Udemy Review

Being a part of the modern workforce requires learning new skills and is invaluable for getting ahead. Luckily, Udemy offers thousands of online courses that are just a click away.

Udemy is one of the world’s top online learning platforms and is used by over 54 million people for personal growth and development. But will you get your money’s worth from these courses? Read our Udemy review and discern for yourself.

What Is Udemy? An Overview

Udemy is an online learning platform where users can subscribe to courses uploaded by content creators. The teacher can be anybody with expertise in a particular subject. There are tens of thousands of courses available, on any subject from cigar smoking to conquering the marketing world.

Fundamentally, Udemy courses review two separate fields of interest: hobbies and lifestyle, and business.

Courses go into great detail, and can take a few months to complete, so the knowledge that you obtain tends to be very specialized. For example, history-oriented Udemy courses have reviews saying that they go into great detail on subjects ranging from the American Revolution to Ancient Egypt. Courses encourage you to study the topic by carefully analyzing specific primary and secondary sources of information, so that you can form your own conclusions in addition to the ones given by your course instructor.

Who Is Udemy for?

Our Udemy review revealed that this site can work for you whether you are a professional looking to enhance your work skills or simply a hobbyist who has taken a general interest in a specific topic. When it comes to work-related skills, there are infinite possibilities to turn these courses into marketable skills.

For example, if you work in sales, you can find some superb Udemy sales courses or an Udemy business analyst course to review. These kinds of courses look into marketing psychology and how you can sell more and at higher prices. If you manage to retain the information and use it correctly, you can significantly improve your job performance.

There are also various Udemy online courses available for review by those who want to boost their creativity. Music classes are great examples. Of course, you can’t learn a musical instrument by watching videos alone: You’ll need to get the instrument and spend time practicing to master this type of skill via an online course. However, Udemy does a great job at guiding you through the process.

Content Quality: Is Udemy Good?

The most important factor to consider before signing up for any educational program is the quality of the course's content. One of the issues with Udemy, due to the fact that courses can be created by anyone, is the effort you need to put into choosing a course. You’ll need to do background research on the creator, unless they’re a household name, go through customer reviews, etc.

However, there’s no denying Udemy’s ratings: The company encourages customer feedback. However, many users simply write a review early on in their course, so they stop getting prompted to write the review. That means well-reviewed courses might be good, but many of the reviews won’t be well-thought-out or based on the course as a whole. This has lead to claims of Udemy fake reviews.

User Experience

Udemy’s platform is straightforward and easy to navigate. It is designed in a standardized manner that allows you to quickly browse through courses and decide whether they are right for you. You’ll see an introductory video, the modules offered, and reviews.

Udemy courses can be accessed on both desktop and mobile devices through browser. There is also an iOS and Android app available for download, so you can have access to the best Udemy courses on the go. However, the mobile app doesn’t offer the full wealth of the Udemy course library, so keep an eye out for that. If it’s available, you can open up your courses on your way to work or during your coffee break. The app’s interface is solid, with very few bug reports. Also, you can download Udemy courses to your smartphone or computer.

Pricing

Udemy’s pricing strategy is somewhat curious. Udemy’s online courses on first review seem pretty steeply priced. Many courses cost upward of $100; however, there are very frequent Udemy sales and discounts on these courses, up to 90% off. These tend to only be offered short-term, but discounted prices are often reduced to the $10-$15 range. These promotional periods are frequent, so if you see a course that you like, check on it every day, and sooner or later, you should be able to get it at a discounted rate.

While this all sounds great, constantly dropping prices by almost $100 dollars does cast some doubts over Udemy’s integrity. So, if you’re wondering, “Is Udemy legit?” you’re not the only one. The reason for such high discounts is most-likely because courses should not be priced so high from the start. When prices drop drastically, you feel like you’re getting a bargain. Many of the courses are actually worth no more than $20.

Customer Support

Udemy has high standards when it comes to customer service. First of all, when you sign up for a Udemy course, you sign up for life: you’ll have all time in the world to complete it at your own pace. You can also return to the program to refresh your memory long after you’ve finished it. This is another source of high Udemy ratings, as many other online educational platforms give you a time limit to complete the content on them.

There are a couple of rare exceptions to the lifetime access - Udemy may have to take a course down due to copyright infringement, or the content creator may choose to withdraw it. If this happens, simply contact Udemy’s customer support and Udemy shall review your situation, with them either refunding you or giving you credits to contribute towards another course. If you are unhappy with your course, you can make use of the Udemy 30 day money-back offer. This should reassure those concerned about a program not living up to its Udemy online course review. Udemy complaints tend to be well received and dealt with appropriately - something to take comfort in.

One problem you might come across is a lack of communication with your course instructor. While there are technically many ways to contact them, getting a response can be difficult. Many of them have thousands of students enrolled in their courses, so they simply do not have the time to respond to everyone. This can lead to disappointment, as even some of the best Udemy courses may suffer from a lack of access to the course creator.

On the plus side, each course has Q&A section where you can find answers to most questions. You can also create a question thread yourself. After all, since you’ve probably paid less than $20 for the course, hours of one-on-one interaction aren’t really to be expected. However, if that’s what you need, an online university course or a personal tutor might be a better choice than a Udemy-type platform.

Udemy Alternatives

Of course, Udemy is not the only online education platform you can turn to - the internet is packed with plenty of other learning resources. Here’s a quick overview of several sites like Udemy:

Wondrium

Formerly known as Great Courses Plus, this platform is one of the old boys of online learning, having been founded in 1990. University professors create the courses so quality is a guarantee. 
Price: Subscriptions start at $10/month for quarterly or annual plans.

MasterClass

MasterClass is a unique learning platform, since the courses are presented by celebrities at the top of their field. From Serena Williams prompting you to master your backhand, to Christina Aguilera helping you hit the high notes, MasterClass will give you star-studded lessons and inspiration to follow your passions.
Price: Starts at $216 for a discounted annual subscription.

Open Yale Courses

Yale - along with many other distinguished universities - offers short courses online. You’ll be given an online video lecture and encouraged to undertake reading to strengthen your subject knowledge. There are no exams or accreditation requirements.
Price: Free

Conclusion: Do Udemy Courses Have Value?

Udemy is a great tool. It can be a great way to improve subject knowledge or skills for a low cost. The catch is that anyone can create the courses and there is no legitimate accreditation because of this. An Udemy certificate of completion can be obtained for an extra fee, so you can show people you’ve finished a course. However, please take note that if you are looking to add a Udemy course review to your CV, it may not be recognized by employers - Udemy certification value is often nonexistent.

That is not to say that a Udemy course is not worth your time if you are looking to improve a work-related skill. You can still reap the rewards of completing a Udemy course without noting it on your CV. For example, if you take the Udemy web developer Bootcamp to review your web coding knowledge, you’re likely to notice an increase in your work performances. Provided you’re following the tips and lessons the course offers, of course.

Another concern you may have is taking a low-quality course. Since Udemy doesn’t audit its content, the only way to choose is by researching the creator, as well as reading reviews of their work, both on Udemy and the rest of the internet. To be fair, many of the course authors are experts in their fields - highly acclaimed journalists, long-term masters of the business world, etc. If their reviews match up to their professional credentials, more likely than not you have found yourself a high-quality course where there is much to be learned. And don’t forget to leave a Udemy course review for future learners!