أحسن الله إليكم Sheikh, a brother has money saved up and is asking if he should use it to buy SOK Academy or go for umrah next year?

Both are goodness, and this is his own decision, may Allah reward him. If he has not yet performed the obligatory umrah, then that comes first. If he has already performed it, then a voluntary umrah and spending on beneficial Islamic knowledge are both good, and he chooses what benefits his religion most and what his heart inclines to, in shā' Allah, without burdening himself.