Looking for the best UX design courses to choose from? Here are our top 11!
In today’s tech-driven landscape, skills in UX design can take you a long way.
Lucky for you, there’s a myriad of online UX courses currently on offer, suited to a wide range of needs.
We’ve rounded up 11 of the best online UX design courses to take in 2023. We’ll give you a quick summary of each course, so you can see which is best suited to you and your career goals.
If you’re in the very early stages of your research and not yet ready to pay for a course, we recommend signing up for this free UX design short course to get started.
Let’s take a look at the top options!
The best UX design courses:
1. CareerFoundry
Price: $7,505-$7,900 or free short course
CareerFoundry’s UX Design Program is the perfect choice for anyone who wants to go from a total beginner to a job-ready UX designer in under a year; all backed up by a job guarantee.
Created by subject matter experts, the course is flexibly paced and taught entirely online—making it an ideal option if you need to fit your studies around other commitments.
Once enrolled, you’ll be given access to the online learning platform and assigned a personal tutor and an expert mentor.
You’ll access all the course content via the online platform and work on real-world projects which form the basis of your professional portfolio. You can talk directly to a program advisor to learn more about how the program works and whether it’s the right choice or try the free UX design short course.
For an independent review of the CareerFoundry program, check out this video from UX design student Cynthia Valencia:
2. Coursera
Price: $39 per month
Developed by the Georgia Institute of Technology, Coursera’s Introduction to User Experience Design is an easy-to-follow (and free) UX design course led by Dr. Rosa I. Arriaga.
Made up of lecture videos, readings, and quizzes, the course covers all the essentials of UX design, and it’s great if you’re looking for a rapid, relatively detailed overview without an intense practical component.
The lectures are super engaging—and the course syllabus is clear and straightforward.
The course is 100% online and takes approximately six hours to complete. At the end, you’ll receive a completion certificate as proof of participation, which can be shared via LinkedIn.
3. Skillshare
Price: Basic Skillshare membership is free; premium membership costs $1 for the first two months, then $19 per month (or yearly at $99).
If you’re just looking to test the waters of UX design before making any sizeable investment, Skillshare might be for you. Centered around empowering people to learn creative skills with bite-sized lessons you can fit in anywhere, Skillshare offers free sign-up and access on the web and mobile.
Alternatively, a Skillshare membership will get you full access to over 20,000 classes in the platform’s Premium catalog, as well as other features like offline viewing.
Users can choose from a multitude of UX design lessons available for free on the platform, including this Intro to UX: Fundamentals of Usability class, which gives you the frameworks, tools, and tactics to create a stand-out user experience in just 90 minutes (includes guidance for a hands-on project).
4. UX Academy
Price: $7,649 (monthly payment options)
Featuring weekly, live online lessons and small class sizes, UX Academy’s Beginner UX Design Course will teach you the basics of user experience and give you the confidence to undertake new, bold, and innovative projects.
Taught by first-class tutors dedicated to helping you succeed, this part-time, eight-week program will fully equip you with all of the tools you need to succeed in UX design.
5. Interaction Design Foundation
Price: €11 per month
Next up on the list is the User Experience: The Beginners Guide course by the widely popular Interaction Design Foundation. It’s a free UX design course with a membership, which costs €11/month.
This seven-week online course introduces learners to the vast array of areas that fall under the umbrella term of user experience design—from usability principles to visual design.
The course even goes as far as to take you through examples of good and bad UX design to further develop your skills.
Incorporating materials from the company’s other courses, this course offers both an introduction to user experience and a preview of the more in-depth courses they have on offer.
After each lesson, you’ll be pointed to the courses you can take if a specific topic has piqued your interest.
6. LinkedIn Learning
Price: Free month followed by €39.33 per month premium subscription
LinkedIn is a subscription-based online learning platform that contains over 4,000 courses taught by industry experts.
Each course is broken down into chapters and individual videos, averaging about five minutes.
Popular UX design courses on the platform include this nine-hour Advance your skills in UX design course for those looking to sharpen and expand their UX design skillset and enhance their portfolio.
LinkedIn Learning offers new users a free month, and you can then go for a premium subscription.
7. Udemy
Price: €24.99
Popular learning platform Udemy’s User Experience Design Fundamentals Course is next up. Taught by expert Joe Natoli, this course is an excellent option for anyone looking to grasp the basics of UX design without breaking the bank.
Made up of on-demand videos, followed by assignments where you will apply what you’re learning so it sinks in, this ten-hour course will equip you with a complete understanding of how to practice UX—from research to strategy.
8. SuperHi
Price: $149 for the introductory course
SuperHi’s Introduction to User Experience Design course aims to teach beginners the skills they’ll need to create practical, intuitive experiences for users.
While it is an affordable ($149) introductory course, students can still expect to cover all the bases of an iterative UX design process—including user research, wireframing, prototyping, UI design, and user testing.
Whether you’re looking to kickstart a career in UX design, or you’re currently a non-digital-focused designer wanting to design for the web or apps, this course is an accessible and affordable option for getting a solid introduction to the field.
9. General Assembly
Price: $15,950
Whether you’re a newcomer to the field, or you already have some experience and want to formalize your practice, General Assembly’s immersive beginner-friendly UX design program is a great choice.
While this is an online course, it requires full-time attendance with fixed class times from Monday to Friday, running for 12 weeks.
The course will take you through key UX techniques, such as wireframing and prototyping, and will also touch on hot topics like service design and design leadership.
If you’re comfortable with a higher price point and want the classroom experience without the commute, this could well be the course for you.
10. DesignLab
Price: $7,249–9,677
Offering both full-time and part-time online courses, DesignLab teaches in-demand UX design skills through self-paced learning.
Those exploring a full career change into UX design can opt for DesignLab’s UX Design Academy, an intensive online program that equips beginners with the UX design skills and the career support required to land a job in the field.
As a student, you’ll have your own career coach who’ll guide you through your job search after completing the course.
11. Google UX Design Certificate
Price: $39 per month
One of the newest additions to the UX learning space is the Google UX Design Certificate. Great for beginners who want a flexible, low-cost introduction to UX, this is a fully online UX design course hosted on Coursera.
For the cost of a Coursera subscription ($39 per month), you can learn the basics of user experience design—from ideation and wireframing to user research and high-fidelity prototypes, completing hands-on projects and quizzes as you go.
The course takes an estimated six months to complete at a pace of ten hours per week.
Aside from peer-to-peer feedback and discussion forums, this course doesn’t offer any one-to-one mentorship, so be prepared to learn independently!
Closing thoughts
While there are no strict requirements to become a UX designer, most employers prefer employees with some educational background and a way to showcase their proficiency. UX design courses, workshops, and bootcamps are a great way to learn the skills and tools required for a successful career in UX design.
To read more about studying UX design, take a look at these articles:
- What salary will I earn as a UX designer?
- The 10 best UX certification programs: A complete guide
- Am I a good fit for a career in UX design?
FAQ
1. What course is best for UX design?
There are several UX design courses available online, and the best ones vary depending on your level of expertise and learning objectives. However, some of the top-rated courses include CareerFoundry’s UX Design Program, DesignLab’s UX Design Academy, and Interaction Design Foundation’s UX Design Courses.
2. What qualifications do I need to be a UX designer?
While there are no strict requirements to become a UX designer, most employers prefer employees with some educational background and a way to showcase their proficiency. UX design courses, workshops, and bootcamps are a great way to learn the skills and tools required for a successful career in UX design.
3. Are UX design courses worth it?
In today’s tech-driven landscape, having skills in UX design can take you a long way.
While it is possible to teach yourself UX design, taking a course is a great way to earn the knowledge you need to be able to enter the field and get to work.