19 Best Dropshipping Courses & Resources To Grow Your Business

A course is a set of classes centred on a single area of study, usually ending with a certification or credits for further study. While you might associate traditional courses with studying at a school or university, the internet has made it easy for anyone to access and publish courses from around the world. Online courses allow you to upskill at your own pace, making them a valuable tool for beginners entering the workforce, homebodies looking to re-enter the workforce, and working professionals alike. With hundreds of free and paid courses available, it can be hard to find what works for you. We at Dropshipzone have searched for the 18 best dropshipping courses and resources of 2024 to help you start and scale your online dropshipping business.

What are dropshipping courses and should you take one?

Dropshipping courses are designed to help entrepreneurs start their own dropshipping business online. They provide practical steps to help you build your online store (usually on a specific platform such as Shopify), conduct product research, and find quality suppliers. Some courses will also teach the basics of ecommerce, marketing, and SEO. For some students, courses are the ideal way to learn. They provide structured lessons with practical exercises to apply what is learned. Short courses are also an easy way to test whether dropshipping is the right career path for you, as they require less time and money than a traditional degree. 

Buyer beware - There are plenty of self-proclaimed ‘gurus’ out there who will make outrageous claims to get you to buy their course or other products. When looking for a course, keep an eye out for the following:

• Is the instructor a successful online entrepreneur with proven experience in dropshipping? You want to see that they are experts in the field and live by their own advice.

• Do reviews and testimonials from customers show the progress they’ve made since taking the dropshipping course? If the positive reviews all praise the course material but don’t show if they put the advice into practice, then the price may not be worth it.

• Does the course offer something you can’t get from a Google search, such as one-on-one mentoring, consultation or specialised tools?

• Do they offer a money-back guarantee and how can you qualify for it?

• When was the course material last updated?

With those tips in mind, let’s review some of the highest-rated free and paid dropshipping courses online for 2024.

Paid courses for aspiring business owners

If you have some spare capital and are unsure where to start your dropshipping journey, a course can be a great place to start. Paid courses often come with exclusive benefits such as community support, more interaction with trainers, higher completion rates and certification upon completion. We’ve listed some of the top-rated paid courses for 2024 based on trainer expertise, demonstrable results and value for money. These courses will equip you with the knowledge and skills necessary to start and run a successful dropshipping business.

Dropship Lifestyle (DSL)

Dropship Lifestyle is an ecommerce training program run by Anton Kraley. It is one of the longest-lasting courses available, created in 2013 and enrolling over 15,000 students in 25 countries. It is also one of the most expensive, starting at $3,997 for the Premium package (including step-by-step training, email support and a member-only community) and $10,497 for the Ultimate package (including done-for-you web design, content marketing and private mentorship). It is advertised as a proven system for building an online business and teaches beginners how to make money selling high-ticket products through dropshipping. The company has a high reputation for quality, backed by hundreds of reviews and customer testimonials. Negative reviews mainly point out the high price tag and a 30-day refund policy that is difficult to navigate. It is a high-value course for those looking to start a dropshipping business and has plenty of fans and a supportive community, but it may not be the best option for your budget.

eCom Inner Circle

The eCom Inner Circle course by Arie Scherson is an in-depth look at the world of dropshipping and teaches entrepreneurs how to build their dropshipping store, build their brands, and market on social media. Scherson is a YouTuber who creates free videos covering all aspects of dropshipping, and his course aims to be a step-by-step guide that will allow you to earn $100 a day after 30 days regardless of your experience. The course walks you through selling products at a variety of price points and heavily emphasises using Facebook Ads to generate traffic (but no other social media platforms). Learners get access to a private Facebook Mastermind group for communications with other dropshippers and the course creator himself. The course also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee without any notable restrictions. The course costs $397, offering plenty of value for money at a mid-tier price point. 

eCom Elites

The eCom Elites course is run by New Zealand online entrepreneur, Franklin Hatchett and offers an affordable introduction to ecommerce, dropshipping, and marketing across the most popular social media platforms. The course aims to teach new entrepreneurs how to give their stores a marketing edge. The course starts from $197 for the Standard package (giving you access to most of the course content and a private ‘inner circle’ Facebook group) and $297 for the Ultimate package (comes with added modules and two books). This course also comes with a 30-day action-based money-back guarantee that requires you to have gone through at least 50% of the training, joined the private Facebook group, and completed a live store. Reviews rate the course favourably, stating it is an affordable option with roughly 30 hours of content that provides real-world examples to help you learn. Hatchett also regularly posts to his YouTube channel, so you can see for yourself whether this dropshipping course is right for you. 

The Complete Dropshipping Masterclass 2024

The Complete Shopify Dropshipping Masterclass 2023 was created by digital marketers Robin and Jesper. It’s one of the most affordable courses on the list, with lifetime access offered for $42.99 on Udemy. The course has had over 25,285 students at the time of writing and is rated 4.6 out of 5 by over 5,000 Udemy reviewers. You’ll learn how to create your Shopify dropshipping business, how to choose profitable markets, the ins and outs of shipping and fulfilment, and techniques to build niche stores and increase sales. Robin and Jesper also advertise 24-hour premium support, hands-on teaching, and insights into current digital marketing technology such as ChatGPT. The course consists of roughly 8.5 hours of on-demand video, 24 downloadable resources and access from desktop, mobile and smart TVs. It also includes a 30-day money-back guarantee. While the course appears in need of an update regarding Facebook ad policies and changes to Shopify settings, reviewers praise the duo for their honesty, experience and fun, easy-to-follow course material. 

Dropship University

Dropship University was founded by the business Dropship, which provides tools and education to entrepreneurs beginning their dropshipping journey. Membership starts from $29 per month, which gives you access to their suite of tools, supplier information, and other resources including tutorials. Dropship University encourages new members to check out their comprehensive course “Dropshipping on Shopify A-Z”. The course is presented by experienced dropshipper Nawras Ganim and covers everything you need to know about starting a dropshipping store, from how to choose winning products to marketing. They have a dedicated Discord server for like-minded dropshippers to discuss the course and share resources, and they often offer special deals in conjunction with Shopify. The entire course is roughly 2h 34m spread across 18 videos, and at the time of writing, they are offering a 7-day free trial of their website which may allow you to complete the course for free. This is an easy course that is well structured, easy to understand, and suitable for beginners.

Free courses for aspiring business owners

If you don’t want to spend money on online courses or you’re not sure if dropshipping is for you, there are plenty of free courses available for beginners to learn about dropshipping. As with paid courses, the best free dropshipping courses to take are taught by experienced dropshipping and ecommerce professionals and have demonstrable results. Be aware that many free dropshipping courses are sales pitches in disguise, which may not waste your money but will certainly waste your time. We’ve cut out the hassle by finding the top sources for free dropshipping courses in 2024.

Shopify Learn

Shopify Learn is the ideal resource hub for budding business owners, and they have a special offering for anyone at the beginning of their dropshipping journey. The Shopify Learn Dropshipping 101 course is run by fellow entrepreneur Jessica Guzik. The course shows you how to choose trustworthy suppliers from Aliexpress, build your own Shopify dropshipping store and ecommerce brand from scratch, and set up your first Facebook ads to drive traffic to your store. It is designed for beginners with little to no technical or ecommerce knowledge and lasts roughly 2 hours across 29 lessons. If you’re planning on using Shopify to host your online store, there is no better place to start than the platform itself.

Udemy

Udemy is an organisation that seeks to make education accessible to individuals and organisations across the world. They offer over 210 thousand courses taught by over 75 thousand instructors. While a vast majority of their courses require payment, you can still find hundreds of free courses that cover all aspects of the dropshipping experience from conception to marketing. Some of the most popular free dropshipping courses on the platform include “Dropshipping with Aliexpress: Build and Launch your Store!” by Eric Leads and “How to Get Started Dropshipping with Aliexpress and Shopify” by Alexander Smout.

Coursera

Coursera is an educational organisation that partners with over 275 leading universities and companies to deliver flexible and job-relevant learning experiences to individuals and organisations worldwide. While there aren’t many courses available that specifically focus on dropshipping, you’ll find plenty of beginner courses for ecommerce, digital marketing, building your first website, and the basics of business. Best of all, you can complete a vast majority of the courses for free, though you may have to pay a small fee if you require certification at the end. 

Paid courses for existing business owners

Most dropshipping courses are aimed at beginners who may not have experience running an ecommerce business or dropshipping and seek to help them open their first ecommerce store. These courses require a lot of simple explanations, step-by-step instructions, and a degree of mentoring. Established businesses already know what dropshipping is and how to create a successful dropshipping business. Where existing business owners may struggle is maintaining brand awareness, keeping up with market trends, identifying new sales channels and retaining lifelong customers, especially in a competitive industry such as dropshipping. We’ve chosen the top-paid courses for existing business owners looking to improve their profit margins in 2024.

Dropship Breakthru

Hosted by Jon Warren and Ben Knegendorf, Dropship Breakthru focuses on high-ticket dropshipping for beginners and experts alike. What differentiates Dropship Breakthru from other comprehensive courses is its promise to support and grow your dropshipping business over time. Jon runs multiple high-ticket dropshipping companies and has helped over 400 ecommerce business owners of all experience levels grow their businesses. Ben eliminated over $40,000 of debt by rebuilding and selling businesses across various categories and creating podcasts, videos and courses to help other entrepreneurs succeed. They joined forces in 2021 and continue to run their businesses as well as their courses, which attests to the effectiveness of their methods. They provide “unique growth phase” instructions to scale your business and an ongoing support system including group and personal coaching calls, members-only Slack and Facebook groups and a direct email support line for Elite Members. Dropship Breakthru begins as a free masterclass, and while it’s difficult to find exact pricing on their website, the full course costs $2,497 for lifetime access (at the time of writing).

The Growth Institute

The Growth Institute's mission is to provide resources for leadership to “scale impact and reduce drama”. It creates lessons and courses for business leaders who may not know where to go after achieving success. Founded by serial entrepreneur Daniel Marcos and his partner/mentor Verne Harnish, The Growth Institute is a central authority on all things business growth. With a 4.6 star rating on Trustpilot, participants praise The Growth Institute for their expertise, stellar support team, relevant course material and actionable blueprint. Memberships start at $99 per month for access to 70+ micro-learning suite courses, but you won’t get access to the Master Business Courses for less than $700 per month.

Upskilled

As an online learning platform, Upskilled offers the flexibility of learning across hundreds of nationally recognised courses. They offer short courses, certifications, diplomas and degrees, all of which meet the requirements of the Australian Quality Training Framework and are completed online. The  Upskilled makes it easy for entrepreneurs to study while meeting their business obligations. They offer courses on social media marketing, SEO and advanced pay-per-click training - all the important tools you need to build a successful ecommerce business. Prices will vary between courses and institutions, and you can choose to pay upfront or through a payment plan.

Free courses for existing business owners

You don’t need money to achieve growth. There are hundreds of up-to-date resources available for existing business owners looking to gain industry knowledge or stay updated about market trends, learn tips and tricks for leadership and improve their brand using the latest technology and tools. 

Semrush Academy

Semrush is an online visibility management and content marketing SaaS platform that enables marketing professionals to build, manage and measure campaigns across all channels. The Semrush Academy is the platform’s learning hub, which users can access with a free Semrush account. One course in particular has stood out among the rest as a great insight into sustained business growth. Zero to 100M: The Ultimate Guide to Business Growth is hosted by marketing maven Marisha Lakhiani and boasts 6 comprehensive modules where you will learn about crucial metrics and effective tactics for optimised sustainable growth. Semrush Academy offers industry-recognised certifications, courses, video series and webinars for a whole host of learning options at no cost.

Ubersuggest

Ubersuggest by Neil Patel is already a useful platform that provides free and paid tools for businesses to enhance their SEO strategy. SEO Unlocked is a comprehensive step-by-step course that introduces businesses to SEO and helps them build their strategy through worksheets and other practical applications. The course was created with busy professionals in mind, so the lessons are short and the homework usually runs between 35-40 minutes per assignment. If you want to drive traffic to your site but haven't yet explored the world of SEO, this course is right for you.

Meta Blueprint

Meta Blueprint is the one-stop shop for everything Facebook marketing. Here you’ll find tutorials covering the entire page creation process from conception to promotion. You’ll also find tools for advertising on Instagram, how to add live chat to your website via Messenger, and how to find relevant market insights for your business. They also offer Meta Certifications that you can use to demonstrate your proficiency with Meta’s family of products and platforms. With these certifications, you can walk away with proof that you are a stellar meta-marketer, planner, creator and developer. With plenty of training workshops, step-by-step guides and tutorials, this is an invaluable resource for businesses looking to improve their social media presence. 

Google Digital Garage

Google Digital Garage is Google’s very own non-profit learning hub for all things digital marketing, including products such as Google Analytics and Google Ads. These courses range from beginner to advanced level and pull from not only Google but other providers such as The Open University, Yale University and Macquarie University. You can learn about topics such as the basics of coding, how to expand a business internationally, how to market your products via content and how to understand customers' needs and behaviours online. Courses may be as short as 2 hours or as long as 20 hours, giving you plenty of options for a busy schedule. Many of the courses are free, but you can also take paid courses and receive certification in certain areas. Google Digital Garage course can help your business by increasing productivity and conversions, and give you a competitive edge with an understanding of data analytics.

The best dropshipping resources for 2024

Not sure if a course is right for you? Here are some other resource hubs that will help you on your dropshipping journey, no matter what stage.  

Niche Dropshipping

The Niche Dropshipping blog is full of great resources for getting started with dropshipping, conducting niche research, and social media marketing. While their resources are often centred around Chinese and US suppliers, there’s still plenty of relevant content for dropshipping businesses at any stage of growth.

Do Dropshipping

Do Dropshipping has a distinct mission: to give every ecommerce business the resources they need to start a dropshipping store without paying for a course. They’ve certainly succeeded, with their incredible range of blog topics, comprehensive guides and store examples across a variety of countries and categories. They even have a range of free tools to help you calculate profit margins and find the right products, suppliers and ecommerce platforms for your dropshipping business. 

Oberlo/Shopify

Although purchased by Shopify in 2017, Oberlo continues to offer unique content across all aspects of ecommerce, including dropshipping. You can download ebooks, listen to past episodes of the Start Yours podcast, and watch instructional videos straight from their website. If you decide you want to learn with a course instead, click on their Courses tab and you’ll be redirected to the Shopify Learn page, where you can find your ideal free course or explore Shopify’s own range of blogs, guides and reports. Shopify also has useful tools such as its business name generator, business plan templates, QR code generator and logo maker.

Dropshipzone's Resources

At Dropshipzone, we want to empower our Suppliers and Retailers to perform at their best. That’s why we’ve developed a B2B2C platform that connects suppliers and retailers for a smooth selling experience across the entire supply chain. To help you on your dropshipping journey, we’ve developed a learning portal where you can find blogs, whitepapers and reports backed by expert opinion and the latest industry insights. We cover topics from each stage of the dropshipping journey, from “What is Dropshipping?” to “How to Increase your Ecommerce Conversion Rate”. We offer insights into the latest trending products, how to run a successful ecommerce business, how to master your after-sales service, how to use SEO to grow your business and many other key business and marketing topics. You can also check out our content on the Recommended Retail Podcast featuring John Barkle, and our Instagram page @dropshipzoneau. As our catalogue continues to evolve, so will your business. Check out our wide range of resources on our blog page.

Why spend time on courses when you could be selling? When you join Dropshipzone, you know that our Suppliers and Retailers come pre-vetted and are held to high-quality standards, so you don’t have to spend hours of research or marketing dollars to find the right connections. Suppliers are instantly exposed to hundreds of retailers ready to sell their products, while Retailers get instant access to thousands of SKUs without having to hold inventory. Best of all, it’s totally free to join and there are no hidden fees. Shopify users can also enjoy seamless integration with our in-house app, Sofortig, which allows you to automatically sync data between Dropshipzone and your Shopify store. It really is that simple.

But do you actually need a course to learn dropshipping?

When diving into a new industry, field of research or business venture, courses are incredibly appealing. They are often advertised as foolproof, straightforward, all-encompassing paths to financial success. However, if you were to ask professional dropshippers whether paid courses are the best way to learn, the general consensus is often “no”. 

A common criticism of paid dropshipping courses is that the information provided can be easily found via Google or through various free resources and guides. Paid courses should offer value for money by giving you something free courses don’t: opinions backed by experts, a supportive community, carefully curated content, and a demonstrable skill set. Exploring free resources can help you identify where there are gaps in your knowledge and highlight your learning strengths and weaknesses before committing to a paid dropshipping course.

Another criticism is that some courses employ aggressive marketing tactics. There are often promises of quick riches with minimal effort. Courses will often use affiliate marketing to promote their work, which can lead consumers to be distrustful of legitimate reviews, especially if they don’t experience success. The truth is that it takes time and effort to create a successful business, and dropshipping is no exception. Aspiring dropshipping business owners must work consistently over a long period of time, anywhere between 30-90 hours for the first six months to a year before they see success, at which point they can drop to as few as five hours a week without issue. To find out more about an average dropshipper’s working hours, visit our blog “How Many Hours Do Dropshippers Work?”.

Doing courses will not make or break your store. Above all else, successful dropshippers DO. The more time you spend applying the knowledge you learn and gaining experience by doing so, the more likely you are to launch a winning company. To quote Leonardo da Vinci, “Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do”.

Summary

Free dropshipping courses are a great way to figure out whether dropshipping is the right fit for your online business, and they can help get your foot in the door. If you need more robust support, paid courses may be the right step for you. However, you don’t need to invest thousands of dollars in the latest dropshipping courses to succeed, especially if that working capital could be better spent in other areas of your business such as product development, marketing or ad spending. Better yet, you can join Dropshipzone and enjoy the benefits of no minimum order quantities, no inventory, and no joining fee. So what are you waiting for? Stop stalling and start doing. Join us today.