Frequently Asked Questions

 The Great Courses Shop is where you can purchase individual courses from a library of over 900 Great Courses. When you buy a course through Shop, it’s yours to keep—no membership required. You can explore, purchase, and watch your courses on The Great Courses website and apps, alongside any memberships or other purchases you may have.

The Great Courses is the streaming home of thousands of hours of engaging courses designed to enrich and improve your life. Academically comprehensive and relentlessly engaging, our courses bring lifelong learners face-to-face with trusted professors and subject matter experts on topics ranging from science and history to philosophy and religion to travel and professional growth. Always ad-free, the Great Courses is the place to experience the pure joy of learning—anytime, anywhere.

Our library is always expanding, with new courses and digitally remastered classics added to The Great Courses each and every month.

Our free trial gives you access to all courses included in your subscription on your mobile device, desktop browser, and TV-connected devices through our apps and website. Once your free trial ends, your credit card will be billed based on the membership plan you’ve selected. If you’d prefer to cancel, simply visit the My Account page and cancel in a few simple steps. If you cancel during your free trial period, you’ll retain access until that period ends and won’t be billed.

A paid subscription gives you streaming access to courses included with that plan, plus downloadable PDFs of course guidebooks or workbooks. The Great Courses Plus offers access to the full course library and includes an extra 20% discount on individual course purchases. Purchasing courses lets you own specific titles with permanent access, whether or not you have an active membership.

A: No, you can only have one subscription active at a time. If you want to start a different subscription, your current membership must be canceled first. For those interested in multiple subscriptions, The Great Courses Plus is the best option. It provides access to all courses across our smaller subscription services for the same price or less than subscribing to two of them individually.

Not immediately. You can switch to a different subscription by canceling your current membership and starting a new one once your paid access ends at the end of your billing period. If you would like to switch to The Great Courses Plus, you can upgrade at any time by clicking HERE

How you cancel, depends on how you signed up.

Via our website:

• - Hover over your name(email) on the top right corner of the page and select "My Account"
• - Click "Cancel membership" located under "Membership Plan Management"

Via iOS App:

• - Open the Settings icon on the iOS device
• - Click on “iTunes and App Store”
• - Tap on Apple ID at the top of the screen
• - Click “View Apple ID”, enter Apple ID password and Sign In
• - Scroll down to the “Subscriptions” section
• - If you have an active subscription created through the iOS app it will appear under the “Active” section.
• - Select the subscription you would like to cancel.

Via Android App:

• - Launch the Google Play Store app.
• - Tap Menu
• - Click on My Apps or Apps
• - Click on Subscriptions and tap on the app of the subscription you’d like to cancel.

Via Roku App:

• - Highlight the channel on your Roku
• - Click the "*" on the remote which is called Options
• - Select "Manage Subscription"

Via FireTV App:

• - Sign into your Amazon account with your Amazon email/mobile phone number and password.
• - Click on Accounts & Lists in the upper right corner.
• - Select Memberships & Subscriptions.
• - Locate subscription you would like to cancel.
• - Click the Cancel Subscription button that appears after your Payment method.

Via website desktop or laptop:

• Log into your account through the website, hover over your name (email) and select My Account.

Via website on mobile browser:

• Tap Sign In at the top right of the screen and sign in.
• Once signed in, tap your name (email) and select My Account.

The My Account section includes:

• Changing your email address
• Resetting your password
• Updating your payment method
• Viewing Billing and Order history
• Accessing Downloads (previous purchases)
• Managing your devices

You can find all of your purchases, eligible downloads, and order history in the Purchased Courses section of the My Account page on this website. You can access My Account from the account menu at the top right of your screen.

Yes. You can gift The Great Courses Plus to anyone, whether they are new or already an active member. CLICK HERE to purchase a gift subscription.

Content from The Great Courses—whether accessed through a subscription or purchased individually—is for personal or private use only. If you’d like to share courses with a group, please contact our customer service team at contactus@thegreatcourses.com

You may opt-out of marketing emails by setting your email preferences on the "My Account" section of the website. You can also unsubscribe using the link at the bottom of any marketing email from The Great Courses.

You can purchase courses and digital transcript books directly on our website. The easiest way is to click SHOP at the top of the site to browse available courses. You can also purchase from individual course pages by selecting the Buy button. Digital transcript books can be added to your course purchase during checkout.

Absolutely. Individual courses can be purchased by anyone, and purchased courses can be streamed anytime, regardless of subscription status. Active Plus subscribers receive an additional 20% discount on all course purchases.

At this time, individual courses cannot be purchased as gifts. However, you can give a gift subscription to The Great Courses Plus that provides unlimited access to all The Great Courses content.

You can review the next billing date and next billing amount from the "My Account" section on our website. You can reach this page via the menu that appears when you hover over your username in the upper right corner of the website. Your next billing date and amount will appear on this page.

To view your payment history:

• If you purchased a subscription through the mobile app for your iOS device
  • Open Settings icon on the iOS device
  • Click your name at the top of the screen
  • Click “Subscriptions”
  • If you have an active subscription it will appear under the "Active" section.
• If you purchased a subscription through the mobile app for your Android device
  • Launch the Google Play Store app.
  • Tap Menu
  • Click on My Apps or Apps
  • Click on Subscriptions and tap on the app of the subscription you’d like to view
• If you purchased a subscription through the Roku app
  • Go to roku.com and sign into your Roku.com account.  Then go to the subscriptions section of your account.

The Teaching Company collects taxes in: AL, AR, AZ, CO, CT, DC, HI, IN, KY, LA, ME, MN, MS, NC, NE, NJ, NM, OH, PA, RI, SD, TN, TX, UT, VT, WA, WI, and WY. Alabama Tax Disclosure statement: Seller has collected the simplified sellers use tax on this transaction(s) and the tax will be remitted on the customer’s behalf to the Alabama Department of Revenue. Seller’s program account number is SSU-R009527647.

In certain states where The Great Courses does not collect or remit sales tax, purchases are not exempt from sales taxes, and purchasers in those states are required to file the requisite sales or use tax returns and directly pay applicable taxes to the states. Additional information may be found on your state’s department of revenue website.

A valid credit card is required to ensure you are a real person and to help mitigate piracy during Free Trial Periods. Your card will not be charged as long as you cancel during your Trial Period. Cancelling during a Free Trial will end your membership immediately. You will not be entitled to another free trial if you join again. We advise cancelling at least 24 hours before the trial ends.

The Great Courses can be enjoyed on mobile devices, desktop browsers, and TV-connected devices through our apps and website. For the best experience, we recommend the following platforms:

Mobile Devices:

• -Android phones and tablets (OS 8 and above)
• -iPhone and iPad (iOS 11 and above)

Desktop Browsers:

• -Chrome
• -Firefox
• -Safari
• -Edge

TV Connected Devices:

• -ROKU
• -Apple TV 4th generation or newer
• -Amazon FireTV

You can watch your previously purchased courses by logging in to your account on The Great Courses website or apps. On the website, click SHOP at the top of the page or visit Shop.TheGreatCourses.com and select My Purchases to access and stream all of the courses you own.

If your purchases were made using the same email address as your current account, they will automatically sync and can be found in My Purchases within My Account when you sign in. If your purchases were made using a different email address, please contact our customer service team at contactus@TheGreatCourses.com, and they can help combine everything into your current account.

You only need one membership. Your account works across all your devices and computers, and we'll keep track of your viewing progress so you can switch devices and pick up right where you left off.