How we review online courses
I sign up for every course and app I review and check the live price, trial and cancellation terms myself, then add official information, published studies and learner experiences.
Maintained byPragya JhaUpdated Oct 31, 2026How I make a review
I start with the official facts
Plans, prices, refund rules and what each product includes, taken from the company’s own pages and dated, so every fact in a review has a source you can check.
I sign up and look for myself
I create an account, walk through onboarding, open the first free lessons, and check the live price, the trial and the cancellation terms at checkout. I take screenshots as I go.
I read the wider evidence
A first look can’t tell you how a course holds up after a month, so I add official course information, published studies and documented learner experiences, and look for patterns rather than one-off opinions.
I score it, publish it and check it again
Each product is scored against the published rubric for its topic and given a date to be checked again. Every review shows how it was made and when I last checked it.
What I check myself
- Sign-up: what it asks for, and whether a card is needed to start a free trial.
- Onboarding: placement tests, goal setting and how quickly you reach a real lesson.
- The first free lessons: format, pacing, exercises and feedback.
- Live pricing: the US price shown at checkout, monthly against annual, and any renewal price.
- Trial and cancellation: how long the trial lasts, when you are charged and how to cancel.
- Screenshots: I capture each step and keep them, dated, with my notes.
What I don’t claim
Signing up and working through the first lessons shows a lot, but not everything. I don’t claim to have completed the courses I review or to have results from them. For how a course holds up over weeks or months, and for topics like exam prep and kids’ programs where I don’t sit the test or enrol a child, I rely on official course information, published studies and documented learner experiences, and the review says so.
How I score
Every topic has its own rubric, because a language app, a test prep course and a course builder do different jobs. The weights for each topic are fixed and published here, so every review in a topic is scored the same way. Scores compare products within one topic: a 9 means one of the strongest in its class for that job, not that a course builder beats a language app.
Learning platforms6 criteria
Courses6 criteria
Language apps6 criteria
Test prep6 criteria
STEM for kids6 criteria
Schools and homeschool5 criteria
Course creation tools6 criteria
Researchnot scored
Studies are not given a score. Each one lists its data source, sample size and the date the data was collected, so you can judge it yourself.
Dealsnot scored
A deal is either working or it is not. Each one shows the date it was last checked.
- 9 to 10Outstanding
- 8 to 8.9Recommended
- 7 to 7.9Good, with trade-offs
- 5 to 6.9Mixed
- Below 5Skip it
What each review tells you
Every review and comparison opens with a short box that says how it was made: what I checked myself, the official pages, studies and learner reviews it draws on, and the date I last checked it.
How I keep reviews up to date
Prices, plans and course catalogues change. I re-check a page when a platform changes its pricing, plans or features, and by the review date each page carries. When something changes, I update the page and its “Last checked” date.
Independence
No company approves a review before it goes live or has any say in a score, and every product in a topic is judged on the same rubric. The full rules are in my editorial policy.
Corrections and contact
Spotted a price that’s changed, or something I got wrong? Email me at pragya@whitmoreelementary.org or use the contact page. I’ll correct the page and note what changed. You can also reach me on LinkedIn and X.