edX offers university-backed online courses and certificates. See 2026 pricing, free audit options, MicroMasters costs, features, and how it compares to…
edX is an online learning marketplace built around courses and credentials created by real universities and companies rather than independent instructors. Learners can audit thousands of courses for free or pay for a verified certificate, professional certificate program, or MicroMasters credential that can sometimes count toward a full degree.
Originally founded in 2012 as a nonprofit joint venture between Harvard and MIT, edX was acquired by 2U, Inc. in 2021 for $800 million and now operates as a commercial product. The underlying Open edX software remains open source and is used independently by many institutions to run their own learning platforms.
The platform offers self-paced and instructor-paced courses with video lectures, auto-graded quizzes, peer-graded assignments, and discussion forums. A personal dashboard tracks enrolled courses, deadlines, and earned certificates across a learner's full history on the platform.
Beyond individual courses, edX structures learning into stackable pathways: Professional Certificates for job-focused skill sequences, MicroMasters programs that can articulate into full master's degrees at partner universities, and MicroBachelors programs for undergraduate-level credit. Corporate and campus editions let organizations license the Open edX platform or curated content for internal training.
edX does not sell a flat monthly subscription for most content; instead, learners audit courses for free and pay per credential. Verified certificates for individual courses typically cost between $50 and $300, while Professional Certificate programs range roughly from $299 to $1,500 or more depending on length and institution.
MicroMasters programs, which bundle graduate-level coursework, generally cost between $600 and $1,500 for the complete sequence. A limited number of programs offer bundled annual access for around $199 per year. Since the 2U acquisition, free-audit access has been reduced on some courses and prices have trended higher than in edX's nonprofit era.
Auditing most courses is free, which includes video lectures and often reading materials. A verified certificate, graded assignments, or credit-bearing programs require payment.
Verified certificates for individual courses typically range from $50 to $300 depending on the course and the issuing institution.
edX was founded as a nonprofit by Harvard and MIT in 2012 and was acquired by 2U, Inc. for $800 million in 2021. It remains part of 2U, which restructured through Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2024 and continues operating as a private company.
A MicroMasters is a graduate-level sequence of courses from a specific university that can be completed for a credential and, in many cases, counted toward credit if the learner is later admitted to that university's full master's degree.
Yes, edX partners with universities to offer select fully online bachelor's and master's degree programs, in addition to shorter certificate and MicroMasters credentials.
Both platforms partner with universities and companies, but Coursera offers a flat-rate Coursera Plus subscription for broad access, while edX generally charges per course or per credential rather than a single subscription.