20 Best Design MOOC / Non-credit Programs Online
We compared 20 Design courses currently listed on Coursera, priced from $39.00 to $99.00. 13 come from a named university or institution, including University of Michigan, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati and University of California San Diego. They are ordered by our CourseAsk score, which is built from how thoroughly each course describes what it teaches, whether it comes from a named institution, and how it compares on price — not from star ratings, which our course data does not include.
- Courses compared
- 20
- Price range
- $39.00 – $99.00
- Providers
- Coursera
- Last updated
- 30 Aug 2026
How these 20 courses were chosen
Every course below is a real, currently listed course from Coursera, matched to "Design" by our catalog and ordered by our CourseAsk score. Courses whose own title names the topic rank above those only tagged with it.
There are no star ratings on this page — the course feeds we license do not include them, and we would rather leave a column out than fill it with a number we cannot stand behind. What we do have is price: these range from $39.00 to $99.00, as listed by the provider when we last updated the page.
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1
Python Fundamentals for Designers
Offered by University of Michigan
Python Fundamentals for Designers is an introduction to programming using Python meant for students interested in how programming is applied to visual applications and design. The course introduces the foundations of pro...
$49.00listed price -
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2
Design Computing: 3D Modeling in Rhinoceros with Python/Rhinoscript
Offered by University of Michigan
Why should a designer learn to code? As our world is increasingly impacted by the use of algorithms, designers must learn how to use and create design computing programs. Designers must go beyond the narrowly focused use...
$49.00listed price -
3
Sustainable Product Design for Engineers
Offered by Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati
This three-course specialization equips engineers to integrate creative, user-centred design thinking with quantitative sustainability tools across the entire product development process. Learners progress from the funda...
$49.00listed price -
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4
Introduction to Product Design
Offered by Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati
By the end of this course, you will be able to take a product from a real user need to a tested, working prototype using a structured, user-centred design process. You will learn to conduct user research with both qualit...
$49.00listed price -
5
Design Principles: an Introduction
Offered by University of California San Diego
What makes an interface intuitive? How can I tell whether one design works better than another? This course will teach you fundamental principles of design and how to effectively evaluate your work with users. You'll lea...
$39.00listed price -
6
Designing, Running, and Analyzing Experiments
Offered by University of California San Diego
You may never be sure whether you have an effective user experience until you have tested it with users. In this course, you’ll learn how to design user-centered experiments, how to run such experiments, and how to analy...
$39.00listed price -
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7
Ideas from the History of Graphic Design
Offered by California Institute of the Arts
This intensive survey examines four pivotal eras in the History of Western Graphic Design, tracing the evolution of visual communication from the Industrial Revolution through the mid-20th century. While the global histo...
$79.00listed price -
8
An Introduction to Accessibility and Inclusive Design
Offered by University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
This course introduces some of the fundamental principles of accessibility and prepares learners for further study in accessibility and inclusive design. Learners will have an opportunity to explore the major types of di...
$49.00listed price -
9
Graphic Design Elements for Non-Designers
Offered by University of Colorado Boulder
In this hands-on specialization, you will explore basic graphic design elements, color theory, images, publication design and techniques for creating effective layouts. You will also learn about typography, the creative...
$49.00listed price -
10
Creative Design, Prototyping, and Testing
Offered by University of Maryland, College Park
A validated product idea is an important milestone, but it's only the beginning of the product development journey. Before investing in development, successful product managers use design, prototyping, and customer testi...
$79.00listed price -
11
UX and Interface Design for Embedded Systems
Offered by University of Colorado Boulder
This course can also be taken for academic credit as ECEA 5346, part of CU Boulder’s Master of Science in Electrical Engineering degree. UX and Interface Design for Embedded Systems is the first of three classes in the E...
$99.00listed price -
12
User Interface Design
Offered by University of Minnesota
In this Specialization, you will learn industry-standard theory and methods for developing successful user interfaces (UIs). Upon completing this Specialization, you will have fluency with the user research, prototyping...
$49.00listed price -
13
Graphic Design
Offered by University of Colorado Boulder
Welcome to Graphic Design, the second course in the Effective Communications Specialization. Over 70 different companies have provided this specialization to their employees as a resource for internal professional develo...
$79.00listed price -
14
Human Factors & Usability Engineering: Designing for Humans
Offered by Arizona State University
Explore the multidimensional world of Human Factors and learn the strategies behind optimizing human interactions and performance. In this specialization, you will dive into the field of human factors, where science and...
$49.00listed price -
15
Sustainable Product Design
Offered by Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati
By the end of this course, you will be able to evaluate products across the triple bottom line, conduct life cycle assessments (LCA) to quantify environmental impact, apply circular economy strategies to products and bus...
$49.00listed price -
16
Leveraging Design Methods to Identify Business Opportunities
Offered by Parsons School of Design, The New School
This exciting online course helps you understand design methods and how to use them to identify business opportunities. It starts by focusing on the importance of design in a changing world by examining VUCA (volatility,...
$49.00listed price -
17
Fashion as Design: Silhouettes and Icons
Offered by The Museum of Modern Art
Every garment we choose is a deliberate act of design. This course offers a deep dive into the iconic silhouettes that have defined the last century, shifting your perspective from seeing clothes simply as products to un...
$49.00listed price -
18
Grundlagen des Grafikdesigns
Offered by California Institute of the Arts
Grafikdesign ist präsenter als je zuvor! Wörter und Bilder – die Bausteine des Grafikdesigns – sind die Elemente, die den größten Teil des Inhalts der digitalen wie auch der gedruckten Welt beinhalten. Da Grafikdesign in...
$79.00listed price -
19
Experiencing Design: Deepening Your Design Thinking Practice
Offered by University of Virginia
How do we unlock the transformational power of design thinking? To do this, we must understand that this power lies not in what it encourages us to do, but in who it encourages us to become. We become design thinkers by...
$49.00listed price -
20
Leadership Through Design Innovation
Offered by Northwestern University
Today’s workplace calls for a new style of leadership to embolden and accelerate innovation. Design offers a novel way to discover market opportunities, experiment to validate concepts and mitigate risk, and deliver valu...
$79.00listed price
Best Design MOOC / Non-credit Programs Online compared
| # | Course | Provider | Offered by | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Python Fundamentals for Designers | Coursera | University of Michigan | $49.00 | View → |
| 2 | Design Computing: 3D Modeling in Rhinoceros with Python/Rhinoscript | Coursera | University of Michigan | $49.00 | View → |
| 3 | Sustainable Product Design for Engineers | Coursera | Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati | $49.00 | View → |
| 4 | Introduction to Product Design | Coursera | Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati | $49.00 | View → |
| 5 | Design Principles: an Introduction | Coursera | University of California San Diego | $39.00 | View → |
| 6 | Designing, Running, and Analyzing Experiments | Coursera | University of California San Diego | $39.00 | View → |
| 7 | Ideas from the History of Graphic Design | Coursera | California Institute of the Arts | $79.00 | View → |
| 8 | An Introduction to Accessibility and Inclusive Design | Coursera | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | $49.00 | View → |
| 9 | Graphic Design Elements for Non-Designers | Coursera | University of Colorado Boulder | $49.00 | View → |
| 10 | Creative Design, Prototyping, and Testing | Coursera | University of Maryland, College Park | $79.00 | View → |
| 11 | UX and Interface Design for Embedded Systems | Coursera | University of Colorado Boulder | $99.00 | View → |
| 12 | User Interface Design | Coursera | University of Minnesota | $49.00 | View → |
| 13 | Graphic Design | Coursera | University of Colorado Boulder | $79.00 | View → |
| 14 | Human Factors & Usability Engineering: Designing for Humans | Coursera | Arizona State University | $49.00 | View → |
| 15 | Sustainable Product Design | Coursera | Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati | $49.00 | View → |
| 16 | Leveraging Design Methods to Identify Business Opportunities | Coursera | Parsons School of Design, The New School | $49.00 | View → |
| 17 | Fashion as Design: Silhouettes and Icons | Coursera | The Museum of Modern Art | $49.00 | View → |
| 18 | Grundlagen des Grafikdesigns | Coursera | California Institute of the Arts | $79.00 | View → |
| 19 | Experiencing Design: Deepening Your Design Thinking Practice | Coursera | University of Virginia | $49.00 | View → |
| 20 | Leadership Through Design Innovation | Coursera | Northwestern University | $79.00 | View → |
Prices shown are the provider's listed price when we last updated this page. Confirm on their site before enrolling.