List of the best online course platforms
Here are my choices of the best online course platforms to use this year to develop skills:
1. Thinkific.
Thinkific is considered to be the best global platform for selling online courses, training courses or MOOCs, whether they are free or paid.
Overall, I wholeheartedly recommend Thinkific as my number 1 recommendation for selling online courses and other courses.
Thinkific Features
- Customizing Course Websites: Complete customization of the course site, MOOCs and training courses
- Optimized Sales Pages: Aesthetic and highly optimized sales pages.
- Customizable Student Dashboards: Adding videos, texts, and downloadable files to a single page.
- Dissemination of Content: Option to send all content at once or gradually.
- Free Video Hosting on Wistia: Significant savings on video hosting costs.
- Unlimited Course Creation: The Pro plan includes a free 1-month trial and allows unlimited creation of courses, memberships, bundles, advanced pricing, landing pages, certificates of achievement, and marketing tools.
- Drag and Drop Editor: Easy creation and customization of courses, MOOCs and training courses
- Over 100 currencies accepted: Possibility to collect payments in over 100 currencies.
- Advanced Customization Options: Creation of a completely personalized site with the help of the host team.
Pricing
- Basic : Unlimited courses and students, unlimited content and training or MOOCs, custom domain, email integrations, coupons.
- Pro : Basic features plus memberships and packages, private lessons, certificates of achievement, advanced HTML and CSS editing, exercises, assignments, live lessons via Zoom, priority support.
- Premier : Pro features plus 50 course administrators, onboarding package, and unlimited growth package, ideal for large teams.
You can start today with a free 1-month trial of their Pro Plan with my link here.
In conclusion, I recommend Thinkific as the first choice for course or MOOC creators and entrepreneurs who are serious about creating, marketing, and selling their own course content.
2. Learnworlds
Learnworlds is an all-in-one solution for creating and selling MOOC And of online courses. It allows teachers, businesses, and industry professionals to share their knowledge and generate revenue.
Learnworlds Features
- Customizing Course Websites: Complete customization of the site, including colors, images and logos.
- Optimized Sales Pages: Optimized models to convert visitors into students on all themes
- Customizable Student Dashboards: Personalized dashboards with videos, texts, and downloadable files.
- Video Hosting: Videos hosted by Learnworlds
- Assessment Tools: Creation of quizzes, exercises, exams and certificates.
- Interaction tools: Discussion forums and social media integration to create a community.
- Integrations: Integration with various tools and services (payment processors, email marketing tools or resources, and webinar platforms)
Pricing
- Starter : Unlimited prices, transaction commissions, custom domains, basic integrations.
- Pro Trainer : All in Starter plus quizzes for your school, resources, exercises, certificates, advanced sales page category, resources, affiliate, premium integrations.
- Learning Center : All in Pro Trainer plus unlimited administrators, home package, unlimited growth package.
For starters, Learnworlds offers a 30-day free trial for all his plans.
Learnworlds stands out as a comprehensive and flexible platform for course creators or MOOCs who seek to create, market, and sell their online courses.
With a range of features and pricing options, it's a great option for creators of all sizes.
3. Teachable.
If you're new to the world of MOOCs and online courses, Teachable is probably the tool you're looking for.
This platform is a one-stop shop for all your needs when it comes to creating and selling online courses or MOOCs.
Teachable Features
- Quick installation: Start selling courses in minutes.
- All Unlimited: No limit on bandwidth, number of students, courses, or coaching services.
- One click payment: Simplify transactions for your students.
- Page Optimization: Personalize your sales pages to increase conversions.
- Live course via Zoom: Available in the Pro plan.
- International Payment Plans: Payments in over 130 currencies.
- Rated quizzes: Evaluate the performance of your students.
- Personalized certificates: Reward students at your school with resources, exercises, and end of course certificates.
- Theme Customization: Match the look of your website to your brand.
- Multiple Users: Up to 5 administrator accounts on the Pro plan.
Pricing
Basic
- 5% transaction fee
- 2 admin users
- Contents at the drop of a drop
Pro
- No transaction fees
- 5 administration accounts
- Course certificates
Business
- All Pro features
- Advanced coding customizations
- 20 administrator accounts
To find out more and take advantage of the special offer, click hither.
In summary, Teachable offers a great gateway for anyone looking to enter the online course or MOOC market.
Its simple user interface and flexible pricing plans make it a great choice, especially for novices.
4. Podia
Podia is an all-in-one MOOC platform that stands out particularly in the areas of digital downloads, webinars, and memberships.
With over 50,000 members, Podia allows you to create standalone courses, accept payments before your courses launch, organize cohort courses, deliver courses section by section, and manage your own affiliate program.
Podia features
- Varied Course Types: Standalone courses, presales, cohort courses, MOOCs, Drip courses section by section.
- Membership options: Online community, multi-level plans, Facebook/Slack connection.
- Optimized SEO : good performances for each search engine
- Webinar platform: Live or on-demand webinars.
- Affiliate program: Customized commission structure.
- 24/7 support: responsive
Pricing
Mover
- Everything unlimited
- Zero transaction fees
- Sale of courses, digital downloads
- 5,000 emails sent per month
Shaker
- Everything in Mover plus creating member communities
- Adding affiliates
- 15,000 emails per month
Earthquaker
- Everything in Shaker plus a dedicated account manager
- Personalized welcome
- 50,000 emails per month
Try Podia free for 14 days by registering hither.
To conclude, Podia is an excellent choice for those looking for a robust online course or MOOC platform with solid membership features and the ability to increase sales through an affiliate program.
5. LearnDash.
LearnDash is a WordPress plugin for those who want to sell online courses on a WordPress site. It's a learning management system (LMS) used by renowned organizations like Yoast, Infusionsoft, the University of Michigan, and WP Elevation.
LearnDash Features
- Focus Mode: Block distractions during online classes or MOOCs
- Optimized SEO : good performances for each search engine
- Course creator: Integration with email campaigns to create courses or MOOCs, and associate content with a dropper email program.
- Gradebook technology: Overall grade based on quizzes and assignments, weighted average for examination by teachers.
- Course Points: Points for actions, badges, resources, and certificates for course activities.
Pricing
LearnDash offers a $40 discount and a 30-day money-back guarantee on their annual plans. However, the exact rate is not mentioned in the text provided.
For more pricing information, please visit their website hither.
LearnDash is the ideal tool for teachers looking for a scoring system that rivals the features of university programs.
The Most Popular Online Course Types in the World
The popularity of online courses has exploded in recent years, especially due to the COVID-19 pandemic that has forced many people to stay at home.
Here are some of the types of online courses that have grown in popularity for everyone:
- Personal Development: Popularity of mental wellness, stress management, and mindfulness courses since the pandemic.
- Information technology: High demand for software development, data science, and cybersecurity courses.
- Foreign languages: Increased importance and popularity of online tutoring and language courses due to globalization.
- Fitness and Health: Increased search for fitness, yoga, and nutrition classes during lockdown.
- Business and Entrepreneurship: Popularity of courses on business creation, digital marketing, and project management.
According to a Coursera study, online course registrations have increased by 640% in April 2020 compared to April 2019.
While the popularity of course types may vary depending on current trends, areas such as personal development, information technology, foreign languages, fitness and health, and business and entrepreneurship are consistently popular.
Summary
When choosing between the best online course platforms, remember to do your research: consider student experience, themes, resources, marketing characteristics, and pricing.
In reality, all of the best online course platforms allow you to easily upload your content, train your students, and generate course sales.
All offer course creation tools and features for online training.
The success of your course and your ability to sell online courses depend on both the quality of your content and your ability to sell yourself.
A platform for your ideas and your experience, but you still need to plan, study, develop and, above all, market it.
With all the high-end features you need at the most affordable price, Thinkific is the clear winner.
