Creating an online course can cost between $30-$6000+ a month, depending on a lot of things, such as the type of course you’re creating, the method of course creation, where you’re selling your courses, how you market your courses, and more.
In this article, we break down every dependency for creating a course and figure out exactly how much it will cost to create an online course.
TL;DR
- Course creation costs vary widely — from under $100 with DIY setups, to tens of thousands with professional production, and even up to $700K+ for enterprise-level courses. The main trade-off is time versus money.
- Three approaches to creation: DIY is cheapest but time-intensive, AI-assisted balances speed and cost, while professional outsourcing ensures top quality at a high price.
- Hosting options differ: Marketplaces cost nothing upfront but take a revenue share, SaaS LMS tools are beginner-friendly but charge monthly fees, and self-hosted platforms have higher setup costs but more long-term control.
- Marketing expenses scale with ambition — from free organic growth strategies to high-budget campaigns with agencies, ads, influencers, and PR that can cost $25K–$160K+ per month.
- Key cost drivers include course length, production quality, audience type, deadlines, and localization needs. Smart creators start small, use affordable tools, outsource selectively, and reinvest earnings to grow sustainably.
Course Creation Costs
The first step to creating an online course is ideation and research, but thankfully, you don’t need to spend any money on that. However, when you execute the idea, you’re gonna have to spend some money.
Now, depending on what your course topic is, the kind of course you’re creating, and the equipment you will be using, the cost of your online course creation will vary.
Based on the choices you can make, we have divided the cost of course creation into three options: DIY, AI, and Professional. We have also divided the costs into Low-end, Mid-range, and High-end to paint you a bigger picture.
Option One: DIY Content Creation
| Item | Low-End Cost | Mid-Range Cost | High-End Cost | Tools |
| Basic Camera | $0 (smartphone) | $200-500 | $800-1,500 | DSLR or mirrorless camera |
| Microphone | $20-50 | $100-200 | $300-500 | USB or XLR microphone |
| Lighting Kit | $30-80 | $150-300 | $400-800 | Ring light to professional setup |
| Tripod | $15-30 | $50-100 | $150-300 | Basic to professional grade |
| Video Editing Software | $0 (free tools) | $20-50/month | $100-300/month | DaVinci Resolve to Adobe Creative Suite |
| Screen Recording Software | $0 (free tools) | $15-30/month | $50-100/month | OBS to Camtasia |
| Stock Photos/Videos | $0 (free sites) | $10-30/month | $50-200/month | Unsplash to Shutterstock |
| Music/Audio Licensing | $0 (royalty-free) | $15-50/month | $100-300/month | YouTube Audio Library to premium libraries |
| Graphic Design Tools | $0 (Canva free) | $12-20/month | $50-100/month | Canva Pro to Adobe Creative Suite |
| Time Investment | 50-100 hours | 100-200 hours | 200-500 hours | – |
| Total Monthly Cost | $0-30 | $70-280 | $350-1,000 | – |
| Total Setup Cost | $65-160 | $500-1,150 | $1,650-3,600 | – |
Please note that these costs only apply to recorded courses. If you choose to teach a live class instead of a recorded one, you can do so with just a webcam or directly from your phone.
In that case, your course creation cost is practically zero.
Option Two: AI-Assisted Content Creation
| Item | Low-End Cost | Mid-Range Cost | High-End Cost | Tools |
| AI Writing Tools | $0 (free tiers) | $20-50/month | $100-200/month | ChatGPT Plus, Claude Pro, Jasper |
| AI Video Generation | $0 (free credits) | $30-100/month | $200-500/month | Synthesia, Pictory, Lumen5 |
| AI Voice/Audio Tools | $0 (free tiers) | $25-75/month | $150-400/month | ElevenLabs, Murf, Speechify |
| AI Image Generation | $0 (free credits) | $15-40/month | $100-300/month | Midjourney, DALL-E, Stable Diffusion |
| AI Presentation Tools | $0 (free versions) | $10-30/month | $50-150/month | Gamma, Beautiful.AI, Tome |
| AI Course Builders | $0 (basic plans) | $50-150/month | $200-500/month | Klasio, LearnWorlds, Thinkific |
| Basic Equipment | $50-100 | $200-400 | $500-1,000 | Minimal setup for recording/editing |
| Human Review/Editing | 10-20 hours | 20-40 hours | 40-80 hours | – |
| Total Monthly Cost | $0-50 | $170-445 | $900-2,250 | – |
| Total Setup Cost | $50-100 | $200-400 | $500-1,000 | – |
| Time Investment | 20-40 hours | 40-80 hours | 80-150 hours | – |
Keep in mind that this is a hybrid approach where the course creator will use AI as an assistant to create the course materials. The course creation process is not 100% automated in this calculation.
Option Three: Professional Content Creation
| Item | Low-End Cost | Mid-Range Cost | High-End Cost |
| Video Production Team | $2,000-5,000 | $10,000-25,000 | $50,000-100,000+ |
| Scriptwriter | $500-1,500 | $2,000-5,000 | $8,000-15,000 |
| Instructional Designer | $1,000-3,000 | $5,000-10,000 | $15,000-30,000 |
| Voice-over Artist | $300-800 | $1,000-2,500 | $3,000-8,000 |
| Graphic Designer | $500-1,500 | $2,000-5,000 | $8,000-15,000 |
| Animation/Motion Graphics | $1,000-3,000 | $5,000-15,000 | $20,000-50,000 |
| Studio Rental | $200-500/day | $800-1,500/day | $2,000-5,000/day |
| Equipment Rental | $300-800/day | $1,000-2,500/day | $3,000-8,000/day |
| Post-Production | $1,000-3,000 | $5,000-12,000 | $15,000-40,000 |
| Project Management | $500-1,500 | $2,000-5,000 | $8,000-15,000 |
| Quality Assurance | $300-800 | $1,000-2,500 | $3,000-8,000 |
| Total Project Cost | $6,600-17,400 | $34,800-85,000 | $135,000-294,000+ |
| Timeline | 4-8 weeks | 8-16 weeks | 16-32 weeks |
If you have a huge budget, you can fully outsource the course creation process to build a professional, high-quality course that can potentially bring in millions.
Course Management and Hosting Costs
Now that you have a clear understanding of how much it would cost to create a course, it’s time to think about where to host it. For course management hosting, we have three options:
Option One: Course Marketplaces
| Platform | Revenue Share | Transaction Fees | Notes |
| Udemy | 37-63% to Udemy | $0 | Higher % if Udemy brings students |
| Skillshare | Royalty pool model | $0 | Pay based on minutes watched |
| Coursera | 50-70% to Coursera | $0 | Partner program, high entry barrier |
| Gumroad | 10% | 2.9% + $0.30 | Simple digital product sales |
| Class Central | Varies | Varies | Course aggregator and marketplace |
| FutureLearn | 50-80% to the platform | $0 | University partnerships preferred |
| MasterClass | Licensing model | $0 | Celebrity instructors only |
The course marketplaces don’t actually charge you up front. That means you don’t have to spend anything to sell your courses.
But these marketplaces will eat into your revenue and take a big chunk out of it. So, unless you are ready to do so, let’s move on to our second option.
Option Two: Learning Management Systems
| Platform | Free Tier | Paid Plans (Monthly) | Transaction Fees |
| Teachable | 7-day trial only | Starter: $39 Mid: $89 Premium: $189 | 7.5% (Starter), 0% (Builder+) |
| Thinkific | 30-day trial only | Starter: $49 Mid: $99 Premium: $199 | 0% all plans |
| Kajabi | 14-day trial only | Starter: $89 Mid: $149 Premium: $199 | 0% all plans |
| Klasio | Yes (Free forever) | Starter: $49 Mid: $79 Premium: $149 | 0% all plans |
| Podia | 30-day trial only | Starter: $39 Mid: $89 | 5% (Mover), 0% (Shaker) |
SaaS learning management systems are great for non-technical course creators because you won’t have to deal with anything technical. However, paying a monthly fee can ramp up the cost over time.
That’s why SaaS LMS platforms that offer lifetime deals, like Klasio, can be an ideal solution.
Read More: Best Platforms to Create Online Courses in 2025
Option Three: Self-hosted Platforms
| Platform | Setup Cost | Annual Cost |
| WordPress + LearnPress | $50-200 | $120-360 |
| WordPress + LearnDash | $250-500 | $300-900 |
| WordPress + LifterLMS | $200-400 | $240-720 |
| WordPress + TutorLMS | $100-300 | $180-540 |
| Moodle | $500-2,000 | $600-2,400 |
| Open edX | $2,000-10,000 | $1,200-6,000 |
| Canvas LMS | $1,000-5,000 | $2,400-9,600 |
| Chamilo | $300-1,000 | $360-1,200 |
| ILIAS | $500-2,000 | $600-2,400 |
| Totara Learn | $2,000-8,000 | $2,400-7,200 |
| Custom Development | $10,000-100,000+ | $6,000-24,000+ |
Additional Infrastructure Costs (All Platforms):
- Domain Registration: $10-50/year
- Web Hosting: $20-500/month (varies by traffic and performance needs)
- SSL Certificate: $0-200/year (free options available)
- Regular Maintenance: $100-1,000/month
- Technical Support: $50-500/month
- Security Monitoring: $20-200/month
If you are a tech-savvy course creator, then these self-hosted platforms can be a great option. With these platforms, you can customize everything about your LMS.
Also, the upfront cost is much higher than other options, but eventually, in the long term, the cost is actually reduced.
Read More: SaaS vs WordPress LMS: Which One Is Better?
Course Marketing and Sales Costs
Minimum Marketing Strategy That’s Mandatory
| Marketing Activity | Cost Range | Tools/Platforms | Time Investment |
| Social Media Marketing | $0-50/month | Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn (organic) | 10-15 hours/week |
| Content Marketing/Blogging | $0-20/month | Course website, Medium, etc. | 5-10 hours/week |
| Email Marketing | $0-30/month | Mailchimp, ConvertKit | 3-5 hours/week |
| SEO Optimization | $0-50/month | Google Analytics, Google Search Console, Semrush | 5-8 hours/week |
| Basic Graphics | $0-15/month | Canva, GIMP | 2-4 hours/week |
| Networking & Communities | $0-25/month | Reddit, Facebook groups, Discord | 3-5 hours/week |
| Free Webinars | $0-30/month | Zoom, Google Meet | 2-3 hours/week |
| Word-of-Mouth/Referrals | $0 | Personal network | 2-3 hours/week |
| Basic Analytics | $0 | Google Analytics, social insights | 1-2 hours/week |
| Total Monthly Cost | $0-220 | Mixed free/low-cost tools | 30-50 hours/week |
This budget is perfect for new course creators, bootstrapped entrepreneurs, and those testing their first course idea. You’re trading money for time, relying heavily on organic reach and personal effort. Success depends on consistency, authentic engagement, and providing genuine value to build trust slowly over time.
Moderate Marketing Strategy That’s Good to Have
| Marketing Activity | Cost Range | Tools/Platforms | Expected Results |
| Paid Social Media Ads | $300-1,500/month | Facebook Ads, Instagram Ads, LinkedIn | 2-5x organic reach |
| Email Marketing Platform | $50-200/month | ConvertKit, Mailchimp Pro, ActiveCampaign | Advanced automation |
| Content Creation Tools | $50-150/month | Canva Pro, Adobe Creative, stock photos | Professional visuals |
| SEO & Content Tools | $100-300/month | SEMrush, Ahrefs, Grammarly Premium | Better search rankings |
| Webinar Platforms | $50-200/month | WebinarJam, GoToWebinar, Zoom Pro | Higher conversion rates |
| Influencer Partnerships | $200-1,000/month | Micro-influencer collaborations | Expanded audience |
| Landing Page Builder | $30-100/month | Leadpages, Unbounce, ClickFunnels | Better conversion rates |
| Analytics & Tracking | $50-200/month | Google Ads, Facebook Pixel, Hotjar | Data-driven decisions |
| Basic PR/Outreach | $100-500/month | HARO, podcast guesting, guest posts | Authority building |
| Total Monthly Cost | $930-4,150 | – | – |
This budget suits established course creators with proven content, small businesses scaling up, and creators with 1-2 successful courses. You’re investing in tools and strategies that provide measurable returns, allowing you to reach larger audiences while maintaining quality engagement.
Maximum Budget Marketing Strategy to Earn Millions
| Marketing Activity | Cost Range | Services/Platforms | Expected Impact |
| Professional Ad Campaigns | $2,000-10,000/month | Google Ads, Facebook Ads, YouTube Ads | Massive reach & targeting |
| Marketing Agency Services | $3,000-15,000/month | Full-service digital marketing agency | Expert strategy & execution |
| Influencer & Celebrity Endorsements | $5,000-50,000/campaign | Major influencers, celebrity partnerships | Brand credibility & exposure |
| Professional Video Production | $2,000-20,000/month | YouTube channel, video ads, testimonials | High-quality content |
| Public Relations & Media | $2,000-10,000/month | PR agency, media appearances, press releases | Mainstream media coverage |
| Affiliate Marketing Program | $1,000-5,000/month + commissions | Affiliate networks, partner recruitment | Scalable sales force |
| Event Marketing & Speaking | $3,000-25,000/event | Conference sponsorships, speaking fees | Industry authority |
| Advanced Marketing Automation | $500-2,000/month | HubSpot, Marketo, Salesforce | Sophisticated funnels |
| Market Research & Testing | $1,000-5,000/month | A/B testing, focus groups, surveys | Optimized messaging |
| Content Marketing Team | $5,000-20,000/month | Writers, designers, video editors | Consistent quality content |
| Total Monthly Cost | $24,500-162,000+ | – | – |
This budget is for established course creators earning $500K+ annually, educational companies, and entrepreneurs building course empires.
You’re investing in market domination, brand building, and creating multiple revenue streams. Success at this level requires proven products, strong team management, and the ability to scale operations efficiently.
Read More: How to Sell an Online Course
Final Cost Summary
| Approach | Total Cost | Best For |
| Minimal Budget (DIY) | $100-3,500 | First-time creators, testing ideas |
| Moderate Budget (AI-Assisted) | $7,500-32,000 | Established creators, proven concepts |
| High Budget (Professional) | $41,000-155,000 | Serious businesses, premium courses |
| Enterprise Level | $155,000-725,000+ | Large companies, course empires |
Remember: These are investment ranges. Successful courses can generate 5-50x return on investment, making even higher budgets profitable when executed properly.
Factors That Contribute to Course Creation Costs
Crafting an online course involves a central trade-off: your time versus your money.
You can save money by doing all the work yourself, or you can save time by paying professionals and using advanced tools. Your final cost, which can range from a few hundred dollars to tens of thousands, is a direct result of the choices you make along this spectrum.
So, here are the key factors that contribute to the cost of your online course.
Course Complexity and Length
The more content you create, the more it will cost, but it’s not just about the number of videos.
A simple course with a series of talking-head videos and basic quizzes is far less expensive to produce than a course with high-end animations, interactive simulations, and a full workbook.
For instance, a basic 30-minute video course might only cost you a few dollars, mostly for your own time and some simple equipment. In contrast, a 30-minute interactive course that uses complex animations to explain a scientific concept could easily cost thousands when you factor in instructional designers, graphic artists, and specialized software.
Production Quality Level
Your production quality is about the look and feel of your course. It’s the difference between a video you record on your smartphone in your living room and one filmed in a professional studio with perfect lighting and sound.
A basic home setup might only cost you a few hundred dollars for a good microphone and a simple ring light. You can edit the videos yourself using free software.
At the other end of the spectrum, hiring a professional production team can cost you anywhere from a few hundred to several thousand dollars per finished minute of video.
For a full-day shoot, you might be paying for a director, a camera operator, lighting, studio rental, and a video editor.
The quality you should go for should match what your audience expects. A course for aspiring filmmakers, for example, would need a much higher production quality than a course on basic cooking.
Target Audience and Market
The people you are making the course for will have a huge impact on your costs. Are you creating a course for hobbyists, or are you creating professional training for a large company?
A corporate audience, for instance, might need more formal content, a high level of security, and specific features like certificates of completion and accessibility for people with disabilities. This can add thousands of dollars to your budget for specialized platforms, instructional designers, and legal reviews.
In contrast, a course for people who want to learn how to play the guitar might be much simpler.
The audience also influences your marketing budget. Targeting a very specific, niche audience might require less advertising money because you can find them in focused online communities, whereas marketing to a broad audience, like people who want to lose weight, could require a significant ad budget on platforms like Facebook and YouTube.
Timeline and Urgency
When you need your course to be finished, it can significantly raise your costs. If you give yourself a year to create a course, you can take your time, learn new skills, and do most of the work yourself on a shoestring budget.
But if you need to finish the same course in a month to meet a launch deadline, you’ll have to pay more for speed. This often means hiring a project manager to coordinate the process and paying people rush fees.
For example, a freelancer might charge an extra 25% or more on top of their normal rate to work evenings and weekends to meet your tight deadline.
An urgent timeline forces you to buy time, and that extra cost can quickly add up, easily increasing your overall budget by thousands of dollars.
Geographic and Language Considerations
If you want to reach people who speak a different language, your costs will go up.
Translating your course content isn’t just about changing the words in your slides. You have to decide if you want to add subtitles, which can cost about $20 per finished minute of video, or do a full voice-over, which can cost even more.
For instance, a 10-minute video might only cost $200 to subtitle, but it could cost $400 or more to have a professional do a voice-over in another language.
You also have to think about cultural differences.
An example or a joke that works in one country might not make sense or could even be offensive in another, so you might need to pay someone to adapt your content, not just translate it.
Technology and Platform Requirements
The technology you use to build and host your course is a major cost factor.
You can choose an all-in-one platform like Teachable or Kajabi, which gives you a lot of tools for a simple monthly fee. This seems convenient, but paying a monthly fee might not be ideal for everyone.
Alternatively, you can use a self-hosted option by installing a plugin like LearnDash on your own website, which is a yearly cost, but then you have to manage all the technical aspects yourself.
The good choice here would be a platform like Klasio, which is an all-in-one platform but offers lifetime deals. So, you can buy it for a lifetime and you don’t have to work on the technical stuff by yourself.
Tips to Balance Cost and Quality While Creating an Online Course
Creating a good course doesn’t have to mean spending a lot. If you plan carefully, you can make something professional and useful without blowing your budget.
Start Small and Scale Gradually
Start with one clear module or a short mini-course that delivers the main promise you want to make. By launching something small, you can get it out faster, see how real learners respond, and fix the parts that confuse people before you add more.
Use feedback from your first students to shape new lessons, formats, or bonuses. Doing so keeps you from guessing what they need. Treat early sales as both proof and funding: reinvest what you earn into better audio, a new lesson, or a tidy workbook.
Small steps also make the work feel manageable; instead of trying to finish a full course at once, you build over time and learn what actually helps your students.
Leverage Free and Low-Cost Tools
Use tools that make your life easier, not harder. You can record clear video with your phone and improve sound with a simple lapel mic you clip on. Free editors let you trim, fix mistakes, and add captions without steep learning curves, so you can focus on teaching instead of wrestling with software.
For slides and handouts, pick ready-made templates or a familiar app so your content looks clean and is easy to read. Keep your files on a free cloud drive and share links at first instead of paying for heavy hosting. Try two or three tools, stick with the ones that feel natural, and only upgrade when you see a real benefit for your students.
Strategic Outsourcing
Hire help only for tasks that are hard for you or that will noticeably raise the course’s value, like editing audio, designing a course workbook, or running ads. Use freelancers for short bursts of work rather than long retainers. This keeps your costs predictable and lets you focus on what you do best: creating content.
Quality Control Without Breaking the Bank
Ask a small group of trusted people to test your course before you launch. Give them one or two lessons to try and clear instructions on what to look for: can they hear the voice clearly, do the slides make sense, is the pace right, and can they find the files or quizzes?
Use a short survey or a 15–30 minute call to collect feedback so it’s quick for both of you. Fix the issues that affect learning first, such as bad audio, confusing instructions, or broken links.
Then tidy visuals if there’s time. Simple checks like listening on headphones, reading slides on a phone, and testing navigation help catch common problems. Offer a small thank-you gift and let testers know you value honest, specific notes.
Long-Term Cost Management
Build reusable assets, such as templates, slide decks, recorded clips, and checklists, so you can reuse them in future courses and save time. Keep editable source files, so updates are quick.
You can also turn one course into a series: a short intro, the core course, then an advanced follow-up or a live workshop you can sell as an upsell; small extras like workbooks or templates also sell well.
List your course or these additional resources as digital products on a marketplace, set up an evergreen sales page with email sequences, or license parts of your content to organizations for some extra income.
Reinvest these early earnings into the changes that help learners most, and update bits regularly instead of remaking the whole course.
Create Your First Course With Klasio for FREE
If you are worrying about the cost of creating online courses, you should just choose Klasio as your learning management platform.
That’s because, with Klasio, you can–
- Get started for free.
- Sign up, go live, and teach your class.
- Offer a free mobile app to your students, and do much more.
So, if you’re eager to start teaching online but hesitant to do so due to budget, Klasio is the best option there is.
FAQs
Can I pay someone to create an online course for me?
Yes, you can pay someone to create an online course for you. Many instructional designers, educators, and freelancers specialize in developing course content, videos, and learning materials based on your topic. However, it’s best if your course has your personal touch.
How much do people sell online courses for?
People sell online courses anywhere from $20 to $2,000 or more, depending on the niche, depth, and perceived value. Most commonly, courses fall in the $100–$500 range.
How much can I charge for an online course?
You can charge for an online course based on the value it provides, typically between $50 and $500 for standard courses. High-demand, specialized, or certification courses can go up to $1,000 or more.
Do I need a license to sell online courses?
No, you do not need a specific license to sell online courses. However, you should comply with tax laws, platform rules, and business regulations in your country.
Do I need to copyright my online course?
You do not need to copyright your online course because your content is automatically protected under copyright law once created. However, registering a copyright can provide stronger legal protection if someone copies your material.
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