Coursera vs. edX: Quality, Pricing, Support, and More

Looking for a place to learn to code online? Two platforms that might pop up during your search are Coursera and edX.

Both are very similar platforms that offer high-quality courses. But it can be hard to choose between Coursera vs edX when you’re ready to make an investment in your learning. 

🌟 To help you narrow down your options, this post will go in depth to help you make an informed decision. But first, a quick breakdown on what each platform is!

• Coursera: A Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) platform that aggregates online courses from top universities. It offers courses, degrees, certificates, specializations, and free courses on a wide variety of topics. Taught by university professors and leading companies. Read my full review of Coursera.

• edX: A Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) platform that hosts online university-level courses in a wide range of disciplines. It offers courses, online degrees, bootcamps, certificates, and more. Read my full review of edX.

Both offer a wide variety of courses taught by university professors, but is edX or Coursera right for you? 

In this post, we’ll break down the similarities and differences you need to know about Coursera v edX so you can decide which platform is right for you.

Disclosure: I’m a proud affiliate for some of the resources mentioned in this article. If you buy a product through my links on this page, I may get a small commission for referring you. Thanks!

Coursera vs edX: Summary of Features

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💻 Topics Taught / Course Selection: Coursera vs edX

What’s the variety like in courses on edX v Coursera? Let’s take a look.

Coursera

• Over 4,000 courses in 11 main topics/categories
• Lots of topics covered, mostly focused on technology and science-related topics, but also arts/humanities, personal development, and health
• Their computer science category has courses on web development, game programming, cybersecurity, algorithms, data science, machine learning, and nearly every programming language you can think of 
• Focuses mostly on academic topics

edX

• Over 3,000 courses available under 31 main topics/categories
• All kinds of topics are covered, including architecture, biology, computer programming, history, law, social science, art, and more
• Their computer science category has courses on programming, cloud computing, web development, network security, and tons of programming languages
• Focuses mostly on academic topics

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👨‍🏫 Instructors

What kind of quality can you expect from the instructors on Coursera or edX? As you’ll see below, these two are pretty comparable.

Coursera

• Courses are taught by university professors from places like Yale, the University of Michigan, and Stanford, as well as employees from top companies like Google and IBM
• Only subject-matter experts can instruct courses on Coursera

edX

• Like Coursera, courses are taught by university professors from top universities like Harvard, Columbia, Stanford, etc. and employees for leading companies
• Also like Coursera, only subject-matter experts can instruct courses on Coursera; not just anyone can create a course

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💰 Pricing

Please note that pricing listed below may change in the future!

Both Coursera and edX offer audit versions of most individual courses free of charge. However, not all courses can be audited for free through both platforms. Furthermore, you won’t be able to submit certain assignments, get grades for your work, and won’t get a verified certificate for completing a course like you would if you paid.

Let’s see how the paid options stack up in Coursera v edX.

Coursera

Coursera has lots of variation in course and specialization prices. The main options for paying are:

• Paying for a Course Certificate: You can buy some individual courses with a verified certificate for $29–$99 per course
• Subscribing to a Specialization: Courses that are part of Specializations are only available through subscription payments (ranging between $39–$79/month)
• Subscribing to Coursera Plus: Annual subscription to most courses for $399/year
• Online degrees up to $25,000

edX

Courses on edX also have a wide variety in pricing:

• Individual courses can range from $50-$300
• Online degrees can cost up to $25,000
• Professional Certificate Programs: Prices can vary from around $100 to $1,000+, depending on the program
• The only subscription option is targeted for businesses/employers to give to their employees; not something you’d probably do for yourself

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Coursera

From the home page, you can browse through what Coursera has to offer by clicking the Explore button in the menu. There, you can browse by topic (e.g., computer science, math and logic, personal development), and click through to view all courses, degrees, certificates, etc.

🖱️ Ease of Use: Coursera vs edX

Are these platforms both easy to use? Here’s a quick run-through of how to navigate Coursera and edX.

You can also search for specific keywords in the search bar to find courses, topics, or skills you’re looking for. Filter your results by language, level, duration, skills, partner (i.e., the university or company offering the course), and the type of learning product (e.g., course, specialized, guided project, degree). 

When you click on a course, you’ll see a really nicely designed and easy-to-navigate page that displays basic course info, a course description, author details, what you’ll be learning, what languages subtitles are available in, course ratings/reviews, and much more. Even though there’s a lot of info on the page, it’s organized in a way that makes sense and is easy to navigate.

When you purchase or choose to audit a course, the learning interface is also really simple, clean, and easy to read and navigate. You can easily track your progress, see due dates for quizzes, and see how long each lesson will take to complete.

edX

From the home page, you can browse through courses by hovering over the Courses or Programs & Degrees tabs in the menu. There, you can browse through edX 30+ subjects or different types of degree programs.

You can also search for specific keywords in the search bar to find courses you’re looking for. Filter your results by subject, partner (i.e., the university or company teaching the course), type of program (e.g., MicroMaster’s, XSeries), skill level, availability (e.g., available now, upcoming, archived), or language that the course is taught in 

After clicking on a course, you’ll be able to see basic course info, a course description, details about the instructor(s), how much the verified track costs, and what exactly you’ll be learning. When you decide to take a course, all you have to do is click Enroll and choose whether you want to pursue a verified certificate or audit the course for free.

As you watch course videos, you’ll see the video on the left and an interactive transcript on the right, making it easy to follow along.

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🙋 Support: Coursera vs edX

If you run into roadblocks or have questions while taking a course on edX or Coursera, what kind of support is available for you?

Coursera

• Instructor support: Assignments/exams are auto-graded and based on peer reviews. You will not have access to the instructor/be able to reach out to them for help
• If you have questions about course content, you can ask them in the forums to get help from others in the course community. 
• For technical problems with the Coursera platform, you can visit the Learner Help Center.
• You can search to see whether your question has been asked before or ask your own question to get the support you need. Check out the Coursera Community here.

edX

• Instructor support: Assignments/exams are auto-graded and based on peer reviews. You will not have access to the instructor/be able to reach out to them for help.
• If you have any questions, you can start a discussion with classmates in the course
• They have a learner help center for frequently asked questions about everything from courses to your account to payments and refunds, etc.

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📃 Certificates / Credibility

On both Coursera and edX, you can get a verified certificate when you pay for a course, submit homework assignments, and take tests/exams. These certificates are accredited.

Since certificates are associated with universities and well-known companies (and you have to actually complete coursework and assignments), these are great to show off on a resume/LinkedIn.

Coursera and edX also both offer other online certificate programs that are different from the verified certificate option:

• Coursera: Professional Certificates, MasterTrack® Certificates, and University Certificates
• edX: Professional Certificates

Since courses on both platforms are taught by top-ranked universities and leading companies, certificates are typically viewed as credible by employers.

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📅  Course Format

To know whether courses will fit your learning style, it’s helpful to be familiar with the format. Let’s check out how Coursera v edX courses tend to be structured.

Coursera

• Self-paced with regular sessions that begin and end on specific days, so you’re part of a smaller peer group working on the same schedule
• Organized into weeks – videos/activities/quizzes/exams you are recommended to take each week

edX

• Like Coursera, self-paced with regular sessions that begin and end on specific days, and you’re also part of a smaller peer group working on the same schedule
• Not organized into weeks, which can make it harder to pace yourself well. Instead, it’s just organized as a list of modules and various videos/actives under each module

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🏆 Which is Best for You? Coursera or edX

Both Coursera and edX are extremely similar platforms, both in the types and number of courses they offer, visually, and pricing wise. So how do you make the final decision on Coursera vs edX?

As I see it, edX may be the better option if you’re also looking for non-tech, non-science courses, as they offer lots in that area.

Coursera may be the better option if you need more guidance/structure in your learning as it’s broken out in a week-by-week format.

Since they both offer similar courses/programs/degrees, it can be worth it to browse both platforms and see if there are specific programs that appeal to you. Compare the pricing, instructor/university reputation, and any other factors that are important to you before making your final decision!

Plus, there’s nothing to say you can’t take courses from both—and other platforms too!

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Alternatives to Coursera and edX

Codecademy

Website

Learn more

• 180 free courses and 1,800+ courses with paid subscription
• Offers classes in 14 different coding languages and 10 tech subjects
• Tutorials are mostly text-based, using written instructions that guide you through coding in a text editor
• $39.99/month

Treehouse

Website

Learn more

• Offers a library of 300+ courses and learning tracks, as well as more in-depth Techdegree programs
• Teaches students to code using video courses along with a browser-based code editor
• $25/month or $250 annually for the basic plan
• $199/month for Techdegrees

Udemy

Website

Learn more

• Extensive library of 150,000 courses
• Courses cover a wide range of subjects (not just tech) 
• Almost anyone can be a Udemy instructor, so quality varies; read course reviews 
• Prices range from $20 to $50 per course, but can go as high as $100+

LinkedIn Learning

Website

Learn more

• Over 16,000 online courses and video tutorials taught by experts
• Courses fall under three main topics: Business, Creative, and Technology
• Unlimited access to all courses with monthly/annual subscription
• $29.99/month or $239.88/year

Udacity

Website

Learn more

• Best known for its Nanodegree programs, with project- and skills-based video courses that take you from beginner to career-ready
• Mostly focused on tech subjects
• $1,000-$1,500 for four months’ access (depending on the program), or $399/month

Pluralsight

Website

Learn more

• 6,000+ courses with an average of 80+ new courses added monthly
• Focused on tech topics only
• A good option for those pursuing professional certificates
• $29/month or $299/year

Skillshare

Website

Learn more

• 25,000+ courses on all kinds of subjects
• Courses can be created by anyone, but they must meet certain standards
• Subscribing gets you access to the entire course library, so you can try different courses without pressure
• $99/year or $19/month