You probably never got a formal education in finance.
In fact, just 23 states in the United States require high school students to take a course in personal finance, according to the Council for Economic Education as of 2022.
It’s no surprise they also found only 1 in 4 Millennials demonstrate basic financial literacy and 40% of Americans have less than $300 in savings.
So, really, it’s up to you to get your own personal finance education. You can’t wait on the government to do it for you.
But here are the good news:
You don’t need to pay thousands to get college-grade classes on personal finance.
There are many online platforms waiting for you to come and learn how to reduce debt, prepare for emergencies, and set yourself up for financial independence.
We combed through pages (and pages) of reviews to bring you the best ones:
#1) Personal and Family Financial Planning Class—brought to you by the University of Florida
In the class you’ll learn the critical personal finance topics you need to be able to build good habits on your own. As of March 2025, 177,042 people have enrolled.
Promising review: “One of the best courses for anyone not familiar with any financial concept, and also for the professionals as a refresher course of the basics. This will help the learner to know the important of finance management, and learn the skills of managing the finance, and plan for the future. Prof. Gutter explains well, and in an easy to understand language without jargons. The assignments and readings are interesting, and have the right level of challenge without being too difficult, or having complicated calculations. Majority of the concepts are generally applicable regardless of your location, and even those with the US laws or other specific things can be easily understandable as they are similar to the laws in the other nations. Highly recommended!” — Darshan, MD
How to enroll: On Coursera Plus, get a free trial for 7 days through this link.
#2) Financial Planning for Young Adults by the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Financial Planning for Young Adults (FPYA), developed in partnership with the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, is tailored for yound adults starting their careers (158,074 have enrolled already).
It’s like having a professional financial planner holding you by the hand, helping you define your own financial goals—and giving you the tools to achieve them.
Promising review: “Great especially if you’re not very financially literate. The course breaks it down to manageable pieces that makes everything feel doable – even if it formerly scared me to think about my finances. Absolutely can attribute my future budgeting knowledge to this course.” — Clarence A
How to enroll: Get a free trial of Coursera Plus for 7 days.
#3) The Fab Four of Personal Finance by Son Han, CFA, CPA—recommended by Forbes
This is the perfect class for anyone just starting out on their own personal finance journey. More than 15,000 people have signed up to learn about the core four tenants of personal finance.
The lecturer, Son Han, is a child of refugee parents, so he understands poverty. After being $60,000 in debt fresh out of college and overcoming it, he became passionate about personal finance and helping the average person get their money in order.
Promising review: “I have never been so confident about diving into my personal finances and taking steps towards figuring out and achieving my financial goals! As a recent college graduate, I have been more anxious about finances than anything, and something about the way Son teaches this course really made things click. His teaching style is so beginner friendly and this material is so accessible and simple to follow which I really appreciate. I am more excited than ever to put the things I have learned into practice and I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders. Thank you, thank you, thank you!” — Mikayla Rafferty
How to enroll: Access it with a free 7-day trial of Skillshare.
#4) Master Your Money by Cal Hyslop—an MBA and University Instructor
Learning what you need to know to take control of your finances is easy. What’s hard is staying motivated. This class teaches that. It’s all you need to know about personal finance, investing, and productivity as a beginner.
As of March 2025, 9,519 people already took it and learned how to get their finances under control and set themselves up to retire early.
Promising review: “Thank you for your lesson. The fundamental knowledge that everyone should understand. The well-organized lesson, well structure, enough information. I wish I came across this platform when I started working. I’ve since created unhealthy spending habits and currently repaying my debt so I can be debt free and be able to afford a house one day. I have taken all the tips and have started implementing them. Highly recommend.” — Thi Le Thieu Nguyen
How to enroll: Get started with a free trial of Skillshare (all you’ll need is an email address).
Overall all courses listed above are beginner-friendly and show you the essential tools and timeless strategies to master personal finance—no complicated jargon or advanced math required. And you can start today, finish by tomorrow.
The best part? The small investment can change your life forever. It will make future you say “thank you, past me.”
The classes make it easy to understand your money and to get ahead of 80% of people (who wait for the governement and are afraid of the word “finance”) if you actually apply what you learned.
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