How Much Is SkillShare and Is It Worth It?

Skillshare has quickly become the most popular online learning platform on the web, and with over 32,000 high quality classes in its catalog, it’s really no surprise.

As it stands, Skillshare currently educates well over 12 million users, and this figure is only expected to continue growing — Should you make up part of this expanding demographic?

Well, with its wealth of courses, it’s incredibly unlikely that there isn’t anything for you on Skillshare, but before you take the plunge, it’s only wise to ask how much Skillshare costs.

The answer? As you likely surmised… it varies.

Not to worry, though, as I’m going to break down Skillshare’s pricing right here, right now!

How Much Does A Skillshare Subscription Cost?

Skillshare has two primary options for the individual:

The Premium Plan

This is the comprehensive and cheapest option for long-time Skillshare acolytes. It’ll set you back $168 a year, which will be billed to your account annually.

On a monthly basis, this figure breaks down into $13.99 increments, which may sound like a lot, but considering that Netflix is currently $19.99 a month and leaves you with nothing but a sore backside and a vitamin D deficiency, it’s a pretty sweet deal.

The Monthly Premium Plan

If you only intend to use Skillshare for a few months, you’re of course, better off with their monthly plan, but you’ll be paying extra for the convenience. Per month, you’ll be forking out $34.

There’s also an appealing option for businesses:

Standard Teams Business Plan

This one will cost the boss $159 per person/ year.

For businesses that wish to onboard vast volumes of staff, custom agreements can be hammered out once Skillshare knows the particulars of your intentions.

There is also a scholarship program in place that provides discounted subscriptions, but only a very small pool of applicants are granted such memberships.

These scholarships are as follows:

• 50% off for college/university students
• One-year membership for free (only 10 people land this deal a month worldwide).

As you can see, there’s a reasonable amount of flexibility as a user, but perhaps a per-class fee would be good for those who only want to learn some very specific things.

That said, the platform often offers reduced rates on the annual plan, offering you maximum bang for your buck.

Does Skillshare Offer A Free Trial?

Thankfully, Skillshare does indeed offer a free trial and also coupons during some periods of the year so those of us who are intrigued by classes but unsure of their quality can assess their value without making any long-term commitments.

The free trials gifted to potential Skillshare students vary in length between one week and an entire month, and they offer access to the full-fat Skillshare class library.

You can take as many of these classes as you like during your free trial, which is pretty great.

Do bear in mind, though, that to sign up for a free trial, you’ll have to disclose your bank details, and once the trial period terminates, the full fee for your chosen plan will be drawn automatically from your account.

You have to cancel your subscription manually before the termination of the trial to withdraw your interest and sever any future financial obligations (see “Skillshare refund policy“).

Does Skillshare Have Any Free Classes?

In the past, Skillshare offered a few free classes that anyone could use, but as of late 2021, this approach was put to bed, with representatives stating, “As part of Skillshare’s ongoing efforts to build a more predictable royalty pool for our teachers and create a streamlined experience for students, we will be transitioning away from offering a free class experience.”

To be fair, it’s a pretty noble cause, but it is a little irritating for those who want to dip their toes in the Skillshare pool to see if they like it before submitting card details.

Having said that, there are still free samples you can take a look at, but these will be cut short around the 2-minute mark, and only a select few classes can be sampled.

There are only two ways to truly get the Skillshare experience for nothing. One is to sign up for a premium membership and snag that 1-month free trial.

It never feels nice handing over your bank details for a free trial you may forget about, accidentally paying for a year’s service, but this is, hands down, the best way to truly immerse yourself in the Skillshare ecosystem in a rewarding manner.

The other way sounds enticing, but it has very specific eligibility terms — Sometimes members of a California State Library can claim a full 3-month free ride on the Skillshare platform.

What’s The Skillshare Free Trial Like?

Unlike many diluted software and platform free trials strewn across the web, Skillshare don’t cut corners. They offer everything that they have to entice you into paying for a membership.

You can dip into any of their 35,000+ classes, complete courses, use the full interface and ecosystem… no locked doors or closed windows!

I find this approach really refreshing, as you can truly decide if it’s the platform for you and your learning journey.

Does Skillshare Offer Good Value?

Granted, that $168 buy-in is too high for many, but that’s not to say Skillshare doesn’t offer you fantastic bang for your buck. If you’re able to fork out that annual fee, it can be an incredibly rewarding experience.

Think about it like this… Dedicated online courses can cost well over $1000 to complete, whereas Skillshare offers you essentially unlimited courses for a reasonable flat fee.

Of course, it’s on you to put in the time and extract value from Skillshare, but even those who feel they could use their membership more than they do claim they get oodles of value.

But How Do They Compare To Competing Platforms?

Skillshare isn’t the only online learning platform, but it is the most affordable and the most reputable. Check it out:

Platform	Annual Fee
Skillshare	$168 (as discussed)
Masterclass	$180
Udemy	$360
Coursera Plus	$399

If you want to look at your alternative options, Edwize has you covered.

Final Thoughts

There you have it — The most affordable option over the course of a year is the Annual Premium Plan, which will set you back $168 per year, but if you only want in for a couple of months, the pricier monthly plan will ultimately save you money.

To check eligibility for scholarships or that sweet 3-month free trial, I suggest heading over to the Skillshare site and seeing what the team has to say about them — Happy learning!