Is Udemy worth it for course creators?

Udemy is worth it for instructors who want built-in traffic and don't mind low per-sale prices. Udemy's marketplace is enormous — 65+ million students — but the platform runs constant sales (often 90% off), meaning your $199 course may sell for $12.99. Top instructors earn $5,000–$50,000+/month from high-volume course sales, while most instructors earn $50–$300/month.

How much does Udemy pay instructors?

Udemy keeps 63% of the course price when they drive the sale (organic Udemy traffic), leaving instructors with 37%. When you drive the sale with your own referral link, you keep 97% of the revenue (Udemy takes 3%). The key issue: most traffic comes through Udemy's organic marketplace, meaning most instructors earn 37% of an already-discounted sale price.

How much can you earn on Udemy?

Most Udemy instructors earn $0–$200/month. About 10% earn $500–$3,000/month. The top 1% (a few thousand instructors) earn $5,000–$50,000+/month, primarily because they have multiple courses in high-demand categories like programming, data science, business, and cloud computing.

Is Udemy or Teachable better for course creators?

Udemy is better for course creators who want built-in traffic and a marketplace audience but are willing to accept lower prices and share revenue. Teachable is better for creators who have their own audience and want to keep 90%+ of revenue at full price. Udemy is a discovery engine; Teachable is a course delivery platform — they serve different stages of a creator's journey.

Is Udemy Worth It for Instructors in 2026? Honest Review

Udemy works best as a passive income stream for instructors willing to play the volume game — not as a premium course business. Here’s the honest breakdown of whether Udemy is worth your time and months of course creation work in 2026.

Udemy is the world’s largest online learning marketplace — 65+ million students, 220,000+ courses. As a course creator, you benefit from Udemy’s massive traffic. The trade-off: Udemy controls pricing (via aggressive discounts) and takes a significant revenue cut.

Udemy Instructor Earnings: Realistic Expectations

Instructor Income Distribution

Instructor Tier	Monthly Revenue	% of Instructors	What It Requires
Top 1% (stars)	$10,000–$100,000+	<1%	Multiple courses in CS/dev/data
Full-time supplement	$2,000–$10,000	~3%	Popular course in demand niche
Side income	$300–$2,000	~10%	Good course in moderate niche
Beer money	$50–$300	~25%	Single course, average niche
Minimal/none	$0–$50	~60%	Low-demand niche or poor production

Scenario	Enrolled Price	Udemy’s Cut	Instructor Earns
Organic Udemy sale (their traffic)	$12.99 (after 90% discount)	63% ($8.18)	37% ($4.81)
Instructor drives sale (own coupon)	$19.99	3% ($0.60)	97% ($19.39)
Udemy Business (subscription)	Minutes-watched royalty	Pool-based	~$0.005–$0.01/min
Full price (rare — almost never happens)	$199.99	63%	37% ($73.99)

The uncomfortable reality: Most Udemy courses are almost always deeply discounted. A $199 course realistically sells for $12.99–$19.99 in most transactions.

How Udemy Pricing Actually Works

The Perpetual Discount Problem

Udemy Promotion Type	Frequency	Discount Depth
Sitewide sales	Near-constant	70–90% off
Personalized offers	Daily for most users	50–80% off
Daily deal	Daily rotating	60–80% off
Student coupon discount	Applied at checkout	Varies

Impact: Students rarely pay list price. Udemy’s business model relies on high volume at deep discounts — you must accept this and design your strategy accordingly.

Udemy Pros: What Works Well

Pro	Details
Built-in audience of 65M+ students	No marketing needed to get initial traffic
Passive once published	Courses can earn for years with minimal updates
Free to create and publish	No upfront cost to become an instructor
Global reach	Students in 190+ countries
Social proof infrastructure	Ratings and reviews build credibility automatically
Udemy Business	Enterprise clients pay per-minute royalties — consistent stream

Udemy Cons: What to Know

Con	Details
Always-on discounting	You rarely control when or how much your course discounts
Low per-sale revenue	37% of $12.99 = $4.81 per organic sale
Limited pricing power	Udemy sets maximum prices per category
Platform dependency	Udemy can change policy, promote competitors, or delist courses
Race to the bottom	Competitors constantly undercut with newer/cheaper courses
Limited student email access	Udemy controls your student relationships

Top-Performing Course Categories on Udemy

By Revenue Potential

Category	Top Courses Earn	Competition
Web development	$5,000–$50,000+/mo	Very High
Data science / ML / AI	$5,000–$30,000+/mo	Very High
Cloud computing (AWS, Azure)	$3,000–$20,000+/mo	High
Cybersecurity	$2,000–$15,000+/mo	High
Business and entrepreneurship	$1,000–$10,000+/mo	High
Digital marketing / SEO	$1,000–$8,000+/mo	High
Graphic design / video editing	$500–$5,000+/mo	High
Language learning	$500–$3,000+/mo	High
Personal development	$300–$3,000+/mo	Very High

Low-ROI Categories to Reconsider

Category	Challenge
Niche crafts/hobbies	Too small an audience for Udemy volume model
Local/geography-specific content	Udemy’s global model doesn’t favor local
Highly specialized academic subjects	Not enough casual learners at scale

What Makes a Top-Selling Udemy Course

Success Factor	Details
High-demand keyword in title	“Complete Python Bootcamp,” “AWS Certified Solutions Architect”
Long course runtime	10–30+ hours signals “complete” to buyers
1,000+ ratings	Social proof drives recommendation algorithm
4.5+ star rating	Below this, course falls in ranking
Regular updates	“Last updated [recent month]” badge improves conversions
Instructor credibility	Credentials, job experience, live proof

Udemy vs. Self-Hosted Courses

Factor	Udemy	Self-Hosted (Teachable/Thinkific)
Price per sale	Low ($4.81 avg organic)	Full price ($99–$499+)
Traffic	Built-in (65M students)	You must generate it
Revenue keep	37% (organic)	90–97%
Course price control	Limited	Full control
Student email access	Restricted	Full access
Best for	No-audience instructors	Creators with email list/social following

The best strategy: Use Udemy as a discovery funnel. Put a beginner course on Udemy (brings traffic), then direct students to your premium course or community on your own platform.

Udemy Income Timeline

Timeframe	What to Expect	Focus
Month 1 (publishing)	$0–$50	Getting first reviews; optimize listing
Month 2–3	$50–$200	Building reviews; promoting with coupons
Month 4–6	$100–$500	Organic traction if in demand niche
Month 7–12	$200–$1,000+	Second course idea; instructor marketing
Year 2+	$500–$5,000+	Multiple courses; Udemy Business royalties

Tax Implications for Udemy Instructors

Udemy sends a 1099-NEC if you earn $600+ in a year.

Tax	Rate	Notes
Self-employment tax	15.3%	On net royalty income
Federal income tax	Your bracket	On net income
State income tax	Varies	Most states apply

Deductible Course Creation Expenses

Expense	Deductible?
Camera and microphone	Yes
Screen recording software (Camtasia, Loom)	Yes
Slide design tools (PowerPoint, Canva)	Yes
Editing software	Yes
Home office for recording	Yes
Udemy course (learning your own topic)	Yes

Is Udemy Worth It for Your Situation?

Your Situation	Verdict	Why
No existing audience; want passive income	Yes (with caveats)	Udemy brings discovery; accept the low per-sale revenue
Expert in programming/dev/data science	Strong Yes	High-competition but high-volume categories
Expert in niche with small audience	No	Volume model doesn’t work; use Gumroad or own platform
Already have an email list of 5,000+	Skip Udemy	Your own platform will earn 5–10x more
Want to validate a course idea first	Yes	Udemy is a market signal; if it sells there, it’ll sell at premium
Long-term passive income goal	Yes	Courses can earn for 3–5+ years with light maintenance

Verdict: Is Udemy Worth It?

Scenario	Verdict
Developer or tech professional creating a beginner course	Strong Yes
Business/marketing instructor with practical expertise	Yes
Niche hobbyist or educator	Probably not — volume model doesn’t fit
Creator seeking premium pricing	No — use Teachable/Thinkific instead
Creator wanting passive income stream to supplement primary	Yes

Written by WealthVieu

WealthVieu researches and writes data-driven personal finance guides using primary sources including the IRS, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Federal Reserve, and Census Bureau.

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