Is Coursera profitable in 2026?

Coursera posted a FY2025 net loss of $51.0 million despite $757 million revenue, but generated $78 million free cash flow that year. Q1 2026 free cash flow margin collapsed to about 1.5 percent, down from roughly 14% a year earlier, as of April 23, 2026.

Could AI replace Coursera?

Coursera's own AI tutor, Coursera Coach, runs on Google Gemini and is embedded in 97% of courses as of January 2026, meaning generic frontier AI models already substitute much of the tutoring and content layer Coursera sells, per company disclosures.

Who is Coursera's biggest competitor?

Microsoft, via LinkedIn Learning and Microsoft Learn, is Coursera's most structurally dangerous rival, holding superior enterprise distribution and professional system-of-record positioning that Coursera's 18,000 enterprise customers, as of May 11, 2026, cannot easily match.

Did Coursera acquire Udemy?

Yes, Coursera closed an all-stock acquisition of Udemy on May 11, 2026, worth about $930 million in equity, creating a combined platform reporting roughly 290 million learners, 18,000 enterprise customers, and 95,000 instructors.

Is Coursera laying off employees in 2026?

Yes, Coursera announced post-merger layoffs on July 6-7, 2026 expecting $8-11 million in severance charges, followed by a California WARN notice filed July 14, 2026 confirming 31 job cuts in Mountain View effective September 11, 2026.

Is Coursera stock risky in 2026?

Coursera's market cap sat around $1.5 to 1.7 billion as of July 22, 2026, after shares traded in a volatile $5.00 to $13.56 52-week range and fell on an EPS miss in the April 23, 2026 Q1 report, despite a new $500 million buyback program.

Job boards and HR platforms · United States

Coursera

coursera.org ↗

Online learning platform offering university-backed courses, certificates, and degrees to 200M+ learners.

Losing its protection

Assessed 22 July 2026 · Evidence as of 22 July 2026

The structural protection is eroding.

On the recordSince 22 July 2026 · Checkable from July 23, 2026 · Every call on the record Checkpoint: Q2 2026 earnings, first full quarter with Udemy merged, tests whether $115M in synergies show up

The call

Coursera still grows and generates cash, but its margins are thinning while Microsoft's distribution and free AI tutors both squeeze the same content layer it sells.

Coursera sells online courses and degree programs to students and companies. It is hard to replace because it has partnerships with real universities and accredits degrees, but Microsoft's LinkedIn Learning has a big advantage because millions of professionals already use LinkedIn for work, and free AI tutors like ChatGPT and Google Gemini can answer many of the same questions for nothing. The real test is whether Coursera's recent merger with Udemy creates enough cost savings and new customers to stop it from shrinking, or whether the money-losing deal makes things worse.

Why

AI pressure: OpenAI ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Anthropic Claude tutoring. Free AI tutors now teach the same skills Coursera sells, and Coursera's own Coach runs on Google Gemini underneath. Could AI do the core job? Yes, likely.

Bigger players: Microsoft, via LinkedIn Learning and Microsoft Learn. Microsoft already owns the professional network and workplace login, so it can push learning content straight into where people already work. Could a giant copy it? Yes, easily.

What protects it. Accredited university degrees and enterprise contracts that require formal credentials, something a chatbot cannot legally issue.

What would change this call

Q2 2026 earnings (July 23, 2026) show consumer growth below prior 10% pace. would indicate free AI tutoring is displacing casual learners.
Coursera names enterprise logos lost to LinkedIn Learning or Microsoft Learn bundles. would confirm Microsoft's distribution edge is converting into direct customer loss.
Udemy integration produces two consecutive quarters of consumer segment decline. would show the merger failed to offset competitive and margin pressure.

Key numbers

FY2025 revenue $757M, up 9% (2026-02-05)
Q1 2026 free cash flow margin fell to 1.5% (2026-04-23)
200M+ cumulative learners as of Q1 2026 (2026-04-23)

Named risks

Margin collapse: FCF margin fell from ~14% to ~1.5% in Q1 2026. Severity: high
Post-Udemy integration friction and ongoing 2026-2027 layoffs. Severity: high
AI content commoditization since Coach itself is built on Google Gemini. Severity: high
Enterprise segment share loss to Microsoft/LinkedIn Learning distribution edge. Severity: medium
Stock volatility with 52-week range $5.00-$13.56 and analyst target cuts. Severity: medium

Rivals, as read in July 2026

Rival	Direction	Evidence
Microsoft (LinkedIn Learning, Microsoft Learn)	gaining on	Superior enterprise distribution and system-of-record positioning vs. Coursera's 18,000 enterprise customers, May 2026
Google Gemini, OpenAI, Anthropic (frontier AI tutoring)	contesting	Coursera Coach itself runs on Gemini, commoditizing generic tutoring layer as of Jan 2026
edX/2U	contesting	Rated most similar direct positioning to Coursera in third-party comparisons, June 2026
Udemy	gaining on	Former rival absorbed via $930M merger closed May 11, 2026, ending independent competition

Questions people ask

Is Coursera profitable in 2026?: Coursera posted a FY2025 net loss of $51.0 million despite $757 million revenue, but generated $78 million free cash flow that year. Q1 2026 free cash flow margin collapsed to about 1.5 percent, down from roughly 14% a year earlier, as of April 23, 2026.
Could AI replace Coursera?: Coursera's own AI tutor, Coursera Coach, runs on Google Gemini and is embedded in 97% of courses as of January 2026, meaning generic frontier AI models already substitute much of the tutoring and content layer Coursera sells, per company disclosures.
Who is Coursera's biggest competitor?: Microsoft, via LinkedIn Learning and Microsoft Learn, is Coursera's most structurally dangerous rival, holding superior enterprise distribution and professional system-of-record positioning that Coursera's 18,000 enterprise customers, as of May 11, 2026, cannot easily match.
Did Coursera acquire Udemy?: Yes, Coursera closed an all-stock acquisition of Udemy on May 11, 2026, worth about $930 million in equity, creating a combined platform reporting roughly 290 million learners, 18,000 enterprise customers, and 95,000 instructors.
Is Coursera laying off employees in 2026?: Yes, Coursera announced post-merger layoffs on July 6-7, 2026 expecting $8-11 million in severance charges, followed by a California WARN notice filed July 14, 2026 confirming 31 job cuts in Mountain View effective September 11, 2026.
Is Coursera stock risky in 2026?: Coursera's market cap sat around $1.5 to 1.7 billion as of July 22, 2026, after shares traded in a volatile $5.00 to $13.56 52-week range and fell on an EPS miss in the April 23, 2026 Q1 report, despite a new $500 million buyback program.

Timeline

2026-07-14WARN notice filed for 31 Mountain View layoffs effective September 11, 2026
2026-07-07Coursera announces post-merger layoffs, expects $8-11M in severance charges
2026-05-11Coursera closes Udemy merger, combined entity reports ~290M learners
2026-04-23Q1 2026 results show FCF margin drop to ~1.5% and EPS miss
2026-04-09Stockholders approve Coursera-Udemy merger
2026-02-05FY2025 results: revenue $757M, up 9% YoY, net loss $51M
2025-12-17Coursera announces all-stock acquisition of Udemy for ~$930M equity
2025-02-01Greg Hart becomes CEO, succeeding Jeff Maggioncalda
2024-11-01WARN notice filed for 61 layoffs
2021-03-31Coursera IPOs at $33/share, ~$4.3B valuation

Revision history

22 July 2026

First assessed. Losing its protection. The text above is fixed as of this date and is not edited afterwards.

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