LinkedIn Learning vs Lynda – What’s Different?

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In 2015, LinkedIn identified the need to own an e-learning platform that would allow LinkedIn users to learn new skills and add certificates to their portfolio.

In this article, we’ll go through the key differences between LinkedIn Learning vs Lynda and how they compare.

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LinkedIn Learning vs Lynda – A Comparison

If you’re wondering about the key differences between LinkedIn Learning and Lynda, here are the main things that LinkedIn has added:

• LinkedIn Certificates
• Access to LinkedIn Premium
• Personalized Courses: LinkedIn has connected your LinkedIn profile to your learning platform, so you’re given course suggestions that line up with your LinkedIn.

How Lynda and LinkedIn Merged

Lynda.com was an online learning platform that was in existence ever since 1995. Founded by Lynda Weinman, the platform quickly grew in popularity in the 2000s. Through the years 2000 to 2010, hundreds of courses were added each year, and the platform grew by the day.

Simultaneously, LinkedIn started to gather a huge following. It established itself as the platform to go to for employers, job seekers, and it became a hotbed of the B2B industry.

And as the pool of job seekers grew and grew, LinkedIn identified a weak spot and an opportunity – this opportunity was to offer courses on their own platform which would be added as certificates to a client’s LinkedIn profile upon completion.

But they were presented with a problem: they would need to create an extraordinary amount of courses in a relatively short amount of time. It was just not going to work.

The solution?

And a massive task awaited: the migration of thousands of courses from Lynda.com to LinkedIn Learning, plus a plethora of logistical issues such as login credentials, mobile apps, and much more.

This task was completed in 2019 but the question is: how did LinkedIn do this and what’s stayed the same, and what’s different?

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The Differences Between LinkedIn Learning and Lynda.com

A lot of what was known as Lynda still remains the same with LinkedIn Learning. There are no massive differences between the two. On the eye, the design is different and of course, the name.

But if we dive deeper, we can find some small differences that actually matter a lot, especially if you’re looking to enhance your career. So what are they?

Courses on Offer and Content

All the courses from Lynda.com are available now on LinkedIn Learning. There are more than 15.000 courses to choose from, so we can say that in this respect, the platforms are very similar if not the same.

Of course, LinkedIn has added some of its own courses in the meantime, and they are taught by professionals and experts only. So we can say that content-wise, the platforms are very similar.

But what made Lynda so appealing for LinkedIn when they were considering the purchase in 2015 were the courses available on the platform. The foundation, the base of the courses on Lynda was already good enough, and the courses were mainly focused on skills and they were business-like courses, which suited LinkedIn very well.

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Pricing and Trial

The price of LinkedIn Learning has stayed exactly the same as the price of Lynda. So in that regard, not much has changed. There are two pricing plans available:

Monthly – $29.99
Yearly – $299.88 or $24.99 monthly payments

This is one aspect that hasn’t changed at all. And on top of this, you’re also getting a free trial with LI Learning, something that was already the case with Lynda.

LinkedIn Integration – the Game Changer

So for now, most of the stuff we’ve reviewed has stayed the same. But arguably the biggest difference that makes LinkedIn Learning more appealing is the integration with the Linkedin profile of the user.

And that’s something that’s changed since the days of Lynda. Back then, you were still getting certificates for course completion, but there was no way of implementing them to your LinkedIn profile.

Today, we know just how powerful the LinkedIn profile can be when searching for a new job. And the ability to add new courses to our LinkedIn profile can enhance our chances massively of getting that job we desire.

You’re also getting access to LinkedIn Premium for the price of the subscription, which adds a couple of very useful features to the table.

These are the main differences in this respect:

• Personalized course recommendations based on your LinkedIn profile
• Certificate integration with your LinkedIn profile upon completion
• View what other people in your industry are learning
• InMail capability with LI Premium, which allows you to directly contact hiring managers
• See who viewed your profile

So we would say these are the main changes that make LinkedIn Learning different from Lynda. For the most part, these changes are very positive since LinkedIn is such an important platform these days.

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How Do the Platforms Compare in Terms of Design?

One thing that we haven’t talked about yet is the design of these two platforms. Are they different or are they similar?

You’ll find many different opinions on this matter, and it’s mostly down to personal preference, really. Some will say they liked the Lynda video platform much better as it offered more functionality. You had button functions included and keyboard shortcuts, and the experience was a bit more seamless.

Others will tell you that LinkedIn’s integration made it easier for them to use the platform as they had courses personalized and tailored specifically for them.

But LinkedIn is definitely looking to improve on this. It’s still fairly fresh so we can certainly expect some more changes in the following years.

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The Bottom Line

To conclude, we can say that these two platforms are very similar in essence. In terms of content, they offer the same courses, and the pricing options are the same.

The key differences come in the form of integration with your LinkedIn profile, which is, no doubt, a game-changer. LinkedIn Learning is still evolving, and many of us are excited about the future of the platform.

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