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How courses & education businesses make money
The 1M.chat dataset has 171 courses & education businesses. 118 of them have a revenue figure the founder reported in an interview. Their median is $20.4K a month, and 26% were at $1M a year or more when interviewed, with a median team of 1 employee. The growth channels founders credited most often were organic social media (61%), SEO & organic search (45%), email & newsletters (33%).
Revenue at interview
| Under $1K/mo | 6 | |
| $1K–$10K/mo | 31 | |
| $10K–$50K/mo | 41 | |
| $50K–$83K/mo | 9 | |
| $1M+ a year | 28 | |
| $1M+ a month | 3 |
Growth channels credited
| Organic social media | 61% | |
| SEO & organic search | 45% | |
| Email & newsletters | 33% | |
| Word of mouth & referrals | 32% | |
| Paid ads | 32% |
Share of 87 businesses with channel information; founders often name several.
Business models in this group
| Courses & digital products | 82 | |
| Subscriptions (SaaS & memberships) | 41 | |
| Services, agency & consulting | 31 | |
| Ads, sponsorships & affiliate | 7 | |
| Selling physical products | 5 | |
| Marketplace commissions | 3 |
Tools named most: Instagram (39%), Google Drive (32%), Twitter (25%), YouTube (18%), Ahrefs (11%) — of 28 that listed tools.
Case studies
Read how they did it
- ContentCreator.com: online courses for video creators at $500K a monthOnline education platform teaching professional content creation skills to aspiring creators.$500K/mofounder-reported 2023
- Thomas Frank: Notion templates and tutorials at $175K a monthTeaches people how to use Notion and sells Notion templates for productivity and content creation.$175K/mofounder-reported 2023
- EntryLevel: tech skills courses for career starters at $40K a monthEntryLevel helps people learn tech skills and get project experience to land a tech job.$40K/mofounder-reported 2023
- Pathpages: selling Notion templates through short videos at $20K a monthPathPages sells all-in-one Notion templates to help people organize their lives and get things done.$20K/mofounder-reported 2024
Examples
Highest founder-reported revenues in this group
| Business | What it sells | Revenue / month | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stukent, Inc.Courses & education | digital courseware and marketing simulations for education | $2.2Mfounder interview 2019 | United States |
| HealthpreneurCourses & education | Coaching for health professionals to build online businesses | $1.3Mfounder interview 2023 | Canada |
| Boot.devCourses & education | Backend development coding courses | $1Mfounder interview 2023 | United States |
| AlertForceCourses & education | Health and safety compliance training courses | $650Kfounder interview 2021 | Australia |
| ContentCreator.comCourses & education | online content creation courses | $500K/mofounder interview 2023 | United States |
| Vizio Makeup AcademyCourses & education | online makeup artistry courses and kits | $300Kfounder interview | United States |
| New Law Business ...Courses & education | lawyer training and consulting programs | $300Kfounder interview | United States |
| Wall Street OasisCourses & education | Finance career community, courses and training | $300Kfounder interview | United States |
| Dropship UnlockedCourses & education | dropshipping coaching and education program | $290Kfounder interview 2023 | United Kingdom |
| Coffee and ContractsCourses & education | social media marketing templates for real estate | $250Kfounder interview 2021 | United States |
| Consulting SuccessCourses & education | consulting training programs | $240Kfounder interview | Canada |
| Ecom Crew PodcastCourses & education | Ecommerce blog, podcast and membership | $225Kfounder interview 2019 | United States |
| Jake & GinoCourses & education | Multifamily real estate investing education | $200Kfounder interview 2022 | United States |
| Personal Trainers...Courses & education | coaching program for fitness trainers | $200Kfounder interview 2023 | United States |
| Website Rental (R...Courses & education | coaching on building website rental income | $184Kfounder interview 2022 | United States |
| Thomas FrankCourses & education | Notion templates and productivity courses | $175K/mofounder interview 2023 | United States |
| Justin WelshCourses & education | Knowledge products on social media growth | $167Kfounder interview 2023 | United States |
| AchievableCourses & education | Online exam preparation courses | $150Kfounder interview | United States |
| Enotes NepalCourses & education | digital learning platform for Nepali students | $150Kfounder interview 2026 | Nepal |
| Product FocusCourses & education | Product management training courses and consulting | $150Kfounder interview 2022 | United Kingdom |
Revenue as the founder reported it in a Starter Story interview, at the interview date; not current revenue. “What it sells” is a 1M.chat summary. How this data is built
Questions
How much do courses & education businesses typically make?
Among 118 courses & education businesses with founder-reported revenue, the median was $20.4K a month at the time of the interview. The sample is founders who chose to be interviewed, so it leans toward businesses that were already working; treat it as a range of real outcomes, not an average for everyone who tries.
How many courses & education businesses reached $1M a year?
31 of 118 (26%) reported at least $83K a month, the run-rate for $1M a year.
How did courses & education businesses find customers?
Of 87 with growth-channel information, founders most often credited organic social media (61%), SEO & organic search (45%), email & newsletters (33%), word of mouth & referrals (32%), paid ads (32%). Channels are grouped by 1M.chat from what founders said worked.
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