Last Updated on February 8, 2022 by Saria

Want to Learn Online Courses For Free? 19 Online Learning Sites You Need to Know

You want to learn new skills to advance your career or get a better-paying job, broaden your knowledge base, or follow your passion.

But money is tight.   

“Where can I learn courses for free?” you ask.

Today I’ll show you 19 online learning platforms where you can learn online courses for free.

So, whether you want to learn a foreign language, code, or play the guitar, you can learn without paying a cent.

Let’s dive right in.

1. Coursera  

Coursera is one of the best websites providing massive open online courses-MOOCs.

They’ve partnered with world-class universities and companies to bring you courses that you can do anywhere and anytime.

Coursera offers hundreds of free courses that give you access to on-demand video lectures, homework exercises, and community discussion forums.

You can also earn certificates for a fee.

Some free online courses featured on Coursera:

• The Science of Well-Being (Yale University)
• English For Career Development (University of Pennsylvania)
• Forensic Accounting and Fraud Examination (West Virginia University)
• The Strategy of Content Marketing (University of California)

2. edX

EdX is another leading MOOC platform like Coursera offering courses from top universities and industry-leading companies.

Suppose you’re entering the job market, changing careers, seeking a promotion, or exploring a new passion; edX has over 3,000 courses to help you learn new skills.

Except for professional education courses, their courses are free. However, if you would like to complete assignments and earn a certificate, you would need to pay a fee.

Some free online courses featured on edX:

• Python Basics for Data Science (IBM)
• Basic Spanish 1: Getting Started (Universitat Politecnica De Valencia) 
• Entrepreneurial Opportunities (The University of Adelaide)
• Leading High-Performing Teams (University of Queensland)

3. Udemy

Udemy is a global educational marketplace provider connecting students worldwide with some of the best instructors.

Udemy allows instructors to create custom courses to help students learn new skills, advance their careers, and explore their hobbies.

A certificate of completion isn’t available for free courses.

Some free online courses featured on Udemy:

• Getting Started with Acoustic Guitar
• How to Create, Market, and Sell Your Online Courses
• Introduction to Programming with Java
• How to Advance Your Career in Management

4. Alison   

Alison is a popular online education platform offering over 2,000 free courses from leading experts in various subject areas.

You can download your learner record after you’ve completed a course. However, a certificate or diploma can be purchased and shipped to you via standard shipping free of charge if you’d like something more official.

Some free online courses offered on Alison:

• Food Safety and Hygiene in the Catering Industry
• Copywriting for Conversions: How to Write Persuasive Content
• Executive Assistant Skills
• Introduction to Digital Photography

5. Open Culture

Open Culture aggregates free online courses from top universities and gives you access to them from their platform. So, instead of searching on different universities’ websites, you can find them all from one place.

Some course providers offer a certificate of completion or statement of accomplishment. After signing up, you can research if a certificate is available and the cost.

Some free online courses featured on Open Culture:

• How to Teach Online: The Essentials (Stanford Online High School)
• Digital Design (The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology)
• Behavioral Finance (University of Western Sydney)
• An Introduction to Screen Writing (University of East Anglia)

6. Class Central

Class Central is another platform that aggregates thousands of free online courses from top universities and other learning platforms such as Coursera and edX.

Any subject you’re interested in, the platform likely has a course that fits your needs.

Many of the courses listed offer certificates, and you may have to pay for them. After signing up, you can research if a certificate is available and the cost.

Some free online courses featured on Class Central:

• Improving Your Study Techniques (University of Groningen)
• Information Systems Auditing, Controls and Assurance (The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology)
• Lean Production (Technical University of Munich)
• Mindfulness for Wellbeing and Peak Performance (Monash University)

7. Academic Earth

Academic Earth is a platform where you can find free online courses, videos, and lectures from top universities.

The courses featured on Academic Earth are carefully selected to ensure that you have the best offering in a subject area. If you want to pursue a new interest or broaden your knowledge in your current field, you can be sure to find a course to suit your needs.

Information on certification for free courses was not available.

Some free online courses featured on Academic Earth:

• Machine Learning (California Institute of Technology)
• Critical Reasoning for Beginners (University of Oxford)
• Music Production Analysis (Berklee College of Music)
• Communication and Conflict in Couples and Families (UCLA)

8. FutureLearn

FutureLearn features online courses taught by experts from world-leading universities and organizations.

You can develop your career, learn new skills, and hobbies with their free online courses.

A certificate of participation or achievement is not available if learning for free. But if you’d like to earn a certificate, you’d need to upgrade or become an Unlimited learner.

Some free online courses featured on FutureLearn:

• How to Succeed at Interviews (The University of Sheffield)
• Collaborative Working in a Remote Team (University of Leeds & Institute of Coding)
• Teaching English Online (Cambridge Assessment English)
• Start Writing Fiction (The Open University)

9. OEDb 

The Open Education Database (OEDb) is a platform where you can explore a comprehensive list of over 10,000 free open courses and interactive resources from top universities around the world.

You may qualify for a certificate at the end of a course, and some institutions may charge a fee for one.

Some free online courses featured on OEDb:

• Entrepreneurship (Taylor’s University)
• Accessibility of eLearning (Open Learn)
• 1000 Words of Elementary German (Memrise)
• Modern Poetry (Yale)

10. MIT OpenCourseWare  

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) offers over 2,400 archived courses on their OpenCourseWare platform.

MIT publishes the course material they’ve offered over the years and makes them available to you online free of charge. You don’t need to register to access the courses.

You will not obtain a certificate after completing the courses as OpenCourseWare does not offer certification.

Some free online courses featured on MIT OpenCourseWare:

• Nuts and Bolts of Business Plans
• Introduction to Computer Science and Programming
• Principles of Microeconomics
• How to Develop Breakthrough Products and Services

11. Stanford Online

Stanford Online is the platform Stanford University offers its online courses. Their open learning courses are also available for free.

If you’d like to learn new skills or topics, you can learn from Stanford’s instructors and industry experts without paying a cent.

If you complete a course that includes a graded assignment, you may receive a certificate of participation.

Stanford courses are also available on Coursera and edX.              

Some free online courses featured on Stanford Online:

• Child Nutrition and Cooking (Stanford School of Medicine)
• Careers in Media Technology (Stanford School of Humanities and Sciences)
• Designing Your Career (Stanford School of Engineering)
• What is Product Management? (Stanford School of Engineering)

12. Harvard Online

Like Stanford, Harvard offers a variety of open learning opportunities, including online courses. There are also free courses in a variety of subjects.

Though the courses may be free, if you’d like a verified certificate, you’d need to pay for it.

Harvard courses are also available on edX.

Some free online courses featured by Harvard:

• Improving Your Business Through a Culture of Health
• Rhetoric: The Art of Persuasive Writing and Public Speaking
• Systematic Approaches to Policy Design
• Exercising Leadership: Foundational Principles

13. Open Yale Courses

Open Yale Courses platform features courses offered by Yale University. Distinguished teachers and scholars of Yale teach the free online courses. The lectures are available in video, audio, and text transcript format.

No certificate is available through the Open Yale Courses platform.

Yale courses are also available on Coursera.

Some free online courses featured on Open Yale Courses:

• Financial Markets
• Capitalism: Success, Crisis, and Reform
• Introduction to Psychology
• Modern Poetry

14. University of London

The University of London also offers free MOOCs that can help you start a new career or enhance your existing one.

Their courses are delivered through Coursera, and if you desire a certificate, it’ll need to be purchased.

Some free online courses from the University of London:

• How to Finance and Grow Your Startup – Without VC
• Responsive Web Design
• Making Your First Virtual Reality Game
• Teaching EFL/ESL Reading: A Task Based Approach

15. OpenLearn

The OpenLearn platform offers free courses from Open University.

You can choose from almost 1,000 free courses, interactives, videos, and audio if you’re looking to learn something new or gain more knowledge in a subject area. Academic experts and guest contributors create the courses.

You can earn a digital badge or a statement of completion for free as evidence of your learning.

Some free online courses featured on OpenLearn:

• English Grammar in Context
• Developing Career Resilience
• Am I Ready to be a Distance Learner?
• Managing My Money

16. Carnegie Mellon Open Learning  

Carnegie Mellon University offers free online courses through its Open Learning Initiative (OLI) platform.

As an independent learner, you can access open and free courses that are top-quality educational material.

OLI doesn’t provide verification or a certificate of completion for open and free courses.

Some open and free courses featured on OLI:

• Introduction to Programming in Java
• Evidence-Based Management
• Visual Design
• Media Programming

17. Aquent Gymnasium

Aquent Gymnasium is a website offering free online courses primarily for digital, creative, and communications professionals.

Industry experts teach the courses in areas such as web design and development, user experience, and content creation.

You will receive a certificate only if you score 85% or higher on an entire course’s final exam.

Some courses featured on Aquent Gymnasium:

• Coding For Designers
• UX Fundamentals
• Modern Web Design
• Defeating Busy

18. Codecademy

Codecademy is a website dedicated to teaching you how to code in different programming languages.

Codecademy has courses in web development, data science, web design, game development, and much more.

In-house experts design the courses. Whether you’re a beginner or have some experience, you’ll find a well-designed course suited to your needs.

A certificate of completion is only available to those who are Pro members.

Some courses featured on Codecademy:

• Learn HTML
• Learn JavaScript
• How To Make A Website With NameCheap
• Learn Conversational Design With Alexa

19. Udacity

Udacity is a platform offering MOOCs that can help you learn the skills you need to start a new career or train you for jobs of the future.

Udacity teaches the critical tech skills that companies are looking for in their workforce. Their mission is to train the world’s workforce in careers of the future.

A certificate will not be offered for free courses.

Some free online courses featured on Udacity:

• Intro to Cloud Computing
• Creating an Analytical Dataset
• Responsive Web Design Fundamentals
• Product Design

Over To You

Now you know the online learning platforms offering online courses for free.

Which platform from today’s post are you going to sign up with?

Or maybe there’s another website that should be on this list.

Either way, let me know by leaving a comment below and don’t forget to share with someone looking for free online classes.

Good luck with your online learning. 😊