In this article, you will find which platform is best for you Skillshare or MasterClass.
As a user of both platforms, I will give you a detailed comparison of their strengths, weaknesses, platform features, and pricing.
Let’s not waste time and get straight into it.
Skillshare vs MasterClass: Quick Overview
Here’s a sneak peek at what you’ll find in our detailed Skillshare vs MasterClass comparison: a breakdown of their unique features and a side-by-side comparison of their pricing plans.
| Features | Skillshare | MasterClass |
|---|---|---|
| Course Catalog | Wide range of courses of 30k+ classes | A curated selection of 200+ courses |
| Instructor Quality | A mix of professionals and emerging creators | Renowned experts and celebrities |
| Learning Experience | Hands-on, project-based learning | More creative and inspiring |
| Pricing | Monthly: $3.99, Annual: $47.88 | $10, $15, and $20/ month for standard, plus, and premium plans, respectively (billed annually) |
| Offline Viewing | Yes | Yes |
| User Interface | It feels like watching a YouTube video | It feels like a Netflix video. |
| Free Trial | 30-day free trial option | 30-day money back guarantee |
| Interactivity | It has an interactive community with comments, questions, and reviews | No interaction with the teacher. |
About Skillshare
Skillshare is an online learning platform with a vibrant community of learners and creators.
Focusing on practical, project-based learning, Skillshare encourages hands-on exploration and collaboration among its students.
Skillshare offers a wide range of creative courses and is easy to use and navigate.
Whether you’re a budding entrepreneur, aspiring artist, or seasoned professional, Skillshare has accessible courses and engaging learning experiences tailored to your interests and goals.
You can use the latest Skillshare discount code & coupons to claim up to 50% off on your subscription today.
About MasterClass
MasterClass is also an online learning platform but takes a more curated approach to online learning, offering high-quality video lessons taught by famou faces.
Each MasterClass course is meticulously crafted to provide knowledge and insight into the instructor’s creative process and unique perspective.
With its cinematic production quality and exclusive access to celebrity instructors, MasterClass offers an unparalleled learning experience for those seeking inspiration and mastery.
Skillshare vs MasterClass: Pricing and Plans
Both Skillshare and MasterClass offer membership-based subscription plans, meaning once you have a membership, you can access all the courses on the platform.
The pricing and subscription models of Skillshare and MasterClass are as follows:
Skillshare:
Skillshare Pricing has a subscription-based model, where you pay for an annual all-access plan and get access to all features on the platform at once.
They have the following plans for Feb 2025.
- Monthly Plan: This Plan costs $3.99/month, with unlimited access to all features for a month.
- Annual Plan: This plan costs $47.88/year, and gives unlimited premium access for a whole year.
With both plans, you can access Skillshare’s course catalog, view courses offline, and learn ad-free.
You also have a SkillShare Free trial, during which you will not be charged a dime but can access all premium features of the platform.
Skillshare also runs occasional offers such as Skillshare Cyber Monday and Black Friday to get up to 50% off on its top-tier plans.
MasterClass:
MasterClass has a membership pricing model.
Its annual Plan gives all-access passes for all its classes and features.
Unlike Skillshare, MasterClass does not offer a monthly plan.
- Standard Plan: This Plan costs $10/month. It gives 1 device access and no offline mode or downloading option.
- Plus Plan: Costs $15/month, and gives 2 devices access and an unlimited downloading option.
- Premium Plan: Priced at $20/month, this Plan gives 6 devices access.
MasterClass also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, during which you can cancel your subscription and receive a full refund of your Plan.
Skillshare vs. MasterClass: Which is Better for Businesses?
It is essential to compare Skillshare and Masterclass offerings for individuals, small teams, and large organizations.
To get a clear idea of which platform is best for your business.
Here’s a breakdown of both the platforms that cater to businesses.
| Category | Skillshare for Business | MasterClass for Business |
| Individuals | Corporate gift cards available in batches of 25 | Gift cards are available individually |
| Small Teams | Starting from $159/seat/annually for a team of 2-49 people | Custom pricing based on team size and needs |
| Medium Teams | Custom pricing for a team of 50+ | Similar offering with customized plans for businesses |
Skillshare vs MasterClass: Pros and Cons
Now, let’s have a look at their strengths and weaknesses.
Skillshare Pros:
- Diverse Course Selection: Skillshare has an extensive library of 30k+ courses covering numerous topics, making it easy to find something that interests you.
- Affordable Pricing: Skillshare’s subscription-based model offers excellent value for money, especially for individuals who plan to take multiple courses.
- Active Community: Skillshare’s emphasis on community engagement fosters user collaboration and feedback, enhancing the learning experience.
Skillshare Cons:
- Varied Course Quality: The quality can be inconsistent, with some courses needing more depth or expertise, as Skillshare offers a wide range of courses.
- Limited Instructor Credentials: Unlike MasterClass, Skillshare’s instructors may only sometimes be industry leaders or household names, which may affect the credibility of specific courses.
- No certification or degree is provided.
MasterClass Pros:
- World-Class Instructors: MasterClass brings together some of the most renowned experts and celebrities in their respective fields, offering unparalleled access to their wisdom and expertise.
- High Production Value: With its cinematic production quality and immersive learning environment, MasterClass delivers an engaging and visually stunning educational experience.
- Inspiration and Insight: Beyond practical skills, MasterClass courses provide insight into the creative process and mindset of successful individuals, offering valuable lessons beyond the curriculum.
MasterClass Cons:
- Higher Price Point: MasterClass’s premium offering is more expensive than Skillshare, making it less accessible to budget-conscious learners.
- Limited Interactivity: While MasterClass offers a rich learning experience, it may lack the interactive elements of other platforms, such as live Q&A sessions or peer feedback.
Skillshare And MasterClass (Features Comparison)
Now, let’s compare Skillshare and MasterClass features, and see which one has more to offer.
User Interface
When it comes to UI, Skillshare has a clean and intuitive user interface designed to enhance the E-learning experience. The website and mobile app are colorful and interactive.
You can easily access course categories, search functionalities, and personalized recommendations.
The dashboard has everything you need to manage your courses, track progress, and engage with the community.
MasterClass has a stunning interface, premium content, and immersive storytelling.
While the interface may feel more curated and polished than Skillshare’s, it may lack some of the customization options and community features found in Skillshare and does not have a mobile app.
Course Catalog
Skillshare has over 30,000 courses spanning diverse disciplines. Whether you’re interested in photography, graphic design, business, or beyond, you will find something you like.
Each course has a practical, project-based learning approach with projects and community interaction features.
While MasterClass’s course catalog may be smaller (200 courses only), it’s curated with meticulous attention to quality and expertise.
From cooking with Gordon Ramsay to filmmaking with Martin Scorsese, MasterClass offers a unique opportunity to learn from the best of the best.
However, the platform has limited classes and fewer projects and assignments.
Production Quality
In my honest opinion, Skillshare’s production quality tends to be more varied, as anyone can be an instructor on Skillshare and create their own courses.
While some courses are professionally filmed and edited, many others have a more basic production quality and just barely meet the platform’s quality standards.
In comparison, MasterClass is known for its consistently high production value. It features courses produced with a cinematic quality that almost feels like Netflix.
MasterClass works with renowned experts and celebrities, and the filming often takes place in professional studios or on location.
While Skillshare focuses more on delivering practical content through a combination of slide presentations and on-camera instructions in most courses, MasterClass uses high-end visuals, focusing on storytelling, high-resolution visuals, dramatic soundtracks, and professional lighting.
If you prefer a polished, almost entertainment-like learning experience, MasterClass is better than Skillshare.
However, Skillshare offers more variety and affordability if you’re looking for practical skills and are willing to compromise on production quality.
Instructors And Teachers
The most striking difference when it comes to Skillshare vs. MasterClass is the Instructor list on each platform.
Skillshare has a wide range of instructors, diverse teaching styles, and hands-on projects.
You can generate an income source for yourself by learning how to teach on Skillshare and how much it pays to its instructors.
Skillshare’s instructors come from various backgrounds, and course quality may vary, offering students a more variable, accessible, and informal learning environment.
MasterClass, on the other hand, offers you an opportunity to gain insights from renowned experts and celebrities in professionally produced video lessons.
It is more focused on providing inspiration, storytelling, and expertise from successful individuals rather than hands-on skill-building.
Thus, MasterClass provides a more consistent, high-quality learning experience.
Community Interaction
One of Skillshare’s standout features is its vibrant community of learners and creators.
You can engage with instructors and fellow students through comments, discussions, and project-sharing features that encourage collaboration and feedback.
Skillshare currently has an active community of 60k+ individuals, but MasterClass community interaction features are more limited.
The platform primarily focuses on delivering high-quality video lessons, with less emphasis on interactive elements such as discussions or peer feedback.
Customer Support
Skillshare has a decent Help Center with articles on common technical issues such as billing, account management, and course information.
Most queries are posted on the platform as FAQs that you can browse to learn about your issues. You can also email Skillshare’s support team, but the response time may vary.
The best part of my Skillshare experience was that it is truly a community-driven platform.
This means you can connect with fellow peers in comment and discussion sessions and help each other out with similar issues and questions.
MasterClass also has a detailed Help Center where you can search for information about billing, account setup, subscription details, and troubleshooting technical issues.
They have divided issues based on topics like:
- Popular Articles on the Help Centre
- Account & Billing
- Getting Started on MasterClass
- Using MasterClass
- Troubleshooting
MasterClass also offers email support. They generally respond within 24 hours and provide personalized assistance for account and technical issues.
However, MasterClass lacks community interaction. It has very limited options for connecting with peers and instructors, making the experience very individualistic.
Overall, MasterClass provides more diverse and prompt customer support options, particularly with live chat and priority support, while Skillshare emphasizes community interaction and provides standard email support.
However, because of the community’s centric education on Skillshare and the sheer number of courses available, I will say Skillshare has better customer support and, in general, better user experience.
Skillshare vs. MasterClass Alternatives: Best Platforms for Online Learning
The online learning industry is a multi-billion dollar market, thus there are other options available to Skillshare and MasterClass.
Here are a few of them.
Udemy – Best for Variety & Affordability
Udemy is the most popular platform with over 210,0000 courses, covering everything from professional development to creative hobbies.
Udemy offers individual course payment options making it perfect for those learners who only want to pay for what they need.
| Pros | Cons |
| ✅ Pay-per-course model with prices starting at just a few dollars | ❌ No unlimited access subscription like Skillshare |
| ✅ Frequent discounts and sales make learning highly affordable | ❌ Course quality can vary since anyone can create a class |
| ✅ Wide selection of courses, from coding to photography |
CreativeLive – Best for Creative Professionals
As the name suggests it is a fantastic platform for creative courses such as photography, music, design, business, and wellness. With over 1,500+ courses, CreativeLive is smaller than Skillshare but delivers high-quality content from world-class instructors, Pulitzer Prize winners, and industry experts.
| Pros | Cons |
| ✅ High-quality courses taught by top creative professionals | ❌ Smaller course library compared to Skillshare |
| ✅ Affordable membership options | ❌ MasterClass is often cheaper for group access |
| ✅ Some free live-streamed classes are available |
Coursera & edX – Best for Accredited & Certified Learning
If you looking to get an accredited certificate and university-level education Coursera and edX are the right choices for you.
They offer courses from Harvard, Stanford, Oxford, and other top institutions, Coursera has a much larger library, with over 7,000 courses, while edX focuses on open-source education.
| Pros | Cons |
| ✅ Courses from prestigious universities | ❌ Certificates and degrees can be expensive |
| ✅ Many courses are free to audit | ❌ Structured courses may not be as flexible as Skillshare or MasterClass |
| ✅ Certificates and degrees available for professional development |
Masterclass vs Skillshare: Which One is Better?
I suggest choosing Skillshare if you prefer a wide variety of courses, enjoy hands-on learning experiences, and are looking for an affordable subscription-based model.
However, if you are looking for inspiration and insight from world-class experts and value high production quality and immersive storytelling, then MasterClass is the best option.
Your choice between Skillshare and MasterClass depends on your learning preferences, goals, and budget, given that now you know what each platform offers, .
You can try these tools out for 30 days and decide for yourself. If Masterclass does not meet your requirements, Feel free to explore more Websites like Skillshare.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Platform Is Better, Skillshare or MasterClass?
Skillshare is better for creative courses, and vast community support, while MasterClass has celebrity instructors but lacks interaction and community support.
Which Platform Is Better Than Skillshare?
Platforms like Coursera and Udemy offer more courses, including university-level education and professional certifications. LinkedIn Learning integrates courses with professional networking features, making it valuable for career development.
Which Is Cheaper, Skillshare or MasterClass?
Skillshare is cheaper at $47.88 with an individual annual membership compared to MasterClass starting at $120/annual for standard plan.
Which has more courses, Skillshare or MasterClass?
Skillshare has more courses than Masterclass, with over 30,000 as compared to MasterClass just 200+.
