Udemy is a global massive open online course (MOOC) marketplace, founded in May 2010 by Eren Bali, Gagan Biyani, and Oktay Çaglar. It enables anyone—from individuals to large organisations—to learn or teach on practically any topic, spanning tech, business, creative arts, personal development, and more.
Common use cases:
- Personal and professional upskilling (e.g., programming, design, language)
- Corporate development via Udemy Business
- Certification and exam preparation
- Hobbyist learning in areas like photography, music
- Educator/instructor-driven course creation
Key Features & Benefits
Main Features:
- Massive course library of 150,000+ courses taught in 65+ languages
- Instructor-led model: anyone can publish a course via an intuitive platform
- Self-paced format with lifetime access and offline learning via mobile apps
- Interactive elements: quizzes, assignments, subtitles, Q&A forums
- Enterprise offering (Udemy for Business): curated 7,000+ course library, analytics dashboards, content governance, custom course support
- Flexible pricing: individual & enterprise subscriptions, frequent discounts
Benefits:
- Immense variety and global reach
- Affordable, accessible learning with practicality focus
- Customisable for organisations via business plans
- Strong mobile and offline experience
- Demonstrable ROI through analytics and skills tracking for enterprise clients
Sectors & Example Clients
Udemy’s platform is widely used across sectors:
- Individuals & Freelancers: for self-development, hobby learning, and certificate prep
- Large Enterprises:
- Wipro, Tech Mahindra, TetraSoft use Udemy for Business to upskill employees globally
- Smartsheet reportedly earned over US$1 million via monetised training (via Skilljar, but similar model)
- Small & Medium Businesses: self-serve plans supporting teams of 5–20 users
Sector use extends to IT, finance, marketing, management consulting—where employees pursue certification or technical skills.
Company History & Headquarters
- Founded: May 2010, following earlier virtual classroom work in 2007
- Founders: Eren Bali, Gagan Biyani, Oktay Çaglar
- Headquarters: San Francisco, California, with offices in Denver, Brazil, India, Ireland, and Turkey
- Users: Nearly 80 million learners and 57,000+ instructors (2025)
- Publicly traded: Listed under UDMY in October 2021
Industry Awards & Recognition
- Forbes “30 Under 30” recognition for co-founder Eren Bali in 2014
- Included in Fortune’s 2020 “Change the World” list
- Named in “Best Places to Work in the Bay Area” (2021)
- UDemy Business rated 91/100 in MOOC & general LMS categories
Overall Sentiment from Customer Reviews
Ratings
- Udemy Business: 4.6/5 on SoftwareAdvice; 4.47/5 across 434 ratings on Crozdesk
- General platform sentiment: widely viewed as user-friendly with vast content
Pros
- Vast display of subjects and skills
- Self-paced with lifetime access and offline support
- Affordable pricing, frequent sales
- Rich interactivity—quizzes, Q&A, instructor engagement
Cons
- Inconsistent course quality—some are superficial or outdated
- Non-accredited certifications, limited formality
- UI can be sluggish under load; admin customisation limited
- Course completion rates variable, and some content overlaps with free alternatives
Address
Attn: Legal
600 Harrison Street, 3rd Floor
San Francisco, CA 94107
https://business.udemy.com/