EconLearn vs Marginal Revolution University
MRU is one of the most serious free economics resources on the internet. Its Principles of Microeconomics course alone runs 94 lessons, 88 quizzes and 16 interactives with a certificate of completion, taught by working economists, and it is free. It is sequenced as a college principles course: the sections run Introduction, Supply Demand and Equilibrium, Elasticity, Taxes and Subsidies, The Price System, and onward through Asymmetric Information and Consumer Choice. EconLearn is sequenced to the AP CED instead.
| EconLearn | Marginal Revolution University | |
|---|---|---|
| Sequencing | AP CED order, mapped to topic codes, so a unit maps to a unit | College principles order, following textbook structure |
| Depth of theory | AP and IB depth, with the maths behind the results named and linked | College-level, taught by working economists, and genuinely deeper on several topics |
| Graph work | 17 draggable sandboxes and 111 scenarios where the diagram you draw is graded | 16 interactives across the micro course, alongside video and quizzes |
| Volume of lessons | 24 CED-mapped modules plus a 624-term glossary | 94 lessons and 88 quizzes on micro alone, with a certificate at the end |
| Cost | Free for students, no account | Free |
| Beyond intro | AP, IB, A-Level and on-level high school economics | Econometrics, development economics and money skills courses too |
Where EconLearn wins
- ✓ Built to the AP CED, so you never have to work out which college chapter matches which AP unit.
- ✓ Graph drawing that is actually graded, which is the skill the AP free-response section is built on.
- ✓ Worked answers to the released 2025 and 2026 AP free-response questions.
- ✓ Covers IB Economics and A-Level as well, from the same set of diagrams.
Where Marginal Revolution University is strong
- • 94 lessons, 88 quizzes and 16 interactives on microeconomics alone, all free, with a certificate of completion.
- • Taught by working economists, with real depth on topics an AP course only touches.
- • A teacher hub with lesson plans, unit plans and assessments, including videos mapped to common textbooks.
- • Courses well beyond principles, including econometrics and development economics.
The honest verdict
If you are sitting an AP exam in May, work from EconLearn and use MRU when you want a topic explained more deeply than the CED requires. If you are learning economics for its own sake, or teaching a course you control the sequence of, MRU's depth is hard to beat and it costs nothing.
EconLearn vs Marginal Revolution University: common questions
Is Marginal Revolution University good for AP Economics?
It is excellent economics, and free, but the courses are sequenced as a college principles course rather than to the AP CED, so an AP student maps MRU topics onto AP units themselves. MRU's teacher hub does carry AP-oriented material. For CED-ordered study and graph practice, EconLearn is built for that directly.
Which has better graph practice, EconLearn or MRU?
EconLearn, for the specific skill the AP exam tests. MRU's micro course includes 16 interactives alongside its video and quizzes. EconLearn has 17 draggable sandboxes covering every CED diagram and 111 draw-the-graph scenarios where the diagram you draw is marked on whether the correct curve moved.
Are both free?
Yes. MRU is free, including the certificate of completion. Every student feature on EconLearn is free with no account required, and that does not change later.