This Skillshare review uncovers many specialty courses designed to improve a particular skill. Skillshare is not an education but a fast and affordable way to learn and master your specific interests and hobbies.
As a premium subscriber and a teacher on Skillshare, I believe I can give you a detailed insight into how it works and whether it is right for you.
Skillshare Review Summary
Our Skillshare review discovers that it is an excellent resource for voracious learners because it offers many classes in business, visual arts, creativity, and productivity, all at a low flat-rate membership fee.
The platform offers many technology courses, including video game design and development and e-commerce applications like Shopify.
| SkillShare Rating | 4.5/5.0 |
| 💸 Pricing | ★★★★★ |
| 📰 Course Library | ★★★★✩ |
| 🔍 Course Quality | ★★★★✩ |
| ↩ Returns Policy | ★★★★★ |
| ☎ Customer Support | ★★★★✩ |
Skillshare is an online education platform that emphasizes skills rather than formal education. Each Skillshare course is a series of video lessons that teach a particular skill. Some skills are job-related, and many courses are artistic or lifestyle-related. There are many visual arts, writing, and design courses on Skillshare.
Skillshare emphasizes artistic, creative, business, IT technical skills, and productivity courses. There is no accreditation, no college partnerships, and few recognized certificates of achievement. That means few Skillshare courses will look good on your resume.
Skillshare will benefit people who do not need accredited courses or degrees. Those who need academic accreditation will be better served by “Massive Open Online Courses” (MOOCs) offered by Udacity and Coursera, which offer a better formal education than Skillshare.
SkillShare Review: Features
| ⚡ Features | 30,000+ Courses |
| 🏆 Unique Features | Access to all courses |
| 🎯 Best for | Learning New Skills |
| ♲ Subscription | Monthly, Yearly |
| 💰 Price | $13.99-$32/mo |
| 💻 OS | Web Browser |
| ✂ Discount | -40% Discount Link |
| 🌎 Region | Global |
Skillshare Pros
- Netflix for Learning, one flat rate for all courses
- Skillshare is cheaper than competitors
- A first-time member discount of 40% is available
- 2,145 free classes available
- A 50% student discount is available
- Enormous library of 30,000+ courses
- Over 8,000 teachers
- Newer courses are very high-quality
- Many artistic subjects such as Drawing, Illustration, Animation, Photo & Film, and Design
Skillshare Cons
- Most Skillshare Courses are Unaccredited
- No College Degree Programs Available
- Few Academic Subjects Available
- You can learn some of the skills from YouTube.
- Employers do not recognize Skillshare certificates.
- You can find free equivalent courses on other platforms such as Coursera
- Some courses are low-quality
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What is Skillshare?
Skillshare is a digital platform offering over 30,000 video courses. Each course offers a skill that people can use in real life. Skillshare focuses on courses in the visual arts, such as video game design, writing, and lifestyle-related courses. Skillshare also offers many courses targeted at artists, developers, designers, and other creators, including writing.
Many courses show artists how to monetize their art. Examples include The Staples of Branding: From Purpose to Product and Social Media Storytelling.
Thus, Skillshare is best considered an educational platform for artists and creative people. To that end, Skillshare offers tech and web design courses that help writers or artists market their creations.
Skillshare also introduces many tech-related art areas, such as video game design and production. For instance, Unreal Engine 4: Intro to Game Design.
Skillshare also offers many lifestyle-based courses that teach people hobbies and art skills to improve their lives.
The diverse range of Skillshare courses includes:
- Internal Combustion Engine Basics (Mechanical Engineering)
- Revolutionary Self-Care: Embrace, Nurture, and Grow Your Authentic Self
- Creative Tips and Techniques for Interior Design
- Gardening 101: A Guide For Growing & Caring For Plants
- Art from Your Heart: How to Art Journal for Wellness and Balance
- Basics of Artisan Bread Baking: Foccacia, Burger Buns & French Breads
- Stock Investing Masterclass: Technical & Fundamental Analysis
How Does Skillshare Work?
The Skillshare platform offers members access to thousands of problem-based video courses. Individuals take courses through the Skillshare website and the Skillshare app.
Each course is divided into lessons, with an average class duration of one to two hours. Skillshare membership is free, but you need a subscription to access all the premium courses. Skillshare’s app allows you to learn offline. Skillshare members receive unlimited access to every class and an online community.
Skillshare charges users a monthly membership that gives them access to the entire course library instead of individual classes, as Udacity or Udemy do.
How Does Skillshare Make Money?
The Skillshare business model is similar to Netflix’s. Skillshare has no adverts and is fully funded by its members. Part of the membership fee is used to pay the instructors, who are paid for every minute of video watched by a premium member. This is why some people call Skillshare Netflix for Learning.
Who is Skillshare Best For?
Skillshare is best for people who want to learn skills. Skillshare is a great resource for people seeking hobbies and lifestyle-based skills such as photography and cooking.
Skillshare is also a great resource for artists and people interested in the visual arts. Examples of the art courses include Watercolor Painting Techniques (For Beginners and Pros) and Full Tutorial—Mixing Colors for Watercolor Painting.
One group that could benefit from Skillshare is artists who want to explore new areas of art or techniques. A sketch artist who wants to learn painting, for example. Or a painter who wants to experiment with animation.
Others who could benefit from Skillshare are hobbyists who want to get serious about their art. People seeking a new hobby could find it on Skillshare, and do-it-yourselfers could benefit from many of the crafts courses.
Skillshare offers some job-related skills, such as Interior Design, video game design, Business Analysis, and web development. Thus, people who need job skills, such as small business owners or freelancers, could benefit from Skillshare.
The Quality of Skillshare Courses
Skillshare has improved its quality guidelines and forbids advertising or branding in the video’s main content. This has helped push the quality of courses higher. Some of the older courses are quite poor, but instructors are learning that great sound, video quality, and killer content are the recipes for success on Skillshare.
Skillshare also promotes Skillshare Original Classes and Staff Picks, which are produced and chosen for their exceptionally high quality.
How Many Courses Does Skillshare Have?
Skillshare claims to offer over 30,000 video-based classes in press releases. However, Skillshare does not officially count the number of courses it offers on its website.
How Many Students Does Skillshare Have?
Skillshare claims its online learning community has over 12 million “registered members” in a press release. However, Skillshare does not say how many registered members are active students, So It does not review the number of students in its courses.
What Can You Learn on Skillshare?
Skillshare has many practical, creative subjects you can learn, including:
Skillshare also has many practical business-related courses that can boost your skills in the workplace, including:
- Business Analytics
- Freelance & Entrepreneurship
- Leadership & Management
- Marketing
- Productivity
- Stock Investing
Is Skillshare Free?
Yes, Skillshare offers 2,145 free classes for those who register for a free membership. However, to access the full library of over 30,000 classes, you must pay a monthly or annual membership fee. This is fair, as the teachers should also get paid for their efforts. All membership levels are free from adverts, and the teachers are paid between 5c and 10c for every minute of watch time.
How much does Skillshare cost?
Skillshare is free to join. However, you must buy a Premium membership to take most Skillshare courses. A Premium Membership costs $13.99 per month or $168 annually.
Skillshare offers many discounts for businesses and others. They claim there are special rates for team memberships. However, you will have to contact Skillshare to ask for those prices.
How much is Skillshare Premium?
Skillshare Premium Memberships cost $32 per month if you pay monthly. However, if you pay annually, they will cost $168 or $13.99 monthly. A trial membership allows you to try Skillshare Premium free for seven days.
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How To Get A 40% Skillshare Discount
Skillshare offers large discounts for first-time members. New members can get a 40% discount on a Skillshare Premium Yearly Subscription, reducing costs from $168 to $100.
Does Skillshare have a student discount?
Yes, but they call it a “Skillshare Student Scholarship.” The Student Scholarship offers a 50% discount on a Premium membership. Therefore, the discount gives scholarship recipients a $16 monthly or $84 annual membership.
Is Skillshare Legit?
Yes, Skillshare is a legitimate educational resource. Most of the courses on it are real, but they are not college courses. Skillshare has no alliances with universities and no degree programs. Thus, no institution accredits Skillshare courses.
Instead, Skillshare emphasizes skill-based education intended for individual information and entertainment. The emphasis is on skills people can use to improve their lives rather than degrees. You will learn from Skillshare but not receive a degree or accreditation.
Some people will consider some Skillshare courses illegitimate because they are frivolous, shallow, and simplistic, such as Crystal Therapy 101 or Crystal Grids and Sacred Geometry.
Is Skillshare accredited?
No, most Skillshare courses are not accredited. Instead, the service emphasizes skill-based courses. No academic organization or institution appears to accredit any Skillshare classes. Unlike competitors, such as Coursera, Skillshare does not offer tech courses accredited by large companies like Microsoft and Google.
Does Skillshare have certificates?
Yes. Skillshare offers many certificate courses, such as the Thai Foot Reflexology Certificate Course. However, most of the certificates only demonstrate you have completed the courses.
Most universities will not recognize the courses. However, employers could recognize some of the certificates. One problem at Skillshare is a lack of company-backed courses and certificates.
Do Skillshare certificates matter?
Skillshare certificates matter because they prove you have completed a course and learned a skill. However, Skillshare certificates are unaccredited, offering no credit for college courses.
Another problem is that large companies like Google and Microsoft do not issue many Skillshare technology-related certificates. Thus, many companies may not accept those certificates. A Skillshare certificate could look good on your resume but is not accredited.
Can You Earn Credit Towards College Degrees on Skillshare?
No, Skillshare certificates are not accredited and do not provide credit towards any college degree. Skillshare courses are unaccredited because Skillshare appears to work with no universities or colleges.
Skillshare vs. Youtube
Skillshare has three advantages over YouTube: there are no adverts, instructors save their best work for Skillshare members, and students can do class projects on Skillshare and get direct instructor feedback. While YouTube is a huge free source of videos to help you learn specific topics, you must endure endless adverts and video sponsorship plugs.
Skillshare vs. Udemy
Skillshare offers a flat rate payment for access to all courses, while Udemy charges between $20 and $200 per course. Skillshare courses last 1 to 2 hours, while Udemy courses are much longer. For voracious learners, Skillshare is the best option. For those who want a single in-depth course, Udemy is better.
Can a Skillshare Teacher Earn Good Money?
In my experience, Skillshare teachers, on average, earn very little. Teachers must do all their own marketing and receive little to no help from Skillshare. Plus, the slice of revenue you get from Skillshare is very low. Additionally, you must teach a course with mass appeal and a broad target audience. Niche topics will not produce reasonable revenue.
Where can I find Skillshare courses?
Skillshare courses can be found via its app in the Apple App Store, Google Play Store, and directly on the Skillshare website. Skillshare courses are not available on Roku.
Skillshare Review Final Thoughts
Skillshare is an excellent resource for voracious learners because it offers many classes in business, visual arts, creativity, and productivity, all at a flat-rate membership fee. The platform offers many technology courses, including video game design and development and e-commerce applications like Shopify.
One huge problem with Skillshare is that it has no relationships with universities and makes no effort to offer college degrees or accreditations. That means many employers will not recognize Skillshare courses, and they will not count them as credits towards college degrees.
Skillshare is an interesting resource. People seeking skills could benefit from Skillshare. However, those seeking career-related skills will not be well-served by Skillshare.
Serious professionals need to avoid Skillshare. However, hobbyists, artists, and the self-employed could find this platform useful. The bottom line is that Skillshare is a great resource if you need skills.
