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Courses are translated in the first five. The library speaks all sixteen.

Starvard University · a free university on the internet

A real education. Zero dollars.

286 plain-English courses and 649 classic books, free forever. No applications, no tuition, no deadlines, no debt. The bursar still has not figured out tuition.

Start a free course Browse the library

No sign-up needed. Or come say hi in our Discord.

  • 286 courses
  • 649 classic books
  • library in 16 languages
  • $0 forever
Illustration of the Starvard campus at golden hour
Illustration: the Starvard campus. You can walk it in 3D.

Start here. What do you want?

Pick a goal and we will hand you three good first courses. Every one is free and opens in one click.

Earn more money

1

Business 101

Taught by Leo, the lemonade kid. Twelve lessons, one lemonade stand, everything you need to start.

 2

The Money Index Card

Almost all of personal finance fits on one index card. Mike teaches the simple rules.

 3

AI Agents on a Budget

Start with free tiers, spend your first $20 wisely, and put an AI agent to work this week.

Understand AI

1

How AI Works

Explained in plain English by Dinesh. Words become numbers, numbers become answers. No math degree needed.

 2

AI Prompting 101

Get useful work out of AI instead of fighting it.

 3

Python 101

Write your first program and automate boring tasks. Comes with a certificate quiz.

Get hired

1

Resumes and LinkedIn 101

Get past the filter and into the interview. One sharp page, one strong profile, zero fluff.

 2

Job Interviews 101

Preparation, stories and follow-up that turn interviews into offers.

 3

Career Growth 101

Raises, promotions, and knowing when to leave.

Feel better

1

Habits 101

Small actions, repeated, become your life. Build good ones and break bad ones.

 2

Meditation 101

Sit still, breathe, notice things. A practice that actually sticks.

 3

Health 101

Chadwick's simple guide to eating, moving and sleeping well. No gurus, no gadgets.

Make something

1

Vibe Coding Video Games

Describe the game, the AI builds it, you play and steer it. Your first real video game.

 2

Learn Piano

From your first ten minutes to chords, songs and playing by ear.

 3

Drawing 101

Draw what you see. Twelve lessons on observation, line and shade for absolute beginners.

Cook, fix, grow

1

Cooking 101

Feed yourself well for less money. Kitchen basics, knife skills, meals anyone can make.

 2

DIY Home Repair 101

Painting, drywall, plumbing basics, safe electrical, and knowing when to call a pro.

 3

Gardening 101

Grow things. It is magic and food.

Speak a language

1

Spanish 101

Pronunciation, essential verbs, real conversations and a 90-day plan.

 2

French 101

The same plain-English method, from first sounds to a 90-day plan.

 3

German 101

From first sounds to real conversation.

See all 286 courses →

Six courses worth your weekend

Hand-picked by our editors. Plain English, real lessons, and nothing to buy.

How AI Works course cover
Technology and AI

How AI Works

What the machine is actually doing when it answers you. The course we send every skeptic to first.

Start the course →
 AI Agents on a Budget course cover
Technology and AI

AI Agents on a Budget

The free and low-cost agent tools that do real work, and how to choose one $20 subscription well.

Start the course →
 Habits 101 course cover
Mind and life

Habits 101

How habits form, and how to build good ones and break bad ones.

Start the course →
 Resumes and LinkedIn 101 course cover
Career and craft

Resumes and LinkedIn 101

Get past the filter and into the interview.

Start the course →
 Learn Piano course cover
Arts and wonder

Learn Piano

From your first ten minutes to chords, songs and playing by ear, plus the 99 Days of Piano Challenge.

Start the course →
 Cooking 101 course cover
Home and outdoors

Cooking 101

Feed yourself well for less money, with meals anyone can make.

Start the course →

The Masters Library: 649 classics, explained by Finn

Complete texts, free to read online or download as a PDF. Every book opens with Finn explaining it like you are 10, and many are read aloud by LibriVox volunteers.

Finn, the Starvard guideFinn on Frankenstein
"A young scientist builds a man out of spare parts and brings him to life, then runs away from what he made. The creature is not evil. He is lonely."
From Finn's guide on Frankenstein by Mary Shelley · about 6 hours 28 minutes of reading
Frankenstein coverFrankenstein
🎧 audiobook Meditations coverMeditations
Marcus Aurelius Pride and Prejudice coverPride and Prejudice
🎧 audiobook The Republic coverThe Republic
Plato Hamlet coverHamlet
🎧 full cast A Christmas Carol coverA Christmas Carol
🎧 audiobook
Enter the library Listen instead

How Starvard works

Organized like a real university, minus the gates.

  1. Pick a course

    No application, no account, no payment screen. Click a course and you are in.

  2. Read short lessons

    Most courses are twelve short lessons, opening with the whole course in 60 seconds. Go at your own pace.

  3. Finish and graduate

    Courses end with a graduation section. Five courses carry a certificate quiz you can verify online.

Psychology on videoPaul Bloom, Robert Sapolsky, John Gabrieli and Crash Course, curated in order. Philosophy on videoMichael Sandel on justice, Shelly Kagan on death, and Crash Course to warm up. Computer science on videoStanford's CS106A, MIT's 6.0001 and Crash Course Computer Science.

Plus 10 free tools (budget, loan payoff, compound interest, GPA, sleep cycles and more) and Starvard Research.

Knowledge belongs to everyone

That one sentence is the whole mission. Here is exactly what that means in practice.

Free means free

No tuition, no ads, no paywall, nothing to buy to learn. The store is for fun, not for access.

Built in the open

A small human crew and a team of AI assistants write and check every page.

We get things wrong, and we fix them

Treat courses as a strong start, not professional advice. Rules for money, health and emergencies differ by country. Spot an error? Tell us and we will fix it.

Your progress, your choice

Learn without an account. If you want progress on every device, log in with just a name. There is no password, so pick a nickname.

Starvard is a free, independent project. It is not affiliated with Harvard, Stanford, Yale or MIT. University lecture videos belong to their creators. See our values.

Learn with people, not alone

The Commons is our Discord. Every project below has its own channel where people are building theirs right now.

💬 Your First DiscordYour own server, set up right, with a first bot. 🎬 Your First FilmA real short film, planned in five scenes. 🕹️ Make GamesYour own playable game, live on the web. 🔗 Automate Social MediaYour channels on a system instead of willpower.
Join the Commons on Discord Teach at Starvard