Bottom line: Sololearn is the easiest AI and coding habit to start, because the content of every course is free permanently — not a trial — including certificates. Paid plans only remove limits and add help: PRO is $69.99/year (or $12.99/month) and MAX is $119.88/year with Kodie, its AI tutor. Start free; upgrade only when the free plan’s Hearts system starts interrupting you.
What is Sololearn?
Sololearn is a mobile-first and web learning platform that teaches coding and AI in short, interactive lessons. Courses cover Python, JavaScript, SQL, web development and introductory AI topics, broken into bite-size steps with quizzes, in-lesson practice and a community you can ask when you get stuck. Its design goal is habit: a few minutes a day on your phone counts as progress, which is exactly where long video courses fail for many beginners.
For AI specifically, Sololearn works as a foundation layer. It teaches the coding basics AI work depends on, adds AI-focused lessons, and — on the MAX plan — puts an AI tutor inside the lesson that explains answers, finds mistakes in your code and suggests a solution. It will not turn you into a machine learning engineer on its own, and it does not claim to: it gets a complete beginner writing code daily.
How much does Sololearn cost?
| Plan | Price (verified on official plans page) | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | Free forever | All course content on web and mobile, free certificates, community support; limited by Hearts and ads |
| PRO | $69.99/year ($5.83/month billed yearly, 14-day free trial) or $12.99/month | Unlimited Hearts, real-life and in-lesson practice, Code Playground, extra quizzes, no ads |
| MAX | $119.88/year ($9.99/month billed yearly), annual only, no free trial | Everything in PRO plus Kodie AI tutor, Explain My Answer, Find My Mistake and the AI Prompting Playground |
Two details from the official page matter. First, certificates are free on every plan, including free — you do not pay to prove completion. Second, Hearts are the free plan’s main limit: you start with 5, a wrong quiz answer costs one, and each takes 5 hours to refill unless you top up or earn them back through practice. That friction is the real reason to consider PRO.
What is good about Sololearn?
- Genuinely free content: all course content is free permanently, so you can finish real courses before spending anything.
- Phone-friendly habit building: short lessons fit commutes and queues, where an hour-long lecture never happens.
- Free certificates: completion certificates cost nothing extra on any plan, though Sololearn notes they are not accredited credentials.
- Honest upgrade logic: PRO is cheap and solves a specific annoyance — Hearts, ads and locked practice — rather than locking the lessons themselves.
- AI help on MAX: Kodie explains why an answer was wrong and where your code went wrong, inside the lesson where you need it.
What is not so good?
- Depth has a ceiling: bite-size lessons build foundations, not advanced machine learning or production engineering skill.
- Hearts can frustrate: the free limit punishes exactly the trial-and-error beginners need most, which pushes the upgrade.
- MAX has no trial: the most expensive plan is annual-only with no free trial, so test the format on free or PRO first.
- Certificates carry limited weight: useful proof of effort, not an accredited qualification employers screen for.
Who is Sololearn best for?
Complete beginners, students, and busy adults who learn best in short daily sessions on a phone. It is an especially sensible first step before paying for a bigger platform: if you cannot keep a free Sololearn streak going for a few weeks, a $300 course elsewhere will not fix that. Learners who are already coding confidently at work should look at deeper platforms for AI engineering instead.
Frequently asked questions
Is Sololearn really free?
Yes. Sololearn says the content of all courses is free permanently, not a trial. Paid plans remove limits and add practice extras and, on MAX, AI features.
How much does Sololearn PRO cost?
PRO is $69.99 per year or $12.99 month-to-month. The annual plan includes a 14-day free trial, once per user or payment method.
What is Kodie on Sololearn MAX?
Kodie is Sololearn’s AI tutor on the MAX plan. It explains your answer, finds the mistake in your code, suggests a solution, and powers the AI Prompting Playground.
Do Sololearn certificates cost extra?
No. Certificates are free on every plan, including the free plan, earned by completing a course. They are not accredited credentials.
Verdict
Sololearn is the lowest-risk recommendation in beginner coding and AI: start free, learn daily in small pieces, and only pay $69.99 a year if the limits genuinely get in your way. Choose MAX at $119.88 a year only if you know you will use the AI tutor — otherwise PRO, or free, is the smart buy.
Prices checked 2026-10-11 and can change — confirm on the platform’s site before buying.