Studio Vs Masterclass: Ultimate Comparison 2023

Online learning has shot up in popularity in recent years, but not everyone has signed up to online courses just to boost their employability.

With lessons and resources more accessible than ever, a lot of people have used online learning to their advantage by sharpening the skills and knowledge they need to indulge in their hobbies. 

As a result, two extremely popular online learning platforms are Studio and Masterclass. Both offer a range of courses for creative skills and topics, but which platform is the better out of the two? 

If you are wondering if you should sign up to a Studio course or Masterclass, then stop right there – and check out our review below to see which of the two is the better online learning provider!

Below, we have compared the two in a range of different areas so check it out and find the right choice between Studio Vs Masterclass.

General Information

Before we begin the comparison, let’s first take a look at the general background of Masterclass and Studio. This way, we can understand a bit more about each company before we start to compare the two together. 

About Masterclass

Masterclass is an online education platform that has been around since 2014. It was first founded by a student at Stanford University under the initial name ‘Yanka Industries’ but officially launched as Masterclass in 2015. 

What made Masterclass so different from other online education companies was how it relied on ‘star power’ when it came to their courses.

While other providers were using instructors who were qualified experts and scholars, Masterclass had some of the best known names in each field teach a course relating to their experience. 

For example, one of Masterclass’s business courses is taught by Richard Branson. Branson has no degree or qualifications in business, but what he does have is a multi-million empire and years of entrepreneurial experience to back him up. 

And it doesn’t just stop with big business names; Masterclass has courses run by other celebrities such as Margret Atwood, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Gordon Ramsey, Christina Agulera, Serena Williams – all experts in their respective fields. 

This is what has made Masterclass be able to stand out against the competitors and it’s worked for them. During Masterclass’s early days, it only had 3 instructors and 12 individual classes.

Now, it has over 150 courses and has grown into one of the biggest online education platforms in the world. 

About Studio

Now, let’s move onto Studio. 

Studio doesn’t talk much about its roots online but their goals and values as a company are front and center on their website.

The company was first created as a platform for creative learning to help people learn more about their passions and to sharpen their skills and talents. 

Creative subjects are often overlooked when it comes to education. In schools, arts departments often face less funding and when it comes to online education, there are fewer platforms that offer a range of creative subjects and courses.

Studio was formed to tackle that issue and to provide those seeking an online course for their creative passions with the quality and information they needed. 

Studio has now helped its students create over 1,000,000 projects, and aims to empower all their students from those just starting out in their field to those who have been practicing for years.

Its courses are run by ‘star names’ who are experts in their relative fields – such as Idina Menzel, David Blaine, Pentatonix, and Christina Tosi – but is this the only thing Studio shares in common with Masterclass?

Masterclass Vs Studio: Our Reviews And Comparison

So, now you know a bit about the background of each company, their values, and what they offer – so let’s start to compare the two together in a range of different areas which are important to you. 

When looking for the right online education provider, you need to find somewhere that offers the kind of course you want, is affordable, and has the kind of structure and teaching style that works for you.

Your personal preferences will sway your opinion while we have tried to stay as neutral as possible in order to give a fair review. 

So, let’s get started! 

Range Of Courses Available

The more courses an online educator has to offer, the more likely it is you will find a course that suits your wants and needs.

Whether it’s in subjects like science or art or music or sport, the more range an online educator offers, the more students it will attract because it offers something for everyone. 

Although you may already have an idea of what subject you are interested in learning, you should ideally have a few courses to choose from, each one focusing on a specific niche within that subject. 

Masterclass pretty much hits this on the head. Although overall it doesn’t dip its toes into very specific niches (like coding, or painting with watercolors), it does offer courses in a range of subjects.

For example, RL Stein teaches how to write for younger audiences, while Simone Biles teaches the fundamentals of gymnastics. 

So, Masterclass’s subjects range from sports to writing to music to business to science – so you will definitely find a course here in your areas of interest.

Each category has a decent amount of courses on offer (some more than others, but Masterclass is always adding more to their catalog). 

For Studio, things look a little different. Of course, it is an online education platform that is specifically designed and built to cater to creative subjects.

So, there’s no business or poker courses here – although you could argue that one day they will add courses on how to turn your creative talents into a business. 

But the main problem with Studio is that even with this limitation upon them, their catalog of courses is pretty small compared to competitors like Masterclass.

While browsing the courses Studio has to offer, we counted only 28 individual courses spread across different topics such as cooking, performing, magic, dancing, and film making.

Some noticeable topics are still missing (such as writing) so students have  a lot less choice with Studio. 

As a result, Masterclass easily wins in this category.

Quality Of Instructors

Both Masterclass and Studio have celebrities as instructors for all of their courses. Masterclass does feature far more courses and as a result, has some huge names linked to its content such as Danny Elfman, Bill Nye, and Hillary Clinton. 

However, Studio also has some big names teaching their courses too such as Idina Menzel, Ryan Tedder, Mark Rober, Charlie Puth, and the Shoe Surgeon. 

All of the instructors for both Masterclass and Studio are celebrities who are big names in their fields, have years of experience and tons of projects behind them.

Some students argue that this means they have more valuable knowledge because these are the instructors who made it big in their field – so their wisdom and knowledge could be the key to reaching the same kind of success. 

Despite this, it’s worth mentioning that not all of the instructors across both platforms do not have qualifications to back them up. Some will, some won’t – it all depends on the instructor and their history. 

Flexibility And Course Structure 

One of the best things about online learning is that most courses can be completed at the student’s own pace, this is not the case with Studio. 

Studio offers flexible courses with a mixture of recorded video lessons or live lessons held in virtual ‘classrooms’ where you can meet other students in your class.

This means lessons have set dates and you must attend, no matter the time. This makes Studio courses difficult to fit around a busy schedule. 

You also have to enroll before a certain date so if you want to take up a course, you have to wait around until the start date.

However, there are other benefits to this – such as the option to interact with other students, build relationships, and find support through face to face interaction with your peers. 

On the other hand, Masterclass is made entirely of recorded videos which act as ‘lessons’. You can sign up to Masterclass at any time and the moment you do, you have access to your course and every lesson within it.

You can view these lessons at any time and on any device with an internet connection and a screen – such as your Smart TV, your smartphone, a tablet, etc. 

So, Masterclass wins out in terms of flexibility. However, some people may prefer the more set structure of Studio’s courses and their ability to offer face to face interactions. 

Affordability 

Masterclass and Studio offers a different kind of payment plan compared to their competitors. Both act like a subscription service where you pay a set fee to access the courses you want. 

For Masterclass, you can pay $15 a month or $180 a year to access all of the courses available on Masterclass.

Studio’s subscription service requires you to pay $19 a month or $228. This means you pay more to access less courses when compared to Masterclass, so Masterclass is not only the most affordable but the better choice for value for money (see also ‘How Does Masterclass Make Money?‘) (see also ‘How Does Masterclass Make Money?‘). 

Which One Should You Sign Up To?

Our clear winner here is Masterclass, due to its amazing range of courses and affordability. Plus, it’s more flexible than Studio’s courses so students can fit their lessons into their schedules with ease.

As a result, we would definitely recommend you choose Masterclass over Studio. 

However, you might prefer the structure to Studio’s courses or its face to face interactions it offers with other students or it has the perfect course for you.

In this case, it’s fine to opt for Studio – but overall, Masterclass is the better online education platform.