10 Best Cartoon Drawing Courses and Certifications Online

Cartoon drawing has become a popular art form over the years, with many aspiring artists seeking to hone their skills in this area. Online courses have emerged as a convenient and accessible option for those looking to learn cartoon drawing from the comfort of their homes. This article explores the best cartoon drawing courses available online, with a focus on the key features, benefits, and drawbacks of each course. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced artist looking to take your skills to the next level, this guide aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the top online cartoon drawing courses to help you make an informed decision.

Here’s a look at the Best Cartoon Drawing Courses and Certifications Online and what they have to offer for you!

10 Best Cartoon Drawing Courses and Certifications Online

1. How to Draw Cute Cartoon Characters by Ben Colefax (Udemy) (Our Best Pick)

The course titled ‘How to Draw Cute Cartoon Characters’ is taught by Ben Colefax and aims to teach students the secrets of drawing cute cartoons quickly and easily. The course has been updated with a new digital drawing section, downloadable practice PDFs, and video lectures. The instructor, Ben Colefax, has been creating cute little characters for many years and has discovered techniques that make it easier to draw cute cartoons. He now shares these techniques to help students discover their love of drawing ‘kawaii’ inspired characters.

The course is suitable for anyone who wants to learn how to draw cute styled cartoons. Whether you are a graphic artist wanting to get back to basics, a traditional artist wanting to expand your skills, a coder or game designer wanting to create your own characters, or simply wanting to surprise your family and friends with a new skill, this course is for you.

As per the instructor, everyone has a basic level of artistic ability, and all that separates the most skilful artists from amateurs is practice, someone to help start you off in the right direction, and passion to keep learning. The course aims to show students exactly what it takes to draw their own cartoons as easy as possible, and the instructor is confident that students will be amazed by how quickly they’ll learn.

The course includes high-definition video lessons that show in detail how to draw cartoons. The cost of the course is equivalent to a few cups of coffee and includes a Udemy Certification of Completion upon completion. Students can try the course risk-free as refunds are accepted by Udemy, although this is barely ever used.

Drawing is a life skill that students can use for their entire life. The instructor shares that few things in life are as touching as giving a friend or family member a hand-drawn card, something that students put effort into. It’s a skill that students can use to create personalized gifts for their loved ones.

2. How to Draw Cute Cartoon Chibi Characters by Ecky O (Udemy)

The course “How to Draw Cute Cartoon Chibi Characters” is taught by Ecky O, an experienced illustrator in the industry since 2002. The course aims to teach students the technique of drawing cute characters in the cartoon chibi style. The course is suitable for all skill levels and offers lifetime skills in creating illustrations in this style.

Chibi is a style that is defined as cute and short. It is a popular drawing style among people of all ages and can be used for various purposes. In this course, students will learn how to create characters that meet the requirements of the chibi style.

The course is open to anyone, from new artists to professionals. With a reasonable price, students can master and learn to create chibi cartoon characters quickly. Upon completion, students will receive a Udemy Certification of Completion, and they have 30 days guarantee. The instructor also offers support to answer questions.

The course content covers various topics, such as character base, head variation, body variation, understanding cute colors, understanding lighting, character creation, new pose, initial sketch, initial sketch: Aquarius, and the rule of third. Bonus lessons on creating cute animals are also included.

Overall, the “How to Draw Cute Cartoon Chibi Characters” course is an excellent opportunity for anyone looking to learn or improve their skills in creating illustrations in the cartoon chibi style.

3. The Ultimate guide to drawing cartoon characters by Maria Avramova (Udemy)

The course titled “The Ultimate Guide to Drawing Cartoon Characters” is designed to help aspiring character designers, illustrators, and parents who want to teach their children how to draw cartoon characters. The course instructor, Maria Avramova, promises to teach a simple technique that will help students unleash their creativity and overcome their fear of failure. The course comprises eight sections, including a bonus video on drawing proportions when posing characters.

In the course, students will learn how to loosen their hand and free their mind through the right technique, which will enable them to draw anything they want. They will also learn the basics of what makes a character look cute, cartoony, or evil. Students will also experiment with different designs to find their unique style and give motion and emotion to their characters.

Additionally, students will learn how to apply facial expressions to their particular character and design and attach the right facial expression to a body posture to make the emotion stronger. The course also covers how to keep the proportions of a character the same in different drawings and how to draw cartoony hands.

The course is divided into eight sections, including “Loosen your hand,” “Draw advanced cartoon character – An Elephant,” “Draw a cat,” “Emotions and Facial expressions,” “How to do a Turnaround and keep the character’s proportions,” “Draw cartoon hands,” and a bonus section on how to draw a cartoony fox. The course promises to help students draw great cartoon characters in no time.

4. Cartoon Drawing For Absolute Beginners by George Grancharov (Udemy)

The “Cartoon Drawing for Absolute Beginners” course, instructed by George Grancharov, is designed to teach individuals how to draw simple and cute cartoon characters quickly and easily. The course is perfect for beginners who want to improve their art skills. Students can learn how to unlock their visual thinking and solve complex visual problems. The course is also suitable for those involved in business, teaching, and coaching.

The instructor aims to break the limiting belief that drawing is a talent and instead prove that everyone can learn how to draw with practice. The course is structured and organized well, making it beginner-friendly. Students can obtain answers to frequently asked questions such as whether talent is required to learn how to draw, what they will learn in the course, and what tools they will need to get started. The course covers a range of topics, including how to draw facial expressions, different hairstyles, backgrounds, and more.

The course is flexible, and students can start with a basic pen and paper or use digital tools like Photoshop. Upon completion of the course, students can apply their skills to a range of projects, including creating comic books, 2D game characters, short movies, and fun blog posts. The instructor has provided proof of students’ success in previous courses, such as creating YouTube channels, using the characters for blog posts, and starting their comic books.

The course includes a 30-day money-back guarantee, and students can access a range of content, including animations, illustrations, digital paintings, and more. The course also teaches visual thinking skills and problem-solving, making it suitable for those involved in teaching and coaching, as well as business. The course content includes an introduction, getting started, building a head, building a body, designing a character, bonus lectures, student feedback series, and a conclusion.

5. Ultimate Beginners Cartooning Course : Basic Characters by Rich Graysonn (Udemy)

The Ultimate Beginners Cartooning Course: Basic Characters is a course designed for beginners who want to learn how to draw cartoon characters for comics, books, games, and illustration. The course is instructed by Rich Graysonn and offers step-by-step guidance to help learners create their own cartoon characters.

The course starts by addressing the common frustration of not knowing where to begin when it comes to drawing. However, with the right instruction, drawing can be taught and learned. The course provides a comprehensive guide that includes feedback and context to guide learners throughout the process.

The course covers various topics, including basic shapes and lines that create cartoon characters, 3D shapes that enhance the quality of cartoons, drawing subjects like hands, feet, hair, and clothing, inking and coloring characters, and adding facial expressions and poses. In addition, the course covers the use of cartoon characters in various media such as comic books, video games, animation, logos, branding, films, television, children’s books, and 2D mobile games.

The course content is divided into three parts. Part one covers basic cartooning, including easy facial features, a simple cartoon body, and how to level up with simple shapes. Part two focuses on action cartoons, including building your own figure, drawing emotions with body language, action poses, and facial expressions. Part three is all about creating characters, including drawing hair, clothes, and final character projects.

The course also includes a bonus mini-course on drawing the human head and an invitation to join the Facebook group. Rich Graysonn has taught over 35,000 students, and learners can enroll in the course to start creating their own cartoon characters.

6. Ultimate Cartoon Drawing: Create Your Own Character by Mitchell Bouchard, Kevin Gardin (Udemy)

The Ultimate Cartoon Drawing: Create Your Own Character course is taught by Mitchell Bouchard and Kevin Gardin. The course aims to help students learn how to draw their own cartoon characters with great detail. The course includes a 9-page PDF workbook that provides swappable cartoon features like hands, feet, eyes, noses, ears, and clothing, as well as 4K HD video lessons and timeless skills. Previous drawing knowledge is not required to take this course.

The course teaches students how to build upon Tommy Toon, an original character introduced in a free course. Students will learn how to draw boys and girls with dynamic hands, feet, and facial features, as well as understand and draw 5 types of fabric folds for clothing their characters. Additionally, the course includes an exercise that demonstrates how to make a cartoon out of anything. The instructor emphasizes that drawing is a teachable skill with rules that apply 100% of the time, and practice is key to success.

The course content is divided into sections such as “Intro,” “Instant Improvement,” “Focus on the Face,” “Cartoon Figure Proportions,” “Getting a Grip on Cartoon Hands,” “Stepping it up with Cartoon Feet,” “Fabric,” “The Tools,” and a bonus exercise called “Create-A-Character Exercise: The King of Diamonds.” The course concludes with a preview of what students can expect to learn and achieve.

The course features 4K HD video lessons with professional-grade production quality and is available at a lower cost than a how-to-draw book. The course is also risk-free, making it an affordable and convenient option for those looking to improve their drawing skills.

7. Digital Painting for Cartoon Characters by Bader Badruddin (Udemy)

The Digital Painting for Cartoon Characters course, taught by Bader Badruddin, covers the fundamentals of drawing and painting cartoon-style characters using Adobe Photoshop. The course is aimed at beginners and progresses to more advanced techniques. Participants must have access to Adobe Photoshop and a pen tablet for their Mac/PC, both of which can be found online. The course includes video demonstrations and speed painting sections, as well as Photoshop files for practice. The course will continue to expand with additional content, based on student feedback. The course is divided into sections covering Photoshop basics, shading, grey scale shading and color, painting from photos, and sketching.

8. Drawing Cartoony Characters by Bader Badruddin (Udemy)

Course Title: Drawing Cartoony Characters
Course Instructors: Bader Badruddin

Short Description:
This course covers the process of designing and drawing cartoony characters in both stylized and classical styles.

Long Description:
Drawing and designing cartoony characters is the focus of this course, which is taught by Bader Badruddin. With nearly 8 years of experience in 2D and 3D animation, Badruddin is well-equipped to present his approach to the subject.

The course begins with a discussion of basic constructions and initial stages of drawing. This is followed by an exploration of techniques that can be applied to any character that students want to draw. Badruddin will then use these techniques to illustrate how to draw characters based on reference materials, and how to design original characters.

9. mangAnimeおひさま塾: Learn Manga Drawing from Japanese Animator ① by Kimiharu Obata (Udemy)

The mangAnimeおひさま塾 course, taught by Japanese animator Kimiharu Obata, teaches students how to draw Manga and Anime characters with proper posture and create compelling storytelling scenes. The course provides learn-anywhere video courses taught by Japanese professionals. Japan is one of the largest producers of animation in the world, with approximately 60% of animations broadcasted worldwide being made in Japan. Anime is based on a variety of art forms with distinctive techniques that have been adapted over time. The production of anime focuses on the animation of movement, realism of settings, and camera effects such as panning and zooming.

Obata-sensei will guide students from the basics of drawing Manga and Anime characters to the skills needed to draw them from scratch. Students will learn the basics of drawing figure forms in various shapes, positions, and postures, including interaction. Additionally, students will learn techniques for shot composition to create storytelling scenes. Videos are subtitled, making the course accessible to non-native Japanese speakers.

The course content is divided into six sections: Manga & Anime Drawing – Body, Hands, Arms and Legs, Posture, Picture Composition, Advanced Posture, and Manga & Anime Anecdote in Japan. The course is suitable for both complete beginners and intermediate level students. Students will gain a deep understanding of the making of anime, from the majestic fighting scenes in Dragon Ball to the amazing character poses of Sailor Moon and the tension in Detective Conan.

10. Cartoon Character Design for Animation by Martin Belvisi (Udemy)

The course titled “Cartoon Character Design for Animation” is taught by Martin Belvisi and aims to teach character design using vector graphics and the free program Inkscape. The course is primarily aimed at beginners who have no previous experience in artistic or vector software.

The course starts with an introduction to Inkscape, which is a free and open-source program for illustration. The first unit delves into the program, and by the end of it, students should be able to draw anything they want.

The second unit of the course deals with character design and focuses on drawing different head features in step-by-step lessons. Students also learn to apply the principles of character design to create nice-looking heads.

The third unit of the course deals with drawing different types of cartoon bodies, and students learn the best methods and techniques to create any character easily using Inkscape’s features.

The last unit of the course focuses on making characters look better by applying line, color, light, and shadows. Throughout the course, students learn character design principles and apply them to create five different characters in step-by-step videos with commentary.

No drawing tablet is required, and the course is taught using real-time videos that are commented on. Overall, it is a suitable course for beginners who are interested in learning cartoon character design using Inkscape.