Top 5 Online Learning Courses to Master New Skills in 2025

Whether you’re a freelancer, startup, or small business, online learning courses give you a great way to learn new skills or build upon the ones you already have.

They give you the flexibility to learn what you need when you need it and from anywhere in the world. The result gives you the in-house skills to do more, find new jobs, or the overall skills to charge more for your services.

Here’s our best online courses websites:

Treehouse

• Learn at your own pace
• Focus on learning to code online
• Expert video courses
• 7 Day Free Trial

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Udemy

• Over 155,000 online video courses
• Learn design, development, marketing & more
• On demand learning courses
• Udemy business - up-skill employees

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Skillshare

• Choose from a variety of skills to learn
• Courses created by industry experts
• Learn on the go: Mobile apps available
• Skillshare Teams for business

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Whatever it is that you want to learn, whether it’s how to be a better content writer, the basics of graphic design, all aspects of web development, or how to run a business, you’ll be able to find a distance learning course that fits your needs.

Many of the best online learning courses mentioned below will let you choose which area you want to focus on. Whether it’s design, development, marketing, IT, or even personal development to help better manage your time, communication skills, or how to be more productive.

Some will gain you professional certificates from top companies to help boost your personal credentials and trust in your business, while other free courses will let you learn new skills.

Our picks of the Best Online Learning Courses

1. Udemy – best for cheap online courses
2. Treehouse – best for tech-based courses
3. Skillshare – best for individuals
4. Coursera – best for certifications
5. edX – best for businesses

Udemy: best for cheap online courses

Udemy are one of the largest online learning platforms. With over 44 million people learning on their site, and over 183,000 courses to pick from many of which are video courses.

Their paid and free online courses are created by experts letting you learn in-demand skills as and when you need them in all aspects of business, design, email marketing, development, personal, SEO, IT and more.

With courses created by people worldwide, many individual courses can be found in other languages besides English, with over 75 languages supported.

Accessible via your desktop or mobile phone gives you even more chance to train yourself up and learn a new skill no matter where you are.

If you’re a company looking to up-skill your workforce, you’re in good hands with many big companies like Apple, Netflix, and Eventbrite using Udemy Business to up-skill their workforces.

Udemy Business is a separate online program explicitly tailored to businesses looking to train their employees in business skills, tech skills, leadership & management skills, and wellness skills, to name a few.

Sign up as a business, and you’ll get access to over 11,000 courses dedicated to these areas with native languages in English, Spanish, French, German, Mandarin, and Japanese, to name a few.

Whether you’re an individual looking for a one-off skill-boosting course or you’re looking to overhaul your entire staff, Udemy gives you the options to do just that.

Pros

• Extensive course selection across numerous topics and skill levels
• One-time payment model with frequent discounts, making courses affordable
• Lifetime access to purchased courses for ongoing learning and reference

Cons

• Quality varies as courses are user-generated, so not all content is equally reliable
• Limited instructor interaction and minimal feedback on assignments
• Certificates are not accredited and may hold less value in formal education settings

View Courses on Udemy »

Treehouse: best for tech-based courses

Unlike Udemy, which offer courses across many different fields, Treehouse offers hundreds of specific online learning courses for tech’s, and designers.

You’ll be able to increase your technical knowledge, learn how to code for beginners in python, java, and SQL, and increase your understanding of web security, data analysis, databases, design, and Android development.

Each paid course is tagged for which level of expertise so you can quickly skip over the easy stuff and get on with the more advanced if you need to.

Here’s a few types of courses you’ll find:

• Web development courses
• UX Design course
• Javascript course
• SQl online course
• Python online course

Expert video courses with interactive quizzes and challenges help you build your skills in a specific course topic. The Treehouse learning platform focuses on helping individuals get the know-how they need to progress their careers with better job opportunities in the future.

They also offer a Techdegree of sorts where you can enroll in months-long courses where you’ll learn entry-level skills from various teachers in all aspects of your chosen area, for instance, web development.

And then there’s the Teams aspect which Treehouse offer, which can help businesses expand their teams’ skillsets, bettering the business overall. Depending on your needs, Treehouse will work with you to create a custom program and course content to help your team’s specific needs.

If you’re after tech and web learning courses, then Treehouse could be what you’re looking for.

You can sign up for a 7-day free trial of their courses, Techdegree, or Teams giving you access to thousands of hours of content.

Pros

• Focuses on tech skills, offering a strong curriculum for coding, web development, and design
• Project-based learning with hands-on coding exercises and real-world applications
• Interactive platform with quizzes and challenges to reinforce learning

Cons

• Limited course variety, primarily catering to tech and coding topics
• No free courses, and it’s subscription-based, which can be costly over time
• Certificates are not widely recognized and may hold limited value for career advancement

View Courses on Treehouse »

Skillshare: best for individuals

Skillshare are very much a great alternative to Udemy.

They have over 39,000 online classes for you to choose from in different aspects of the online and offline world.

Choose courses in design, digital marketing, leadership & management, freelance & entrepreneurship as well as productivity, photography, business analytics and more.

You can sign up for a free trial where you’ll get access to thousands of video courses, letting you explore all that is on offer.

If you’re a business looking to educate your team and improve their skills in a specific area, then the Skillshare for Teams is what you’ll be looking for.

You can help your team communicate better, become better leaders, increase their productivity as well as help them improve many other aspects of their daily jobs through the online video courses.

Online learning is a great way to keep your business moving forward and your employees from getting complacent.

Pros

• Subscription model offers access to thousands of courses across creative and practical skills
• Wide range of creative courses in areas like art, design, and photography
• Community-driven with student projects and peer feedback for interactive learning

Cons

• Quality varies significantly, as courses are created by community members
• No lifetime access; access to courses ends with the subscription
• No formal certification or accreditation, limiting its value for professional credentials

View Courses on Skillshare »

Coursera: best for certifications

When it comes to online courses, Coursera is a leading online course platform. It offers individuals and businesses the chance to build their skills with standard and premium course options and let you earn accredited certificates and degrees from top business and universities.

If you’re looking to earn an MBA in Business Analytics online or gain a Google certification, you’re probably going to want to check out Coursera.

They give you the potential to earn professional certificates from top companies like Facebook, IBM, and Google at a self-paced learning experience or degrees you will have to apply to and wait to start.

They offer over 1800 free courses in many different subjects and various types of learning programs, including guided projects, specialized courses, professional certificates, MasterTrack certificates, and a fully online degree.

Much like Treehouse, Udemy and SkillShare, if you’re a business, you also have the option to increase the skills of your workforce, creating digitally knowledgable employees thanks to their Coursera for Business option. A feature that lets you get the most out of your team.

One of the more expensive online learning options, but there are lots to pick from to either start or build upon your career.

Pros

• Courses created by leading universities and organizations, providing high-quality content
• Offers accredited certifications and degree programs for career advancement
• Wide range of subjects, including professional development, business, and tech

Cons

• Some courses and specializations can be costly, especially for certifications
• Not all courses offer lifetime access, depending on the provider’s terms
• Self-paced courses may lack personalized feedback and interaction with instructors

View Courses on Coursera »

edX: best for businesses

edX is another comprehensive online learning platform offering courses to individuals looking to boost their careers and knowledge as well as companies looking to enhance their employees’ skill sets.

They offer over 3521 different courses ranging from Architecture to Business Management, Design, Computer Science, Engineering, Science, etc.

Where edX differs from Udemy and Skillshare because all of their courses are created by top companies and universities, ensuring that you are always getting the best education.

Some courses are free to sign up for and available at self-paced learning, while for others, you’ll have to pay a fee to enroll.

They also let you enhance your online education with a specific area where you’ll be able to earn yourself a professional certificate and a higher education degree in various subjects from universities.

Head to the edX for Business section, and you’ll be able to build a course with edX’s help tailored to your needs. Whether you’re looking to up-skill your marketing department, create better leaders, or improve your team’s communications, edX has the options for that and more.

From a manager’s point of view, you’ll also be able to see your team’s progress and see how well each one is doing on the courses, something that comes in handy to see where your weak spots or bottlenecks perhaps are.

Pros

• High-quality courses from top universities like Harvard, MIT, and Berkeley
• Wide selection of subjects, with options for professional certificates and MicroMasters programs
• Many free courses available for learners who want to audit the content

Cons

• Certification and full access often require payment, and some courses are expensive
• Limited interactivity, with many courses focusing on lecture-based learning
• Courses may be challenging without prior knowledge or guidance

View Courses on edX »

What are the best online learning platforms?

Hopefully, you’ve got an overview of some of the best online learning courses you can use to your advantage to improve your skillset.

We advise you to use the free trials they offer to get a complete overview of all the courses and certifications on offer.

Overall, if you’re looking for cheap online courses to learn new skills, Udemy is a great place to start, especially as you have thousands of free course options to pick from.

For businesses looking to increase their employees’ credentials with more professional certifications, then Coursera and edX are the online learning platform for you.

Learn more, boost your skills, and get the jobs you deserve.