Best Free Courses on Coursera

Top Free Courses to Audit (Full Access Without Payment)

These highly popular courses allow you to watch lectures, complete quizzes, and learn at your own pace for free (certificate optional):

The Science of Well‑Being – Yale University (boost your happiness and productivity) Reddit+6Reddit+6LinkedIn+6 Coursera+7Coursera+7Coursera+7
Learning How to Learn: Powerful Mental Tools – Deep Teaching Solutions (proven study tricks and brain hacks) Coursera+9Coursera+9Coursera+9
Programming for Everybody (Getting Started with Python) – University of Michigan (excellent intro to coding) Coursera+2LinkedIn+2moocable.com+2
Algorithms, Part I – Princeton University (foundational algorithm concepts) Lifewire+10Coursera+10LinkedIn+10
Financial Markets – Yale University (finance fundamentals and risk) LinkedMint+6Coursera+6LinkedIn+6
Successful Negotiation: Essential Strategies and Skills – University of Michigan (enhance communication and influence) Lifewire+8Coursera+8moocable.com+8
English for Career Development – University of Pennsylvania (professional English skills) Coursera Blog+4Coursera+4LinkedIn+4
Introduction to Data Science in Python – University of Michigan (data analysis using Python tools) Reddit+7LinkedMint+7LinkedIn+7
Cybersecurity for Everyone – University of Maryland (basic cybersecurity awareness) New York Post+5LinkedIn+5Coursera+5
Foundations of Project Management – Google (core project management essentials) Coursera+4LinkedIn+4Coursera Blog+4

These reflect top growth areas in AI, business skills, and digital careers:

AI for Everyone – DeepLearning.AI / Andrew Ng (non-technical AI overview) Lifewire+4LinkedIn+4moocable.com+4
Machine Learning – Stanford University / Andrew Ng (the classic ML foundation course) Reddit+3LinkedIn+3Wikipedia+3
Python for Data Science, AI & Development – IBM (practical Python for AI/data tasks) Forbes+8LinkedIn+8Coursera Blog+8
Generative AI: Prompt Engineering Basics – IBM (Scalable prompt engineering skills) LinkedIn+1Lifewire+1
Introduction to TensorFlow for AI/ML/DL – DeepLearning.AI (build and train neural networks) LinkedIn+1Lifewire+1

Based on usage patterns among South African learners:

The Science of Well‑Being; Learning How to Learn; Financial Markets; Introduction to Psychology; Social Psychology; Successful Negotiation; Python for Everybody; Tools for Data Science (IBM) Reddit+9Coursera+9Uni24.co.za+9

Search or Browse “Popular Free Courses” on Coursera or use filters (Price → Free) to find relevant courses Coursera Blog+15Coursera+15Gometa+15
Choose “Audit” during enrollment to access lectures and quizzes at no cost—certificate and graded assignments may be locked LinkedIn
If you want a certificate but can’t pay, apply for Coursera Financial Aid—if approved, fees may be waived or reduced Reddit

Highly rated, frequently updated, and well-reviewed (e.g., top below yale and Princeton) Coursera Coursera
Broad appeal, spanning soft-skills, tech, finance, personal growth, and language
Taught by experts—e.g., Andrew Ng, Yale, Princeton, Google, IBM
Become career-relevant with manageable learning commitment and core competencies

Goal	Recommended Courses
Increase productivity & well-being	The Science of Well‑Being; Learning How to Learn
Get started in coding or data science	Programming for Everybody; Intro to Data Science in Python
Enter AI/ML field	AI for Everyone → Machine Learning → TensorFlow → Prompt Engineering
Learn career-critical skills	Project Management; Negotiation; Cybersecurity; Financial Markets