5 Places to Find Interesting Free or Low Cost Online Courses

Thinking of upskilling or trying a new career in the near future? While traditional training takes forever and can cost a fortune, online training is an affordable and fast way to learn something new or improve on what you know. 

There’s a huge variety of subjects you can learn about online. From creative pursuits like watercolouring, to more technical subjects like coding, there’s something out there to suit every interest. 

I’ve rounded up a collection of online training resources where you can learn a new skill or improve existing skills for free, or at a low cost. There’s a mix of industry-focused training and more hobby-based learning, so you should be able to find a way to make steps towards mastering your new interest or taking your career further. 

1. Skillshare

I’ve used Skillshare in the past to try out new creative pursuits, like hand lettering and watercolouring, as well as more business-focused topics like email marketing. It has a good mix of the two, so is perfect if you run (or want to run) a small creative business. 

Skillshare has a strong collection of free courses, but they also have a premium membership that unlocks a greater variety of options. They often run promotions for a free trial of premium, so check out the homepage banner for the latest offer.

2. Codecademy

If you’ve been itching to try your hand at coding, Codecademy could be the place for you. There’s a route for every type of budding coder out there, whether you want to try out front-end development with React or build chatbots with Python. 

Codecademy has a free tier, with 25 courses included. If you’d like to learn further, you can unlock access with their pro membership at £15.99 per month. Compared to the cost of learning at a traditional college or university, this seems like a steal! 

3. Alison

For those of you looking to learn a language or new skills for your current or future career, Alison is worth a look. This course website has over 1,000 training programmes on everything from French to Copywriting. 

Like most online course providers, Alison offers a free tier for anyone looking to expand their opportunities. This gives you access to all courses and a learner record, you can keep track of progress. If you’d like to remove site ads or download a formal certificate these cost extra, but it’s free to get started. 

4. Udemy

If you’re looking for a comprehensive mix of business and leisure courses, try Udemy. This highly popular resource features courses on everything from pet grooming to cryptocurrency. There are a lot of business-focused courses with thousands of reviews, so it’s a good place to start if you’re thinking of starting your own business. 

While there’s a cost associated with the courses on Udemy, it’s often more affordable than you might think. For example, this digital marketing course was reduced to £24.99 from £199.

5. Teachable

Teachable has recently launched a beta of Discover by Teachable, where they’re collecting and sharing courses from some of their top creators in one easy-to-find place. This is a great place to find interesting and engaging courses from well-known digital entrepreneurs like Pat Flynn and brands like MeetEdgar. 

The only downside? Many of these courses aren’t free and can run into hundreds of dollars each. It’s worth checking out their Free for Now section, where courses will be available at no cost for a limited time. There are also affordable courses, like this photography masterclass for $15.

What will you learn next? 

With so many free and affordable courses available online, there’s less of a barrier to starting a new career or finding a new passion. What’s next on your list to learn? Let me know in the comments!