Compare any two courses, bootcamps, or certifications side-by-side. See payback period, 5-year ROI, and the honest truth about self-teaching, before you spend a dime.
This tool provides estimates for educational purposes only. Salary outcomes vary by location, experience, market conditions, and individual effort. Data sourced from Course Report, BLS, and program-reported outcomes where available. Not financial advice.
The Course ROI Showdown compares any two educational programs side by side using five core financial metrics: total cost, salary increase, payback period, five-year return on investment, and cost per week. You select two courses from our database of 35 bootcamps, certificates, and online programs, enter your current salary, and the calculator runs the numbers instantly. Every comparison also includes a self-taught benchmark column so you can see how structured education stacks up against free resources and a $50 Udemy course. Salary data comes from Course Report averages, Bureau of Labor Statistics occupational figures, and program-reported outcomes where available. The payback period tells you how many months of your higher salary it takes to recover tuition, while the five-year ROI shows total net return as a percentage of your investment. You can also enter a fully custom course if your program is not in the database.
Suppose you currently earn $45,000 per year and you are deciding between App Academy ($17,000, 16 weeks, average salary outcome of $86,000) and the Google Data Analytics Certificate ($300, 24 weeks, average salary outcome of $58,000). The calculator shows that App Academy has a payback period of roughly 5 months and a five-year ROI above 2,000%, while the Google certificate pays for itself almost immediately but yields a smaller salary jump. The self-taught column estimates that someone learning independently in the same field would take about 52 weeks, spend around $50, and earn roughly 85% of the bootcamp graduate salary. This three-way view helps you weigh the tradeoff between a large upfront cost with high returns versus a low-cost path with moderate returns versus a free path with slower timelines. The verdict banner at the top summarizes the financial winner and the gap in plain language.
Is the salary data accurate?
Salary figures represent reported averages from program outcomes, Course Report, and BLS data. Actual results depend heavily on your location, prior experience, interview skills, and job market conditions. Treat these numbers as directional estimates rather than guarantees.
What does the self-taught benchmark assume?
The self-taught column assumes $50 in learning resources (one or two Udemy courses plus free platforms like freeCodeCamp or Khan Academy), 2 to 3 times the structured program duration, approximately 85% of the average salary outcome, and no formal placement support. This reflects what data shows about self-taught professionals entering the job market without credentials from a recognized program.
Can I compare a course that is not in the database?
Yes. Select "Enter custom course" from either dropdown. You will be prompted to enter the course name, provider, total cost, duration in weeks, average salary after completion, and placement rate. The calculator uses your custom inputs alongside the same formulas it applies to database entries.
How is payback period calculated?
Payback period equals the total course cost divided by the monthly salary increase. If a $17,000 bootcamp raises your annual salary by $41,000, your monthly gain is about $3,417, giving a payback period of roughly 5 months. A payback under 6 months is considered excellent, 6 to 18 months is reasonable, and anything over 18 months deserves careful scrutiny.
Does this tool account for opportunity cost?
The current version does not subtract lost income during the program. For full-time immersive bootcamps lasting 12 to 16 weeks, you may want to mentally add 3 to 4 months of your current salary to the total cost. Part-time and self-paced programs typically let you keep working, so opportunity cost is lower for those options.