Coursera vs. LinkedIn Learning - complete comparison

Overview

Description	Coursera Coursera is an online learning platform that offers courses from top universities and organizations worldwide, like Yale or Stanford. They also offer fully digital Bachelors and Master’s degrees.	LinkedIn Learning LinkedIn Learning (originally Lynda.com) is the online learning platform offered by LinkedIn. The 16,000+ courses in their library are mostly focussed on professional topics like technology and business. The platform is also directly integrated into LinkedIn and offers additional benefits, like LinkedIn premium, to its members.
Types of courses	Coursera INDIVIDUAL LEARNING Regular courses Self-paced courses for individual learning and skill development. The courses itself are typically free, with certification being offered as a paid addon. $50 - $150 USDIncluded in subscription Self-paced MASTERS DEGREE Master's Degree Full master's degree programs offered in partnership with universities. $10000 - $60000 USD Full-time BACHELORS DEGREE Bachelor's Degree Full bachelor's degree programs offered in partnership with universities. $10000 - $80000 USD Full-time PARTIAL MASTERS MasterTrack Certificates Master's degree-level courses with a path to credit $2000 - $10000 USD 4-6 months INDIVIDUAL LEARNING Professional Certificates Job-relevant training programs, from universities and corporations. FreeIncluded in subscription 3-6 months	LinkedIn Learning
Subscription plans	Coursera PERSONAL Coursera Plus Access to a selection of 7,000+ world-class courses, hands-on projects, and job-ready certificate programs $35 - 55 USD per month	LinkedIn Learning PERSONAL Personal subscription Access to all courses and learning paths on the LinkedIn Learning platform $25 - 45 USD per month
Pros & cons	Coursera Pros Wide range of courses Courses from top universities Professional certificates from top companies like salesforce & Google Degree programs are cheaper compared to on-campus degrees Cons Rather expensive subscription Confusing offering, because of all of the different types of courses they provide	LinkedIn Learning Pros Large course catalog Personalized recommendations based on your linkedin profile Linkedin premium included Cons Limited course topics (only career-related) Some courses can be rather 'corporate'

General information

Type	Course Marketplace	Course Marketplace
Number of courses	7000+	16000+
Popularity	Very popular	Very popular
Available categories	3D & AnimationAccounting & BookkeepingAffiliate MarketingAppleArchitectural DesignArts & CraftsBeauty & MakeupBrandingBusiness Analytics & IntelligenceBusiness Law	Business Analytics & IntelligenceCommunicationData ScienceDesign ToolsDigital MarketingEntrepreneurshipFinanceGraphic Design & IllustrationLeadershipMarketing Analytics & Automation
Available languages	EnglishMandarin ChineseSpanishFrenchRussianPortugueseGermanJapaneseKoreanItalian	EnglishSpanishFrenchGermanJapaneseMandarin ChinesePortugueseItalianKorean

Evaluation

Full score	8.8 10	8.7 10

Individual scores

Course quality

LowHigh

Course catalog

Less satisfiedVery satisfied

Affordability

More expensiveHigher value

Career value

Low valueHigh value

Customer support

BadGood

Usability

BadGood

Features

Support options	Email Phone Chat Community Knowledge base Learning support Career support	Email Phone Chat Community Knowledge base Learning support Career support
Available apps	Ios Android	Ios Android

Company

Company name	Coursera Inc.	LinkedIn Corporation
Company size	Large	Large
Founded in	2012	2015
Headquarters	United States 🇺🇸	United States 🇺🇸
Founders	Andrew Ng, Daphne Koller	Reid Hoffman, Allen Blue, Konstantin Guericke, Eric Ly, Jean-Luc Vaillant
External reviews	App Store 4.8126900 reviews Play Store 4.8267000 reviews Trustpilot 1.7528 reviews	App Store 4.877900 reviews Play Store 4.6135000 reviews

Our opinion

Summary

Coursera

Coursera offers a great range of online learning products, which means that almost anyone can find a fitting course on their platform. We particularly like the huge catalog of free courses they offer, where you only need to pay if you want the optional certification. They also offer full degrees, which makes them one of only a few providers that offer Bachelor's and Master’s degrees online. While their overall offering might be a bit confusing sometimes, we can fully recommend Coursera for all students looking to obtain career-relevant skills.

LinkedIn Learning

LinkedIn Learning is one of the largest online learning platforms, which can offer a lot of benefits that we like through the direct integration into the LinkedIn platform, like LinkedIn Premium access, as well as the direct integration of certificates from LinkedIn Learning into your LinkedIn profile. The instructors on LinkedIn Learning are highly qualified, and the courses cover all relevant career-focussed skills, which is why we can particularly recommend LinkedIn Learning for young professionals trying to upskill.