Online courses have long been an integral part of further education. Nonetheless, few topics raise as many questions for trainers and academies as pricing. Too cheap often doesn't feel right, and too expensive scares off potential customers.
The good news: Finding a realistic price is not rocket science. Those who understand a few basic connections and approach the task systematically can set prices that are economically sensible and accepted by the market.
This article shows you how to calculate realistic prices for online courses and e-learning offerings. Not with blanket recommendations, but with a clear logic that has proven itself in practice and also considers blended learning formats.
Why there is no fixed standard price for online courses
Many trainers secretly hope that there is a clear answer out there. A single number or at least a price range to guide them. Unfortunately – or actually gladly – the reality is different.
There is no fixed "right" price for an online course because courses are never created under the same conditions. Different target groups, different learning objectives, and different frameworks inevitably lead to different prices.
Two courses can be similar in content yet priced entirely differently. Not because one is better than the other, but because they are intended for different people, situations, or purposes.
This is exactly why the pricing question is not a calculation example, but rather a strategic decision.
A common misconception in pricing
A common misconception begins with a seemingly harmless question: "What would I pay for this course?" The problem with this is that you are not your own target audience. You already know the content, you understand the effort behind it, and you evaluate the course from a completely different perspective than your potential course participants. This viewpoint almost always leads to prices that are set too low.
What matters is not whether the price feels right to you personally, but what specific benefit your course has for others. People do not buy online courses because of the number of modules or videos, but because they hope to gain orientation, security, or concrete results from them.
Step 1: Define the actual benefit of your course
Before you think about pricing, you should be very clear about the specific benefit your course offers to participants. This early definition of benefits is not only the basis for your calculations but also for your sales arguments later. What remains vague here will be hard to communicate convincingly later. Useful guiding questions include:
What specific problem does the course solve in the daily lives of the participants?
Is it about missing knowledge, uncertainty, lack of time, or specific challenges at work?What can participants do better, faster, or more securely after the course than before?
Not theoretically, but practically and noticeably.Does the course save time, reduce errors, or prevent costly misjudgments?
Such indirect effects are also very relevant for many target groups.Is the benefit short-term or does it continue to have an effect in the long term in daily work?
Sustainable effects generally increase the willingness to pay.
The clearer you can define this benefit, the easier it will be to determine the price later. And the more convincingly the price can be explained to outsiders.
Step 2: Understand your target group
The price of an online course heavily depends on who it is intended for. The same course can be perceived very differently by different target groups – and thus be priced differently as well.
It is crucial not only who participates in the course but also who makes the purchasing decision. A participant paying privately evaluates prices differently than an organization that budgets for further education. Ask yourself these questions:
Who really pays for the course in the end?
An individual participant, a company, or an academy?Who decides about the booking?
The participant themselves or a manager, human resources, or procurement?In what context does the course take place?
Voluntary further education, professional qualification, or mandatory training?
The more institutional the target group is, the less emotional the price is evaluated. In these cases, reliability, quality, and clear results are much more important than the pure amount.
Step 3: Realistically calculate your own working time
A common misconception regarding online courses is: "The course is created once, then it runs by itself." In practice, however, working time is involved in a course offering continuously.
💡 Time is not only spent on creating content but also on many other areas: content must be maintained and updated, participants must be supported, questions answered, marketing measures implemented, and organizational tasks fulfilled. All of these require your working time, often regularly and over a long period.
Therefore, it makes sense to consciously set your own hourly rate. A rate that reflects your experience, know-how, and life reality. Many trainers define a clear minimum below which they do not wish to perform preparatory work. This minimum provides orientation and protects against under-calculation.
If you apply this hourly rate to all time spent on your course, a realistic picture of the actual costs emerges. These costs should later be recouped through the course participants.
Only when your own working time is honestly priced will a well-intentioned course become an economically viable offering.
Step 4: Differentiate between fixed costs, variable costs, and target revenue
After you have realistically planned your own working time, the next step is to consider the structural aspects of the calculation. Many courses seem inexpensive to implement at first glance because individual cost items appear small. Only in the overall view does it become clear what a course actually costs.
It helps to clearly separate three levels:
1. Fixed costs
Fixed costs arise regardless of how many participants book your course. This includes costs for the learning platform, technical infrastructure, tools, licenses, or the fundamental creation of content. These costs often continue to accrue and must always be covered, even when fewer bookings occur.
2. Variable costs
Variable costs are directly related to the number of participants. This includes, for example, support efforts, individual inquiries, certificates, or organizational activities related to the course. Especially in supervised online courses or blended learning formats, these costs rise with each additional booking.
3. Target revenue
The target revenue answers a different question: What role will this course play in your business model? Is it a supplementary offering, a central source of income, or a strategic entry point for additional services? Only when you know what the course needs to achieve economically can you set a price that not only covers costs but also aligns with your goals.
Step 5: Decide what role the course plays in your business model
Not every online course has to be economically justifiable in the same way. Frustration often arises here when expectations do not match reality.
Before you set a price, you should honestly answer yourself what purpose this course serves in your business model. Should it generate direct revenue, build trust, or facilitate entry into a longer collaboration?
Typical roles for online courses include:
Self-paced courses with high scalability
These courses are often relatively inexpensive and rely on many bookings. They work well when the content is clearly structured and requires little individual support.Supervised online courses with limited enrollment
Here, significantly more working time flows into support, feedback, and communication. The price must reflect this, or else you, as the course provider, will quickly feel overworked for little income.Blended learning programs with live components
These offerings are often compared by participants to seminars or further education programs. Accordingly, the price can and should also be higher, as personal accompaniment and commitment are part of the benefits.Courses as an introduction to further offerings
Some courses are deliberately calculated to be cheaper because they create trust, showcase expertise, and prepare for later bookings. It is essential that this effect is consciously planned and does not occur randomly.
It becomes problematic when a course is expected to be everything at once: cheap, highly supervised, scalable, and reliably profitable. This combination rarely works in practice.
A realistic price arises when you accept that each course must have a clear function, and this function must also be economically reflected.
What blended learning changes in pricing
Through live appointments, in-person phases, or fixed online sessions, greater commitment and a higher perceived value arise. Participants compare such offers more to seminars or further education programs than to pure self-paced courses.
For pricing, this means: Prices do not need to compete with online courses but should orient themselves to formats where personal support and fixed dates are part of the benefits.
Comparative prices are helpful but not a standard
Market prices can provide a first orientation but should never be the basis of your calculations. Much more important than the pure price is the question, why an offering is priced that way. Target group, scope, support, and positioning play a decisive role. Two courses on similar topics can have very different prices for valid reasons.
When comparing the prices of various course providers, do not do so in isolation but always in relation to the entire offering. Only this context shows whether a price is realistic or if you are comparing apples to oranges.
You must be able to explain your price
In practice, the price is explained through marketing and sales activities. Through your website, sales texts, landing pages, emails, or personal conversations, the image is created as to why your course costs what it does. When this explanation is missing, even a fairly calculated price appears too high.
It is essential to make the price understandable instead of justifying it. The clearer you make what participants can learn or achieve through your course offering, the more logical and appropriate the price will be perceived.
A precise calculation helps you in two ways: It ensures that the course is economically viable and gives you the confidence to represent the price outward calmly and convincingly.
Conclusion: The price for online courses arises from calculation, not from gut feeling
A realistic price for an online course or a blended learning offering results from a conscious calculation of benefits, target group, your own working time, cost structure, and the role of the course in the business model.
If you think about your course from the perspective of your potential customers, honestly price your own working time, and clearly separate fixed costs, variable costs, and target revenue, you will create a framework that is comprehensible rather than a random price. This framework gives you orientation and prevents you from fixating on individual opinions or market comparisons.
A clearly calculated price is also easier to communicate: Because if you know why your course costs what it does, you can calmly stand by that price. And that is the foundation for sustainable, economically viable online courses.
