Skillshare Review: Is Skillshare The Best Online Course Platform?

Skillshare Review in 50 words or less:

Skillshare is an online learning library offering thousands of creative and professional courses. Course topics include Logo Design, content creation, video editing, and just about everything in between. User-friendly and diverse, Skillshare caters to both hobbyists and professionals looking for growth. Tons of value here.

Skillshare History?

Skillshare launched in 2011 and by 2014 was boasting over 100,000 paid subscribers. At the time, Skillshare had a library of over 500 course.

Skillshare was ahead of its time.

Fast forward to 2023 and Skillshare claims 12 Million registered users and over 29,000 online courses!

Skillshare’s mission is to help its members “get inspired and learn new skills” to make the world a more creative place.

While Skillshare caters to creative skills, it also ventures into topics such as entrepreneurship, business, and investing.

Skillshare User Experience

If you are a new user, Skillshare starts by gathering your interests so it can recommend some courses for you to get started.

Much like YouTube, Skillshare has its own algorithm for recommended the best content for each user.

When you log into Skillshare, you are greeted by a simple homepage. Skillshare has done a fine job of keeping things simple and helping you find the courses that interest you.

If you are a returning member, Skillshare starts by welcoming you back to courses you have already started. These courses are bookmarked where you left off so you can pick up where you left off.

If you are a new user and know exactly which course you are looking for, or want to search for a specific topic, you can use the search function. Topics will begin to autosuggest as you type.

The rest of the home page is divided into the following sections:

• Recommended for You
• Staff Picks & Originals
• Recommended Learning Paths
• Because You Follow

Recommended for You

As mentioned earlier, Skillshare’s algorithm recommends courses it thinks you will like based off:

• Courses you have already taken
• The interests you chose when you first logged in
• Popularity of courses based on reviews and staff picks

Staff Picks & Originals

In this section Skillshare recommends what I’m assuming is a curated list of courses hand picked by their staff. I like this because I have come across courses that otherwise might have been off my radar.

Skillshare will mostly recommend single classes that tend to be shorter. In my experience, these courses are anywhere from 45 mins to 1 1/2 hours.

The Learning paths combine individual courses into what I call a “mini-curriculum”. These are laid out in a way that is similar to most online course I have taken. A little more in depth and laid out in a logical succession.

For example, popular productivity YouTuber, Ali Abdaal, has a learning path for creating a YouTube channel. Each of the course within this learning path is also available on its own or as a comprehensive learning path.

Because You Follow

Very similar to the Recommended for you section and doesn’t require much more coverage here.

Skillshare also has a nice browse feature within its home menu. You can browse by topic or you can search key terms in a search box and the platform with autosuggest courses as you type.

My Favorite Skillshare Classes

A Skillshare review wouldn't be complete without some course recommendations. We hope this gives you a better look inside the course library of Skillshare.

YouTube For Beginners: How To Start And Grow Your YouTube Channel

Instructor: Ali Abdaal

Ali Abdaal is a doctor turned productivity YouTuber. His channel has over 4 Million subscribers and he teaches an excellent course on starting and growing a YouTube channel.

This course is a little over 4 hours in total and is a great example of an effective Skillshare course. Ali guides you from creating your channel to recording and uploading your first videos.

He also dives into strategy on how to grow on YouTube.

You can also read our free guide on How To Make Money On YouTube

Mastering Productivity: Create A Custom System That Works

Instructor: Thomas Frank

Productivity is extremely personal. Thomas Frank understands that well and teaches a fantastic course on creating your own productivity system.

Thomas Frank is the a productivity YouTuber who specializes in using Notion. He posts Notion tutorials on his YouTube channel, Thomas Frank Explains. Thomas also sells 2 robust Notion templates, one of which I have purchased and love.

For more productivity resources, check out our full review of Notion & our Recommended Productivity Tools page.

Skillshare on Mobile

Look, while I almost always prefer the desktop version, I tend to find myself doing things like this on my phone way more often. So having a functional mobile version is important.

Skillshare’s mobile experience is great. I generally use the web browser and I find it much easier to use than competitors like Udemy.

It is definitely a lighter version of the desktop web version but they did not try to cram too much into the mobile version. Simple and easy.

If you like to multitask, Skillshare allows you to swipe up and minimize the window while browsing other apps (at least on IOS). Courses are synced between devices. If you start a course on Desktop, you can pick up where you left off on mobile.

Skillshare Topics Offered

A majority of the skillshare courses available fall in the “Creative” Categories. Those categories include:

• Animation
• Creative Writing
• Film & Video
• Fine Art
• Graphic Design
• Illustration
• Music
• Photography
• UI/UX Design

Skillshare also offers courses in the Entrepreneurship & Productivity niches. Those categories include:

• Freelance & Entrepreneurship
• Marketing
• Lifestyle
• Productivity

Skillshare also offers a small number of live sessions. These sessions are scheduled for a date and time and tend to be in art niches (painting, drawing, water color, etc…)

Some of these live sessions are included in the membership, while others come at an additional cost, ranging from $12 – $150 for a course with multiple sessions.

Skillshare Free Trial

Skillshare offers a 30 day free trial. This is one of the major pros to Skillshare. Most trial periods are 7-14 days. 30 Days gives you a real window to sample course or even take several courses in their entirety.

You could sign up for the trial, take the course you wanted, then cancel. I have a feeling you won’t want to. If you have the money, Skillshare is a great deal.

The free trial is a no-brainer.

Skillshare is great for:

Someone wanting to improve their copywriting skills.

It is not great for someone looking for a comprehensive system on how to turn a blog into a full time income. A Course like Fat Stacks or Income School would be best for that.

Read Our Income School Review

Negative Skillshare Reviews

I have seen reviews of people being upset with Skillshare’s customer support. Most of these reviews are from 2021 and I suspect Skillshare has resolved their issues. I have not had any problem with customer support.

This seems to be the most common knock against Skillshare. Some of those issues in the old reviews I read stemmed from people signing up for the free trial, forgetting to cancel, then being upset when they could not get a refund on their renewal.

In all, I believe Skillshare to be an excellent value

Who is Skillshare Best Suited For?

Because of the shorter class structure, Skillshare is best suited for beginners looking to learn a new skill. It is an excellent resource for that purpose.

Skillshare is also perfect for someone who enjoys learning new creative hobbies.

For professionals seeking an in-depth professional course, you should look elsewhere. You will likely have to pay more but you can find more thorough courses on a specific topic. For example: a person looking to turn a blog into a full time income would be better off paying for a course like Income School and diving into that one subject. You can read our Income School review here.

I do think Skillshare is well suited for content creators and bloggers as you can pick up skills suitable for DIY design, copywriting, and other necessary skills.

What are some alternatives to Skillshare?

If Skillshare isn't hitting the mark, there are other fish in the sea. You've got Udemy, which boasts a broader course catalog with a more conventional structure. Coursera takes a more academic route, partnering up with universities. Then there's Lynda and CreativeLive, each with its own flavor catering to various learner tastes.

How much does Skillshare cost per month?

Skillshare has a free plan and a more premium offering. For the Premium membership, you're looking at $19 a month or a yearly hit of $99. A Premium membership grants access to every course, offline views, and the freedom to download course content.

Are Skillshare certificates worth it?

Finish a Skillshare course, and you'll get a certificate of completion. Nice touch for your resume or portfolio, but keep in mind it's not accredited. While it doesn't weigh the same as an official degree, it's still a nod to your newly acquired skills.

Don't expect the certificates to land you a job.

What are the disadvantages of using Skillshare?

Every rose has its thorn. Skillshare's courses aren’t accredited, meaning no college credit. The “anyone can teach” model means the course quality can be hit or miss. Also, Skillshare leans heavily into the creative domain, so you might find it lacking if you're hunting outside that zone.

More advanced creatives may find the course content a bit elementary, though not without merit.

Is Skillshare actually useful?

Absolutely! If you're aiming to up your game in the creative realm, Skillshare is very useful. They parade a decent list of courses, helmed by pros in the industry. Plus, the community vibe could open doors to networking and teaming up.

How does Skillshare compare to Udemy?

Both Skillshare and Udemy serve the online learning market, but they've got different vibes. While Skillshare rocks the creative world, Udemy covers broader grounds from business to tech. Structure-wise, Udemy leans more traditional, adding assignments and tests to the mix, whereas Skillshare is about project-based learning. And if community matters to you, Skillshare's stronger on that front, with Udemy focusing on solo learning.

Final Verdict

Skillshare is easy to use, tons of fun, and useful for learning new hobbies and creative skills. Understand that skillshare does not offer in-depth master classes but does offer learning paths which can be great for a deeper dive on a particular skill. Skillshare’s free trial and low price make it a no-brainer for me.