Product manager is one of the fastest-growing, most sought-after roles in business.
In their Jobs on the Rise report, LinkedIn ranked product manager as one of the most promising jobs in the United States. And, in the last two years alone, there has been an estimated 26% growth in mid-level product management roles and a 51% growth in senior roles.
It’s no wonder that more and more professionals are pursuing an exciting, well-paid, and future-proof career in product management. At the same time, we’re seeing a growing number of product management courses cropping up on the market.
This is all great news for those looking to become a product manager. Just be sure to do your research before enrolling on a product management course. If you’re still weighing up whether or not it’s the right career path for you, we’ve created a free short course which offers a low-commitment way to find out.
To help you get started, we’ve selected our top picks based on extensive market research, including both free and paid options:
- Product Management Program by CareerFoundry
- Introduction to Product Management by Cognitir
- Product Toolkit by Product Lessons
- Product Management First Steps by LinkedIn Learning
- Product Manager Certification Course by Product School
- Product Management A-Z by Udemy
- Product Management Course by BrainStation
- Online Product Management Course by General Assembly
- Free Product Management Course by Great Learning Academy
- Product Manager Nanodegree by Udacity
Which product management course will you go for? Keep reading to learn more about our favorites.
1.Product Management Program by CareerFoundry
One of the leading career-change schools out there, CareerFoundry is offering is a fully mentored product management course. Fully online, it comes with the option of completing it in 3 months at 30-40 hrs/week, or studying flexibly, up to 6 months at 15-20 hrs/week.
Essentially, the CareerFoundry Product Management Program is aimed at beginners looking to emerge a job-ready product manager with a dedicated support system to help you along the way. You’ll learn the skills, tools, and responsibilities that professional PMs are expected to know in 2024.
The overall cost is $6,900, however the cost of the tuition is dependent on your location and is competitively priced, as well as being backed by a job guarantee.
2.Introduction to Product Management by Cognitir
A lightweight and affordable option for dipping into product management is Cognitir’s Introduction to Product Management course.
This online course takes around 12 hours to complete and has been designed with complete beginners in mind. The curriculum is divided into nine chapters, spanning topics such as the role of the product manager, software development methodologies, and the product manager job search.
You’ll be exposed to key practices such as A/B testing, wireframing, and leading user interviews, and you’ll try your hand at some of the most popular product management tools. Students also complete an in-class project to build a minimum viable product (MVP) for their own business idea.
The Cognitir product management course offers a collaborative learning environment, giving you the opportunity to discuss product management topics with fellow students and an expert instructor.
Access to the course costs $49 USD per month, and you’ll get a certificate of completion at the end.
3. Product Toolkit by Product Lessons
Third up is Product Lessons, a learning and resources hub founded by Linda Zhang, an expert product manager with experience at Microsoft, Bain & Company, and Snap Inc.
The Product Toolkit isn’t your average product management course. It comes with 76 lessons, 70 examples, 28 templates, and 11 videos—an all-encompassing and highly actionable toolbox ideal for both aspiring product managers and existing product leaders who want to level up their skills.
You can try a few lessons for free, or sign up for lifetime access with one of three paid plans. The Starter Kit costs $119 USD, the Essentials Kit costs $179, and the Premium Kit (which includes 60 minutes of 1:1 coaching to tailor the course materials to your exact needs) costs $499.
4. Product Management First Steps by LinkedIn Learning
If you’re a fan of LinkedIn Learning (or just want an affordable and not-too-intensive approach to learning product management), consider Product Management First Steps led by Doug Winnie, former Principal Product Manager at Adobe.
This is a beginner-level course which takes just under two hours to complete. There are eight core modules designed to give you a comprehensive overview of all things product management, including the day-to-day activities of a product manager, the skills every successful product manager needs, as well as the key stages in the product life cycle.
You can learn on-demand and on the go, and test your knowledge with quizzes along the way. At the end, you’ll get a shareable certificate of completion which you can add to your LinkedIn profile as proof of your new skills.
Priced at $29.99 USD, this is one of the more affordable product management courses on the market.
5. Product Manager Certification Course by Product School
Are you looking for a product management course with the goal of forging a career in the field? Then consider the Product Manager Certification Course offered by Product School. This comprehensive online course promises to equip you with everything you need to not only land your first product manager job, but to deliver results and prove yourself to your new employer.
The course costs $4,499 USD and takes 5 days to complete on a full-time basis or 8 weeks on a part-time basis, comprising 32.5 hours of live, online instructor-led lessons. After enrolling, you’ll unlock your access to on-demand videos, templates, and tools, and you’ll be part of a student forum. The curriculum itself includes group activities and a final project (a product presentation which you’ll give in the last lesson).
This is a great course for those looking to learn practical product management skills and obtain a professional certification in the field.
6. Product Management A-Z by Udemy
Another lightweight and not-too-pricey option is the Product Management A-Z course available on the popular platform Udemy.
The course comprises 4.5 hours of on-demand video, one downloadable resource, and six articles, as well as practical assignments and a certificate of completion at the end. The content is geared towards beginners, starting from the basics of what product management is and what a product manager does, before moving on to job-specific skills and tools such as user research, specs, user stories, product roadmaps, and more.
The final part of the curriculum focuses on how to prepare for a product management interview. However, don’t expect to land a job off the back of this course alone; view it as an introduction to the field.
The standard course price is $19.99 USD, although they often have discounts on so you can likely get your hands on it for less.
7. Product Management Course by BrainStation
If you’re an aspiring product manager ready to make a more substantial investment in a course, BrainStation offers an online program for $3,250 USD.
The BrainStation product management course promises to teach cutting-edge skills in product strategy, Agile methodology, Lean product development, wireframing, prototyping, and more to help you become a qualified product manager. You’ll attend live online classes led by industry experts, join breakout sessions to complete group projects, and connect with fellow learners via the BrainStation Slack community.
As you work through the course, you’ll also build your product management portfolio—a crucial asset when it comes to demonstrating your skills to employers.
The BrainStation course takes between 5 and 10 weeks to complete depending on your chosen pace.
8. Online Product Management Course by General Assembly
Whether you want to study intensively over a short period of time or at a steady pace alongside your job, General Assembly’s online product management course offers an immersive and practical route into the field.
If you opt for the full-time pace, you’ll attend online classes for a week (Monday to Saturday, 9am-5pm). If you choose the part-time course, you’ll attend four hours of classes spread over two evenings a week, over the course of ten weeks.
Whichever format you go for, you’ll learn the most in-demand product management skills with a focus on Agile best practices, stakeholder management, and data-driven decision-making. You’ll also complete a practical project as part of the course, giving you your first case study for your product management portfolio.
The General Assembly product management course costs $3,950 USD with a range of payment plans and financing options available.
9. Free Product Management Course by Great Learning Academy
If you’re keen to start learning product management but aren’t ready to commit to a paid course, this free product management course offered by Great Learning Academy is an excellent entry point.
Ideal for beginners, the course starts with the basics of product management before moving through to more advanced topics such as the product life cycle, developing a product management strategy, and product innovation. The course also includes a module on the role of a product manager so you’ll know exactly what to expect if you’re considering a career in the field.
You can complete the course online, at your own pace, in approximately 2-3 hours. This free course won’t equip you to get a job as a product manager, but it will give you a solid introduction to the industry.
If you enjoy the free course, Great Learning Academy also offers a more comprehensive PG Program in Product Management and Analytics.
10. Product Manager Nanodegree by Udacity
Our final option is another one from a popular provider of online courses, Udacity.
The Udacity Product Manager Nanodegree is a comprehensive course that pledges to teach you the skills you need to become a successful product manager.
The nanodegree is broken up into four product management courses:
- Introduction
- Product strategy
- Product design
- Product development
As you can see, each section focusses on an area of the product development process where PMs will be getting involved. The courses give you an idea of how each area works, and what is expected of the product manager when working there. The program is taught by experienced product managers from Google and other leading companies.
You can pay for the Udacity subscription month-to-month at a cost of $249, but you can buy 4 months (the recommended length of time) in one go at a 15% discount of $846.
Wrap-up
So there you have it: a selection of the best product management courses currently available on the market. By now you should have a good idea of the options out there and what they can offer to you.
The next step involves doing further research, and a bit of self-examination: What kind of factors are important to you when choosing a course? It could be your learning style (videos vs live lectures vs reading materials), how you are motivated (self-motivated vs having accountability), as well as resources such as free time and, naturally, money.
Once you’ve worked out what is best for you, then dig deeper into your shortlist of possible product management courses, investigate their reviews, check out where their graduates work now, and reach out to them.
The next steps is to book a chat with a program advisor to have any further burning questions answered, as well as guidance on your path.
Want to learn more about starting a career in product management? Continue with these handy guides: