32 Best + Free Personal Finance Courses & Certificates [2026]
Ranked by Michael Kuhlman, CourseDuck's founder, from student reviews across every provider. How we rank
Our guide: The 10 Best Finance and Accounting Courses on Udemy in 2026
Our top picks
- Personal Finance Masterclass - Easy Guide to Better Finances [Udemy]
- Acorns' Guide to Personal Finance [Udemy]
- Personal Finance 101: Everything You Need to Know [Udemy]
- Learn How To Budget - Personal budgeting made easy [Udemy]
- The Core Four of Personal Finance including Recession Basics [Udemy]
- Finance 101: Financial Skills for the Real World [Udemy]
- Personal Finance: Financial Security Thinking & Principles [Udemy]
- The Step-By-Step Guide To Your 401k Plan [Udemy]
- Simple Basics of Personal Finance [Udemy]
- Personal Finance Jumpstart! [Udemy]
About the best Personal Finance courses
Frequently asked questions
The most-reviewed course in this category is Personal Finance Masterclass - Easy Guide to Better Finances by Phil Ebiner, with about 6,000 reviews at 4.6 as of October 2026, just ahead of Acorns' Guide to Personal Finance by Jennifer Barrett (about 5,900 reviews at 4.2).
Budgeting and saving, credit and debt, planning for retirement and 401(k) plans, money basics for kids, teens and young adults, and first steps in investing. Courses teach general principles, not advice for your own situation.
Paid Udemy video courses include a certificate of completion when you finish; free courses and practice-test-only courses do not. It shows you did the work, but it is not an accredited qualification.
1
Personal Finance Masterclass - Easy Guide to Better Finances (2024)
A short, plain-spoken money primer that covers budgets, debt, investing, retirement and taxes in about 7 hours of mostly bite-sized lessons.
Best for: Beginners who want a quick, plain-spoken tour of budgets, debt, investing and retirement in one place.


-
- Short lessons across 167 lectures; one reviewer says they hold attention
- Covers budgeting, debt, investing, retirement and taxes in one 7-hour course
- Reviewers call it eye-opening on spending habits, retirement savings and side income
- About 83 percent of 5,957 ratings are four or five stars
-
- Content leans on US rules, so credit and tax lessons need translating elsewhere
- Last updated April 2024, and there are no quizzes or exercises
- Too basic for people who already know budgeting and investing, say some reviewers
2
Acorns' Guide to Personal Finance (2018)
A 48-minute, five-step primer on budgeting, debt, saving, earning and investing from Acorns' education chief, built for people who want the short version.
Best for: Total beginners who want a one-sitting overview of budgeting, debt, side income and investing.


-
- Short enough to finish in one sitting: 32 lectures, 48 minutes in total
- Reviewers like the visual summaries and the review at the end of each section
- Covers budgeting, debt, saving, raises and side income, not just investing
- Downloadable action plans and worksheets to fill in with your own numbers
-
- Last updated in January 2018, so the investing material may feel dated
- Stays shallow: reviewers want mutual funds, index funds and Roth IRAs explained
- Resources are PDFs; reviewers wanted real spreadsheets or an online calculator
3
Personal Finance 101: Everything You Need to Know (2017)
A free, US-only money primer built from 53 short animated videos, covering banking, taxes, insurance, cars and homes for people starting from zero.
Best for: Complete beginners in the US who want short animated lessons on everyday money decisions, from a first bank account to buying a home.


-
- Videos run under five minutes, so lessons fit into a lunch break
- Animated visuals that reviewers call engaging and easy to understand
- Covers life events beyond the basics, from renting and car buying to marriage and divorce
- Free, with no math or software needed, and over 90,000 students enrolled
-
- Last updated in 2017, and reviewers flag dated quiz questions and real estate rules
- Low-star reviewers dispute the credit, debt and permanent life insurance advice
- US only, with no printable notes and no reminder after a wrong quiz answer
4
Learn How To Budget - Personal budgeting made easy (2020)
A short four-week budgeting plan from a practising financial planner, built around a downloadable monthly spreadsheet and weekly homework for absolute beginners.
Best for: Absolute beginners who want a short, calm walkthrough and a ready-made budget spreadsheet.


-
- Four weekly steps with homework turn budgeting into a routine, not just theory
- Downloadable Excel tracker, with paper versions, called better than one reviewer's own sheet
- Calm, clear delivery that reviewers say takes the fear out of money
- Only 1.6 hours, so a beginner can finish it in a few sittings
-
- Last updated March 2020, so some details may feel dated
- One reviewer reports a couple of spreadsheet formulas that don't work
- One reviewer found some advice aimed at people better off than their unhoused clients
5
The Core Four of Personal Finance including Recession Basics (2020)
A short, US-focused money primer from Son Han that mixes budgeting, debt and basic investing with a long recession bonus added in 2020.
Best for: Beginners in the US who want budgeting, debt and basic investing in one sitting, plus a recession primer.


-
- Excel budgeting sheets and mortgage and loan calculators that reviewers say they actually used
- Budgeting, debt, investing and recessions covered in one 5.6 hour course
- Han's upbeat, motivational delivery leaves some reviewers keen to take money seriously
- A 34-lecture recession section that a reviewer still finds useful because recessions are cyclical
-
- Choppy layout with many tiny sections and a few videos that seem to sit in the wrong place
- Last updated June 2020, and the examples lean heavily on the US
- Some topics feel stretched or repetitive, and there is no help with screening stocks
6
Finance 101: Financial Skills for the Real World (2023)
What You'll Learn
- Understand the time value of money
- Learn about the components that form interest rates
- Make the distinction between fixed and variable interest rates
- Understand how to negotiate with banks when applying for a loan
- Compare present and future cash flows
- Assess whether a project is feasible from a financial perspective through the Net Present Value technique
- Learn about annuities
- Calculate a complete loan schedule with fixed payments
- Know how to convert Foreign exchange currencies
- See the core principle behind modern Equity Portfolio Management theory
- Be able to make your own financial decisions based on sufficient financial literacy
7
Personal Finance: Financial Security Thinking & Principles (2025)
What You'll Learn
- How your mind keeps you from having better control over your finances
- The time-tested wealth principles that the financially successful use
- How to reduce spending without reducing fun
- How to increase your value and increase your income
- Action plan to change your financial life for good!
8
The Step-By-Step Guide To Your 401k Plan (2017)
What You'll Learn
- Have confidence about enrolling in your 401k
- Receive all the "free money" provided by your employer
- Avoid common mistakes made by employees
- Have confidence your 401k is set up to suit your needs
- Come up with a simple plan to reach your retirement goal
- Decide between Roth or Traditional 401k contributions
- Choose appropriate investments in your 401k
9
Simple Basics of Personal Finance (2023)
What You'll Learn
- Understand and feel comfortable with the basics of the money-related elements of everyday life and how to approach financial aspects responsibly and confidently
- Learn the difference between banks, credit unions and other financial institutions, as well as savings, checking, debit cards, and credit cards.
- Examine borrowing money and the basics of loans for auto loans, home loans, paying for college and higher education, and more.
- We'll dig into other "Grown Up" stuff including payroll taxes, insurance, social security, saving for retirement, identity protection and more.
10
Personal Finance Jumpstart! (2026)
What You'll Learn
- Determnine where you currently stand in regards to your personal finances.
- Learn best practices to to help improve your financial situation.
- Help design a plan for your success.
- Manage your key areas such as saving, investing, credit, wills, and more.
11
The Personal Finance and Wealth Management Masterclass (2022)
What You'll Learn
- You will become an expert in Personal Finance and Development.
- 100+ Multiple Choice Questions with Detailed Explanations and Answers.
- You will become an expert on Financial Data Sources and Patterns.
- You will understand how Auto Insurance Premiums are calculated.
- You will learn why Vicarious Liability is important in Personal Finance.
- You will learn what career paths people are choosing after the Pandemic.
- You will learn why some people never run out of money in Retirement.
- You will learn the differences between different types of banks.
- You will learn how Financial Decisions made in London affected consumers in the United States.
- You will gain numerous insights even if you have taken Personal Finance Courses before.












