15 Best Penetration Testing Courses on Coursera
We compared 15 Penetration Testing courses currently listed on Coursera, priced from $49.00 to $79.00. 3 come from a named university or institution, including University of Colorado System, University of California, Davis and University of Colorado Boulder. They are ordered by our CourseAsk score, which is built from how thoroughly each course describes what it teaches, whether it comes from a named institution, and how it compares on price — not from star ratings, which our course data does not include.
- Courses compared
- 15
- Price range
- $49.00 – $79.00
- Providers
- Coursera
- Last updated
- 30 Aug 2026
How these 15 courses were chosen
Every course below is a real, currently listed course from Coursera, matched to "penetration testing" by our catalog and ordered by our CourseAsk score. Courses whose own title names the topic rank above those only tagged with it.
The grade on each entry scores how much the provider publishes about the course before you pay — the length and detail of the description, whether it lists learning outcomes and objectives — and whether a named university or institution stands behind it. A is fully documented and institution-backed; E is little more than a title and a price. Courses with almost nothing published are left ungraded rather than marked down, because an unknown course and a poor one are not the same thing.
There are no star ratings on this page — the course feeds we license do not include them, and we would rather leave a column out than fill it with a number we cannot stand behind. What we do have is price: these range from $49.00 to $79.00, as listed by the provider when we last updated the page.
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1
Nmap for Penetration Testing: From Beginner to Advanced
Offered by Packt
Updated in May 2025. This course now features Coursera Coach! A smarter way to learn with interactive, real-time conversations that help you test your knowledge, challenge assumptions, and deepen your understanding as yo...
$49.00listed price -
2
Generative AI for Penetration Testing: Red Team
Offered by LearnQuest
Discover how generative AI is revolutionizing penetration testing. In this hands-on course, you’ll learn how red teams are leveraging AI to streamline every phase of an attack—from information gathering to vulnerability...
$49.00listed price -
3
Fundamentals of Computer Network Security
Offered by University of Colorado System
This specialization in intended for IT professionals, computer programmers, managers, IT security professionals who like to move up ladder, who are seeking to develop network system security skills. Through four courses,...
$49.00listed price -
4
Proactive Computer Security
Offered by University of Colorado System
I’ve heard this before – “I’m not sure my computer security practices are working”. I reply “Have you tested them?” This course is the fourth and final course in the Practical Computer Security specialization. In this co...
$79.00listed price -
5
Exploiting and Securing Vulnerabilities in Java Applications
Offered by University of California, Davis
In this course, we will wear many hats. With our Attacker Hats on, we will exploit Injection issues that allow us to steal data, exploit Cross Site Scripting issues to compromise a users browser, break authentication to...
$49.00listed price -
6
Hacking and Patching
Offered by University of Colorado System
In this MOOC, you will learn how to hack web apps with command injection vulnerabilities in a web site of your AWS Linux instance. You will learn how to search valuable information on a typical Linux systems with LAMP se...
$79.00listed price -
7
Security & Ethical Hacking: Attacking the Network
Offered by University of Colorado Boulder
This course explains the science and art behind offensive security techniques used in penetration testing of networks and systems. A review of networking concepts is given. Students will utilize low-level programming thr...
$49.00listed price -
8
Ethical Hacking with Kali Linux: Analyze & Apply
Offered by EDUCBA
Master the practical techniques of ethical hacking with Kali Linux through a hands-on, lab-driven learning experience focused on penetration testing and security assessment. In this course, you will explore Android explo...
$49.00listed price -
9
Application Security Testing and Debugging
Offered by STARWEAVER
In today's digital landscape, application security is not optional, it's essential. With cyber threats evolving rapidly and data breaches making headlines daily, organizations desperately need skilled professionals who u...
$49.00listed price -
10
Intro to IoT Pentesting
Offered by Packt
Updated in May 2025. This course now features Coursera Coach! A smarter way to learn with interactive, real-time conversations that help you test your knowledge, challenge assumptions, and deepen your understanding as yo...
$49.00listed price -
11
Security Governance, Compliance & Risk Management
Offered by Packt
Updated in May 2025. This course now features Coursera Coach! A smarter way to learn with interactive, real-time conversations that help you test your knowledge, challenge assumptions, and deepen your understanding as yo...
$49.00listed price -
12
Cloud Security, Resiliency, and Vulnerability Management
Offered by Packt
Updated in May 2025. This course now features Coursera Coach! A smarter way to learn with interactive, real-time conversations that help you test your knowledge, challenge assumptions, and deepen your understanding as yo...
$49.00listed price -
13
An Introduction to Ethical Hacking with Kali Linux
Offered by Packt
This course now features Coursera Coach! A smarter way to learn with interactive, real-time conversations that help you test your knowledge, challenge assumptions, and deepen your understanding as you progress through th...
$49.00listed price -
14
Hands-on Hacking
Offered by Packt
Updated in May 2025. This course now features Coursera Coach! A smarter way to learn with interactive, real-time conversations that help you test your knowledge, challenge assumptions, and deepen your understanding as yo...
$49.00listed price -
15
Digital Forensics for Pentesters - Hands-On Learning
Offered by Packt
Updated in May 2025. This course now features Coursera Coach! A smarter way to learn with interactive, real-time conversations that help you test your knowledge, challenge assumptions, and deepen your understanding as yo...
$49.00listed price
Best Penetration Testing Courses on Coursera compared
Prices shown are the provider's listed price when we last updated this page. Confirm on their site before enrolling.
What the prices here tell you
The 15 priced courses on this page run from $49.00 to $79.00, with the middle of the range around $49.00 — a spread of $30.00. The options are closely priced, so cost is unlikely to be your deciding factor. A higher price on this page usually reflects who is behind the course rather than how much material it contains, so it is worth opening two or three at different price points and comparing their syllabus before deciding.
Who is behind these courses
These courses come from Coursera. Everything on this page is sold on the one platform, so the buying experience is the same whichever you pick. 3 of these are produced by a named university or institution, including University of Colorado System, University of California, Davis and University of Colorado Boulder — which usually means a fixed syllabus and a recognised certificate, rather than an individual instructor’s own course.
Before you enrol
Open the provider’s own page and check three things this comparison cannot tell you: when the course was last updated, what the syllabus actually covers in its later sections, and what recent learners say. Prices shown here are the provider’s listed price when we last rebuilt this page on 30 August 2026 — they change often, and a promotion can move them substantially. We earn a commission if you enrol through our links, which costs you nothing and never affects the order courses appear in.