Why 85% Of Online Courses Fail & What Smart Creators Are Doing Instead In 2025
Over 85% of online courses fail to deliver the results creators hope for. Meanwhile, community-driven platforms are quietly helping more people succeed—over half of their users are building steady income. Here’s why the learning landscape is shifting, and what it means for your next course.
The Harsh Truth Behind Online Course Dropouts
You create a course. You launch it. A few people sign up. But by the second week? Most of them have disappeared. If this sounds familiar, you're not alone—and it isn't your fault.
, most online courses are built on a flawed model. Research shows that traditional course platforms (like MOOCs) have dropout rates as high as 98%, with over 85% being the norm. That's billions of dollars lost in time, effort, and opportunity—and millions of learners left behind halfway through.
What Learners Actually Want (Hint: It Isn't More Video Lessons)
But while the old system struggles, a new approach is gaining momentum: community-based learning. Instead of static video lessons and lonely progress trackers, these platforms bring people together in interactive spaces with shared goals, built-in accountability, and—most importantly—real human connection.
In fact, surveys show that 73% of online learners prefer platforms that include community support, and 85% of users in community-based environments report better skills and more engagement. The difference is huge—it's a full-blown learning revolution.
How Learning Communities Keep People Coming Back
So, what's driving this shift?
Community platforms like Mighty Networks and integrate features like live chats, discussion forums, gamified progress tracking, and peer feedback—all designed to keep people engaged, learning, and achieving success. These platforms create "engagement loops"—cycles of motivation, interaction, and visible progress that traditional courses don't offer.
"Most courses fail not because the content is bad, but because people are expected to learn alone," says an expert at Skool Community, a research hub focused on education trends and creator success. "When you bring community into the mix, everything changes."
Skool Community has been following this trend closely and offers resources to help creators make the switch—from platform comparisons and pricing to tutorials and real-life success stories.
Resources for Creators
If you're planning to create (or re-create) your next online course, take note of what today's top creators are doing differently. For anyone ready to embrace community-based learning, platforms like offer expert advice to help you get started—without reinventing the wheel.
Because maybe it's not your course that's the problem. Maybe it's the system you've been told to trust.
