Techdegree VS regular membership?

I'm a Techdegree student (Java Web Development). I started doing just the courses on a normal subscription and later entered the Techdegree program. The programming courses and workshops are the same. What you get in the Techdegree is:

• Additional lectures / advice on career (how to look for a job in the tech industry, CV / cover letter advice, interviews advice, etc.)
• Projects to complete: You have to do them to complete your Techdegree. In those projects you use things you just learned, plus you have to research / build on that to do things that weren't detailed in the course (but that you have enough ability to manage).
• A Slack community to discuss projects and programming questions with other students
• A certificate that you completed the programm

The biggest benefit to me are the projects. Doing them is really good for learning, and building the confidence that you can do stuff even when no teacher is holding your hand and walking you through it. The project requirements fit your current level so you can really put your new skills to the test. I learned a lot from the projects even though I had already completed all the courses. You can't just reuse tutorial code, you have to dig in documentation, ask questions, try things out, debug your app...

I had tried to create my own portfolio project before starting the Techdegree. But I wasn't sure what to focus on. Doing it alone, and trying things when you don't know how complicated it really is for someone your level, can be a bit discouraging. It's a big jump from "code challenges and videos" to "I write my own code".

Now I have a lot more code to show off to employers. For me in Germany, an official certificate is also helpful for the job search.

I'm almost done (final exam scheduled on Monday) and I don't regret it. But of course it's way more expensive.