# TED Talks vs The Great Courses

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: TED Talks at none against The Great Courses's 3. The Great Courses's advantage is chart position (#115 vs unranked). On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. The Great Courses sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $19.99 per month. TED Talks asks for nothing beyond the download.

The Great Courses holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 10K and 17K respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 44% of TED Talks's written reviews are positive against 40% of The Great Courses's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

TED Talks ships an update every 2 weeks, The Great Courses fortnightly. Both last shipped on November 10, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | TED Talks | The Great Courses |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (10K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ted-talks-watch-and-learn/id376183339/reviews) | **[4.8 (17K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-great-courses/id1017813651/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 10K | **17K** |
| Positive reviews | **43.7% of reviews** | 39.8% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 weeks** | Fortnightly |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | — | **#115** |
| Size | 112 MB | 120 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.4 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple TV | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV** |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [TED Conferences LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/376183342) | [The Great Courses](https://appshunter.io/developer/636818508) |

## What reviewers say

### TED Talks

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ted-talks-watch-and-learn/id376183339)

Access thousands of inspiring and informative videos on a wide range of topics. Get personalized recommendations, watch with subtitles in over 100 languages, and download content for offline viewing. Stay curious and informed with this educational resource.

**Highlights:** Personalized recommendations, Subtitles in over 100 languages, Browse by topic or curator picks, Stream to Apple TV with AirPlay, Download videos for offline viewing, Watchlist for later, Surprise Me! feature

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Great content
- 👍 Inspiring and thought-provoking
- 📚 Variety of topics
- 🎧 Convenient for listening on the go

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Buggy and unstable
- 🔍 Poor search functionality
- 🔋 High battery consumption
- 🔇 Audio/video playback issues
- 📥 Download feature not working as expected

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes frequently
- Videos fail to load or play
- Saved talks disappear from user's list
- Syncing issues with user accounts
- Compatibility problems with newer iOS versions

**Requested features**

- Add ability to create and manage playlists
- Implement background audio playback
- Improve Chromecast support
- Add more customization options (e.g., video playback speed, dark mode)
- Enhance discoverability of new and relevant content


### The Great Courses

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-great-courses/id1017813651)

**Currently charting:** #115 Top Grossing · Education (US App Store)

Access thousands of educational videos taught by world-renowned professors. Explore diverse subjects like history, science, and philosophy with online and offline learning options. Enjoy a flexible learning experience at your own pace.

**Highlights:** Thousands of educational videos, Expert professors and specialists, Diverse subject matter, Online and offline access, Flexible learning pace, Free trial available

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| TGCPlus Monthly Subscription | $19.99 | per month |
| Quarterly Subscription | $44.99 | per 3 months |
| TGCPlus Annual Subscription | $149.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fantastic, use it all the time
- 👍 Excellent content and Outstanding Educators
- 👍 best app you'll ever subscribe to
- 👍 Math courses are phenomenal!
- 👍 Loving the content in the app!

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Ok content, weak app
- 🐛 Broken
- 🐛 Technical problems trying to cast
- 🐛 Great content, poor streaming
- 🐛 Far fewer courses than before? App VERY buggy

**Reported bugs**

- Login screen freezes
- Incompatible with older devices
- Audio goes out of sync with video
- App constantly logs users out
- Downloading content doesn't work offline

**Requested features**

- Can we get a ton of courses on AI please, it's a mite urgent
- Dark mode option
- Advanced analytics dashboard
- Allow audio-only downloads
- Ability to download an entire course in one go


## Frequently asked questions

### Is TED Talks free?

TED Talks is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is The Great Courses free?

The Great Courses is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, TED Talks or The Great Courses?

The Great Courses is rated higher. TED Talks averages 4.6 out of 5 from 10K ratings, while The Great Courses averages 4.8 from 17K ratings.

### Do TED Talks or The Great Courses have ads?

Neither TED Talks nor The Great Courses shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, TED Talks or The Great Courses?

TED Talks ships an update every 2 weeks, and The Great Courses fortnightly. Most recently, TED Talks was updated on November 10, 2026 and The Great Courses on November 10, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*