Quick Access:

• Foundations: Free Animation Process, Adobe Animate
• Hand-Drawn: Digital Animation in Adobe Suite
• Frame-by-frame: Mixed Media Animation in Procreate
• 3D animation: Maya for Beginners, Blender Character Creation.

You’re probably familiar with popular animated movies and TV shows from Disney and Dreamworks. The Lion King, Toy Story, Finding Nemo, and The Incredibles are some of my childhood favorites. If it’s your dream to create such amazing animations yourself, you’ve come to the right place.

In this Best Courses Guide (BCG), I’ve selected the  best free and paid Animation online courses for you from the 550+ Animation courses on our catalog by following a well-defined methodology that you can find below.

Click on the shortcuts for more details:

• Top Picks
• What is Animation?
• Courses Overview
• Why You Should Trust Us
• How We Made Our Picks and Tested Them

Here are our top picks

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What is Animation?

Animation is an art form that brings static images to life by creating a sequence of still frames and rapidly playing them to create the illusion of movement. The zoetrope, invented in the 1830s by William George Horner, was the first animation device that followed the same principles. It created the illusion of motion by spinning a cylinder with a sequence of still images. This creative process can take many forms, including traditional hand-drawn animation, stop-motion animation, or computer-generated animation.

Animation is widely used across various media, including movies, TV shows, video games, and advertisements. With an array of styles available, from realistic to stylized, the possibilities for animation are endless.

Roles and Salaries in the Animation Industry

The animation industry employs a range of professionals, including animators, storyboard artists, concept artists, character designers, riggers, compositors, and technical directors, among others.

According to data from the US Bureau of Labor, the median salary for an animator in the US is $98K a year (2022), although this varies based on experience, location, and company. Salaries in other countries may vary widely depending on factors such as the cost of living, industry demand, and local tax laws.

Courses Overview

• Combined, these courses have accrued over 109K enrollments.
• 2 courses are free or free-to-audit and 7 courses are paid.
• The most-represented course provider is Udemy, with 4 courses.
• The Animation subject is followed by over 17.9K learners on Class Central.

Best Free Animation Process Tutorial for Beginners (TipTut)

In this short free course, you’ll learn the complete process of animation from creating a script to recording audio, and all the way to animation tips and tricks. How to Animate | COMPLETE FREE COURSE teaches beyond ‘how to animate giving you an overview of the animation process from script to exhibition.

You’ll learn:

• Script and storyboard creation
• Character design and turnarounds
• Creating animatics
• Designing backgrounds and title cards
• Animation tips and tricks
• And how to exhibit your creations.

After completing this course, you can also take 12 Principles of Animation: The Complete Series by TipTut.

Best Intro to Classic 2D Animation for Beginners Using Adobe Animate (Udemy)

Learn to Animate: Animation Principles is a short intro to classic 2D animation principles with dedicated lessons on how to use Adobe Animate. From key frames to timing charts, this course covers the basics in a clear and easy-to-follow manner. By the end of the course, you’ll have the skills and knowledge to bring your classic 2D animations to life.

You’ll learn:

• Fundamental principles of animation, enabling the creation of realistic and engaging motion
• Techniques to bring simple shapes and objects to life through Adobe Animate
• Advanced animation techniques and professional tips to enhance your animations
• A strong foundation in animation basics, preparing you for further studies in storyboarding and beyond.

After completing this course, you can also take Learn to Storyboard for Film or Animation by Siobhan Twomey.

Best Hand-Drawn Digital Animation Course Using Adobe Software (Domestika)

Hand-Drawn Digital Animation: Bring Illustrations to Life will teach you how to transform your unique drawings into playful motion graphics using Photoshop, After Effects and Animate. You’ll learn to combine illustration with 2D animation to create striking digital artwork. By the end of this course, you’ll be able to communicate complex concepts through playful visual languages.

You’ll learn:

• Techniques for transforming hand-drawn illustrations into playful digital animations
• Planning and executing animated projects, from mood boards and storyboards to color palettes
• Basic to advanced skills in Photoshop, After Effects, and Animate for animation creation
• Strategies for communicating complex concepts through visual storytelling
• Best practices for showcasing animated work on social media and professional platforms.

Your instructor, Yukai Du, is a Chinese-born illustrator and animator based in London, UK. At just 15 years old, she began training at GuangZhou Academy of Fine Arts. As a freelancer, she has collaborated with The New Yorker, Spotify, The Guardian, and others.

Best Mixed Media Frame-by-Frame Animation Course Using Procreate App (Domestika)

Mixed Media Animation in Procreate covers the animation part of Procreate. You’ll learn the fundamentals of frame-by-frame animation and go through the process from creating a storyboard to shooting your sequence. By the end of this course, you’ll be able to design your own mixed media looping animation in Procreate using edited photos and traditional animation techniques.

You’ll learn:

• The animation process, from receiving a client brief and conducting brand research to sketching and storyboarding
• How to work with photography and integrate it into your animation projects
• Techniques for creating rough and color animations, type animations, and applying filters and effects
• Skills to add simple sound effects and music to enhance your animations
• Best practices for sharing your final product on social media and portfolio platforms, focusing on mixed media animation.

Your instructor, Caroline Kjellberg, is a Danish freelance motion designer and illustrator. Since 2017, she has worked with Visit California, Beats by Dre, Carlsberg and UNIQLO.

Best Animation Storyboard Course for Freelancers (Skillshare)

Storyboarding for Animation: How to Illustrate and Design for Successful Motion will help you develop a strong creative planning foundation for your freelance work. Whether you’re a seasoned freelancer or just starting out, it’ll help you take your concepts from idea to storyboard in just one hour. With each lesson building upon the last, you’ll gain essential skills for success in creative planning.

You’ll learn about:

• The importance of planning and how to kick off your project
• Brainstorming your concept and pulling references to help guide your ideas
• Creating a mood board to establish the style direction of your project
• Creating a storyboard to plan the narrative and sketch the action
• Designing a scene using a style frame and adding color and detail to it
• Polishing your treatment and receiving final feedback to complete your project.

Your instructor, Sarah Beth Morgan, is a freelance animation director and illustrator based in Cleveland, Ohio.

Best Adobe Character Animator Tutorial for Beginners (Okay Samurai)

This short free course, Complete Animation Workflow (Adobe Character Animator Tutorial) by Okay Samurai on YouTube, covers from writing the script to animating keyframes in Adobe Character Animator. By the end of this tutorial, you’ll have a basic understanding of the entire process and be able to create your own animated videos.

You’ll learn:

• The process of creating an animated project, from writing and recording a script to animating and rendering
• How to use Adobe Audition for audio, Photoshop for assets, Character Animator for rigging and performance, and After Effects for compositing and keyframe animation
• Techniques for recording and editing performances to create dynamic and engaging animations
• Skills to enhance your animation projects with additional assets and ensure they are polished and ready for sharing.

After completing this course, you can also take Character Animator Beginner Lessons by Okay Samurai.

Best 3D Animation in Maya Course for Beginners (Udemy)

In this comprehensive course, Maya for Beginners: Complete Guide to 3D Animation in Maya, you’ll master the ins and outs of 3D animation in Autodesk Maya. With a focus on modeling, texturing, lighting, rigging, animation, and dynamics, you’ll learn what you need to get started in the film, music, and gaming industries.

You’ll learn:

• Scriptwriting and recording for character animation, alongside creating and rigging characters
• Recording and editing performances, plus creating additional assets to elevate your projects
• Techniques for compositing in After Effects and animating projects using keyframe animation
• Rendering and reviewing your projects to ensure they are polished and ready for sharing.

Ridley is an animator and commercial director that has created content for LEGO, Braun, Nestle, and Anheuser-Busch. His work has been featured in Annie-nominated, Emmy-winning, and Oscar short-listed short films.

Best 3D Character Creation & Animation Course Using Blender (Udemy)

In this comprehensive course, Ultimate Blender 3D Character Creation & Animation Course, you’ll master the art of 3D character creation and animation using Blender 2.8. By the end, you’ll have a solid understanding of animation 3D and be ready to take on your own projects. With lots of exercises, you’ll definitely have some fun modeling and animating while learning.

You’ll learn:

• Complete 3D character creation process, from modeling and texturing to rigging and animation
• Various animation techniques, including how to make characters talk
• Creating dynamic scenes and characters, and animating them to full effect
• Producing original sounds for animations
• In-depth understanding of Blender 2.8’s tools and features for character creation and animation.

Your instructor, Alex Cordebard, is a 3D artist originally from France with nearly a decade of experience in 3D graphics.

Also Great 3D Animation Course Using Blender (Udemy)

LEARN 3D ANIMATION : Create Credible & Unique Animations covers from basic principles to creating original 3D characters and animations with personality.

Even if you don’t use Blender, you can still follow along with the course and apply the principles to other animation programs like Maya (as long as you have some basic knowledge of the software you’ll be using).

You’ll Learn:

• Fundamental and advanced principles of 3D animation necessary for creating credible and engaging animations
• Techniques for animating different body parts with accuracy and for recording effective references
• The five stages of creating professional animation: Reference, Blocking, Blocking+, Splines, and Polishing
• Insights into developing characters with unique personalities that appear truly alive
• Technical guides for animating in Blender, applicable to Maya and other animation software users.

Why You Should Trust Us

Class Central, a Tripadvisor for online education, has helped 60 million learners find their next course. We’ve been combing through online education for more than a decade to aggregate a catalog of 200,000 online courses and 200,000 reviews written by our users. And we’re online learners ourselves: combined, the Class Central team has completed over 400 online courses, including online degrees.

I (Archisha) am a Guided Project Instructor and a Beta Tester at Coursera, having tested many courses before they’re officially launched. I have taken over 50 online courses in various subjects. My experience as an online learner and instructor has given me some perspective on what to look for in an online course. I used my experience to evaluate each course in this Best Courses Guide (BCG).

How We Made Our Picks and Tested Them

Trying to find “the best” can be daunting, even for those of us who live and breathe online courses. Here’s how I approached this task.

First, I combed through Class Central’s Catalog and the internet to find a variety of free and paid open courses, some with certificates. You don’t need to enroll in a university to learn about animation.

When choosing courses, I considered the following factors:

• Renowned Institutions: I looked for recognized institutions in animation
• Instructor experience: I sought instructors with extensive experience in animation and engaging presentation styles
• Popularity: I checked numbers of enrollments and views to find popular courses
• Course content: I examined courses that covered a range of topics and presentation styles, including the basics and more advanced topics. I watched some course videos to sample courses I hadn’t already taken
• Learner reviews: I read learner reviews (when available) to get a sense of the quality of each course, leveraging the Class Central database with its thousands of course ratings and reviews written by our users as well as available course provider reviews.

Then, I defined the scope for these recommendations. An animation course can cover various topics, so I chose top courses from a range of sub-fields.

Ultimately, I used a combination of data and my own judgment to make these picks. I’m confident these recommendations will be a reliable way to learn about animation.

Fabio revised the research and the latest version of this article.