and embroidery classes are taught by professional Jenny Adin-Christie, to name a few.
If you want to teach on Craftsy, you need to fill in a form and undergo an interview process with the Craftsy team to be granted approval to teach on the platform. Some Craftsy classes are also leased from other platforms.
You can, therefore, rest assured that you’re in good hands when you learn through Craftsy.
How Much Does Craftsy Cost?
There are 80 free classes on Craftsy, so you can try the platform before deciding whether to commit. If you think Craftsy is the perfect platform for you, there are several pricing options you can go for.
You can purchase individual classes, giving you lifetime access to the course. The prices of these classes vary between $4.99 to $334.95.
OR you can purchase a Premium Craftsy Membership.
The monthly subscription is $10 per month, and the annual membership fee is $97 annually. The annual membership fee saves you $23.
The Premium membership plan provides unlimited access to all 1500+ classes on Craftsy for as long as your Craftsy Premium Membership is active. You get to keep the downloadable resources forever, though.
I recommend you get a Craftsy Premium annual membership if you’re going for Craftsy because it’s great value for your money AND saves you a lot in relation to purchasing individual courses.
Purchasing an individual course is excellent if there’s only one course you’re interested in taking. But taking four classes that average $39 will cost you over $100.
And trust me, you will find way more than four courses you will want to take! So, purchasing an annual subscription is the way to go.
In addition to the Premium Membership, Craftsy also offers a Gold Membership.
The Gold Membership costs $199 per annum, and it includes all the Premium Craftsy membership benefits plus some additional member benefits.
For example, you get 8 full-length classes to keep for life instead of just 2 AND access to exclusive Gold live virtual streaming events.
Membership Sharing
The Gold and Premium Membership also includes membership sharing, meaning you can share your Craftsy membership with up to three friends or family members. You can invite friends and family members to join your learning journey through email.
Once they receive the invite, guest members can set up their new Craftsy accounts and access ALL of Craftsy’s content.
A few things to note about Craftsy membership sharing is that:
Craftsy Refund Policy
Suppose you aren’t vibing with Craftsy after you have purchased a membership. In that case, you can cancel your subscription through your account or email.
Cancellation will take effect from the next billing period, and you will not be charged further.
However, you won’t be refunded for the subscription you have already paid for. Still, you can enjoy all the benefits from the membership until the end of your subscription term.
What I Loved About Craftsy?
Offers Classes on a Wide Variety of Crafts and Hobbies
With over 1500 classes on the platform, there’s a Craftsy class covering almost every hobby under the sun.
From fabric crafts, photography, paper crafting, yarn crafts, cooking, baking, painting, writing, yoga- you name it, Craftsy’s got it!
As someone who’s always down to learn a whole bunch of new things, the variety of choices I had on the platform was one of my favorite things about Craftsy.
This near-unlimited wealth of knowledge right at my fingertips? Almost sounds too good to be true! I felt like a kid on Christmas morning the whole time I was using Craftsy!
50+ Free Sample Classes Are Available
Another fantastic thing about Craftsy is the sheer amount of classes available for free.
You can also preview premium classes so that you know exactly what you’re purchasing. This means you can test the platform to your heart’s content before committing to it, so the chances of you regretting your purchase are extremely low.
High-Quality Learning Material
As you already know, all the lessons are taught by experts who are great at explaining what they do. The instructors in every class I took were very clear and charismatic, and I was fully engaged during each class.
Clear objectives were presented, and the courses were structured so that they progressed linearly in terms of difficulty. The classes are also shot very professionally.
They use all sorts of angles and shots to ensure that every technique being demonstrated speaks for itself.
Additionally, you can choose to watch the videos at a slower speed, so there’s no chance that you miss a single thing.
What Could Be Improved?
No Refunds and No Notice of Renewal
The biggest issue I have with Craftsy is that your subscription is set to auto-renew, and you are not given adequate warning before being charged for the next period. And after you have been automatically charged, you can’t obtain a refund!
When I was looking up what people online had to say about Craftsy, I discovered that many of them shared my concerns.
If you are a forgetful person and the auto renewal slips your mind, you might wake up one day to an unpleasant hole in your wallet!
No Lifetime Access to Classes
You must purchase a class to access it once your subscription term has expired. This means you’ll have to keep your subscription going (or purchase the class) if you want to refer to classes later, which was not ideal.
Usability Could Be Improved
Something else that could be improved was the platform’s usability. For example, courses cannot be filtered based on skill level. So, I wouldn’t know if a particular class dealt with advanced techniques until it was too late.
Another feature that I would love to see on Craftsy is a sort by “Most Popular” option. This could be done if the platform allowed users to rate each class.
A sort by ‘Most Popular” option would make picking the best classes out of the infinite number available on the platform much easier!
Craftsy also did not remember which classes I had already taken and which classes I was in the middle of while learning through them for this Craftsy review.
I had to remember what class I was taking at any given time and navigate all the way there again whenever I picked it back up in my next session.
Curating recommendations for classes based on what class a user has just completed would also be a fantastic addition to this platform.
What Other Users Think About Craftsy Courses?
You’ve heard about my experience with Craftsy through this Craftsy review, but what do other people on the internet think about the platform?
Firstly, there are lots of positive comments made by users on the class discussion sections on the platform.
Here are a couple of examples;
I love this design! I have bought a Janome serger & been a bit hesitant to try it. This looks like a good project to try it out, all straight serger seams. I had no idea what a flat lock seam was. I loved this class! Thank you, Katrina!
Kelly, thank you for such an excellent tutorial for the Drunkard Block’s. This video has inspired me to try this block. Also, it is really helping me to get more comfortable with my Go!.:) Where is the “like button”.:)
HOWEVER, something important to note is that many people have had trouble with Craftsy’s automatic renewal of their subscription plan.
As I mentioned earlier, they need to provide adequate notice before charging for the next period. And many people have been charged when they didn’t intend to continue with their subscription for another term.
Craftsy also does not refund this money, so this understandably screams nothing but shady and unethical business practices to many users.
Here are a couple of reviews from TrustPilot and Reddit;
My account was auto-charged a full ten days before my current membership was set to expire with absolutely no notification whatsoever. I have sifted through every Junk, Spam and Trash folder and have not found evidence of any renewal notification at all (plenty of junky newsletters and promotions from them, thoughl). And, of course, when I contacted them, they refuse to do anything about it, even though the membership term I’m requesting a refund for hasn’t even started yet. I absolutely will not use Craftsy again and encourage you to steer clear as well.
It is if you don’t cancel before renewal! They don’t give you any notices on the renewal so if you don’t cancel they charge a huge renewal fee that, they say, is non-refundable. So if you don’t use their services and forget about them, you will have an awful awakening with a huge charge in your credit card. I feel their business is not transparent to the consumer so I don’t recommend Craftsy
Pros and Cons of Craftsy
Pros
Cons
Will Craftsy Work for You?
In terms of content, Craftsy is excellent if you want to get creative and learn new crafts in your own time. Since you can watch any class on the go, Craftsy is perfect if you’re typically very busy and don’t have time for in-person classes.
Craftsy will also work for you, no matter your initial skill level. There are a lot of startup library classes aimed at beginners and classes covering more advanced areas, too.
Craftsy stands out big time with its high-quality content, so this platform will work for anyone eager to learn!
Alternatives to Craftsy
Here are some other learning platforms that are great Craftsy alternatives you can check out!
Much like Craftsy, Skillshare is another budget-friendly learning platform that offers classes on all things creative.
In addition to creative skills like drawing, painting, and sewing, Skillshare also offers classes on technology, marketing, architecture, etc.
All their content is short, snappy, and easily digestible, too.
A yearly subscription to Skillshare costs $168, which translates to $14 per month.
However, the difference between Skillshare and Craftsy is that anyone can upload lessons on Skillshare.
This accessibility does mean that the quality of content may be put at stake.
Udemy
Udemy is another excellent alternative for Craftsy, with a wide range of courses on absolutely every topic you could think of.
Udemy offers an astonishing 180,000+ courses that range all the way from business and technology to arts and crafts.
This platform is super affordable, and they also offer over 500 classes for free!
But like with Skillshare, content can be created and uploaded by users very freely on Udemy. This, once again, is at the cost of consistently quality content.
Content and course layout can differ significantly across the platform because there is no team overlooking it.
Domestika
Domestika is currently a star in the world of online learning platforms.
They offer professionally produced, high-quality lessons that range from all sorts of creative backgrounds.
From illustration to architecture to web design, Domestika has got you covered regardless of your field of creative interest.
Domestika offers a more extensive variety of topics than Craftsy, but it primarily only covers classes for creatives.
You can purchase individual classes or their subscription plan, much like with Craftsy.
A monthly subscription to Domestika costs $9.99 per month or $83.88 per year ($6.99 per month).
The only potential downside to Domestika is that many classes are in Spanish with English subtitles, which may bother some people. However, there are still plenty of English courses on Domestika, so don’t fret!
Creativebug
Creativebug is THE most similar alternative to Craftsy.
It is an arts and crafts learning site that covers various hobbies, including fabric crafts, art and design, jewelry making, yarn crafts, and more!
The most notable difference between Craftsy and Creativebug is that you cannot purchase an individual class through Creativebug. You HAVE to buy their subscription plan.
The Creativebug Unlimited subscription is available for $7.95 per month, and their Unlimited Plus subscription is available for $9.95 per month.
You can also pay for their Unlimited Plus subscription per annum, which amounts to only $5.95 per month.
Creativebug is also currently offering a 60-day free plus 50% off full price for life offer, so check them out if you’re interested!
Other e-learning platforms reviewed:
Bottomline: Is Craftsy Worth it?
And now for the million-dollar question of this Craftsy review;
Is Craftsy worth it?
In terms of content quality and value for money, Craftsy is definitely worth it.
They offer classes on any creative skill you could think of, and all their courses are of professional quality. Sharing your membership with up to three friends and family members also guarantees great value for money.
And the best thing about Craftsy is that you can try out the numerous classes available for free before committing. HOWEVER, do keep in mind that subscriptions are set to auto-renew for the next period, as that is one of the biggest problems many users have faced.
Other than that, I think Craftsy is an excellent platform for you to start your creative journey.
I hope you found this Craftsy review helpful! And if you choose to go ahead with this platform, I hope Craftsy makes your learning experience as amazing as it made mine!
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