Search engine optimization underpins the success or failure of hundreds of thousands of businesses around the world. A change in search rankings can equate to hundreds of thousands of dollars in acquired or lost revenue. It is understandable then that SEO certification is important for so many SEO professionals and business owners.
While SEO is important, the practice is shrouded in mystery. Google does not reveal how its algorithm works. A lot of very clever people have spent time trying to deconstruct the way it works. While you can find some of this information online, one of the best ways to get to grips with the topic is through an SEO course.
In this guide, I’ll share some of the best SEO certification courses available online. I’ll start by covering the basics.
What is SEO Certification
SEO certification is given to individuals who complete a course about SEO. The certification is proof that you have the training and skills you need to perform search engine optimization for your business or a company website.
There are no SEO certification courses offered by Google. All of the online courses you’ll find are run by individuals or businesses. You’ll find a mixture of online and offline courses. They are almost all for-profit operations. The courses are mostly aimed at marketing managers, digital marketers, and people looking to set themselves up in a career in SEO.
As you might expect, most courses are expensive. The price range of the courses on this page is between $67 to $2750. The median price point seems to be around $500.
What are the Benefits of SEO Certification?
You will find a lot of great information for free online. In fact, most of the information you’ll get through a course, you could probably find for free if you spend enough time reading about SEO. The best SEO courses teach you all of the important information you need to know through an easy-to-follow syllabus.
Assuming you choose a good course, you can:
- Learn from an SEO expert. Many digital marketing courses are created by SEO experts who know the trade inside out. It beats asking around and getting advice from less credible sources.
- Get an SEO certificate. A good SEO certification course will cover everything you will need to know in your job. Training material will prove to be a valuable resource in the future.
- Upgrade your SEO skills fast. It’s true that all of the information about SEO is out there on the web. However, sifting through all this information will take you a lot of time. An SEO course will help you access the information you require quickly. You’ll learn how to use Google Analytics and other relevant tools, and get strategies you can use to increase your organic traffic.
- Grow your professional network. Many SEO certification courses will give you access to groups of former students. This network can help support your SEO goals and support your professional development.
- Open up new career opportunities. An SEO certification can open the door for a new career or give you that extra “wow” factor when you ask for a promotion. Education is never a cost. It’s always an investment.
Given that digital marketing courses are expensive, you need to be careful when selecting your course.
The 10 Best SEO Certification Courses
Now that you know how an SEO certification can help you get ahead in your career, it’s time to look at the options that are available to you. The table below provides you with a quick overview of some of the best SEO courses around at the moment.
Host | Name Of Course | Cost |
Simplilearn | SEO Training Course | $699 |
Yoast | All-Round SEO Training | $499 |
Reliablesoft | The Complete SEO Course | $67 |
Moz | SEO Essentials Certificate | $595 |
Clickminded | Clickminded SEO Certification | $497 |
MarketMotive | Advanced SEO Certification | $699 |
SEMrush | SEO Fundamentals Course | Free |
Coursera | SEO Specialization | Free |
Bruce Clay | SEO Classroom Training | $2,750 |
Udemy | Complete SEO Training | $199 |
Read the rest of the guide to gain a better insight into each of the courses on the list.
Simplilearn: SEO Training Course – $699
Simplilearn provides courses and offers certification for people looking to grow an online business, or make money blogging. The courses cover topics ranging from project management to digital marketing and, of course, SEO. Essentially, the basics of SEO through to the more advanced theory.
The Simplilearn SEO training course includes over 30 hours of videos. Aside from SEO, you will also learn keyword research, content marketing, and web analytics, making you a more well-rounded SEO professional. You receive your certification once you complete 85% of the course and get a score of 75% on the exam.
The SEO certification course has three price plans. The entry-level course costs $699. There is a blended course at $999, and they also offer corporate training.
Yoast: All-around SEO Training – $499
Yoast is the company behind the most popular SEO plugin for WordPress. They are a reputable company in the SEO community.
Yoast has two premium SEO courses and a bundle offer. The bundle offer is the Yoast Training Subscription, which costs $499 a year. For this, you get access to the Technical SEO Training Course and the Content SEO Training Course. You can purchase either the Content or Technical course individually for $299 a year.
The courses include instructional videos, as well as access to exclusive content from SEO experts. Upon completion of the course, you get an SEO certification and a badge that you can display on your LinkedIn profile.
Reliablesoft: The Complete SEO Course Bundle – $67
Reliablesoft is a digital marketing agency based in the US. The agency has created the Complete SEO Course Bundle. The course bundle comprises four courses; The Complete SEO Course, Ecommerce SEO Course, Keyword Research Course, and the Google Analytics Course.
The bundle contains courses on SEO, ecommerce SEO, Google Analytics, and keyword research, covering almost everything you need to know to practice SEO. At the end of the courses, you get your certification right away.
The courses in the bundle cost $39 individually. The $67 price tag makes it suitable for those who are just starting out with SEO. The course comes with a 60-day money-back guarantee.
Moz: SEO Essentials Certificate – $595
Moz is one of the pillars of the SEO industry. A range of SEO professionals uses Their tool. The company is also behind the Domain Authority score used by SEO companies to determine a website’s credibility with search engines.
When a company like Moz offers an SEO certification, chances are it will cover everything you need to know to get started. The one-off price is $595. For this, you get six hours of instructor-led training and tests. Once you pass the exam, you are qualified for the certificate.
The Moz SEO essentials certificate is not dependent on the company’s Moz Pro tools, so it’s a pretty good introduction to SEO, whatever tools you are planning to use.
ClickMinded: ClickMinded SEO Certification – $497
Over 8.700 startups, entrepreneurs, students, and SEO practitioners have benefited from ClickMinded’s SEO certification course. The company’s client list includes many prestigious academic institutions, non-profits, and businesses.
The ClickMinded SEO course is taught by Tommy Griffith, the former SEO Manager for companies like Airbnb, and Paypal. The course is aimed at people just starting out with SEO but contains information experienced SEO professionals would also find useful.
The Clickminded course costs $497. For this price, you get lifetime access to the course. Moreover, it comes with a 14-day money-back guarantee.
MarketMotive: Advanced SEO Certification Training – $699
If you run a business and find yourself needing help with your SEO, MarketMotive’s Advanced SEO certification training might be for you. The training course has two options: self-paced and online classroom and offers either 30+ hours of self-paced video or 15+ of online classes led by a live instructor.
The course instructor is a well-known figure in SEO and digital marketing and has prepared around 20 cases based on real-life projects where you can learn skills like keyword management, analytics, guest posting, and on-page and off-page optimization.
The price tag is $699 for the self-paced course. The online training course costs $999, which is affordable given there’s a live instructor.
SEMRush: SEO Fundamentals Course – Free
Most SEO professionals know SEMRush as a suite of tools to make keyword research, optimization, and backlinking easier. Now, the company is also signaling its entry into the SEO certification market by offering a free SEO fundamentals course.
SEMRush’s course is designed and delivered by SEO consultant Greg Gilford, who has more than 16 years of experience in the field. The course is composed of eight modules that include on-page SEO, technical SEO, mobile SEO, link building, and local SEO.
If you are contemplating a career shift to SEO or are already doing SEO but would like to learn more and get certified, this is a good entry-level course. Also, did we mention that it’s free?
Coursera: SEO Specialization – Free
If you would like to take an academic approach to SEO, Coursera’s SEO specialization was made for you. This learning path is offered by the University of California Davis and is taught online by a UC Davis professor and a full-time SEO consultant.
Through a series of courses, you will learn the theories behind Google’s search algorithm, on-page and off-page SEO, website audits, and creating an SEO plan that aligns with your business model. The specialization is sequential, which means you have to take the courses in the order that they appear.
In true academic fashion, you will have graded assignments and quizzes with peer feedback, then earn your certification once you complete a Capstone Project. Like with most Coursera courses, you can view the course content free of charge.
Bruce Clay: SEO Classroom Training – $2,750
If you are serious about learning SEO in a classroom setting, nothing beats taking a course taught by an expert. Bruce Clay has been doing search optimization since 1996, at the dawn of the internet. It’s fair to say he’s seen a lot of changes.
The classroom training lasts 4.5 days and is usually taught in southern California. When you complete the course and earn the certification, you also get a 12-month subscription to the SEO ToolSet.
The cost of the course is $2,750. This is a fair price for a live workshop. You will need to visit the website to review the schedule and register for the course.
Udemy: Complete SEO Training – $199
Udemy offers several SEO courses, but the most popular is the 2020 Complete SEO Training. It has had more than 8,500+ students enroll in the class—the average star rating of 4.4/5.
The course includes training on link building, technical SEO, page load speed optimization, and how to implement user experience improvements. You will also learn how to protect your website against negative SEO attacks as well as how to identify bad backlinks. The course gives you access to training material, which includes 17 articles and 8.5 hours of video, on mobile and Smart TVs.
You can access the Complete SEO training for $199 through Udemy. It’s a popular course for the price point.
Wrapping Up
Getting a certification in SEO will benefit you in different ways. If you are looking at a career change or would like to concentrate on SEO, it will look good on your CV. If you already have a job in SEO, it adds to your credibility and could improve the quality of your work.
However, certification alone does not prove anything. You have to apply your knowledge to a real-life project. Not all SEO certification programs include a culminating project, so it’s better if you have a successful SEO project in your portfolio to complement your certificate.
The best SEO certification program for you will depend on what you are looking for in a course. You can choose from expensive (but intensive) classroom training to free online courses. Study the course offering first, read the reviews carefully, and decide for yourself if the training will address any knowledge gaps that you may have.
For more useful resources on Launch Space, check out our guide on how to create a business development plan, important data quality metrics you should monitor, and our guide to the best Grammarly alternatives.