The 8 Best Online Digital Art Classes to Take Now (2023 Reviews & Rankings)

With the best online digital art classes, you can learn how to create stunning digital art for fun or as a professional. You’ll also be able to develop your own unique style, and explore new techniques that you may not have had access to otherwise.

Whether you’re just getting started in digital art, or you’re looking to take your skills to the next level, the online digital art courses will give you the guidance and support you need to succeed.

There are a number of different online digital art courses available, so it’s important to choose one that’s right for you.

Here are some things to consider when choosing an online digital art course:

• The cost of the course: Some courses are free, while others can be quite expensive. It’s important to consider the cost of the course before you enroll, as it can be a significant investment.
• The level of the course: Some digital art courses are geared towards beginners, while others are more advanced. Make sure you choose a course that’s appropriate for your skill level.
• The duration of the course: Some courses are short and concise, while others are more comprehensive. Consider how much time you’re willing to commit to the course before you enroll.
• The equipment you’ll need: Some courses might require you to have access to specific digital art software and other equipment, so make sure you’re aware of these requirements before signing up.

With that in mind, we’ve reviewed and ranked the best digital art courses online based on these key factors and others, including instructor credentials and student reviews.

This guide has been fully updated for 2023 to give you current, accurate info to help you make the most informed decision.

Disclosure: Some of the links in this article are affiliate links, meaning at no additional cost for you, we might get a commission if you click the link and purchase.

 

How We Chose the Best Online Public Speaking Courses

We reviewed dozens of online courses to find the best ones for learning digital artwork techniques. With each of the online classes we looked at, we considered the following:

• Curriculum Quality–We carefully analyzed the syllabus and course outlines of each class we looked to get an understanding of everything being taught. Additionally, we watched video lectures from each of the online courses to get a better idea of the quality of instruction.
• Instructor Qualifications--We looked into each instructor’s educational background and experience in the field to ensure that they are qualified to teach the course material.
• User Reviews–We also read reviews and ratings from real users who have taken these online courses to see what other students had to say.
• Overall Value–Finally, we compared the cost of each online course to what you are getting in return. We wanted to make sure that students were getting a great deal for their money.

After reviewing a number of courses, we were able to curate a list of what we believe are the 8 best online classes for learning digital art.

 

What are the Best Online Digital Art Classes in 2023?

Here are our picks for the top digital art courses worth taking now…

1. Intro to Digital Painting: Procreate to Photoshop! A Beginner-Friendly Guide (Skillshare)

Price

Skillshare offers a 1-Month Free Trial. After that, the price is $167.88 per year. See our Skillshare review for more info.

Duration

1 hr 29 mins, broken down to 11 lessons.

If you’re just starting off, this course is great for you! This is because it covers everything from detailed techniques to sourcing painting tools on a budget. It takes you through both Procreate and Photoshop and also touches upon the pros and cons of both. The best part about this course is that the instructor has links available for many other skills related to the same topic; meaning that you can keep learning and practicing without having to change your instructor or learning methodologies.

The course aims to answer all your queries (even the silly ones, such as ‘where is that button?!’) and will also provide recommendations for the best hardware and software tools according to your needs and budget. All of their videos are averagely 7-15 mins long, so you can squeeze them into your schedule quite easily. It also includes a class project which you can be proud of later!

What You Will Learn

• An introduction to digital painting
• Comparing traditional painting with digital and why the latter is better
• How to develop a smooth workflow for yourself
• Comparison between Photoshop and Procreate; identifying which of the two suits you best
• How to illustrate memory maps
• Setting up your system

Beat for beginners on a budget!

 

2. Drawing People: Creating Unique and Dynamic Character Poses in Procreate (Skillshare)

Price

Skillshare offers a 1-Month Free Trial. After that, the price is $167.88 per year.

Duration

1 hr 17 mins to complete this course.

Keen to make comics or human figures? This course is for you! Readily available on SkillShare, this course aims to make you a pro in sketching humans, all within roughly an hour! If you have tried this before then you’d know how much of a tough skill this is to master and if you haven’t, then you’re sure in for a pleasant adventure.

The course provides you with detailed lessons on several topics related to drawing human figures, including proportions, gestures, poses, and much more. You won’t have to stick to painting landscapes, scenery, or lifeless objects because after taking this course, you’d have learned enough to paint a human figure doing anything from sitting, to complex yoga poses.

What You Will Learn

• Gestural drawing
• Understanding the human body in terms of proportion, variation, form
• How to get your proportions to look accurate
• Navigating your way through different characters and body shapes
• How to make different character designs and poses
• Stylizing silhouettes
• How to add texture and details
• Cleaning your sketches to make them look crisp

Best for people who’re interested to draw human figures.

 

3. Complete Beginner’s Guide to Digital Art (Udemy)

Price

Varies

Duration

23.5 hours.

If you’re looking for a course that takes you from the bottom to making you a pro, your search ends here. This course is available on udemy.com and offers an in-depth insight into digital art. The instructor doesn’t require any prior knowledge; he’ll be happy to teach you how to draw even a line!

The best thing about this course is that it doesn’t just cover digital art; it takes you through what art is, generically. You can be an absolute novice and still emerge out of this course as a master of digital art! It introduces the basics of digital painting in a way that is easy to absorb, thereby ensuring an informational experience.

What You Will Learn

• An introduction to line drawing
• Understanding simple shapes and their relationship with lines
• Hard-edged shapes
• How to digitally color a drawing
• How lines and shapes can be used to convey what is observed
• How to deal with problems that arise when drawing digitally

Best for individuals who want a detailed experience.

 

4. Develop Your Digital Art Style: Draw One Illustration Six Ways (Skillshare)

Price

Skillshare offers a 1-Month Free Trial. After that, the price is $167.88 per year. See our Skillshare pricing guide for more info.

Duration

You can complete this course over a total of 1 hr 42 mins.

If you’re on the lookout for developing your art style, this might be the right option. Identifying your art style can be quite a confusing thing to do but taking this course will definitely set you on the right path leading to it; and then, of course, your creations become a lot more individualistic and have a personal touch to them.

The curriculum is based on mainly Procreate and Photoshop, going through different ways of stylizing a sketch. The most unique thing about this course is that you don’t need to have both apps to learn digital art, because the techniques taught are mostly interchangeable; meaning that you have full room to explore and move forward with what you’re more comfortable with.

All of this, without having any major knowledge of the subject!

What You Will Learn

• Dynamics of the color palette
• What are bold linez and offset colors
• Color pencils, soft pencils, watercolors, and ink
• How all the mediums can be incorporated together

Best for learning about art styles

 

5. Digitally Painting Visual Effects in Photoshop (Pluralsight)

Price

Get access to this course and others for $29 per month (or $16.58/month when billed annually). Try Pluralsight free for 10 days! (see our Pluralsight review for more info)

Duration

The total duration is approximately 1 hr and 52 mins long.

If you already have some familiarity with digital art and are looking to up your game, make sure you consider this course. Designed to cover both Photoshop and After Effects, this course takes you through the intricate art of animation. You will learn a number of tools and techniques which will help you add visual effects to your illustrations.

You only need a couple of hours to complete this course which means that you can take it up on a weekend or between your free hours, to emerge as a skillful artist in less than a day.

What You Will Learn

• How to set up a project in Photoshop
• Creating a ghoul face
• Matching the ghoul face with the footage
• Adding facial details and side views
• How to incorporate the PSD project into After Effects
• Motion tracking
• Animating the open mouth of the ghoul
• Integration techniques
• How to apply tracking information
• Working on the reveal and side reveal
• How to add final effects

Best for animation enthusiasts!

 

6. Ultimate Guide to Digital Sketching: Beginner to Advanced (Udemy)

Price

Varies

Duration

You can complete this course within 5.5 hours.

This course briefly touches upon the basics of digital art and goes as far as making you an expert. Offered by udemy.com, it includes a certificate of completion and their resources are also available for a lifetime, so you can backtrack anytime without any further charges.

This course aims to teach you digital sketching and how to draw skilled images, along with building a solid portfolio to showcase your skills. This will help you garner more opportunities in the future and also enable you to improve your style. In almost a week, you can go from knowing nothing about the subject to creating professional drawings, all with just a drawing tablet.

What You Will Learn

• Sketching still life
• How to draw better
• Fine-tuning your sketches with digital tools
• Digital sketching, both imaginative and still life
• How to produce concept art
• Which brushes are most useful
• Which digital techniques come in handy in improving sketch quality
• Sketching images for games and films

Best for people who are looking for an all-rounded experience.

 

7. Digital Painting (CG Master Academy)

Price

This course is available for $699 including the registration fee, and also has financial aid available.

Duration

The estimated duration of this course is 8 weeks.

This intermediate-level course can cater to both beginners and experienced artists because it covers introductory lessons, as well as advanced topics in the later stage. It aims to make you learn the fundamentals of digital painting along with introducing you to the medium. This course will then take you through complex concepts such as edge control and composition, all the while being extremely easy to grasp.

You will also be required to do weekly assignments that help polish your skills and if any time you’re stuck or have issues, there’s a Q&A every week to facilitate you. They promise to strengthen your art foundations so if you’re just starting out and don’t want your initial concepts messed up, this course is great for you!

What You Will Learn

• How to paint material surfaces
• Studying skills in isolation
• How to digitally draw and add finishing touches
• How to observe and paint
• Studying primitive forms and shapes
• Importance of drawing fundamentals
• Exploring color and texture
• Studying master artists to understand their ideas and techniques
• Composition with the help of designing shapes

Best for people searching for sketch-improving courses.

 

8. Introduction to Concept Art & Digital Illustration (CG Spectrum)

Price

This course is available for 3 payments of $1,185/ month.

Duration

Term 1 of this course is 12 weeks long, with an estimated pace of 20 hours per week.

This course focuses more on film and games-based art and is tailored to befit fresh grads looking to pursue a career in digital art. Anatomy and designing characters are just a few of the things that you will learn in this course. It also aims to polish your skills by introducing unique briefs that help you develop your ideas.

The course instructor will help you understand the fundamentals of digital art and also take the learnings as far as enabling a career in the field. This course is based on an industry-approved curriculum, so your chances of bagging a good job soon after this course are pretty high.

What You Will Learn

• How to create art for film, games, and publishing
• Adope Photoshop techniques
• Understanding color, value, and line
• Importance of studying anatomy
• Perspective drawing
• Creating thumbnails
• Gathering references and ideas
• How to clean up the sketches
• Value mapping and rendering
• How to polish your drawings

Best for individuals interested in concept art.

 

A Final Word on Taking Digital Art Classes Online

If you’ve just stepped into the world of digital art, taking up an online course can be highly beneficial for you since it doesn’t have any major requirements, as opposed to traditional painting.

It’s extremely convenient to take up an online course as you can easily schedule it around your other commitments. It’s also a great way to connect with other artists from around the world and get feedback on your work, which can be highly motivating.

So what are you waiting for? Get started on your journey to becoming a digital artist!

Have any questions about our guide to the best online digital art classes? Let us know by dropping a comment below.