Want to learn coding this summer? Good, there are plenty of free resources on the Internet to quickly get you started but if you prefer proper instructor-led video courses, go with Udemy. If you are new here, Udemy is an online marketplace where you’ll find courses on everything from calligraphy to photography to programming.
I’ve purchased more than two dozen Udemy courses around web development from different instructors – the list includes courses on React, Redux, JavaScript, Node.js, ES6, Express, Webpack, Firebase, TypeScript – and have been really impressed with the overall quality of the training content. You pay a one-time fee for any course and, unlike Pluralsight or Lynda LinkedIn Learning that charge a monthly subscription, your Udemy course will be yours forever.
Most video courses on Udemy are priced between $20 and $200 but before you key in the credit card, ready this.
Avoid Impulse Buying
Udemy offers massive discounts almost every week and the $150 course you are looking to buy could be available for as low as $10 the next day, or even the next hour.
Do not make ‘impulse’ purchases on Udemy. Add the Udemy course to your wish list or place it in your shopping cart and you could soon have an email from Udemy itself saying that course has gone on sale.
Support the Instructor
Udemy has a simple revenue-sharing agreement with instructors. If the instructor brings the student to Udemy through their own links, Udemy’s commission is mere 3% of the sale price. If a student finds a course by directly searching on Udemy, the instructor’s share is only 50% of the sale.
Check the blog, Twitter or Facebook pages of the Udemy teacher. Buy the course through links shared by Udemy teachers on their social media pages and you’ll be indirectly helping them as they’ll get most of the sale proceeds.
Avoid Coupon Sites
Search for “Udemy Discount Coupons” on Google and a million websites will pop-up. The problem is the 99.9% of these sites offer outdated/expired coupons and their sole purpose is to serve ads or get their own cookie in your browser.
Use Browser, not Mobile Apps
You can buy Udemy courses on their website or through their mobile apps. The interesting thing is that the same course may be priced differently depending on the platform you are on. It’s just like some airline company showing higher prices to people who are browsing on an iPhone.
I simultaneously searched for React.js courses on Udemy on iOS, Android, and Chrome and the prices varied everywhere. The prices displayed were lowest when I opened Udemy on the desktop in Chrome’s incognito mode.
The bottom line is that you should never purchase Udemy courses at the list price and always use a desktop to complete the purchase. They probably have to pay Google / Apple a share in the sale and hence the courses are priced higher inside Udemy’s mobile apps.