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LinuxCert.Guru vs Sander van Vugt's RHCSA courses

The RHCSA Cert Guide author's video courses and Exam Labs, sold through Pearson IT Certification and O'Reilly.

If you have searched for RHCSA prep for more than ten minutes you have met Sander van Vugt. He writes the Pearson Cert Guide, records the Pearson video courses, and has been teaching Red Hat courses since before RHEL existed. His RHEL 10 course with Exam Labs is the most complete single author-led package you can buy.

LinuxCert.Guru approaches the same exam from the other direction. Instead of lessons that end in an exercise, it is 45 exam-style labs on real RHEL machines that boot in the browser and grade every task when you submit, plus a full-length mock exam reviewed by a person. This page sets the two side by side so you can decide which one, or which combination, fits how you learn.

SASander van Vugt's RHCSA courses
Price
"Red Hat RHCSA RHEL 10 with Exam Labs" video course $559.99 (list $699.99). "RHCSA Exam Labs" on its own $239.99. Also included in an O'Reilly subscription at $49 a month or $499 a year.
Format
Recorded video lessons with an exercise per lesson, a self-grading practice-exam engine you run on your own VM, printed and e-book Cert Guides, and paid personal support packages.
Hands-on labs
On your own virtual machines. The course includes a lesson on building them.
Grading
Partly. The practice exam ships with a self-grading script that reports pass or fail per task on your VM. Lesson exercises are not graded.
Mock exam
Yes. A sample exam modelled on the real one, graded by the included script.
Refund
Pearson and O'Reilly digital-purchase terms apply.
$_LinuxCert.Guru
Price
Free tier. Premium $29/month or $200/year. Premium+ $39/month or $250/year. RHCSA Fast Track $99 for 2 months. Mock Exam $49 per attempt.
Format
Task-based labs on real RHEL machines, PDF slides, mock tests, a proctored-style Mock Exam. No video lectures.
Hands-on labs
Yes. 45 RHCSA labs on real RHEL 10 machines in the browser, plus RHCE, LFCS, LPIC-1 and Linux+ tracks.
Grading
Yes. Every task is checked against the machine's real state when you submit.
Mock exam
Yes. Five in-course mock tests, plus a separate 3-hour, two-node RHCSA Mock Exam reviewed by a person with a report within 72 hours.
Refund
Prorated for the unused part of your plan after the payment-gateway fee is deducted; no refund is for the full amount. Mock Exam attempts are non-refundable. Refund policy

Side by side

Each row marks which option has the edge on that point, or a tie. Across 11 rows: Sander van Vugt 2, LinuxCert.Guru 6, tie 3.

 Sander van Vugt's RHCSA coursesLinuxCert.Guru
What you are buying A complete video course with an exercise per lesson, a self-grading practice exam and the option of a printed Cert Guide. A practice platform: labs, mock tests and a human-reviewed Mock Exam on hosted RHEL machines.
Price $559.99 for the RHEL 10 course with Exam Labs, or $239.99 for the Exam Labs alone. An O'Reilly subscription at $499 a year includes both. ✓Premium $29 a month or $200 a year. RHCSA Fast Track $99 for two months, Mock Exam attempt included.
Instruction ✓Every objective explained on video by the Cert Guide author. PDF slides and lab walkthroughs. No video lectures.
Lab setup You build your own virtual machines. A lesson on virtualisation is included. ✓None. A real RHEL 10 machine boots in the browser in seconds.
Grading The practice exam is graded by a script on your VM. Lesson exercises are not. ✓All 45 labs and five mock tests are graded against the live machine when you submit.
Mock exam A sample exam with a self-grading engine and a pass or fail report per task. ✓A 3-hour, two-node Mock Exam on real machines, reviewed by a person, with a written report within 72 hours.
RHEL version RHEL 10 course and Cert Guide available now. RHEL 10 machines, matching the current exam.
Personal help Paid Silver, Gold and Platinum packages with feedback on practice exams and one-to-one sessions. Discord community support, and written feedback on every Mock Exam task.
Ownership ✓One-off purchase with no recurring charge (or an O'Reilly subscription). Monthly, annual or a two-month pass. Cancel any time.
Try before you pay Free live exam-essentials sessions on YouTube; the course itself needs a purchase or an O'Reilly trial. ✓Free labs on the same machines, the free Skill Check and the cram guide. No card.
Other certifications Separate RHCE, LPIC-1 and Linux+ courses, each sold on its own. ✓Premium+ covers RHCE, LFCS, LPIC-1 and Linux+ labs on one plan.

Prices and features as of 2026-09-19. Competitor details are checked against the vendor's own site on that date and can change without notice; verify on the vendor's site before you buy. LinuxCert.Guru is not affiliated with any vendor named on this page.

Where Sander van Vugt is the better choice

  • You want to be taught by the person who wrote the book, with every objective explained on camera.
  • You prefer a one-off purchase to a subscription.
  • You want paid one-to-one coaching from a named expert in the run-up to the exam.

Where LinuxCert.Guru is the better choice

  • You would rather click "Open lab" than build and maintain two virtual machines.
  • You want every lab graded, not only the final practice exam.
  • You want a full rehearsal on two nodes with a person reading your work, not a script.
  • You are paying for yourself: a year here costs less than half the video collection.
Our take

The Cert Guide and the videos teach the RHCSA; LinuxCert.Guru is where you practise it without building a lab. Many candidates use both: read or watch a lesson, then run the matching labs here until the grader passes every task.

Pick Sander van Vugt if
  • You learn from lectures and want the definitive ones.
  • You already have a VM lab and want the author's exercises for it.
Pick LinuxCert.Guru if
  • You have the Cert Guide or the videos and need somewhere to practise.
  • You want graded repetitions and a mock exam with human feedback.

See the grader for yourself

Free labs run on the same real RHEL machines as paid ones. No card, no time limit.

Start with a free lab See pricing

Questions, answered

Is Sander van Vugt's course available on Udemy or LinuxCert.Guru?
No. His video courses are sold through Pearson IT Certification, InformIT and the O'Reilly learning platform. LinuxCert.Guru is an independent practice platform and has no affiliation with him or with Pearson.
Do I need my own virtual machines for LinuxCert.Guru?
No. Every lab boots a real RHEL 10 machine in the browser and grades your work against that machine. There is nothing to install.
Can I use the Cert Guide with LinuxCert.Guru labs?
Yes. The labs follow the published EX200 objectives, so any chapter-by-chapter guide maps onto them. Read the chapter, then run the labs that cover the same objective.

Sources and related reading

Sander van Vugt has taught Red Hat and Linux courses since the 1990s and writes the Pearson RHCSA Cert Guides (the RHCSA 10 edition was published in 2026). The RHEL 10 video course was published in August 2025. The Exam Labs course is about 4.5 hours of video. Silver, Gold and Platinum personal support packages add practice exams with feedback, questions and one-to-one sessions at prices quoted on request. A free live RHCSA and RHCE exam-essentials series runs on YouTube.

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