Overview

edX is an online education provider offering courses and longer programs from edX, universities, institutions, and other content partners. Founded in 2012 by professors from Harvard and MIT, the company is based in Arlington, Virginia. Its catalog ranges from individual courses to certificates, executive education, microcredentials, and degrees. The edX Help Center says learners can explore more than 3,500 courses, and edX reports more than 250 content partners and a network of 100 million learners worldwide.

Courses combine video and text lessons with discussion forums, problems, and assessments. Many are self-paced; individual courses generally take two to six weeks, although some courses have deadlines. The wider program offering includes flexible, hybrid, fully online, and self-paced formats.

For individual learners, the main choice is between free auditing and verified access. Auditing gives a way to explore a course, but has limited content, excludes graded assignments and certificates, and does not preserve course-material access after the course ends. Verified access adds graded work and a certificate, with continuing access to lectures, readings, and lessons after the course ends.

Key features

Multiple study paths: Learners can choose among standalone courses, professional certificates, executive education, microcredentials, and degrees.
Certificates with verification: A verified certificate is issued by the university or organization providing the course and includes a link employers can use to check it.
Mobile learning: The free Android and iOS app supports account creation, enrollment, most assignments, videos, handouts, announcements, and discussions. Learners can download videos for offline viewing. Timed or proctored exams cannot be taken in the app.
Institutional administration: Institutional tools include analytics dashboards, student portals, and administrative features. Higher-education subscriptions include SSO, social learning, collaboration, and grade pass-back.
Business integrations: edX for Business supports integrations with platforms including Blackboard, Canvas, Cornerstone, Degreed, Moodle, SuccessFactors, Workday, and LinkedIn Learning Hub, among others. It also supports SAML 2.0 single sign-on, and its Enterprise API can return course data in JSON or XML.
Accessibility and security: edX aims to conform its website and course-authoring tools to WCAG 2.1 AA and requires timed captions on course videos. Its engineers review and address reported security vulnerabilities.

Pricing

edX uses a freemium model: auditing is free, while verified courses and programs are paid. The free audit track limits content access and excludes graded assignments and a certificate. It also ends access to course materials when the course ends.

Plan	Price	What it includes
Audit track	Free	Limited course access, without graded assignments or a certificate.
Verified track	Starting at around $50	Unlimited content access, graded assignments, and a verified certificate.
Starter	349.00 USD per year	Unlimited catalog access and tools for a classroom or department.
Campus Plan	Custom pricing	Institution-wide learning access with extended services and features.
Essentials	150.00 USD per year	One academy and 16 self-paced courses.
Teams	396.00 USD per year	Eight academies, 2,300+ self-paced courses, 300+ professional certificates, and a 14 day free trial.
Professional Certificate Programs	Starting at $500	Multi-course professional certificate program.
Executive Education Programs	Starting at $2,500	Executive education program.
Enterprise	Contact sales for pricing	For 50+ learners, with eight academies, 2,300+ self-paced courses, and 300+ professional certificates.

The listed individual verified-course price starts at around $50. Professional certificate programs start at around $500, while executive education programs can cost at least $2,500. Enterprise subscriptions offer employees unlimited access to courses and certificate programs; enterprise plans also include services such as advanced analytics, dedicated support, and tailored integrations.

Platforms

edX is available on the web, Android, and iOS. Its app supports offline video downloads, but exams that are timed or proctored must be taken outside the app. Institutions can connect edX with leading learning management systems and custom platforms, with support for SSO and grade pass-back.

Who it's for

edX suits people seeking university-backed learning for education or continuing professional development. Individual learners can sample course content through auditing or pursue verified courses and broader credentials. Its institutional subscriptions and administrative tools also serve higher-education organizations, while business plans are designed for employee learning at scale.

Pros and cons

Pros: A broad range of course and program types; free auditing; verified certificates with employer-checkable links; continuing access to verified course materials; mobile apps with offline video downloads; and institutional and business integrations.
Cons: The free audit track excludes graded assignments and certificates and does not retain course access after a course ends. App users cannot take timed or proctored exams. Some courses have deadlines, and several institutional and enterprise prices require custom pricing or contact with sales.

Alternatives

Compare edX with other online course platforms or MOOC platforms. Other options include Coursera, Alison, Great Learning, and Pluralsight. For course creation or learning management, consider FreshLearn, Moodle LMS, CourseLit, or LearnWorlds.

Verdict

edX brings individual courses, professional credentials, and institutional learning into one catalog, with a meaningful distinction between free auditing and paid verified access. Auditing is useful for exploring content, but it is limited and temporary; learners who need graded work, a certificate, or lasting access to lessons need verified access. Organizations get a separate set of plans and integration options, though pricing is not listed for some institution-wide and enterprise offerings. edX is most compelling for learners who value university-backed study and for organizations that need structured learning programs rather than a simple, unrestricted free course library.

	edX	GetSmarter
Free plan	Yes
Free trial	Yes
Paid from	$12.50/mo
Platforms	Android, iOS, Web	Web, iOS, Android
Free plan	Yes
Paid from	$50one-time
Subscription access	Yes	No
Mobile apps	both	both
Offline access	Yes	Yes
Course certificates	Yes	Yes
Business plans	Yes	Yes
Course formats	mixed	mixed

edX vs GetSmarter

edX

GetSmarter