According to data from the Spanish National Association of e-Learning Centers and Providers (ANCYPEL), the online training sector in Spain generated €2.9 billion in revenue in 2024. This represents a year-on-year increase of 8.5%. This data points to a clear upward trend, and it is estimated that the figure will reach €7.4 billion in 2026.

One of the main factors driving this growth is high demand. In 2025, 27% of Spaniards took online courses, placing Spain fourth among EU countries, according to Eurostat. With such a large audience, an increasing number of businesses have recognized the potential of remote training as a sales strategy that does not require much investment.

In this article, we explain the key aspects to consider when selling online courses in Spain for those interested in adding educational content to their business offerings.

Key takeaways

• There are various types of online courses (e.g., prerecorded, live). The most suitable format depends on the time and financial investment dedicated to preparation.
  
• Selling online courses constitutes a regular professional activity, so it is necessary to register as a self-employed individual or incorporate a company.
  
• Some of the most popular platforms for selling online courses in Spain are Udemy, Hotmart, and ecommerce solutions, such as Shopify.
  
• As a general rule, only live online courses covering regulated subjects are exempt from value-added tax (VAT). Most online training is subject to the general VAT rate of 21%.
  

Main types of online courses to sell

When choosing an online course to sell, it is important to note that the format directly influences the level of involvement, operating costs, and business scalability. Therefore, understanding the differences between different types of online courses is fundamental. Below, we explain the types of online courses to sell in Spain.

Recorded courses

Recorded courses involve educational content captured in multimedia format for students to play back on demand. This allows students to study whenever they prefer. In terms of access, this type of asynchronous training typically follows one of two models: unlimited access or access for a set period of time. The latter is more common when live tutoring is included.

The flexibility of these courses makes them the preferred choice for students in Spain who have less free time for training. According to the Spanish National Statistics Institute (INE), 49.7% of people who engaged in training in the past year—and considered it insufficient—attribute this situation to a conflict with their schedules.

Live courses

In these courses, students and instructors connect simultaneously and interact within the training process. This is similar to in-person training. Because it is broadcast live, this format entails a higher level of engagement. Students often raise questions that need to be addressed in real time.

Bootcamps

Bootcamps are intensive courses—either prerecorded or live—that condense heavy course loads into short periods. They enable the rapid development of the skills needed to update knowledge or enter the labor market as soon as possible. Consequently, they are in high demand in fields that frequently undergo substantial changes, such as tech.

B2B courses

These are training programs designed for companies that invest in improving their employees’ skills and capabilities. There is high demand in Spain for selling online courses to business clients. According to the status report prepared by the Spanish State Foundation for Training in Employment (FUNDAE), nearly 350,000 companies trained more than 5.8 million employees using these types of FUNDAE-subsidized courses in 2024.

How to create an online course

To make selling online courses profitable, it is worth dedicating the time needed to produce high-quality educational content that is in high demand. Here are the required steps:

• Choose a profitable niche
  Research the best-selling online courses in Spain. These tend to be the ones that equip students with the skills most in demand in today’s market. According to Banco Santander, these include skills related to AI, languages, and data-driven decisions. Choosing a profitable niche can increase the likelihood of having a large audience interested in the courses.
  
• Record content
  When recording the content, ensure that the audio and video quality are satisfactory. If budget constraints force prioritization of one over the other, prioritize sound quality. A good practice is to record in quiet, well-lit environments.
  
• Structure lessons
  The best structure is one that keeps students engaged and interested, helping them absorb the material. One of the most widespread structuring methods today—especially among Spanish students with limited time—is microlearning, which involves condensed lessons lasting less than 15 minutes.
  
• Set prices and business model
  To determine the price of the courses, consider the value they provide to students. Lastly, define a business model that ensures economic viability. For example, the freemium pricing strategy includes both free and paid content, which can encourage customer acquisition.
  

Platforms for selling online courses in Spain

Currently, there are multiple platforms used to sell online courses, and they differ significantly. Knowing their advantages and features can help you choose the best option for your business. Here are the most popular ones in Spain.

Hotmart

This platform is ideal for selling online courses without technical expertise. Its AI-based system simplifies course creation and sales with minimal intervention. Hotmart has an office in Spain, which is its second most active market behind Brazil, where it was founded.

Udemy

This platform allows you to create and sell courses featuring videos, text, and slides. In Spain, it has high potential in the B2B sector. For example, 75% of employees at Indra—one of the largest Spanish multinational corporations with more than 60,000 workers—have trained using Udemy Business online courses.

Shopify

With this online selling platform, you can create a website that offers courses and other digital products. Over the past year, nearly 10,000 ecommerce businesses have been created in Spain using Shopify, which has now surpassed 57,000 online stores in the country.

Kajabi

Kajabi offers a mobile app available in the App Store and Google Play. It allows students to access courses anytime and from anywhere. This feature is particularly appealing to students who value flexibility.

In April 2025, Kajabi took a major step by making Kajabi Payments—its payment system built on Stripe technology—available to customers in Spain and 19 other European countries.

Thinkific

Thinkific allows you to create online courses easily using a drag-and-drop system. Furthermore, you can manage all features using the same interface, including subscriptions, payments, invoices, and taxes. Through Stripe, Thinkific allows students to complete the checkout process in just two steps.

Moodle

This online learning system is popular because of its virtual classrooms. It also allows for the sale of online courses via third-party plug-ins. Spain is the country with the most Moodle registrations.

Teachable

This platform allows you to promote courses using tools designed to reach students interested in your educational content. This includes an integration with Mailchimp for developing email marketing strategies. Additionally, the Teachable app allows students to access courses from their devices, even without an internet connection.

Podia

Podia offers highly attractive features for Spanish businesses looking to sell online courses. For example, the presale function is ideal for gauging demand for training programs. In addition, the platform’s Stripe integration helps to simplify payment management.

WordPress

If you decide to sell online courses via a website, you can build it using WordPress—a content management system that allows you to offer paid training courses through plug-ins.

For example, LearnDash—the second most widely used learning management system in Spain—is a plug-in that turns WordPress websites into e-learning platforms for selling online courses through integration with Stripe Connect.

Financial management of online course sales in Spain

Each sale of an online course involves a transaction and corresponding taxes. Below, we analyze the key aspects of the financial management of these transactions in Spain.

How to charge for online courses in Spain

With remote training, payment methods vary depending on the nature of the course and how it is marketed. For example, customers purchasing prerecorded online courses for self-paced study tend to opt for one-time payment methods, such as card payments. On the other hand, installment plans are more common for high-priced regulated training programs.

In contrast, when the course library is extensive and the student gains access to all courses—or to new training programs released regularly—recurring payments are more popular than one-time payments.

Regardless of the nature, quantity, or frequency of the courses, Stripe helps you accept payments and manage taxes. You can accept one-time payments using Stripe Payments—an advanced ecommerce payment gateway that is intuitive, secure, and compliant with the strictest payment regulations. Payments gives customers an efficient checkout experience by allowing them to use their preferred ecommerce payment methods.

On the other hand, if you offer courses via a subscription model, Stripe Billing is a useful solution. You can create training plans, implement trial periods, manage each subscription, and automate billing cycles.

How to handle taxes for online course sales in Spain

It is important to determine whether the sale of a course is exempt or subject to the general value-added tax (VAT) rate of 21%. Spanish legislation distinguishes between electronically provided services and teaching services. Below, we examine each service type.

Services provided electronically

According to Article 69 of Law 37/1992, the sale of online courses is considered an electronically supplied service subject to 21% VAT, provided it meets the following conditions:

• Training content is delivered electronically
  
• The remote teaching method is automated
  

Regulation (EU) No. 282/2011 clarifies that automated operation requires little or no human intervention. This raises questions about what level of intervention allows for the application of the VAT exemption. In this regard, binding rulings V0440-17, V0507-18, and V0581-15 clarify that the sale of prerecorded online courses—as well as guides or other training-related texts—always constitutes the supply of electronic services.

As they are automated, they are not regarded as teaching services, not even when tutoring is offered to address students’ questions. This is because tutoring is considered an ancillary element to accessing the training content. Ultimately, the primary service of online courses is the supply of digital information. Therefore, these cases are considered electronic services.

Teaching services

When content is delivered by an instructor electronically, remotely, and live, the sale of online courses is considered a teaching service that can be exempt from VAT, pursuant to Article 20.1.9 of Law 37/1992. Regulation (EU) No. 282/2011 complements this rule by establishing the criteria that distinguishes a teaching service from an automated electronic service.

VAT exemption is applied based on the training type:

• Regulated training
  When an online course covers subjects that are part of the official Spanish curriculum and are delivered by an authorized center, the training is considered regulated. Therefore, it is exempt from VAT, provided the instruction is not recreational in nature. For example, although music is a regulated subject, if a student studies it for leisure purposes, the course is considered recreational and subject to 21% VAT.
  
• Unregulated training
  All online courses covering subjects not included in the Spanish curriculum are considered unregulated training and are subject to the general VAT rate.
  

Below, we provide a summary of the most common course types and their corresponding VAT.

How to sell online courses in Spain to international customers

Online courses sold by Spanish companies are in high demand among foreigners. According to the Spanish National Commission for Markets and Competition (CNMC), the education sector ranks sixth among the business activities with the highest ecommerce sales involving EU customers.

When offering e-learning products to international customers, there are several features to consider.

Payments in different currencies

If you sell online courses to customers outside the EU, it is important to display prices in the customers’ local currencies. Otherwise, the cart abandonment rate is likely to increase because many customers are unwilling to perform currency conversions or incur potential bank fees.

With Stripe Payments, you can accept payments in over 195 countries with prices in the local currency. Even if payments are issued in other currencies, Payments allows you to receive funds in euros, which simplifies accounting management and improves payment authorization rates.

Digital VAT management

If you decide to expand your business outside of Spain and reach students worldwide, you will face a significant challenge with managing the various tax obligations of international markets.

With Stripe Tax—Stripe’s tax automation tool—you can automatically calculate and collect VAT, sales tax, and goods and services tax (GST) in over 100 countries. Here is the list of excluded territories.

Common errors when selling online courses

To improve the profitability of your online courses, it is necessary to follow best practices. Otherwise, you could experience a loss of students, time, and profits. Below, we provide the most common mistakes to help you avoid them.

Overly basic web hosting plans

While selling online courses typically entails low costs, there is one area to consider investing in: web hosting. To ensure optimal loading speeds, choose a hosting provider with servers located in Spain or nearby countries. It is also important to sign up for a plan with high storage and transfer capacity, especially if you sell high-quality prerecorded online courses.

Complex purchasing and access processes

Requiring excessive information from students carries a higher risk of violating the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), in addition to creating friction in the checkout process. To reduce these risks, increase efficiency as much as possible by simplifying registration and ensuring that the courses are accessible immediately after purchase.

Failure to invest in marketing

Profit margins on online course sales tend to be high. However, some businesses try to maximize profits by cutting extra costs. In this regard, failing to invest in marketing can be counterproductive. Because of the high level of competition in this sector in Spain, investing in effective promotional strategies is required to stand out from the competition and boost sales.

FAQs about selling online courses in Spain