When Thomas M. Rollins established the Great Courses in 1990, it aimed to give individuals the freedom to master new and valuable skills at their own pace. As a result, over 800 courses spanning 13+ genres are available on-site, all taught by experts!
Our big face-off, Great Courses vs. Great Courses Plus, is often overshadowed by Coursera, MasterClass, Skillshare, and Udemy. Are you curious which is better? You must know what you want and recognize the value. Continue reading to learn more about each, including who they're aimed at, how you can compare, and the best option.
Great Courses vs. Great Courses Plus: What Is the Difference?
Learners get access to the best professors in the world through major online learning platforms like the Great Courses and Great Courses Plus. The two platforms have a lot to offer, even though their target audience is different. The Teaching Company owns The Great Courses and The Great Courses Plus.
The Great Courses is a website where instructional video content that you may purchase through unlimited streaming or DVD. There is no difference between the Great Courses and the Great Courses Plus besides paying a monthly fee to receive more content.
Great Courses is a great option if you're looking to improve your professional and business skills, while the Great Courses Plus website offers courses for about any interest. Choosing a platform and the required features are ultimately decisions you must make for yourself. However, great Courses are the best option for learning practical skills.
They have two websites, each with its methodology, which is perplexing. You may only access the Great Courses Plus with a separate account created through The Great Courses. The Great Courses site would be much more user-friendly if Plus were an account-type alternative.
The Great Courses Plus subscription is $20 a month. You may stream material to any compatible device for one price and access the whole catalog. To get the most out of The Great Courses Plus, you'll almost certainly save money if you purchase a subscription rather than taking individual courses.
How Do the Great Courses Work?
There is a need to register if you are a new user of The Great Courses. You'll sign up for an account using your email address, name, and password. You can access the Great Courses in two ways at the time of this writing:
Creating a free account and paying for services as you use it
Subscribe to The Great Courses Plus on a monthly or annual basis (currently under Wondrium)
You may explore The Great Courses' 800+ courses, attend 5plus free great courses classes, and purchase single courses after signing up. You don't have to sign up for a membership when you use this payment method because you pay only for what you use.
How Much Do the Great Courses Cost?
The Great Courses provides 5 to 10 free courses for non-subscribers. You may test the platform and see what an actual course purchase looks like. A complete course purchase costs roughly $17. However, this varies with every course. You may add digital or paper transcripts.
It seems pricey, but courses vary in length. Most lectures last 30 minutes, and courses encompass 20-30 lectures; this is a great value. You can take as many courses as you like. Moreover, you won't be charged more for watching more lectures from their lecturers.
The Great Courses Plus subscribers can access all course videos, audio recordings, and transcripts. It makes self-paced learning easier and lets users customize their course experience.
The Great Courses Plus Subscription
Subscriptions are of the greatest value. A yearly or monthly membership provides the most value for your money. The Great Courses Plus - a renamed and expanded version of The Great Courses Plus - may be found on Wondrium but not on The Great Courses itself.
Subscribers to the Great Courses Plus can choose from one of three subscription options:
Every month for $20.00
Quarterly for $15.00 per month
Annually for $12.50 per month
Access to Wondrium's magazine and Wondrium's digital guidebooks is included with this option. In addition, you have the option to terminate at any time.
Opening a free Great Courses account is a breeze. Do this:
Select the "Sign In" button at the website's upper right.
Provide your email address, name, and password.
Click on "Create My Account" to confirm your registration.
Explore The Great Courses and enjoy free sample courses. Your card details are only necessary when you purchase a course. Here's how to subscribe to Great Courses Plus:
Visit Wondrium.com
Click "Start Free Trial" in the upper-right corner of the screen.
Select your subscription package
Enter your login details, email address, and password.
Click on "Join Now"
You can choose your billing plan, although the quarterly plan offers more value. There's little doubt that you'll be learning from the world's top professors, no matter which plans you choose to pursue.
What Courses Are Available on Great Courses Plus?
One of the most comprehensive online education platforms is The Great Courses Plus. Professors teach these online courses at a high learning level. The Great Courses Plus offers hundreds of courses on subjects including:
Professional and Personal Growth
Economics & Finance
Young Learners Programs
Exclusive Features
Cuisine and Wine
Health, History, Fitness, Leisure, and Nutrition
Mathematics, Literature, and Language Studies
Fine Arts and Music
Philosophy, Science, Travel, and Religion
The Great Courses Plus Is Now Wondrium
The Great Courses Plus debut in 2015 allowed subscribers to access the Great Courses through video streaming. The Great Courses Plus flourished tremendously, but so did the need for different types of educational experiences. It reached a time to get out of the auditorium and break out of the academic mold.
The company's repertoire added around 280 courses to its streaming service in 2016 for $20 (USD) per month. In addition, new license deals with MagellanTV, Kino Lorber, and Craftsy were announced in April of 2021 when the firm renamed its worldwide streaming platform Wondrium from the Great Courses Plus.
You'll discover the answers to your unanswered questions and others you never thought to ponder before in Wondrium. With so many new means to study and new subjects to learn about, Wondrium chose informative content, always interesting and always presented by engrossing experts.
What Does Wondrium Include?
Become a Wondrium member, and you'll have access to multiple instructive, entertaining, and fascinating videos on various topics. But, of course, you presumably already know this or wouldn't be reading this. So, to top it all off, here are a few more reasons why you should consider signing up for a Wondrium membership.
Wondrium Magazine: It's a quarterly magazine that offers exclusive information, expert interviews, behind-the-scenes insights, sneak peeks, exclusive highlights, and more. If you're looking for a real-world magazine, you'll get one in the mail, not an online "magazine." Your Wondrium experience will be complete with this addition.
Free Digital Guidebooks: In addition to the video lessons, the guidebooks include a plethora of additional information, such as how to spell difficult terminology correctly, what each ingredient in the recipe does, and what other topics could be covered in the course, and even some suggested readings. A simple download is included in several courses at no extra charge to the participant.
Streaming of Audio:
It's never too early to start learning! Our mobile applications provide smooth audio streaming. So you can keep studying even when you can't view videos.
Discounts Abound:
The Great Courses offers free delivery of DVD products. Therefore, you may save money.
Wondrium Cost: Is It Worth It For You?
Everyone should have access to online courses. Subscribing to Wondrium's video library is well worth the money if you're intrigued by learning about the world. In addition, there are several benefits to using Wondrium, including the opportunity to study from highly regarded academics without spending a dime.
Wondrium's monthly plan is $20. The $20 monthly subscription is a great value given the massive library of informative videos you receive access to. That's less than the cost of a single college lecture. You may save even more money if you once sign up for several months. If you like, you can pay monthly or annually. Wondrium is an affordable option that everyone should consider.
F. A. Qs
What Happened to Great Courses Plus?
In addition to the tremendous growth of The Great Courses Plus, there was a growing need for other forms of educational experiences. It became the time to move above standard academic material. The Great Courses rebranded its global streaming platform as Wondrium in April 2021. They had signed new license agreements with Kino Lorber, Craftsy, and MagellanTV to feature their content in their library.
Why Did the Great Courses Plus Change Its Name?
The change was to introduce new partners who would offer hobby lessons, profound documentaries, walkthroughs, and much more. Also, has expanded its services to include more than courses. The Great Courses decided to rename its company to reflect that better.
How Long Is the Great Courses Plus Free Trial?
All subscription packages provide a 14-day free trial, so you may try The Great Courses + without enrolling. Cancel your membership before the free trial ends to prevent getting billed. Subscription is free on the initial Great Courses platform. After that, you may pay for individual courses with no membership fee. You can use the free courses available on YouTube and blog content.
How Can I Stream the Great Courses Plus?
The Great Courses Plus is a video streaming and online learning service. Subscribers can access and enjoy The Great Courses via their computer, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, Roku, and Android TV. The Great Courses Plus is also available on iOS and Android mobile apps. Access the Great Courses Plus webpage from your laptop's or PC's browser.
Do You Need Internet Connection to Stream the Great Courses Plus?
Accessing the app or website requires an internet connection to stream courses. You may download all courses to your device. You can store the audio and video lessons for occasions when Wi-Fi isn't accessible.
How Many Courses Do the Great Courses Offer?
There are more than 800 courses available on The Great Courses, as we indicated earlier.
